A regulatory crackdown promoting online privacy makes in-house consumer lists more valuable, because of restrictions on similar lists if compiled by third parties. That drives Hollywood to marketing lists plucked from exhibitor rewards/loyalty programs — like the Marcus Theatres slide pictured — and film distributors' direct-to-consumer initiatives. Granular consumer data — … [Read more...] about Movies Embracing In-House Data Amid Crackdown
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Audience Data Shifts to Predictive
Consumer research juggernaut Nielsen is offering a new research product Audience Predict that forecasts potential audience sizes for entertainment programming in various distribution scenarios. The goal is to help media companies charts paths for their rolling out their content. Audience Predict is from Nielsen’s Gracenote unit, which tracks content online using metadata — … [Read more...] about Audience Data Shifts to Predictive
Female Demo Lags in Cinema Rebound
Cinema-going is bouncing back but one troubling trend is apparent. The female demographic — particularly older women — are not returning to movie theaters at their prepandemic proportion. And it remains to be seen if female underrepresentation is only temporary or permanent, which would be a blow to the cinema industry. Females accounted for 51% of the population, but only … [Read more...] about Female Demo Lags in Cinema Rebound
Popcorn Films Pop in Pandemic
Recovering cinema-going in the U.S./Canada is being led by films in genres attracting the youth demographic, according to a Variety analysis. On the other hand, titles catering to older audiences have languished, which is no surprise because the pandemic hits oldsters hardest, keeping them cautious about mingling with crowds like cinema audiences. “Much of this year’s bounty … [Read more...] about Popcorn Films Pop in Pandemic
BO Reporting Going Underground Again?
One little-appreciated outgrowth of pandemic-related “the new normal” is that reporting boxoffice grosses immediately and publicly has become irregular. For about a quarter century previously, industry allowed cinema ticket sales revenue to be publicly announced quickly, though it’s little remembered that previously those figures were confidential (explained further … [Read more...] about BO Reporting Going Underground Again?
Researchers Track Film Audiences Across Media
Two industry research giants are expanding their data offerings that will immerse Hollywood with more insights about consumer viewing of movies across multiple media platforms. Comscore and Nielsen both announced separate film initiatives this month. Comscore unveiled its Movies Everywhere service for “a new reporting system to track box office movies performance across all … [Read more...] about Researchers Track Film Audiences Across Media
Virus Costs Cinema $32bn, But Rebound Forecast
Global boxoffice revenue will decline $32 billion due to Covid-19 closures, representing a 71.5% plunge, estimates a London-based researcher that is nonetheless upbeat about a healthy though not complete rebound in two years. Omdia Research’s latest syndicated report "Movie Windows: Adapting for the Future” forecasts 2020 global boxoffice will amount to just $13 billion, for … [Read more...] about Virus Costs Cinema $32bn, But Rebound Forecast
Global P&A Often Surpasses Production Cost
Deadline.com's annual analysis of single-picture profit/loss indicates marketing costs continue climb and often surpass the production expense of major-studio films. The reality of surging marketing costs runs counter to some (ill-conceived) predictions that social media and other online media would replace costly TV advertising (ill-conceived because wide-reach TV is need to … [Read more...] about Global P&A Often Surpasses Production Cost
Biometrics Researcher Gets Hollywood Funding
A neuro-analytics startup, which is hired by Hollywood movie studios to conduct exotic audience research, bagged $13.5 million in venture-capital funding from an impressive list of investors. The company, Spark, received early Series A investments from former Disney chief Michael Eisner, actor Will Smith, and Silicon Valley financier Peter Thiel. “The New York-based company … [Read more...] about Biometrics Researcher Gets Hollywood Funding
Disney Researches Biometric Audience Reactions
Walt Disney Co. is analyzing facial reactions from movie-house audiences to divine consumer response and assemble data quickly so it is actionable, according to an article in Fast Company. Movie-audience testing goes back a century, of course, where consumers tell researchers their feelings. More recently, testing rack physical reactions like smiles, frowns and eyes opening … [Read more...] about Disney Researches Biometric Audience Reactions