Category: media

“Movie theater attendance in the U.S. and Canada is down a staggering 20 percent so far this year from 2010′s numbers — and 2010′s numbers were down 5 percent from the year before. How to account for the ongoing slump?”

“Heavy-handed enforcement of copyright is not the answer when your real goal is to persuade people to buy digital goods and services. To encourage people to part with their money, you have to demonstrate that you have a service worth paying for – as Spotify, Lovefilm or iTunes already do.”

“Overall, the 2010 international box office increased 13% to $22.1 billion. Half of the top 20 films were directed by non-American directors with roles for more international stars, appealing to a worldwide audience.”

The station dropped its PBS afilliation in January in a dispute over dues. “KCET’s ratings have plunged without its familiar schedule. And individual donations — the lifeblood of any public broadcaster — have taken a sharp hit as well. March pledge drives raised much less money than expected, according to a station insider who spoke on condition of anonymity.”

“Movie theaters represent a social art form you can’t get on an iPhone and you can’t get on the TV…. Man is a social animal — we want to enjoy things together. And that’s what a theater is.”

“It’s the best-of-times, the worst-of-times as local TV climbs out of the economic morass of 2009. The long-term trend is down, but revenue increased last year, even as ratings continued to drop.”

While audiences have outright rejected such recent movie offerings as “Mars Needs Moms,” “Sucker Punch” and “Take Me Home Tonight,” even hits like Justin Bieber’s “Never Say Never,” “The King’s Speech” and “Battle: Los Angeles” pale in comparison with the early 2010 blockbusters “Avatar” and “Alice in Wonderland.”

“Facebook’s challenge to Netflix, the dominant player in digital film distribution, has been turned up a notch with Warner Bros’s announcement that five more films will be added to its stream-for-hire service on the social networking site.”

Several weeks ago, “Time Warner Cable started streaming several dozen TV channels to customers’ iPads. Immediately, channel owners like Viacom and Scripps Networks seized on the streaming capability as a contract violation – in part because they want cable companies to pay them more for the privilege to stream.”

“In his own nonfiction films, Herzog wants to tell stories and he doesn’t feel beholden to fact. … Just because something is factually true, he argues, ‘it does not constitute truth per se.’ Herzog likes to respond to and collaborate with his subjects; if he bends fact – by inventing dialogue, for instance – it is to the ends of ‘truth’.”