Mastercard Welcomes Emperor Group to Priceless Planet Coalition to Support the Development of Hong Kong as a Sustainable Smart City

Leading local conglomerate Emperor Group joins hands with Mastercard’s reforestation initiative,
with Emperor Cinemas to donate HK$2 for every movie ticket purchased online

Mastercard today announced the expansion of its partnership with Emperor Group, who becomes the latest partner to join Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition – a platform that unites companies, communities and consumers in climate action and now includes more than 110 partners globally, including sustainably minded merchants, fintechs and banks. In honor of the Group’s 80th anniversary this year, the expanded collaboration will enable moviegoers to enjoy a seamless e-ticketing experience while also giving back to the community by making it easier to act sustainably through digital purchases.

Building on the successful partnership that began last year through the Priceless Hong Kong initiative, part of Mastercard’s global destination marketing program; the two companies are elevating their partnership by collectively contributing to climate action. Starting from September, HK$2 will be donated for every ticket purchased using Mastercard cards via Emperor Cinemas’ e-ticketing system in Hong Kong and Macau, supporting the Coalition’s goal of restoring 100 million trees globally by 2025.

As a homegrown business that is dedicated to supporting the community, including through its ongoing charity work and youth development initiatives, Emperor Group has been taking action on sustainability in various ways. It was the first local cinema group to introduce an online service fee waiver to encourage the use of online ticketing and e-admission, which has transformed consumers’ cinema ticket-purchasing habits since 2017.

The introduction of the e-ticketing system matched a growing trend of digitalization and a shift to more environmentally friendly paperless options. When the Group first launched the service five years ago, on average 80 percent of Hong Kong moviegoers bought tickets in person at the counter while only 20 percent of them chose to purchase movie tickets online. With the opening of Emperor Cinemas’ 8th cinema at Times Square, Causeway Bay in December 2021, this balance has reversed, with e-ticketing and online purchases now averaging 70 percent, and only around 30 percent buying physical tickets. The ratio of online ticket purchases even reaches as high as 90 percent during peak periods.

Mastercard shares the same vision of enhancing and enabling the digital lifestyles of local consumers. With its pledge to connect 1 billion people to the digital economy by 2025, Mastercard’s innovative digital payment solutions enable local businesses to provide fast, safe and secure digital payment choices for consumers. This gives merchants and cardholders the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint while also contributing towards the development of Hong Kong as a sustainable smart city.

Alex Yeung, Vice Chairman, Emperor Group, said, “The importance of sustainable development to Emperor Group is rooted in its 80-year history as a homegrown conglomerate, and has been further strengthened by the belief in the importance of conservation among staff members of the Group. This collaboration with Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition complements the Group’s sustainability roadmap, and we look forward to accelerating our contribution to climate action and advocating for responsible approaches to development through this tree-restoration initiative.”

Helena Chen, Managing Director, Hong Kong and Macau, Mastercard, said, “The expanded partnership with Emperor Group reinforces Mastercard’s long-term commitment to supporting local businesses, not only through assisting their business growth, but also in opening up more opportunities for them to contribute to sustainable development. Through the Priceless Planet Coalition and collective climate action, this collaboration embodies Mastercard’s motto of ‘Doing Well by Doing Good’ and facilitates the development of Hong Kong as a smart city with an inclusive and sustainable digital economy.”

Mastercard launched the Priceless Planet Coalition in January 2020 with a focus on reforestation projects globally. Each partner helps fund forest restoration through consumer engagement and donation campaigns that encourage people to take climate-friendly actions or make direct contributions through a donation platform. Guided by its restoration partners – Conservation International and the World Resources Institute – the Coalition employs science-based best practices to identify new project sites, select appropriate tree species and ensure long-term forest health through a 5-year monitoring period, as well as provide economic opportunities for local communities.

This year, 15 new sites around the world, including in Hainan province in China, were added for new reforestation projects to increase forest cover, help protect biodiversity, safeguard ecosystem services, and increase climate resilience for nature and local communities.

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