RealD founders Michael V. Lewis, left, and Josh Greer inside a theater at RealD Inc. The Beverly Hills company is expanding its presence in China. (Photo: Ken Hively / latimes.com)
RealD Inc., the Beverly Hills supplier of 3-D equipment to movie theaters, is expanding its business in China.
The company said Monday that it had signed an agreement to supply 3-D equipment for 100 screens in the Womei Theater Chain in China.
The deal is the latest in China for RealD, whose systems are currently available on 850 cinema screens in China with an additional 2,000 screens committed for future installation. RealD has more than 20,700 screeens worldwide.
"The Chinese cinema box office continues to grow at a record rate while the appetite for 3-D by Chinese moviegoers remains among the highest in the world,'' said Edman Chan, general manager of Asia for cinema at RealD.
Womei, which currently operates 33 movie auditoriums in China, plans to open 200 theaters and 1,000 screens in the next five years.
"Our cooperation with RealD represents a perfect combination between the leading global 3-D technology and a five-star level cinema,'' Womei said in a statement.
RealD announced the news on the same day it reported a $4.2-million loss in the fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 21, compared with a profit of $18.9 million for the second quarter of fiscal 2011. Revenue dropped to $55 million in the second quarter, compared with $88 million a year earlier.
The company cited tough comparisons with a year earlier, when RealD had "exceptional contributions" from the Harry Potter and Transformers movies.