Film Distribution - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Jul 2009
Working Paper Summaries

File-Sharing and Copyright

Keywords: by Felix Oberholzer-Gee & Koleman Strumpf; Technology; Entertainment & Recreation

August 2014
Case

Reed Hastings founded Netflix to provide a home movie service that would do a better job satisfying customers than the traditional retail rental model. But as it encountered challenges it underwent several major strategy shifts, ultimately developing a business model... View Details

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14 May 2008
Research & Ideas

Getting Down to the Business of Creativity

narrowly defined product space," Tripsas says. "Suppliers, complementary producers, distribution channels, and consumers must often develop new capabilities, beliefs, and behaviors for the product to succeed, creating a... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail; Apparel & Accessories; Fashion; Entertainment & Recreation

November 2017
Teaching Note

Amazon.com, 2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Teaching Note for HBS No. 716-402. On January 28, 2016, Amazon announced record 2015 operating profits of $2.2 billion on $107 billion of sales, and the markets responded with cautious optimism. For years, founder and CEO Jeffrey Bezos had prioritized growth and... View Details

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29 Apr 2008
First Look

First Look: April 29, 2008

the economics of producing and distributing traditional films and books versus digital (cell phone) content. Purchase this case: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/b01/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=508071... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

August 2015 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Amazon.com, 2021

By: John R. Wells, Benjamin Weinstock, Gabriel Ellsworth and Galen Danskin

In February 2021, Amazon announced 2020 operating profits of $22,899 million, up from $2,233 million in 2015, on sales of $386 billion, up from $107 billion five years earlier (see Exhibit 1). The shareholders expressed their satisfaction (see Exhibit 2), but not all... View Details

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13 Mar 2012
First Look

First Look: March 13

which was founded by actor/director Robert Redford to promote independent filmmaking. Started as a "Lab" where independent filmmakers could work on their film projects, the Institute soon expanded to organize the Sundance View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

March 2016 (Revised May 2018)
Case

Reinventing Best Buy

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

On March 1, 2017, Best Buy Company, Inc., North America’s largest retailer of consumer electronics and appliances, announced a third year of comparable-store sales increases and a 20.8% increase in domestic comparable online sales. These results were in marked contrast... View Details

Keywords: Best Buy; Hubert Joly; Renew Blue; Showrooming; Webrooming; E-commerce; E-Commerce Strategy; Online Retail; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Marketplaces; Turnaround; Consumer Electronics; Consumer Electronics Accessories; Appliances; Stores-within-stores; Store Experience; Store Size; Store Pickup; Store Management; Delivery; Delivery Models; Amazon; Amazon.com; Pricing Strategy; Business Subsidiaries; Business Units; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; For-Profit Firms; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Theater Entertainment; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Multinational Firms and Management; Business History; Cost; Selection and Staffing; Reports; Technological Innovation; Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Human Capital; Leading Change; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Product Marketing; Consumer Behavior; Demand and Consumers; Media; Distribution; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Distribution Channels; Infrastructure; Product; Service Delivery; Service Operations; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Programs; Groups and Teams; Sales; Salesforce Management; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Information Technology; Information Infrastructure; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Resource Allocation; Computer Industry; Electronics Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Information Technology Industry; Retail Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; United States; Minnesota; Minneapolis; Saint Paul; St. Paul

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31 May 2011
Research & Ideas

Japan Disaster Shakes Up Supply-Chain Strategies

chains work and the performance of the factories that comprise them. The area is also a primary supplier of lithium battery chemicals, flash memory, and anisotropic conductive film used in LCD flat panel displays. "In the race to... View Details

Keywords: by Dennis Fisher; Auto; Technology; Computer; Electronics

May 2016
Case

The Inexorable Rise of Walmart? 1988—2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In October 2015, Walmart surprised investors by announcing that it expected flat sales growth for 2015 and growth of only 3% to 4% over the coming three years. Profits would also fall due to significant investments in people and technology. The company’s stock price... View Details

Keywords: Asda; Costco; David Glass; Convenience Stores; Discount Retailing; Dollar Stores; Doug McMillon; E-commerce; Online Retail; General Merchandise; Grocery; Lee Scott; Mike Duke; Multichannel Retailing; Omnichannel; Neighborhood Market; Sam Walton; Sam's Club; Store Formats; Supercenter; Supermarket; Warehouse Clubs; Merchandising; Walmart; Wal-Mart; Globalized Firms and Management; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Units; Business Divisions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Film Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Banks and Banking; Price; Profit; Revenue; Food; Global Range; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Business History; Compensation and Benefits; Employees; Human Capital; Labor Unions; Wages; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Management Succession; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Distribution; Supply Chain; Supply Chain Management; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Labor and Management Relations; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Diversification; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet; Mobile Technology; Online Technology; Web; Web Sites; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; Distribution Industry; United States; Arkansas; Bentonville

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September 2017
Case

Tencent

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

Tencent had undergone many transformations since it was founded in 1998 as a simple messaging service. In 2017, it was the largest online games provider in China with a wide range of game types, China’s largest social networking service provider with several of the... View Details

Keywords: Tencent; Tencent Holdings; WeChat; Social Networking; Social Networks; Gaming; Gaming Industry; Video Games; Computer Games; Mobile Gaming; Portals; Payments; Mobile Payments; O2O; Online-to-offline; E-commerce; Messaging; Subscription Model; Freemium; Mobile App Industry; Smartphone; PC; Monetization Strategy; Antitrust; Streaming; Cloud Computing; Artificial Intelligence; Big Data; Alibaba; Facebook; JD.com; Tesla; Bundling; Synergies; Digital Strategy; Imitation; Licensing; Agility; Entry Barriers; Online Platforms; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Business Ventures; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Units; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Joint Ventures; Restructuring; Communication; Communication Technology; Blogs; Interactive Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Entertainment; Film Entertainment; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Music Entertainment; Investment; Investment Portfolio; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Scope; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Global Strategy; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Business History; Innovation Strategy; Technological Innovation; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Positioning; Social Marketing; Network Effects; Emerging Markets; Market Entry and Exit; Digital Platforms; Industry Growth; Monopoly; Media; Distribution Channels; Product Development; Service Delivery; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Public Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Business and Government Relations; Groups and Teams; Networks; Opportunities; Social and Collaborative Networks; Strategy; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Cooperation; Corporate Strategy; Diversification; Expansion; Horizontal Integration; Vertical Integration; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Internet and the Web; Applications and Software; Information Infrastructure; Digital Platforms; Internet and the Web; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Value Creation; Communications Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Financial Services Industry; Information Industry; Information Technology Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Music Industry; Service Industry; Technology Industry; Telecommunications Industry; Video Game Industry; Web Services Industry; Asia; China; Canton (province, China)

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13 Sep 2010
Research & Ideas

The Consumer Appeal of Underdog Branding

distributions of income and wealth have grown more unequal, and rates of socioeconomic mobility have declined. Millions of households have had to work longer hours, add additional income earners, and devote more effort to succeed on the... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

17 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

Protecting against the Pirates of Bollywood

release date. Doing so, however, would negate cost savings achieved by reusing film copies across staggered release dates. Studios could also limit a film's distribution to digital, not analog, screens, the... View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard; Motion Pictures & Video

02 Apr 2015
Research & Ideas

Digital Initiative Summit: The Business of Crowdsourcing

return, many of Tongal's members have done quite well. In addition to a vast array of marketing videos, Tongal had seven films in the Sundance Film Festival this year, and 41 of its people earned more than... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

05 Sep 2012
First Look

First Look: September 5

appropriate data. The U.S. film industry deploys two distinct allocations of property rights, which differentially affect marginal returns on a particular class of investments. In many cases, films are both... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

31 Jan 2005
Research & Ideas

Rethinking Marketing’s Conventional Wisdom

position in the market. Q: Do you have a favorite case? A: One of the cases I wrote is about BMW Films' award-winning marketing campaign. These were eight beautiful short films by famous directors, each less than ten minutes long, stuck... View Details

Keywords: by Garry Emmons; Service

07 Aug 2012
First Look

First Look: August 7

are produced and distributed by studios that take in the lion's share of revenue. In contrast, independent films are distributed by studios under revenue-sharing agreements,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

23 Oct 2006
Research & Ideas

Will the “Long Tail” Work for Hollywood?

than a Blockbuster store, stocking a limited number of popular movies? Intrigued with these questions, HBS assistant professor Anita Elberse and associate professor Felix Oberholzer-Gee analyzed the distribution of revenues in the U.S.... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Entertainment & Recreation

14 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works

makes huge investments to acquire, develop, and market concepts with strong hit potential, and then banks on the sales of those titles to make up for the middling performance of their other content. Today's leading film studios,... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Entertainment & Recreation

10 Sep 2008
Research & Ideas

Long-Tail Economics? Give Me Blockbusters!

by focusing on bigger films that require a bigger commitment." Jeff Robinov believes in blockbusters and his strategy is to create more of them. The pharmaceutical and entertainment industries are similar. R&D costs in both are... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch; Entertainment & Recreation; Pharmaceutical

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File-Sharing and Copyright

Netflix in 2011

Getting Down to the Business of Creativity

Amazon.com, 2016

First Look: April 29, 2008

Amazon.com, 2021

First Look: March 13

Reinventing Best Buy

Japan Disaster Shakes Up Supply-Chain Strategies

The Inexorable Rise of Walmart? 1988—2016

Tencent

The Consumer Appeal of Underdog Branding

Protecting against the Pirates of Bollywood

Digital Initiative Summit: The Business of Crowdsourcing

First Look: September 5

Rethinking Marketing’s Conventional Wisdom

First Look: August 7

Will the “Long Tail” Work for Hollywood?

Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works

Long-Tail Economics? Give Me Blockbusters!

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