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ticket sales but not what the industry experienced pre-2019.” According to Bruce Nash, who has been tracking theater attendance since the mid-90s, theater attendance has been trending downward since 2012 and the most ardent attendees have been the Gen Zs and early Millennials. “I’m a big believer in theatrical releases,” McLennan said. “My wife and I enjoy going to the theater and settling in to watch a great film the way the producer created it to be viewed. It’s a break for us and it has always been special because it’s a communal experience." “This isn’t going to go away,” he added, “but it has been changed primarily because audiences have learned there are very good app-based options that enable them to watch the film at home when it is convenient, not having to rely on another schedule or movie house agenda. People have come to expect that ease and flexibility for the majority of their entertainment.” At the same time McLennan noted that streaming has even helped revitalize theater attendance. “There is a very limited number of major projects/tentpoles that studios can afford to produce each year,” he stated. “Perhaps two – three. Certainly not enough visual stories to put seats in their seats 365 days a year." “But studios and streaming service here and abroad can and are producing an increasing number of excellent mid-level projects to win new subscribers and keep existing subscribers through easy viewing,” McLennan noted. “Giving movie houses an exclusive theatrical window of five – 20 days benefits both parties. It gives movie houses a greater range of titles that appeal to the ‘have to get out and participate crowd’ and provides streamers with modest return to their bottom-line plus word of mouth to attract/retain subscribers." “It’s a win/win for the entire industry,” he emphasized. Almost, every industry analyst has noted that not all will survive because there are too many cinemas – 6K in the US, 208K worldwide – all with dwindling attendance. Those that survive/thrive in the new entertainment economy are changing dramatically with innovative food/beverage offerings as well as live events like concerts, sports, video game contests, and similar communal activities. “Of course, that doesn’t mean that all of the streamers will grow and prosper,” McLennan warned. “The market in the Americas has nearly reached saturation and the big five (Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime, Paramount + and HBO Max/Discovery as well as Peacock and Apple TV+) have reached the point where they’re all fighting for the same ‘potential’ subscriber’s attention." “Churn (winning new/losing subscribers on a quarterly basis) has become a