Publications

September 2018 (Revised April 2019)
Case

AMC Entertainment: Creating a Spectacular Moviegoing Experience (A)

By: Henry McGee and Aldo Sesia

In 2018, the Hollywood film industry is facing tough headwinds. Fewer and fewer Americans are going to movie theaters, opting instead to watch movies on demand in the comfort of their own homes or on portable devices. Adam Aron, the head of the world’s largest movie... View Details

Keywords: Exhibitors; Movies; Film Entertainment; Disruptive Innovation; Consumer Behavior; Competitive Strategy; Expansion; Global Range; Business Model; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

09 Mar 2017
Cold Call Podcast

IDEO is Changing the Way Managers Think About Thinking

Keywords: Re: Ryan W. Buell; Motion Pictures & Video; Motion Pictures & Video

October 2009 (Revised June 2010)
Case

Hulu: An Evil Plot to Destroy the World?

By: Anita Elberse and Sunil Gupta

In July 2009, Jason Kilar, the chief executive officer of Hulu, is debating whether the online video aggregator should move away from a purely advertising-supported model, and whether it should participate in an industry-wide initiative to develop and test... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Business Model; Television Entertainment; Distribution Channels; Service Operations; Internet and the Web; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

August 2014 (Revised June 2019)
Case

MRC's House of Cards

By: Anita Elberse

In March 2011, Asif Satchu and Modi Wiczyk, co-chairmen and co-chief executive officers at independent production company Media Rights Capital (MRC), are debating whether to accept a licensing offer from Netflix for their most ambitious project to date, a new... View Details

Keywords: Television; House Of Cards; Asif Satchu; Modi Wiczyk; Netflix; Media Rights Capital; Information Technology; Change Management; Marketing; Television Entertainment; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry

June 2022 (Revised March 2024)
Case

Netflix's Culture: Binge or Cringe?

By: Hubert Joly, Leonard A. Schlesinger, James Barnett and Stacy Straaberg

In May 2022, streaming entertainment company Netflix lost customers for the first time in more than 10 years. Once a first mover in the streaming landscape, Netflix was facing competition from Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max, and others. A key component of... View Details

August 2014
Case

Netflix: Designing the Netflix Prize (A)

By: Karim R. Lakhani, Wesley M. Cohen, Kynon Ingram, Tushar Kothalkar, Maxim Kuzemchenko, Santosh Malik, Cynthia Meyn, Greta Friar and Stephanie Healy Pokrywa

In 2006, Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, was looking for a way to solve Netflix's customer churn problem. Netflix used Cinematch, its proprietary movie recommendation software, to promote individually determined best-fit movies to customers. Hastings determined that a... View Details

Keywords: Crowdsourcing; Prizes; Digitization; Algorithms; Recommendation Software; Disruption; Transformation; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Technological Innovation; Knowledge Sharing; Applications and Software; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; United States

16 Mar 2020
Research & Ideas

How the Coronavirus Is Already Rewriting the Future of Business

well, like the commercial aircraft manufacturers or the motion picture industry. Willy C. Shih (@WillyShih_atHBS) is the Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration in... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

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

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

September 2013 (Revised August 2015)
Background Note

Leadership and Teaming

By: Ethan Bernstein

Small differences in the leadership of teams can have large consequences for the success of their efforts. Many initiatives fail not because of a fatal error in judgment or insufficient ideas, knowledge, motivation, or capabilities to deliver a solution. They fail... View Details

17 Aug 2011
Research & Ideas

Protecting against the Pirates of Bollywood

In 2007, Sony Pictures became the first multinational studio to enter the India film business known as Bollywood with its $7 million film Saawariya. The movie grossed only $9 million. That same year, Walt Disney View Details

Keywords: by Kim Girard; Motion Pictures & Video

12 Dec 2016
HBS Case

Business Lessons from Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson

digital channel,” said Elberse. “It will be interesting to analyze how that move fits into the broader picture of how his brand and company are evolving.” Elberse is impressed with the business acumen and ambition demonstrated by the pair... View Details

Keywords: Re: Anita Elberse; Motion Pictures & Video; Motion Pictures & Video

27 Feb 2019
Working Paper Summaries

Judgment Aggregation in Creative Production: Evidence from the Movie Industry

Keywords: by Hong Luo, Jeffrey T. Macher, and Michael Wahlen; Motion Pictures & Video

January 1976
Teaching Note

American General Films, Teaching Note

By: Steven C. Wheelwright

Keywords: Motion Pictures and Video Industry

November 1976 (Revised September 1986)
Case

General Cinema Corp. (A)

By: Hugo Uyterhoeven

Keywords: Motion Pictures and Video Industry

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Fall 2021
Article

Emboldening and Contesting Gender and Skin Color Stereotypes in the Film Industry in India, 1947–1991

By: Sudev Sheth, Geoffrey Jones and Morgan Spencer

This article examines how the film industry influenced prevailing gender and skin color stereotypes in India during the first four decades after Independence in 1947. It shows that Bollywood, the mainstream cinema in India, shared Hollywood's privileging of paler skin... View Details

Keywords: Bollywood; Film Industry; Hollywood; Tamil Cinema; Male Gaze; Stereotypes; Social Impact; Gender; Race; Ethnicity; Film Entertainment; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; India; United States

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2021
Working Paper

Bollywood, Skin Color and Sexism: The Role of the Film Industry in Emboldening and Contesting Stereotypes in India after Independence

By: Sudev Sheth, Geoffrey Jones and Morgan Spencer

This working paper examines the social impact of the film industry in India during the first four decades after Indian Independence in 1947. It shows that Bollywood, the mainstream cinema in India and the counterpart in scale to Hollywood in the United States, shared... View Details

Keywords: Film Industry; Bollywood; Tamil Cinema; Male Gaze; Social Impact; Stereotypes; Oral History; Film Entertainment; Gender; Race; Personal Characteristics; Prejudice and Bias; Business History; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; India

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March 2009 (Revised January 2010)
Supplement

The Walt Disney Company and Pixar Inc.: To Acquire or Not to Acquire? An Update

By: Juan Alcacer, David J. Collis and Mary Furey

This four-page update to the case, "The Walt Disney Company and Pixar Inc.: To Acquire or Not to Acquire?" details the Walt Disney Company's acquisition of Pixar, including deal terms, executive appointments, and operating guidelines for the two studios. View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Managerial Roles; Negotiation Deal; Operations; Motion Pictures and Video Industry