Weekly Recap: Pink's Bottom Line on Media, Money and Sports
Top items and takeaways from this week's newsletter
Here are the top items and takeaways from this week’s newsletter.
MEDIA
Box office revenues at the nation’s theaters and cinemas declined nearly 25% last weekend to about $70 million compared to the weekend earlier, according to data from Box Office Mojo. For some context, on the same weekend in 2019 before the pandemic began, box office revenue totaled roughly $162 million. Meanwhile, during the height of the pandemic last year, total box office revenue less that $700,000 for that same weekend. All of that box office data shows that the movie business is doing better but it still has a long way to go before it fully recovers.
Global advertising and public relations firm dentsu forecasts much healthier ad spending this year than it had originally forecast. According to dentsu’s recently released June 2021 Ad Spend report, the company now forecasts that overall ad spending will increase 10.4% in 2021 compared to 2020 — that’s much stronger than dentsu’s forecast of 5.8% growth that it made at beginning of the year. Notably, dentsu forecasts that digital ad spending will be particularly strong, up 15.6% in 2021 compared to 2020. That forecast shows once again the unrelenting strength of the digital ad market.
Viewership of the country’s three major cable news networks — CNN, Fox News and MSNBC — fell this month compared to July of 2020, according to Nielsen data as reported by MediaPost. (Click here for a breakdown of those numbers from MediaPost.) That decline in viewership, though, isn’t particularly surprising as the country was in the throes of two major news events — the pandemic and the presidential election — this time one year ago. However, cable news networks still currently rank among the top ten most watched among all cable channels, and they remain very influential in shaping the news agenda in this country. As such, any talk of their imminent demise simply isn’t warranted.
MONEY
The nation’s chief financial officers (CFOs) are becoming more optimistic both about the overall US economy as well as their own companies, according to The CFO Survey, a collaboration between Duke’s Fuqua School of Business and the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta and Richmond. Those survey results are encouraging as CFOs often have greater insight than other corporate officers into both the overall health of the economy as well as into their own companies. However, those same CFOs say there are some bumps in the road to the economic recovery.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a forecast this week that projected the global economy will grow 6% this year — that forecast is unchanged from one it made in April. However, the IMF says that while it still forecasts 6% global growth overall, it now expects the composition of that growth to change. Specifically, the IMF now forecasts a stronger performance from developed economies and a weaker performance from emerging economies in 2021 than it had forecast in April. It is another indication that an economic growth gap between developed and emerging economies appears to be widening.
The relentless climb of home prices in this country shows no signs of slowing any time soon, according to a report released this week. According to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index, a leading measure of home prices in this country, home prices rose 16.6% in May compared to a year ago. May marks the 12th straight month that home prices have increased on an annual basis. If mortgage interest rates remain low and if the pandemic-driven demand for homes remains strong, home prices should continue to climb higher, at least until the end of the year.
SPORTS
Aaron Rodgers, the veteran quarterback of the Green Bay Packers and the reigning NFL MVP, will play for the Packers this season after all. It had been a distinct possibility that Rodgers wasn’t going to play for the Packers this season as the quarterback has had issues with how the team has been run. According to FanDuel Sportsbook, Green Bay is the clear favorite to win the NFL North this season. In fact, the Packers are tied for the fourth favorite in the NFL to win the Super Bowl this season, according to FanDuel. Those projections aren’t surprising as Green Bay should have a great season with Rodgers at the helm.
With confirmation this week that Aaron Rodgers will indeed play quarterback for the Green Bay Packers this year, I looked up the latest win total projection for Green Bay, which now stands at ten, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. If a team has a win total projection of 9.5 or more, that indicates that the team is likely to make the playoffs. So, for the Packers, they are right on the borderline of whether or not they’re going to make the playoffs this season. However, I think they a near lock to make the postseason, and that Green Bay’s win total projection is probably a bit low.
Texas and Oklahoma, two traditional college football powerhouses, look almost certain to join the Southeastern Conference (SEC), according to multiple news reports this week. An expanded SEC including Texas and Oklahoma is just latest sign that major college football, which had been staid for many years, now is in the throes of major change. However, don’t expect the top college programs to change much — expect at least one of either Alabama, the SEC champ if it’s not Alabama, Clemson or Ohio State to play for the national championship each year for the foreseeable future.
Jeremy Pink is currently COO of Geniecast, a leading virtual content and experience company. He is the former CEO of private-equity backed Broadcast Sports International where he helped lead the company to a successful sale and exit during his tenure there. He is also a former CNBC television executive in New York, London and Singapore.
The information contained in this communication is strictly for general informational and entertainment purposes and is not meant to be construed as financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. This communication is not a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. I am not a financial advisor or offering professional advice of any kind. Users should not act upon the content or information found within this communication without first seeking professional advice appropriate for their individual situation. Decisions based on information contained in this communication are the sole responsibility of the user, and use of this communication and its contents constitutes an explicit understanding and acceptance of the foregoing disclaimers.
(Newsletter Editor: Karina Pink)