Summer box office isn't booming
Hopes were high for this summer's box office season, but ticket sales are down so far compared to last year. But some say to wait until the season ends to get the big picture. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.
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Bill Radke: Summer movie season rolls on this weekend. Earlier this year, the summer box office was shaping up to be huge, but Ashley Milne-Tyte reports it's been a little disappointing so far.
Ashley Milne-Tyte: Ticket sales rose 17 percent in the first four months of this year. Could that be recession related?
Jason Squire thinks so. He's a professor at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts:
Jason Squire: My own opinion is that there was a connection between strong box office and a desire to escape.
But summer's the big season for the movie business, and sales are down compared to last year. Still, Squire says those numbers don't tell the whole story:
Squire: And should not be considered a negative until the end of the summer figures are in and the season is complete.
He says a string of potential blockbusters are opening in the next several weeks, including some much-anticipated sequels:
Harry Potter promo: You have no choice, you must not fail.
Squire says the latest Harry Potter and Transformers movies could help push ticket sales back up. And even if a movie disappoints at home, overseas sales could more than make up for it.
In Los Angeles, I'm Ashley Milne-Tyte for Marketplace.
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