Publications

August 1998 (Revised October 1998)
Case

Disney's "The Lion King" (C): Repeat Performance?

By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Cate Reavis

Three of Disney's animated films that followed "The Lion King"—"Pocahontas," "Toy Story," and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame"—were significantly less successful at the box office and in retail sales. Meanwhile, Disney was focusing on developing live-action blockbusters. View Details

Keywords: Organizational Structure; Animation Entertainment; Success; Failure; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Article

Hollywood on the Yellow Sea

By: Willy C. Shih and Henry McGee

Wang Jianlin, one of China's richest men, is creating a rival to the American dream factory, from scratch. View Details

Keywords: Competition; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; China; United States

Read Now

03 Nov 2003
Research & Ideas

Making Money Making Movies

the summer issue of Marketing Science. Elberse discusses her research on the entertainment industry in this e-mail interview. Salls: Briefly describe the state of the motion picture View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls; Entertainment & Recreation; Entertainment & Recreation

14 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works

publishers, and producers in other sectors of the entertainment industry live by this approach. You might think that spreading resources evenly across product lines is the safest approach, especially because... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Entertainment & Recreation

January 1996 (Revised January 1996)
Teaching Note

Colonial Broadcasting Co. TN

By: Arthur Schleifer Jr. and George Wu

Teaching Note for (9-894-011). View Details

Keywords: Contracts; Advertising; Television Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

November 2002
Background Note

Strategy and Sources of Motion Picture Finance, The

By: Mihir A. Desai, Gabriel J. Loeb and Mark Veblen

This case considers the alternative financing mechanisms for film financing, the evolution of film finance in the United States, and the nature of tax-motivated film financing in the United States and around the world. It develops the strategy driving motion picture... View Details

Keywords: Film Entertainment; Financial Instruments; Financial Strategy; Financing and Loans; Globalized Markets and Industries; Taxation; Motivation and Incentives; Competitive Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

27 Oct 2015
Blog Post

Alumni: Where Are They Now? Featuring Claire Friedman...

finance. Since I was exposed to all of these areas in business school, ramping up across the board has been much easier. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Where will the next chapter take you? The entertainment View Details

Keywords: Entertainment / Media / Sports

01 Jun 2014
News

Screen Saver

same as it was in 1977, and certainly not in the entertainment space." As CEO of AMC Theatres since March 2009, Lopez has been addressing that discrepancy with a passion and drive not usually seen in a business often considered a sleepy... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; Arts, Entertainment

October 2019 (Revised December 2019)
Case

Swizz Beatz

By: Boris Groysberg, Annelena Lobb and Sarah Mehta

This case explores the life and career of rapper and music producer Swizz Beatz. Set in 2019, it covers the evolution of Swizz’s musical career and his new venture into the commercial art market. View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Music Entertainment; Television Entertainment; Entrepreneurship; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

March 2008 (Revised September 2008)
Case

FREEJ

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III and Firas Alkhatib

Mohammed Harib placed his phone on the desk in front of him. As he sat back in his chair and looked out the window, he began to take stock of how his life had taken such a dramatic path over the last few years. Life was good for the founder and CEO of Lammtara... View Details

Keywords: Animation Entertainment; Entrepreneurship; Emerging Markets; Opportunities; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Arabian Peninsula; United Arab Emirates

Profile

Ann Chao

different countries and industries to learn with and learn from. As a Social Studies/East Asian Studies concentrator with a strong interest in disability rights and education as well as entertainment and... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment / Media

November 2010 (Revised January 2012)
Teaching Note

Sony and the JK Wedding Dance (TN)

By: John A. Deighton and Leora Kornfeld

Teaching Note for 510064. View Details

Keywords: Music Entertainment; Copyright; Situation or Environment; Online Technology; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Beginning his career as a lawyer, Redstone joined the entertainment industry in the 1960’s with the formation of National Amusements. As Chairman of Viacom, he guided the company’s successful post-theatrical... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment & Broadcast Media

March 2024 (Revised April 2024)
Case

Out of Hand Theater: Monetizing Creativity

By: Christina Wallace, Henry McGee, Rohit Deshpandé and Max Hancock

Ariel Fristoe co-founded the Out of Hand Theater ensemble (OOH) in Atlanta in 2001. OOH began as a traditional theater nonprofit, which Ariel and her colleagues ran on a shoestring budget. But over the years, the group transformed: First, around 2010, OOH pivoted to... View Details

Keywords: Business Transformation; Theatre-company; Arts Marketing; Transformation; Theater Entertainment; Social Marketing; Business Model; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Atlanta

May 2017
Case

Street League Skateboarding

By: Robert F. Higgins and Christine Snively

In 2013, Street League Skateboarding, a professional skateboarding league founded in 2010, just concluded its annual Street League World Tour. The growing action-sports property had purchased time on ESPN2 to air its events, and though ESPN was the most-watched sports... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Television Entertainment; Sports; Product Launch; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; United States

December 1994
Case

Being There: Sony Corporation and Columbia Pictures

By: Debora L. Spar

In September 1989, Sony Corp. of Japan bid $3.4 billion for Columbia Pictures. It was the highest bid ever by a Japanese company for any U.S. property. The case examines the validity of Sony's objectives in making this purchase, and also the political uproar that the... View Details

Keywords: Foreign Direct Investment; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Japan; United States

Find at Harvard

November 1993
Case

Edgar J. Scherick Associates

Edgar Scherick, a leading television movie producer, must determine whether fact-based movies garner higher Nielsen ratings than fictional movies. Scherick has data for all 1992 TV movies broadcast on major networks. Ultimately, Scherick must decide whether it is... View Details

Keywords: Cost vs Benefits; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

May 2007 (Revised May 2011)
Teaching Note

Netflix (TN)

By: Willy C. Shih

Teaching note to (607-138). View Details

Keywords: Media; Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

February 2004 (Revised September 2006)
Case

Finding a Response: Pixar and a Coy Story

Pixar, Inc. is the subject of an article that suggests its share price is currently overvalued. The article is picked up in summary by several wire services. Pixar's management must determine the appropriate public response. Its choices range from ignoring the article,... View Details

Keywords: Media; Animation Entertainment; Decision Making; Film Entertainment; Communication Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry