Sunday, March 01, 2009

Despite Downturn, The Movie Industry is Booming

LOS ANGELESHollywood could get used to this recession thing. While much of the economy is teetering between bust and bailout, the movie industry has been startled by a box-office surge that has little precedent in the modern era. Suddenly it seems as if everyone is going to the movies, with ticket sales this year up 17.5%, to $1.7 billion, according to Media by Numbers, a box-office tracking company.

And it is not just because ticket prices are higher. Attendance has also jumped, by nearly 16%. If that pace continues through the year, it would amount to the biggest box-office surge in at least two decades.

2 Comments:

At 3/02/2009 1:30 AM, Blogger DaveinHackensack said...

How many of the tickets were for matinees? With rising unemployment, there are more people free during the day.

 
At 3/02/2009 4:22 PM, Blogger OBloodyHell said...

> And it is not just because ticket prices are higher. Attendance has also jumped, by nearly 16%. If that pace continues through the year, it would amount to the biggest box-office surge in at least two decades.

This is hardly surprising. It's been the case for every sharp downturn since the Depression.

"Escape" from one's troubles usually sells best when there are lots of troubles.

 

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