#BoxOffice #Domestic #China #movie #business
China beat North America as the world’s Top moviegoing market for the 1st time. But, no country was spared as global box office revenue fell at lease 72%% including a 70% decliner in China.
The official numbers are in and North American box office revenue dove 80% in Y 2020 during The China Virus chaos and massive cinema closures, the global revenue fell 72%.
Domestic movie tickets sold between 1 January through 31 December 2020 generated an estimated $2.68-B compared to $11.4-B in Y 2019, according to Comscore estimates. That is the lowest showing in at least 40 yrs. The dramatic fall-off was expected, considering that many cinemas have been closed for more than 9 months in the US.
Worldwide, Y 2020 movie ticket sales are expected to come in between $11.5 to 12-B, compared to Y 2019’s $42.5-B.
No country was spared from the impact of The China Virus.
The China box office was down 70% from Y 2019’s take of about $9-B even while it rebounded faster than the US and EU.
The vast majority of Hollywood’s Y 2020 tentpoles have been delayed to this year and beyond, or sent/sold to streamers.
COVID-19 has marked a frame of reckoning for studios and exhibitors.
WarnerMedia (NYSE:T), whose empire includes Warner Bros., is opening its Y 2021 movies day and date on HBO Max and in cinemas, much as Wonder Woman 1984 did over Christmas.
And Universal (NASDAQ:CMCSA) struck a historic deal with major theater chains that will make its titles available on premium VOD 17 days or more after they open in cinemas.
“The movie business will be forever changed no doubt, but movie theaters will be ready for their closeup and as things slowly return to some semblance of normal, they will star in an uplifting sequel of their own,” says Comscore’s Paul Dergarabedian. “2021 will be arguably the most important year in the history of the big screen, and one that will bridge the gap between a devastating 2020 that tragically affected so many people and impacted so profoundly many brick and mortar businesses.“
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