Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

'Star Wars' Trailer, 'Monday Night Football' Combine For Boon To Disney, ESPN

ESPN has a strong foothold in live sports by owning rights to numerous very expensive sporting events and leagues, including "Monday Night Football," with the NFL and the network agreeing in 2011 to a $15.2 billion contract that runs through 2021. "Monday Night Football" has regularly led all Monday shows in ratings for 2015, but the "Star Wars" trailer for the seventh film in the anthology will almost certainly boost the figures for the matchup between the Eagles and the Giants.

"Only a Star Wars trailer could generate this kind of excitement," Dergarabedian said. "People who don’t usually watch football could get locked in to watch the 'Star Wars' trailer and stay for the game. The reflected glory of both brands will feed of each other in a very positive way."

There is so much anticipation for "The Force Awakens" that viewers will likely be willing to watch the game clock at Lincoln Financial Field tick toward the big reveal. Ratings should spike as halftime approaches, with remotes that typically wander Mondays tuned in to ESPN, Brett Sappington, director of research at media market research and consulting company Parks Associates, said.

From the article "'Star Wars' Trailer, 'Monday Night Football' Combine For Boon To Disney, ESPN" by Tim Marcin.

Previously In The News

Streaming is heading toward a breaking point with consumers

However, while work on that puzzle continues and multiple companies look for a way to get streaming subscribers to stay in one place, customer churn is still high. Or, as Parks Associates describes it...

Apple’s HomePod Has Arrived. Don’t Rush to Buy It.

Apple also provided statistics on smart speaker usage from the research firm Parks Associates. That report also found that playing music and getting the weather were the top uses of smart speakers, wh...

Walmart seeks to unload Vudu: report

Brett Sappington, senior research director and principal analyst at Parks Associates, added that the transactional market for video, Vudu’s core business, has begun eroding as movie studios no longer...

Wolk’s Week in Review: Is anyone paying for Flixes, vMVPDs get hot (for now)

A new study from Parks Associates reveals that a whopping 43% of households are planning to switch to vMVPDs this year, a category I’m willing to bet few of them were even aware of a year or two ago,...