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Ratings for sporting events are down dramatically. People generally aren't returning to movie theaters. According to the article, overall media consumption is u

Ratings for sporting events are down dramatically. People generally aren't returning to movie theaters. According to the article, overall media consumption is up 30 minutes per week, which makes me wonder if what happened was mostly a case of habit destruction. Now that habits have been disturbed, trends that were already taking place were accelerated. Is there any reason to think people will break their new habits to go back to their old habits as freedoms are slowly restored? AMC is looking into showing live events such as college football, world sports, and concerts. So they seem aware that movies are no longer enough to keep them afloat. Can they build new habits? Be a family friendly alternative to the sports bar for alumni groups? In a landscape of broken habits, maybe, maybe not. Big screens at home are cheap and so are the food and drinks. What's missing is a sense of community. Can they deliver on that?

briefcomment 5y ago
N=1, I spend all my media time on Youtube. Haven't watched a show in years. Watched some of the NBA playoffs though. Also watched Tenet in a huge empty theater.
- akudha 5y ago
  I wonder if this will result in more outrageous, more clickbait junk from media outlets, desperate for audience attention. Even more than it is now. I am spending more time on YouTube too. I used to watch Netflix, but it has been downhill last 3 years or so.
  - ehnto 5y ago
    What's strange to me is that while YouTube seems to be stealing a lot of attention, the creators on the platform are so often complaining the platform and having to build out non-platform revenue streams in order for it to make sense. Is it that they expect more than their fair share, or is YouTube leveraging their creators more than they should, or are adblockers the issue? I'm not sure what it is, it just surprises me that there seems to be unwavering consumption and creation on the platform but the numbers aren't lining up for the creators.
    - asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
      I don't know if this is a case of fair or unfair, so much as there is a lot of potential value that isn't captured by YouTube ads, which the creators would be silly to leave on the table, but which Google has not historically been positioned to capture. The ability to join channels is an attempt to make inroads on that value, but it seems like it will take some doing before that vehicle catches up to Patreon if it ever does.
    - showerst 5y ago
      Another possibility you didn't mention is that many creators aren't creating as much value as they think they're worth.
    - kortilla 5y ago
      Anyone can be a creator. You have to be pulling in millions of views from people that are valuable to advertise to (not all views are created equally) in order to make a career out of it.
      - throwawayboise 5y ago
        And even then it's flash-in-a-pan stuff for the most part. My YouTube viewing very often consists of getting interested in a creator, watching a lot of their stuff for a while, slowly getting bored as it gets repetitive, then moving on. This happens sometimes in weeks, sometimes in months, sometimes in only days. There's nobody I watch year after year.
    - jlokier 5y ago
      This video from Veritasium goes into more about Youtuber burnout, self-blame, dynamics and the drive to non-platform revenue streams: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHsa9DqmId8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHsa9DqmId8 If you find the apparent contradiction between Youtube success and creators needing to built out non-platform revenue streams strange, the video gives a pretty good theory explaining why. It's possible that a small number of creators are taking most of the revenue at any particular time, and the set of outstandingly successful creators keeps changing, which it might due to the promotion algorithm. That gives all of them reasons to build out non-platform revenue streams. I'm not saying Google/YouTube aren't taking too much. But hypothetically, even if they took 0% cut, the above could still happen.
  - drewg123 5y ago
    I alternate between YT and Netflix. The problem I have with YT is the paralysis of choice in deciding which of a zillion videos to watch. When I have a show to binge, its much easier to just jump into it relax without thinking about what to watch
    - theshrike79 5y ago
      > The problem I have with YT is the paralysis of choice This is it. I haven't subscribed to a new YT channel years. There's always a million+ subscriber channel with good stuff to watch - that I don't have time for.
  - cblconfederate 5y ago
    more likely youtube will adopt the onlyfans model once people start getting tired of the clickbait useless vids
    - throwawayboise 5y ago
      Well there's the Premium option. You don't see any ads and though the recommendations are sometimes low qualty, most of them don't stike me as overt clickbait.
      - cblconfederate 5y ago
        but it 's very optional, which changes the dynamic
    - username90 5y ago
      They already have paid channel membership and member only videos.
- ehnto 5y ago
  > Also watched Tenet in a huge empty theater. Same, what a great experience. I don't mind the experience of a busy theatre but watching a movie in a comfy centre seat all by your lonesome is pretty rad.
brundolf 5y ago
I'm looking forward to returning to a movie theater. Though only Alamo, which was really the only one I went to pre-pandemic anyway, because the rest of the industry was already in shambles. Alamo is the only chain I know of whose experience has evolved past "big screen and big speakers and overpriced snacks".
- bob1029 5y ago
  Alamo is amazing. More businesses should follow their example.
  - brundolf 5y ago
    I think their secret is being run by people who are actually into movies, instead of people who are only into money
    - Animats 5y ago
      Their "secret" is a liquor license.
      - tolbish 5y ago
        There are several movie theaters that serve alcohol. The Alamo Drafthouse is the only place that tries to make the movie going experience a genuine blast.
      - Elidrake24 5y ago
        Ha, AMC has a liquor license around here, but since re-opening I've still had: 1. A movie start 30 minutes late as they had forgotten about the showing 2. 30 minutes worth of ads after the supposed start time of the film 3. God awful food whose quality rivals Circle K at quadruple the prices 4. Alcoholic beverages that are several times more expensive than the plastic bottle their liquors come from Not to say all theaters are this way, but certainly the only theaters I have access to around me are. Decided to give up after the third horrible repeat. I do miss the old independent theater from down in Tucson, they suffered from none of these issues; unfortunately nothing like that where I am now. Can't speak to Alamo.
fullshark 5y ago
Movies, as in 2 hour stories that you consume in a physical location outside your house, are never gonna return to what they were. What will survive is "a fun location outside the house to watch a screen with incredible sound + picture" with your friends / a date / kids. That market should remain lucrative, cause people aren't gonna wanna be in the house all day / weekend and it's gonna remain a relatively cheap night out.
dillondoyle 5y ago
Live sports is wrapped around groups a lot too. Which also begs the question of are people actually watching the ads in a bar or party.. The move to streaming for sports is bad. I signed up for paid Hulu to watch olympics. It's grossly expensive, with ads still, and really confusing. I learned the hard way the only way to actually watch the events I wanted to I had to advance DVR them. Instead of just listing them as videos, like netflix youtube and the rest of the world. The only stand alone videos I have access too without DVR are short 5 minute summary clips. And the DVR recorded broadcasts you have to manually figure out and skip over commercials and manually find the events in a 2 hour broadcast. I remember the super old tv connected DVRs recognized ads to skip. PornHub and YouTube can automatically mark content changes on the timeline.
drewg123 5y ago
Movie theaters can't go out of business soon enough for me. I hate being trapped with rude people talking and using their phones during the movie. Not to mention people who don't believe in baby sitters, and bring their infant or toddler along for a good scream fest in the middle of the show. And don't get me started on loud eaters, flatulent people, etc. I think they've been on borrowed time since the 80s, when video stores got big. First run movies are their only hook now, and they're loosing even that with movies like Black Widow premiering on streaming. I hope more films premiere on streaming.
- amelius 5y ago
  Uh, you can just watch movies at home if you don't like theaters ...
  - drewg123 5y ago
    But not first run movies that have a theatrical window.
    - theshrike79 5y ago
      Can you list the movies that didn't get a simultaneous digital release during the last year or so? Tenet, and...? I have a bunch of pre-paid movie tickets still from the pre-pandemic days. Haven't used a single one, since all the movies I wanted to watch I can see at home for around 25€.
      - drewg123 5y ago
        Stillwater, which is the first movie in a while I've wanted to see.
- glandium 5y ago
  > I hate being trapped with rude people talking and using their phones during the movie. FWIW, it's not like that in France, Sweden, Belgium and Japan, to cite countries where I've been to the movies.
cblconfederate 5y ago
correct. the trend was down even before covid, it's just that instead of covid people's attention was in politics, and often stupid politics. I somehow wish the attention will shift to who can develop a vaccine/cure first, but i m not holding my breath for that
cronix 5y ago
In the last year I've cancelled my cable service, totally deleted facebook and twitter accounts, quit watching (new) movies, quit watching pro sports and several other things. Why? I feel like I'm being preached to constantly rather than entertained, and not just a little bit here and there. It's constant. I refuse to pay for it or be a part of it. It offers no value to me anymore. Why would I pay for or be a part of something that just irritates me? It seems most movies are just running the same formula for the last 20 years and, well, I've seen it. Hyper-realistic non-stop over the top garbage and woke super heroes. Yay. There is no originality or good story line, with few exceptions. It's all messaging, and it's completely obvious. Messaging was always there, sure, but now it's just overly blatant and constant. It's not just a well-placed can of Coke in the shot. And sports...used to be an avid NBA fan. Haven't watched a single game in the last year+ since it became about political messaging rather than athletic prowess and physical competition. If I want to watch political opinions, I'll watch a political news show - not a "professional" basketball game. In short, the products suck and not worth my time or money, so I no longer participate.
- neolog 5y ago
  relevant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7n3WgiMftaU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7n3WgiMftaU
drevil-v2 5y ago
>Ratings for sporting events are down dramatically I think maybe some of the kneeling and other political / social virtue signalling by sporting codes are having an effect too. I know I am fed up. The same ideology is broadcast at work, on the news, on art/film/theatre/books, social media and now sports. I feel like the protagonist in "A Clockwork Orange" with my eyelids stapled open and being force fed a mind virus.
- nichos 5y ago
  That's what did it for me. I was already a bit sour with the amount of ads in the NFL, but when it became political on the field, that was enough. Agree or disagree with the position, but I watch sports to take a break from reality.
  - edmundsauto 5y ago
    I suspect most of the athletes are okay with you not watching. For them, sports are reality and not escapism.
    - drevil-v2 5y ago
      Perhaps the tens of millions of dollars in annual income driven by television broadcasting and advertising sales is also a large part of their reality and motivation, no?
      - edmundsauto 5y ago
        What percentage do you estimate when you say “a large part”? I agree that it is perhaps possible that some olympians derive motivation from potential economic returns. I think that’s what you’re trying to say, right? I posit that is not the primary motivator, and projecting motivations on a group of people tells us more about your motivations than theirs.

briefcomment 5y ago

N=1, I spend all my media time on Youtube. Haven't watched a show in years. Watched some of the NBA playoffs though. Also watched Tenet in a huge empty theater.

akudha 5y ago
I wonder if this will result in more outrageous, more clickbait junk from media outlets, desperate for audience attention. Even more than it is now. I am spending more time on YouTube too. I used to watch Netflix, but it has been downhill last 3 years or so.
- ehnto 5y ago
  What's strange to me is that while YouTube seems to be stealing a lot of attention, the creators on the platform are so often complaining the platform and having to build out non-platform revenue streams in order for it to make sense. Is it that they expect more than their fair share, or is YouTube leveraging their creators more than they should, or are adblockers the issue? I'm not sure what it is, it just surprises me that there seems to be unwavering consumption and creation on the platform but the numbers aren't lining up for the creators.
  - asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
    I don't know if this is a case of fair or unfair, so much as there is a lot of potential value that isn't captured by YouTube ads, which the creators would be silly to leave on the table, but which Google has not historically been positioned to capture. The ability to join channels is an attempt to make inroads on that value, but it seems like it will take some doing before that vehicle catches up to Patreon if it ever does.
  - showerst 5y ago
    Another possibility you didn't mention is that many creators aren't creating as much value as they think they're worth.
  - kortilla 5y ago
    Anyone can be a creator. You have to be pulling in millions of views from people that are valuable to advertise to (not all views are created equally) in order to make a career out of it.
    - throwawayboise 5y ago
      And even then it's flash-in-a-pan stuff for the most part. My YouTube viewing very often consists of getting interested in a creator, watching a lot of their stuff for a while, slowly getting bored as it gets repetitive, then moving on. This happens sometimes in weeks, sometimes in months, sometimes in only days. There's nobody I watch year after year.
  - jlokier 5y ago
    This video from Veritasium goes into more about Youtuber burnout, self-blame, dynamics and the drive to non-platform revenue streams: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHsa9DqmId8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHsa9DqmId8 If you find the apparent contradiction between Youtube success and creators needing to built out non-platform revenue streams strange, the video gives a pretty good theory explaining why. It's possible that a small number of creators are taking most of the revenue at any particular time, and the set of outstandingly successful creators keeps changing, which it might due to the promotion algorithm. That gives all of them reasons to build out non-platform revenue streams. I'm not saying Google/YouTube aren't taking too much. But hypothetically, even if they took 0% cut, the above could still happen.
- drewg123 5y ago
  I alternate between YT and Netflix. The problem I have with YT is the paralysis of choice in deciding which of a zillion videos to watch. When I have a show to binge, its much easier to just jump into it relax without thinking about what to watch
  - theshrike79 5y ago
    > The problem I have with YT is the paralysis of choice This is it. I haven't subscribed to a new YT channel years. There's always a million+ subscriber channel with good stuff to watch - that I don't have time for.
- cblconfederate 5y ago
  more likely youtube will adopt the onlyfans model once people start getting tired of the clickbait useless vids
  - throwawayboise 5y ago
    Well there's the Premium option. You don't see any ads and though the recommendations are sometimes low qualty, most of them don't stike me as overt clickbait.
    - cblconfederate 5y ago
      but it 's very optional, which changes the dynamic
  - username90 5y ago
    They already have paid channel membership and member only videos.
ehnto 5y ago
> Also watched Tenet in a huge empty theater. Same, what a great experience. I don't mind the experience of a busy theatre but watching a movie in a comfy centre seat all by your lonesome is pretty rad.

brundolf 5y ago

I'm looking forward to returning to a movie theater. Though only Alamo, which was really the only one I went to pre-pandemic anyway, because the rest of the industry was already in shambles. Alamo is the only chain I know of whose experience has evolved past "big screen and big speakers and overpriced snacks".

bob1029 5y ago
Alamo is amazing. More businesses should follow their example.
- brundolf 5y ago
  I think their secret is being run by people who are actually into movies, instead of people who are only into money
  - Animats 5y ago
    Their "secret" is a liquor license.
    - tolbish 5y ago
      There are several movie theaters that serve alcohol. The Alamo Drafthouse is the only place that tries to make the movie going experience a genuine blast.
    - Elidrake24 5y ago
      Ha, AMC has a liquor license around here, but since re-opening I've still had: 1. A movie start 30 minutes late as they had forgotten about the showing 2. 30 minutes worth of ads after the supposed start time of the film 3. God awful food whose quality rivals Circle K at quadruple the prices 4. Alcoholic beverages that are several times more expensive than the plastic bottle their liquors come from Not to say all theaters are this way, but certainly the only theaters I have access to around me are. Decided to give up after the third horrible repeat. I do miss the old independent theater from down in Tucson, they suffered from none of these issues; unfortunately nothing like that where I am now. Can't speak to Alamo.

fullshark 5y ago

Movies, as in 2 hour stories that you consume in a physical location outside your house, are never gonna return to what they were. What will survive is "a fun location outside the house to watch a screen with incredible sound + picture" with your friends / a date / kids. That market should remain lucrative, cause people aren't gonna wanna be in the house all day / weekend and it's gonna remain a relatively cheap night out.

dillondoyle 5y ago

Live sports is wrapped around groups a lot too. Which also begs the question of are people actually watching the ads in a bar or party.. The move to streaming for sports is bad. I signed up for paid Hulu to watch olympics. It's grossly expensive, with ads still, and really confusing. I learned the hard way the only way to actually watch the events I wanted to I had to advance DVR them. Instead of just listing them as videos, like netflix youtube and the rest of the world. The only stand alone videos I have access too without DVR are short 5 minute summary clips. And the DVR recorded broadcasts you have to manually figure out and skip over commercials and manually find the events in a 2 hour broadcast. I remember the super old tv connected DVRs recognized ads to skip. PornHub and YouTube can automatically mark content changes on the timeline.

drewg123 5y ago

Movie theaters can't go out of business soon enough for me. I hate being trapped with rude people talking and using their phones during the movie. Not to mention people who don't believe in baby sitters, and bring their infant or toddler along for a good scream fest in the middle of the show. And don't get me started on loud eaters, flatulent people, etc. I think they've been on borrowed time since the 80s, when video stores got big. First run movies are their only hook now, and they're loosing even that with movies like Black Widow premiering on streaming. I hope more films premiere on streaming.

amelius 5y ago
Uh, you can just watch movies at home if you don't like theaters ...
- drewg123 5y ago
  But not first run movies that have a theatrical window.
  - theshrike79 5y ago
    Can you list the movies that didn't get a simultaneous digital release during the last year or so? Tenet, and...? I have a bunch of pre-paid movie tickets still from the pre-pandemic days. Haven't used a single one, since all the movies I wanted to watch I can see at home for around 25€.
    - drewg123 5y ago
      Stillwater, which is the first movie in a while I've wanted to see.
glandium 5y ago
> I hate being trapped with rude people talking and using their phones during the movie. FWIW, it's not like that in France, Sweden, Belgium and Japan, to cite countries where I've been to the movies.

cblconfederate 5y ago

correct. the trend was down even before covid, it's just that instead of covid people's attention was in politics, and often stupid politics. I somehow wish the attention will shift to who can develop a vaccine/cure first, but i m not holding my breath for that

cronix 5y ago

In the last year I've cancelled my cable service, totally deleted facebook and twitter accounts, quit watching (new) movies, quit watching pro sports and several other things. Why? I feel like I'm being preached to constantly rather than entertained, and not just a little bit here and there. It's constant. I refuse to pay for it or be a part of it. It offers no value to me anymore. Why would I pay for or be a part of something that just irritates me? It seems most movies are just running the same formula for the last 20 years and, well, I've seen it. Hyper-realistic non-stop over the top garbage and woke super heroes. Yay. There is no originality or good story line, with few exceptions. It's all messaging, and it's completely obvious. Messaging was always there, sure, but now it's just overly blatant and constant. It's not just a well-placed can of Coke in the shot. And sports...used to be an avid NBA fan. Haven't watched a single game in the last year+ since it became about political messaging rather than athletic prowess and physical competition. If I want to watch political opinions, I'll watch a political news show - not a "professional" basketball game. In short, the products suck and not worth my time or money, so I no longer participate.

neolog 5y ago
relevant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7n3WgiMftaU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7n3WgiMftaU

drevil-v2 5y ago

>Ratings for sporting events are down dramatically I think maybe some of the kneeling and other political / social virtue signalling by sporting codes are having an effect too. I know I am fed up. The same ideology is broadcast at work, on the news, on art/film/theatre/books, social media and now sports. I feel like the protagonist in "A Clockwork Orange" with my eyelids stapled open and being force fed a mind virus.

nichos 5y ago
That's what did it for me. I was already a bit sour with the amount of ads in the NFL, but when it became political on the field, that was enough. Agree or disagree with the position, but I watch sports to take a break from reality.
- edmundsauto 5y ago
  I suspect most of the athletes are okay with you not watching. For them, sports are reality and not escapism.
  - drevil-v2 5y ago
    Perhaps the tens of millions of dollars in annual income driven by television broadcasting and advertising sales is also a large part of their reality and motivation, no?
    - edmundsauto 5y ago
      What percentage do you estimate when you say “a large part”? I agree that it is perhaps possible that some olympians derive motivation from potential economic returns. I think that’s what you’re trying to say, right? I posit that is not the primary motivator, and projecting motivations on a group of people tells us more about your motivations than theirs.