‘Twitter Effect’ Hits Hollywood

Posted on Jul 10, 2009

Composite image: Kleininstruments.com, twitter.com

The time frame for projecting the success or failure of a newly released film has already been compressed to the point of asphyxiation, thanks to the Internet, but with the popularity of social networking services like Twitter, the window of box office opportunity has become even shorter, according to The Wrap’s Sharon Waxman.

The Wrap:

The rise of social networking, studio executives say, is driving a near-instantaneous word of mouth effect that is doing much to hyper-charge Hollywood’s multi-million-dollar marketing efforts…or to defeat them a lot faster than usual.

A movie like “Up,” for example, had Disney executives surprised at its opening weekend success, which outstripped projections and brought in $68 million domestically.

Studio tracking did not indicate that the movie would have strong appeal to adults without children, one executive said, but by Saturday exhibitors were noting that that exact demographic was going to the movie.

“It’s a new phenomenon and we’re really seeing it this summer,” said Dick Cook, the chairman of Walt Disney Studios. “Clearly there’s a Twitter effect.”

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