Publications

14 Oct 2013
Research & Ideas

Blockbuster! Why Star Power Works

quite risky—a few blockbuster flops can bring a company to ruin—the strategy is the best bet for entertainment companies to succeed over the long run, according to Anita Elberse, the Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration at... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Entertainment & Recreation

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

June 2010
Case

Legendary Pictures & ABRY Partners

This case focuses on the review by the private equity firm ABRY Partners of an opportunity to invest in a film financing vehicle, Legendary Pictures. Before 2004, private equity firms had avoided co-investing with film studios in film productions because of their... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Investment; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

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

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

27 Oct 2015
Blog Post

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

Current Position: COO and Executive in Charge of Lip Sync Battle Franchise, Casey Patterson Entertainment Current Location: New York/Los Angeles Tell us what you're up to these days. Right after graduation, I packed my bags and moved out... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment / Media / Sports

October 1998 (Revised May 2004)
Teaching Note

Adventurous Computer Games, Inc. and Adventurous Computer Games, Inc.(Abridged)TN

By: William J. Bruns Jr.

Teaching Note for (9-199-020) and (9-193-088). View Details

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

May 2008
Teaching Note

Hasbro Games -- POX (TN) (A) and (B)

By: Elie Ofek and David B. Godes

Teaching Note for [505046] and [505047]. View Details

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

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; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States

Article

Demand and Supply Dynamics for Sequentially Released Products in International Markets: The Case of Motion Pictures

By: Anita Elberse and Jehoshua Eliashberg

Keywords: Supply and Industry; Product; Markets; Film Entertainment; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Find at Harvard

Read Now

September 1995 (Revised October 1996)
Case

Sunbeam Television (A)

By: V. Kasturi Rangan and E. Scott Lathrop

Sunbeam Television, owner of a television station in Miami (a Fox affiliate), buys Channel 7 (a CBS affiliate) in Boston. They bring to the Boston station the concepts and ideas of their Miami news product--that is, a crisp, content-based design rather than one... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Change; Decisions; Design; Television Entertainment; Product; Motivation and Incentives; Value; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Boston

August 1998 (Revised October 1998)
Case

Disney's "The Lion King" (B): The Synergy Group

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

In the late 1980s, Disney CEO Michael Eisner introduced a synergy group to the company's organizational structure. The synergy group was responsible for keeping all of Disney's divisions informed and updated on company projects and marketing strategies. View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Creativity; Value; Organizational Structure; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Charles Ringling organized his siblings to form what would eventually become “the Greatest Show on Earth.” When the siblings began performing, they used only their personal talents, but under Charles’ leadership, the show grew into a large traveling enterprise and... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment & Broadcast Media

October 2006 (Revised September 2007)
Teaching Note

Electronic Arts in Online Gaming (TN)

By: Thomas R. Eisenmann

Keywords: Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Arts; Technology; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Kluge built a $1 billion+ entertainment conglomerate, Metromedia, one of the largest privately held companies in the United States. It has businesses in the telecommunications, media, and information technology industries. During his... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment & Broadcast Media

Dick Griffey

Initially a co-owner of a black nightclub in Los Angeles, Griffey moved into music producing and built one of the most important black entertainment enterprises. A firm proponent of black culture and community, Griffey started a record... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment & Broadcast Media

May 2023
Supplement

Alicia Keys and Swizz Beats Video Supplement Playlist

By: Boris Groysberg

Keywords: Entertainment; Music Entertainment; Personal Development and Career; Entrepreneurship; Goals and Objectives; Power and Influence; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

October 2019 (Revised December 2019)
Case

Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys: A Power Couple

By: Boris Groysberg, Annelena Lobb and Sarah Mehta

Set in 2018, this case follows married couple and music industry titans Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys as they consider how best to use their platforms to achieve their goals. Since achieving professional success in the music industry early in their lives, Swizz and Keys... View Details

Keywords: Entertainment; Music Entertainment; Personal Development and Career; Entrepreneurship; Goals and Objectives; Power and Influence; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Entertainment and Recreation Industry