Vue has purchased the second-largest cinema chain in the Netherlands in a $97 million deal.

JT Bioscopen

UK theatre chain Vue Cinemas, the fourth-largest cinema chain in the world in terms of box office revenue, has acquired Dutch company JT Bioscopen, the second-largest chain in the Netherlands, in a deal worth $97 million.

JT has 21 cinemas and 111 screens across 20 locations in the Netherlands, including two premium Dolby Cinema sites at Eindhoven and Hilversum. This boosts Vue’s total number of cinemas to 209, with 1,859 screens, in 10 countries across Europe.

The move means Vue has overtaken Cineworld in terms of total number of sites across Europe to become the second largest cinema chain behind Odeon.

The deal is Vue’s fourth purchase in the past three years, with the company’s acquisition of Italy’s largest cinema chain Space Entertainment in November 2014 following deals for the UK’s Apollo and Germany and Denmark’s CinemaxX in 2012, as well as Poland’s Multikino in 2013.

“This acquisition signals our commitment to owning, managing and developing the highest quality cinema assets around the world. Our ambition is to be the best in big screen entertainment and to be at the forefront of technological development,” said Vue’s CEO Tim Richards.