February 14, 2025

For decades, American stadium designers aimed to pack as many spectators into a space as safely as possible. In recent years, though, amenities like upscale concession stands and luxury boxes have become increasingly important to the financial health of American sports venues. This video looks at how the Superdome in New Orleans was rebuilt to make as much money as possible, from streamlined snack bars and walking paths to pricey club seating and suites. 

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February 12, 2025

When Walt Disney built his world-famous theme parks, he envisioned them as affordable places for families to spend full days together in the dreamlike world of animated movies. In fact, one executive in the 1980s who tried to raise the price of parking by one dollar met stiff resistance from people who claimed the idea ran counter to Disney’s vision for The Happiest Place on Earth. Over time, though, prices rose steadily with inflation, until the COVID-19 pandemic brought everything Continue reading

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February 10, 2025

This year, AI firms flocked to buy Super Bowl commercials, hoping to make a huge splash about their new products in a cost-effective way. A 30-second spot during Super Bowl LIX cost about $8 million, which may seem like a lot to pay for a short ad. Given that the massively popular game drew in more than 200 million viewers, however, a commercial’s cost-per-viewer actually amounts to less than a nickel. It’s incentives like these that motivated Google to use Continue reading

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January 14, 2025

Pop superstar Taylor Swift completed her Eras Tour in 2024, ending a two-year global phenomenon that became the highest grossing tour of all time. Eras was Swift’s first tour since COVID-19, and its economic impact was such a drastic change from lockdown that financial analysts started calling it the “TSwift Lift.” And even though the tour has come to a close, it could still have a gargantuan cultural impact in 2025 as the U.S. Department of Justice sues Ticketmaster, the Continue reading

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November 5, 2024

Redbox launched its video rental kiosk business back in the early 2000s when the industry was still dominated by chains like Blockbuster. While brick-and-mortar stores charged $2 to $5 per night, customers could rent movies at Redbox for just $1 since the kiosks were much cheaper to maintain than physical locations. Customers also liked that Redbox operated 24/7, functioning more like a vending machine than a retailer. By 2007, the company had more U.S. locations than Blockbuster. Redbox peaked in Continue reading

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October 29, 2024

With sunny weather, beautiful views, and lots of open space, California is one of the country’s most popular settings for music festivals. Thousands of people travel to the Golden State every summer to attend dozens of festivals — including Coachella, the most-attended annual music festival in North America. However, it’s getting more expensive to run a music festival in California as the cost of living keeps going up. Prices for transportation, accommodations, labor, and refreshments have skyrocketed above the typical Continue reading

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October 2, 2024

While Microsoft is staking the future of Xbox on cloud gaming, Nintendo has long depended on iconic properties like Mario and Pokémon to drive sales of its video game consoles. In fact, the Japanese company has been infamous for filing lawsuits to protect its intellectual property for about as long as video games have been around. In one notable example from the 1980s, Nintendo sued Blockbuster for copyright infringement after the video rental chain added games to its lineup Continue reading

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September 27, 2024

For decades, the video game console market has been dominated by two major players: Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s Playstation. While the latter has consistently outsold the former, in recent years Microsoft has been buying up game developers in an effort to control the software side of the business. The video below explores Microsoft’s bet on cloud gaming through Xbox Game Pass, and whether the tech giant’s gamble will pay off in the long run.

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  1. Why do companies like Microsoft Continue reading
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September 4, 2024

September may have just begun, but Halloween has already arrived. The late-October holiday known for costumes and lots of candy has become an increasingly lucrative occasion for businesses like theme parks and retailers. “[Halloween] has become this time of the year that’s grown in explosive ways,” said Edithann Ramey, chief marketing officer at Six Flags. “It’s become a billion-dollar industry in the last five years.” With 45 percent of consumers saying they’ll start Halloween shopping before October this year, businesses Continue reading

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August 27, 2024

Just like movie studios, video game makers need actors and animators to bring their creations to life. While voice actors perform sound effects and dialogue, motion capture actors wear special suits with markers to record movements like walking, running, climbing, and fighting. Animators then link those sounds and images together to create an immersive and engaging environment for the player. 

But all that’s starting to change with AI, which can use actors’ previous performances as digital reference points to generate Continue reading

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