Phone use doesnt seem to be an issue anymore in my city. Ive been to the theater on opening weekend 3 times this year and Ive never seen more than 10 people at my movie. And with assigned seating, no one even chooses seats near another person. The biggest draw to going to the theater these days is how empty they are. They solved the biggest issue, other people!

I think a fair question then would be what you actually love about them. Theaters do boast large screens with high image quality, but compared to a large flat screen you can have at home (where you can select your own seat) the difference diminishes. They also boast high audio quality. But as we all know, the audio quality is only great at a few seats in the center. You can certainly create an audio setup at home for not that much money that rivals the actual experience at the average seat.

There are other reasons people like movie theaters: the inability to pause the movie, nostalgia, the gathering of many people to engage in the same experience. Many of these are, to me, almost inseparable from expensive popcorn and inconsiderate behavior, which movie goers have been lamenting almost since the invention of the motion picture.