Hollywood’s financial future is scarier than anything shown on the big screen.
Attendance at the movies last year was the lowest since 1995, and per-person attendance fell to a 25-year low — in particular among younger consumers who frequent the cinema most often, a new report shows.
More home entertainment options, better gadgetry and a shrinking theatrical-release window were among the reasons given by Goldman Sachs analysts Drew Borst and Fred Krom.
Even more frightening, rising ticket prices — the lone driver of box-office revenue growth for the past decade — may be slowing as fans opt out of higher-priced formats such as 3D. Since January, 3D ticket sales have dropped from 45 percent to 34 percent of the box office.
“An ongoing decline in the popularity of 3D would be a headwind on average prices and the overall box office.”
Back in 2002, the average moviegoer went to the theater eight times a year; last year, it was fewer than six. In particular, younger viewers are going to movies less often. Attendance per person for consumers ages 12 to 24 is down 40 percent since 2002.
“As far as teens go, they are just becoming more savvy, it takes more effort to get them,” said Phil Contrino of Boxoffice.com.
While attendance has been steadily declining for a decade, 2011 was a particularly challenging year even though the US box-office broke the $10 billion mark.
Analysts predict that this year, with blockbusters including “The Hunger Games,” “The Avengers” and “The Dark Knight Rises,” will be an improvement over last year. Contrino pointed out that the final “Twilight” installment and “The Hobbit” are yet to come.
So far this year, the box office has taken in $6.1 billion with Warner Bros.’ “Dark Knight” recording $161 million on its opening weekend despite the shooting in Colorado during a midnight showing.
“All the films were affected this weekend,” said Jeff Bock, senior analyst at Exhibitor Relations. He said “Ice Age” was down 56 percent in its second week, while the theater shooting cost the “Dark Knight” around $15 million to $20 million in ticket sales.