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Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 2:14 pm
by Zahveed
OscarGuy wrote:This is one my pet peeves.
As is mine, OG, as is mine.
Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 2:06 pm
by OscarGuy
While this article isn't about the film business in general, it does touch on it and further cements my dislike of using money as a decider on success.
'Auto' Outpaces Hollywood Blockbusters
In its first week in the stores, Grand Theft Auto IV took in more than $500 million, more than any movie in history has made in its first week. Opening-day sales of the game on April 29 came to $310 million, breaking the record of $300 million set by Microsoft's Halo 3 last year. In a statement, Strauss Zelnick, chairman of Take-Two, which distributes GTA-IV, and the former president of 20th Century Fox film studio, said, "We believe these retail sales levels surpass any movie or music launch to date. This signals just how important interactive entertainment has become in entertainment writ large."
$ 500 M @ $59 per unit, that's 8,474,576.2 units sold.
$ 196 M @ approx $10 per unit, that's 19,600,000 tickets sold
That's comparing the $500 M GTAIV took in its first week per the above article and POC: Dead Man's Chest which is the top 7-day finisher by monetary value.
Obviously, Pirates was more successful considering how many tickets that were sold. Add to the melange is that movies get repeat viewers, video games don't often have repeat purchasers and not everyone buys a copy of the game, they just borrow it from others.
And it's the same problem I have with film studios touting massive record weekends when movies that were released just a decade ago made less money b/c of inflation, but sold more tickets.
This is one my pet peeves.