IMAX Thinks Big in China

The world's most populous nation apparently likes its cinematic experiences equally as gargantuan.

IMAX (Nasdaq: IMAX  ) will be teaming up with country-owned China Film Group to open a theater in Shenzhen next year -- with plans for a Ningbo location come 2012. IMAX is never short on these country-specific press releases, but add it all up and IMAX now expects to have 67 screens operating in China by 2014.

This is a substantial number, given that exhibitors are currently operating 447 IMAX screens in 47 different countries. If stateside investors approach Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM  ) as a way to play China's booming economy given the mainland success of KFC, IMAX should at least enter into the conversation of leisure plays on Chinese growth.

China takes its entertainment seriously. China Digital (NYSE: STV  ) is the country's leading smart-card maker, cashing in on the migration from analog to digital television that will be completed in five years. Focus Media (Nasdaq: FMCN  ) runs a network of LCD screens that broadcast sponsored messages in heavily trafficked places. It's only natural to expect a country that's 1.3 billion strong to embrace IMAX's enhanced platform, especially now that original Chinese movies are being remastered for the format.

IMAX isn't the only way to play the global success of premium celluloid. Sound specialist Dolby (NYSE: DLB  ) and leading 3-D technology licensor RealD (NYSE: RLD  ) are obvious beneficiaries, and investors can buy into RealD for just a little more than this summer's IPO price. Dolby is well loved around Fooldom, garnering the highest five-star rating in Motley Fool CAPS

However, I'm still fond of IMAX -- and not just because I recommended it to Motley Fool Rule Breakers subscribers when it was still in the single digits a couple of years ago. After years -- decades, really -- of waffling about, IMAX is finally starting to come into its own. Movie studios now see IMAX as a huge ally in boosting box office receipts, and the fact that its global reach grows with every passing quarter only makes it that much more desirable.

Analysts expect earnings to pop tenfold this year to $0.90 a share. The success of News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWSA  ) Avatar has helped, but the best kept secret in Tinseltown is that Wall Street's pros think IMAX will earn even more next year.

IMAX is here to stay. Given the company's globetrotter ways, it appears to be everywhere to stay.

Would you be willing to pay an IMAX premium to see a movie? Please share your perspective in the comment box below.