January 4, 2008

How long does it take to catch on?

At least/last, they admit it...
http://www.imdb.com/news/sb/2007-12-28#film4

Studios Lift Revenue

Hollywood studios are expected to report a grand total of $9.7 billion in ticket sales for 2007, a rise of about 4 percent from last year, according to Media by Numbers. But the box-office tracking service noted that gains were due to higher ticket prices, not increased admissions. Moreover, it was only in the past several weeks that the box office posted significant gains, with such movies as I Am Legend and National Treasure pushing weekly sales 30 percent or more above last year's. "Those movies really turned things around, giving us a nice boost at the very end of the year," Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers, told Reuters. Total admissions for the year remained flat at 1.42 billion, down significantly from the 1.6 billion posted in 2002.

At least the figures are taking into account the inflation provided by the holiday movie-going habits of all us 'regular folk'. Also, I like that this blurb also acknowledges that while the numbers look good, they are not as good as they look. Finally, some recognition of the rising price to go sit in the cinema.

It occurs to me that the increasing cost of going to the movies (much less getting a snack once you are there) is headed the same direction as airline ticket prices; 'if you raise it, they will fail to come.' I am not going to pay more with greater frequency folks; this is a self-fulfilling prophecy with the end result that theater-goers are going to reach their limit (both in terms of finances and patience) and wind up staying home. Blockbuster Online is a pretty good deal (even though they just raised their prices for the second time in about 4 months!), and is beginning to look even better given that I can indulge my guilty pleasure; TV-on-DVD!

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