Chapter 2

Literature Review

Advertising in movie theaters would seem to lowers attendance in people over age 30.

Inversely, we predict that advertising is less noticeable and more interesting and “cool” to

audiences 30 years of age or less due to being acclimated over a lifetime of exposure to

advertising.

As media usage has changed and evolved to having more viewing options, the

competition for ‘eyeballs’ and a viewing audience have become more fragmented. Movie

theaters have historically been a safe haven from advertising, but recently have emerged as a

stronger contender for those advertising dollars.

The ability for advertisers to subtly introduce more clever advertising, both static and

short film length speak of a public who is often in a restful mood and vulnerable under the

auspices of ‘entertainment’

The Advent of Movie Theater Advertising

Advertising in movie theaters is relatively new in that it began in 2001 during the fallout

of the dot.com boom and a successive stock market crash. Theater owners looking to build

revenue during a time when unemployment was up and the general public had less disposable

income turned to advertising on the big screen. Movie theater attendance has historically been

consistent during good times and bad times as patrons flock to the movies to escape reality and

be entertained under the best and worst of circumstances.

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 Some of the factors contributing to movie theater box office decline are social factors

such as eroding theater environment (talking, cell phones, babies crying etc.); sacrificing long

term relationships with theater-goers for the increase in short term profitability (commercials, no

ushers etc.); higher quality experience elsewhere (home theater); declining quality of mainstream

movies; easily available long tail content alternatives (Netflix, Blockbuster Video, Cable, TIVO

etc.); price; demographics: aging baby boomers simply go out to the movies less (Goldstein,

2005).

“The Public”, and children specifically, are targeted because of their susceptibility and

status as a “captive audience” once in movie theaters. "Theaters are being more aggressive in

pursuing advertisers, versus being concerned about turning off customers”. The trend started

nationally when companies started sponsoring movies." (Robertson, 2001). “It is generally

accepted that cinema is a high-impact medium due to the largely captive and attentive audience,

compounded by the size of the visual stimulus and the quality of the sound. Add to this,

potentially low media and environmental clutter and distractions, as well as the audience’s

inability to do anything other than look at the screen (i.e., no “zipping” or “zapping”)” (Ewing,

Foster, Du Plessis,2001).

Past research has shown implications of advertising having negative health implications

in four significant ways;

“Physical health is cited as the vulnerability to mimic good or bad social habits
based on advertising influence. Emotional health can be affected by delivering media-
imposed definitions of beauty, sexuality, maturity and problem-solving. Advertising also
plays an influential role in other emotional issues such as instant gratification. Social
health because advertising often communicates attitudes, values, beliefs and ideologies,
including those of consumption, competition and materialism. Finally, it can affect our
cultural health when we observe how, when, and if certain groups of people are
represented or not represented in advertising messages.” (Fox, 2001)

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 The origins and success of advertising in movie houses in Phoenix, Arizona and the

successive growth of movie theater advertising in the ensuing years show an initial surge in the

form of mass media advertising. Large movie theater chains picked up the idea and it has

contributed $200-$300 million in revenue with a 20% growth rate. (The Business Journal, July 6,

2001).

Advertising’s impact on Society

This spoke to the concern of being deluged with advertising in every instance and space

of our experience and the annoying and unhealthy impact that could turn-off and offends many

viewers. Americans often feel assaulted by advertisements and commercials. There are

advertisements and commercials in schools, airport lounges, doctor’s offices, movie theaters,

hospitals, gas stations, elevators, convenience stores, on the Internet, on fruit, on ATM's, on

garbage cans and countless other places. There are ads on beach sand and restroom walls. "I don't

know if anything is sacred anymore," said Mike Swanson, who directs ad placement for the ad

agency Carmichael Lynch, when he spoke to the Associated Press. (Ruskin, 2006)

This assault intensifies virtually every day. With ad budgets skyrocketing, advertising

techniques inevitably become more invasive and coercive. Advertisers are engaged in a relentless

battle to claim every waking moment, and what one executive called, with chilling candor, mind

share. (Ruskin, 2006)

Advertising through History and its development

In a historical context, when Alexis de Tocqueville visited America on the 1830’s he

observed “a kind of decent materialism” emerging. The debate over Capitalism and ethics began

to emerge in different circles of opposing views such as the article written by Max Weber titled

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“The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism”, an essay focusing on Europe where Weber is

quoted as saying “material goods have gained an increasing and finally an inexorable power over

the lives of men as at no previous period in history” (Schudsen, 1984).

To this end, the book “Advertising, the Uneasy Persuasion – It’s Dubious Impact on

American Society” goes about differentiating the needs of people and the exploitation of

consumers for marketers and advertisers gains. A critique ensues over the straw defenses put out

by the advertising and marketing crowd to say that they are only giving “the people what they

want” much like a drug pusher who may chide that they only sell to a clientele who already uses

the drug they sell (Schudson,1984).

The preponderance of marketing and advertising to “create motivations that propel the

race of consumption” (Schudson,1984) come into clear focus as the science of advertising and

marketing is rebuffed by arguments of fickle consumers and less than scientific methods for

targeting specific demographics by the advertising and marketing advocates. “Marketers do not

actually seek to discover consumer needs as much as what is available among commercial

choices” (Schudson, 1984).

Advertisers Current Standing in the Market Place

Two recent surveys offer conflicting reports on moviegoers’ attitudes towards

movie ads. An Arbitron survey found that two-thirds of adults and seven in 10 moviegoers

between the ages of 12 and 24 “don’t mind” the ads. But an Insightexpress survey found that

52% of those surveyed found the ads intrusive, 53% said theaters should stop showing them, and

27% said showing the commercials will cause them to go to movies less frequently. Several

organizations have web sites urging people to oppose movie advertising. However, we could find

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only anecdotal information on the increase in the number of movie trailers. There does not seem

to be the same level of opposition to the showing of previews. According to the National

Association of Theater Owners (NATO), the National Conference of State Legislatures, and two

organizations opposed to movie advertising, no state requires movie theaters to advertise the

starting time of their feature films. (Frisman, 2006)

Hypothesis Question Synthesized

The study of movie-goers viewing advertising on television and the attitudes that have

been presented in previous research along with statistical information from that research will try

to answer the specific research question for this study: What, if any, is the relationship between

viewing advertisements in movie theaters and the attendance of movie-goers at Marina Del Rey

theaters?

Several contributing factors to the study show variables that are more insightful related

to age and education of movie-goers viewing advertisements. Therefore, it is predicted that the

results of the anticipated survey will show movie-goers in general will dislike advertising before

viewing movies and prove the hypothesis that a negative movie-going experience may be a

factor in contributing to lessened theater going attendance.