(CBS) Those ads that run before feature films are a big turnoff to many moviegoers, reports Laurie Hibberd on The Early Show.

"I rush to the theater to get a good seat and then I have to watch the ads," one patron complains to Hibberd.

"I didn't pay money to sit and watch commercials," another gripes.

"We hate it; we want it to stop!" exclaims yet another.

And these people aren't alone.

Cinema ads and previews bothered one Connecticut state representative so much, he decided to do something about it.

Andrew Fleishman says he "put in a bill that would simply require movie theaters to tell the truth – that when they're advertising or creating a listing, that they let us know not just when the previews and ads start, but also when the feature film begins."

But, notes Hibberd, that might defeat the purpose, which is to get the audience to watch the commercials.

It's big business for theater owners, almost $400 million a year, and, according to the Cinema Advertising Council, the ads can help keep ticket and popcorn prices down.

"It's not that long ago that we had exhibitors in Chapter 11," points out council president Matthew Kearney, "and it's obviously in everyone's best interest to see the movie industry healthy and having a healthy exhibitor industry is obviously a key part of it."

But Fleishman says he feels ripped off: "It's not fair to us. We've turned into a captive audience. We're not given a choice to skip those commercials if we want to."

Nonsense, responds Kearney: "Captive implies that they are chained or manacled to their seats, which of course is not the case. People can arrive slightly later if they want to miss the ads."

But, Hibberd points out, not if they want to get a good seat.

"Well, if you want to get a good seat, that's one of the big things about the movies," Kearney says. …"And most people, if you ask them the question. 'What would you rather have -- a blank screen or something up on the screen' -- they say well, 'We'd rather have something up on the screen.' "

Indeed, a recent poll suggests that a majority of moviegoers don’t mind the ads.

This may be because advertisers are spending big money to give added value to the commercials.

"Advertisers get it," Kearney observes. "They know that, if their ad is on a 40-foot screen, they want to make it entertaining; they want to make it high quality, because they want to get their brand associated with good things."

That was certainly what Chanel was thinking when it made its first foray into cinema advertising, a multimillion dollar spot directed by Baz Lehrman and starring Nicole Kidman.

Chanel Vice Chairman Arie L. Kopelman says, "The whole idea was, from the very outset, Baz Lehrman said, 'I want to create a small movie. Look at this as a movie. Think film. Do not think commercial.' "

Other cinema advertisers seem to be following suit, wanting to please audiences, not alienate them.

"If it's not something that has a little magic to it, I think it can hurt a brand, because people aren't going to the movies to watch television commercials. So if it's great and unexpected, they'll say, 'Wow, that's cool.' If its not, then I think it's annoying and people will react that way."

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