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Why the Cinema Industry in the UK is losing Customers

In the early 70’s up to the late 90’s until deep into the twenty-first century, cinema was a

booming industry. Movies such as the First Knight, Trojan Women, Excalibur, the 13th Warrior,

Arn and many other materials shown in cinemas used to receive a lot of viewership. Up until

2007, the United Kingdom Cinema industry was valued at 200 billion pounds. The number of

people who used to throng the movie theaters were estimated at 167000 per day. The numbers

could rise to a maximum of 50000 a day with noticeable increases over the years.

The industry commanded so much fame that advertisers and politicians plied their trade

in cinemas. In fact, prior to their election, former Prime ministers of the United Kingdom; Harold

Wilson (1970) and Margaret Thatcher (1980) respectively, they campaigned via cinemas. The

two campaigns are famed as two of the more comprehensive election trails in the history of the

United Kingdom. Such was the fame and acclaim that the cinema industry of the United

Kingdom commanded. However, since the turn of the century, the number of cinema attendants

has reduced regressively till now when only a handful of people make their way to cinemas.

Various innovations such as television, accompanied by the increase in prominence of the

internet have been attributed to the potential causes for the drop. This dissertation delves into a

research conducted over the possible reasons for the decline in cinema attendance.
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Research Question

What are the reasons for the decrease in attendance in cinemas in the UK?

Research objectives

To evaluate the effect of TV on people’s lifestyle

To determine if the rising cost for a movie outing discourage consumers.

To ascertain the effect of people’s lifestyles on the attendance of cinemas.

Literature Review

The Long Tail Theory

Developed by Lucy Richardson and Emma Sugarman, the Long Tail Theory states that

when the head has a 50 person following, the rise of 10 tails, with five followers each can replace

it. The theories argue a case that is relevant to the cinema industry of the United Kingdom

(Peltier, Stephanie and Moreau 712). In the 1980s, cinema was the theme of the day. People

looked forward to a chance to watch a movie at the theatres. Also, the theaters were the source of

information concerning various issues, either with regards to the movie industry or any other

issues. Therefore, in this case, the Cinema industry represented the hypothetical head with a

following of those many people.

However, the rise of the prominence of the television industry and the internet have

presented the tails. As per the Long Tail Theory, this increase in the number of Television

stations increased the number of people susceptible to watching them. Considering that it was a

new industry, it was exciting for the customers. In addition, internet websites, are perceived to

have a retrospective effect on the Cinema industry (Peltier, Stephanie and Moreau 712). The
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number of websites showing the movies has increased, causing people to prefer the internet and

online sites to physical traveling to the theaters. Therefore, the many websites acted as the long

tail.

Chaos Theory by Jeff Jarvis

Jarvis developed the theory after conceptual analysis and informed prediction of the state

of the cinema industry in the future. Apparently, the future is here (Jarvis 34). The Chaos Theory

stares that eventually, the advertising funds remitted to the cinema industry will gradually

reduce. In line with the question at hand, the cinema industry has lost its customers due to the

independence of the advertising industry. With the innovation of online advertising and

television marketing, the funds remitted to cinema owners as part of advertising cash has greatly

reduced. Jarvis also argued that with the thorough cinema marketing of the various firms such as

Pepsi and Coca-Cola, would eventually make them independent of the cinemas (Jarvis 34).

Therefore, according to his prediction and forecast, the firms no longer needed the services of the

cinemas. In turn, the cinema industry failed to grow. As such, the customers were less thrilled

with the lack of developments in the industry. Eventually, politicians could not campaign via the

cinemas and theaters. In line with the Chaos Theory, the cash of the advertising had reduced, but

also, the viewership in the theatres had greatly regressed.

Joanna Rydzewska, in her book in 2012, highlighted ambiguity as for a reason for the

shift from the United Kingdom Cinema industry. Until 2004, the cinema production of the

United Kingdom was regarded as one of the best if not the best. At the same time, the viewership

it commanded was exemplary. However, stagnation in the issues they presented caused its

decline in popularity (Rydzewska 215). It was at the same time when the movie industry of the

United States of America gained fame and acclaim. Eventually, they took over the mantle from
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the United Kingdom. The subjects of the British movies was outdated. In many cases, the British

cinema materials were about love stories, either gone sour or having a happy ending. It was

understandably thrilling to the viewer in the three decades preceding its fall. At the time no other

producers of cinema material were showing anything different.

However, at the turn of the century, in 2001, the United States of America made

significant leaps towards the transformation of the movie industry. The insurgence of the

Hollywood was key to the United Kingdom’s loss. When the films from the United States of

America stated showing a variety of material, the cinema industry of the United Kingdom made

a major loss. The discovery of many more fields such as the reality television shows, wildlife

films, cartoon networks, fictional movies and documentaries was a turning point in the cinema

industry. Accompanied by the widespread use of television, the viewership of the films from the

United States of America, Poland and India increased considerably. In turn, the ambiguity of the

films from the United Kingdom filmmakers had a hindering effect on the growth of the industry.

Consequently, the number of people going to the cinemas reduced.

According to Andersen, the European film industry is regressing because of financial

reasons. There monetary value of the Spanish, Italian and the British cinema industry is massive.

As a result, the taxes that accompany production are huge too (Andersen 67). Therefore, the

price of attendance of the launching is always so high that customers cannot afford it anymore.

As a result, the producers of the movies crave to recover the funds they invested as early as

possible in avoiding losses. In turn, the fees for attending the film has skyrocketed. Therefore the

number of people visiting cinemas ha reduced. Potential customers prefer the television.

Andersen observed that legislation is needed to redeem the film industries of France and the

United Kingdom.
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Nick observed that lifestyles were a determining factor in the relevance of the United

Kingdom film industry. During the 1970s, the lives of people were relatively economical.

Therefore, people worked for lesser hours per day (Nick 48). Instead, they had time to attend the

movies. With time, the overall inflation all over the world forced people to adapt to the tough

economic times. Therefore, the number of hours they worked per day had to increase. In turn, the

amount of time that was left to watch a movie was always hampered. Therefore, they had to

strain to squeeze some time in their daily programs to attend a cinema. With time, however, the

rhythm of life could not support the idea of mandatory viewership of a movie at least once a

week. Therefore, the tradition slowly disappeared. Few people attended the movie theatres. By

2000, many people in the United Kingdom and other places of the world were occupied with

other activities that they could not visit the cinema (Gifford 565). Therefore, lifestyle is

attributed to the drop in the number of people watching movies in cinemas.

In 2013, Evans, Elizabeth, and McDonald researched the possible causes of the decline in

the viewership of the cinema industry in the United Kingdom. The major reason he attributed the

cause too, was that the innovation of disruptive websites such as the Netflix played a critical role

in the down fall (Evans, Elizabeth and McDonald 158). In fact, more people prefer to watch the

movies online than download them. Also, the capability of people to download movies presented

a significant approach to the analysis of the causes of the drop in te numbers of people thronging

the cinemas in the United Kingdom. As of May 2013, there were more movie download

websites, than the number of active cinema halls in the whole of the British movie industry.

Some of the websites are legal while some are piracy-oriented illegal websites that enable

potential cinema customers to access movies and films that are not launched yet (Hassard, John,

Jonathan Morris and McCann 586). Regardless of the legality or illegality of the download
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website, it provided an opportunity to the customers to view the material without having to travel

to the cinemas.

Methodology and Data

The research was conducted over a period of 4 months with interviews carried out in

correspondence with movie producers, cinema owners, promoters, and customers. The researcher

made use of 6 respondents. The study utilized two producers, one cinema owner, two promoters

and one staunch movie fanatic. On account of the two movie producers, the cost of movie

production has increased consistently since the 1970s to date. The researcher was keen to find

them at their work stations to observe first hand, the proceedings of the movie production and

deduce the comparison with the 1980s situation. On the other hand, cinema owner was found at

home in the western part of Liverpool. The Merseyside city was always throng with movie

enthusiasts before the unfortunate developments. The promoters were media personalities, who

exuded an understanding of the excitement associated with the Cinema Industry. They were both

based on Whales. The customer was interviewed at his home in Exeter. The interviews were

conducted with face to face interactions with the interviewee, hence enabling acquisition of

relevant information accompanied with reactions that shaped the seriousness of the cause of the

decline I the viewership of the United Kingdom cinema industry.

Of the respondents, 50% attributed to the shift away from the cinema industry in the

United Kingdom to the invention of online mechanisms of watching the movies. 30% reasoned

that the cost of the movies was the main cause of the loss of customers in the movie industry of

the United Kingdom. As the price of the films rose from the producer’s position, the ticket prices

also hiked. Therefore, customers could no longer afford the luxury of sophistication and opted to
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stay home. 100% of the producers agreed that technological innovations threatened to phase out

the era of cinemas.

Analysis of Data

The cinema owner observed that the demand for cinemas had greatly reduced since the

1970s. Gone were the times when excited audiences would wait outside her cinema hall to watch

a well-marketed movie. Also, she informed the researcher that they paid 1000 pounds for the

DVD of a movie and 800 pounds for a play. However, she noted that both the cinema owners

and producers got the appropriate value for their businesses. Nevertheless, she was coerced out

of her exciting work when the cost of the movies when high and she could not convince

customers of the necessity of an increase in ticket fees (Sorensen 728). Therefore, with time, the

number of people who came to the movies reduced progressively.

Both the producers were in the budding stages of their respective careers in 1972.

Therefore, they reminisced the time with fond pride. Coincidentally, they worked with producers

in London and North Hampshire respectively. They recall that movies were in constant demand.

The demand was so high that they would get exhausted while creating them. Also, the cost of the

production was considerably low. With low costs of hiring venues, the wages and salaries of the

actors and the technical staff were relatively low too. However, in comparison with the present

affairs, the production of movies is expensive. They observed that the cost of production of a 30-

minute skit now is equal to the cost of production of 2-hour movies in the late 1980s. In

retrospect, the supply chain of the distribution of movies at the time was fairly clear. After

production, the producers contacted cinema owners, who in turn contacted promoters, who

marketed the various venues of watching the movies. With no other option on the market, the
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people attended the cinemas (Crane 370). On the other hand, cinema owner was found at home.

It was clear that the developments in the film industry did not make ogre well with his job.

On the other hand, the movie fanatic highlighted various reasons as the cause on non-

attendance to cinema sessions. As an enthusiastic fan of movies, it was peculiar for a fan to stay

at home when the movie industry produced a lot of material worth watching. However, the cost

of the gate tickets to the movie theaters was a deterrence to many fans. As the cost of production

of the movies had increased over the years, it meant that cinema owner acquired the movies at a

higher cost than in the 1990s (Monk 176). In turn, they increased the price of the tickets with

which the cinema entrants paid. With time, cinemas became a luxury. Hence many opted for

other alternatives to entertainment. Also, as observed by the respondent, the innovations of

programs and websites that enabled them to download moves for free or at a minimal cost is a

reason for the drop in numbers thronging cinema halls. Considering that the cost of purchasing

material online and their download is cheaper than the attendance of the cinema, it provided an

option that could not be turned down by most movie enthusiasts.

Another cause of the fall in the count of people who went to the cinema halls was the

lifestyle of people. People work more, are pressed by more issues in life compared to those of the

19th century. Therefore, they prefer to work even over the weekend to alleviate their living

standards instead of going to the movies. Also, in the 1980s, the concept of going to the cinemas

was definitive of the social status of people (Hand, Chris and Judge 1053). Cinemas appeared

cool and therefore, anyone who missed watching a certain movie was considered not up to date

with the socially acceptable and ignorant. However, in comparison to the twenty-first century,

such stereotypes do not exist as people tend to focus on their whereabouts with not much ado

about other people’s lives.

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The promoters and film producers attributed the fall in many cinema attendants to a

larger course. They felt that the governmental taxes and restrictions subject the film industry into

ambiguity (Brown, Neil Christopher Charles, et al. 79). Compared to other industries such as the

United States of America’s the British movie industry was not growing. For instance, the taxes

that are levied on the films produced in the United Kingdom is 103% higher than that of the

Hollywood materials (Zhao, Eric, Masakazu and Lounsbury 1758). In turn, the high cost was

trickled to the cinemas, baring customers from affording them. Also, the innovations of programs

such as the Internet Download Managers and Netflix ensured that customers would get hold of

movies without the hassle of attending the cinemas (Randle, Keith, Cynthia and Calveley 604).

As a result, many preferred to download the material; thus, the number of people who attended

cinema movie shows reduced notably.

Conclusions, Recommendations, and Limitations

According to the deductions made from the interviews with the critical stakeholders of

the British Cinema industry, it can still be remedied to some extent. As stated, the taxed levied

on the production of the movies and other material shown in cinemas were high. As a result, the

cost of production of the films was similarly uneconomical (Iordanova, Dina and Cunningham

46). Therefore, as a recommendation, the British government should alleviate the situation by

creating a conducive environment for the producers of the films. In turn, the ticket prices will be

posed to reduce, and ultimately, the number of people visiting cinema halls will increase (Bloore

198). Also, there should be restrictions towards the television viewership with regards to movies

and other materials that could be viewed in cinemas. The present case where television stations

are purchasing the rights of close to all movies is leaving cinemas with little different to offer to

its customers.
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Therefore, the relevant regulators of the Welsh, Irish and English movie industries ought

to manage the awarding of rights to allocate some to the cinemas to stabilize the diminishing

industry (Nelmes 87). Besides, the websites that enable the illegal downloading and direct

streaming of movies with no further costs have dealt a significant blow to the cinema industry.

Therefore, to alleviate the situation, the state controllers of the online material transfer ought to

work in collaboration with movie producers to develop a system that facilitates discretion in

supply to prioritize cinemas (Perkins 318). With sufficient marketing, the cinemas are sure to

regain their viewership. However, there are several limitations to the efforts of reviving the

cinema industry (Spraos 268). As the film industries of the United States of America, Russia and

France have thrived on showing explorative material that probably requires parental control; it is

hard to imagine the same in the United Kingdom.

With the advanced level of sophistication, self-respect and decorum, the British audience

would not appreciate such a drastic shift. In addition, other industries such as Hollywood and

Bollywood have advanced through online platforms and a supportive media. On the other hand,

the United Kingdom is more appreciative of sports and outdoor shows. Therefore, the revival of

the cinema industry in the United Kingdom would be a tall order (Hassard, John, Jonathan

Morris and McCann 586). Another limitation to the maximization of the number of people

visiting cinemas are the varied lifestyles of people. Even the former fanatics of cinema have been

pressed by economic and financial issues that are only remedied by working their time off.

However, there is little that a government or the producers of the movies can do to change the

lifestyle of people. Also, many movie fans have adopted laxity, in that, they prefer downloading

and watching them off their couches. In conclusion, the issues deduced from the interviews and

found in the relevant literature concerning the causes of the loss of customers by the United
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Kingdom cinema industry are pertinent to it and can be acted upon to increase the cinema

audience.
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Work Cited

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