Like many other brick-and-mortar retailers, GameStop’s long-term financial health depends on how much damage the Internet can ultimately do to its bottom line. For years, though, the video game retailer seemed almost immune to the effects of web retail. Prices remained competitive thanks to the company’s dependence on reselling used games and consoles while its knowledgeable sales staff ensured that regular customers stayed happy.
Still, many experts are predicting that GameStop will go the way of Blockbuster sooner or later. Continue reading
Movie theaters have worried about being phased out by home entertainment even before the VCR started dominating living rooms in the 1980s. While Hollywood has largely continued to thrive over the decades despite these fears, today the rise of streaming video presents movie theaters with their greatest challenge yet. The industry is especially afraid of losing touch with young moviegoers who are growing up with on-demand services like Netflix and Spotify. The cracks may already be showing: attendance of movie Continue reading
In 1988, just two states allowed casino gambling. Today, New Jersey and Nevada are joined by more than 35 other states that have legalized casinos. Over the years, local governments across the nation promoted gambling as a way to generate additional tax revenue. Plenty of municipalities bought into the idea, leading to a rush of casino construction throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
Like so many other industries, business was good until the recession hit in 2008. Since then, not only Continue reading
In the Internet age, people don’t need to leave their homes in order to access near limitless choices of entertainment. Although convenient for consumers, this cultural shift has sent attendance at many theaters and symphonies across the country on a downward spiral. But it’s not just highbrow pursuits that have seen a drop in public interest. In fact, circuses are in such a dire state that industry insiders fear their decline will lead to a nationwide decline in the number Continue reading
Led Zeppelin’s 1971 epic “Stairway to Heaven” is widely regarded by music critics as one of the greatest rock songs of all time. It’s also been one of the most profitable. Clocking in at nearly eight minutes long, the band refused to release the song as a single, which forced fans to shell out more cash to buy the album it appeared on. When coupled with the song’s substantial royalties from radio play, “Stairway to Heaven” has earned at least Continue reading
The “Happiest Place on Earth” may also be one of the priciest: last year Walt Disney increased the cost of a one-day pass for its Magic Kingdom theme park to $99. The $4 uptick came just eight months after Disney’s previous price hike, but customers don’t appear to mind. In 2013 theme park income rose by 17 percent to $2.2 billion as crowds continued to pack the company’s $14.1 billion entertainment empire.
It’s possible that the lofty costs required Continue reading