The Industry

This opening chapter presents a satellite view of the entertainment industry's 10 major participant categories. They are chiefly the same titles and order as in prior editions, yet with two significant additions that have transformed and overall improved the industry: streaming of all video content and Artificial Intelligence—AI. Streaming has significantly increased the annual number of motion pictures and series produced. So, this has increased their total production and release costs, and especially their total industry revenue and profits. For producers, this means expanded development, production, and distribution opportunities. However, post-2025, analysts expect the industry to focus more on quality and profitability rather than just quantity. AI has supercharged everything about how producers and everyone else accomplishes their work within this industry. Projects have broadened and deepened in their valuation and income performance accuracy and analytic clarity. And, AI is stabilizing the way and speed stories are analyzed in their scripts, novels, treatments, outlines, beat-sheets, and other story forms. AI is significantly enhancing branding strategies, untraditional and traditional media planning, and budgeting. It also continues to enhance the process and collapse the time necessary to develop, pre-produce, produce, post-produce, and generate ancillary products and services for release with their pictures and series. AI even enhances audience ticket purchase data precision, and with this, it is amplifying opening weekend theatrical and streaming revenues.