Entertainment
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- 21 Apr 2023
- Research & Ideas
The $15 Billion Question: Have Loot Boxes Turned Video Gaming into Gambling?
Critics say loot boxes—major revenue streams for video game companies—entice young players to overspend. Can regulators protect consumers without dampening the thrill of the game? Research by Tomomichi Amano and colleague.
- 07 Apr 2023
- Research & Ideas
When Celebrity ‘Crypto-Influencers’ Rake in Cash, Investors Lose Big
Kim Kardashian, Lindsay Lohan, and other entertainers have been accused of promoting crypto products on social media without disclosing conflicts. Research by Joseph Pacelli shows what can happen to eager investors who follow them.
- 03 Jan 2023
- Cold Call Podcast
Wordle: Can a Pandemic Phenomenon Sustain in the Long Term?
Wordle went from a personal game, created by a developer for his girlfriend, to a global phenomenon with two million users in just a few months. Then The New York Times made an unexpected bid to acquire it. But will Wordle outlast other pandemic pastimes? Harvard Business School senior lecturer Christina Wallace discusses the journey of software engineer and accidental entrepreneur Josh Wardle in the case, “Wordle.”
- 15 Nov 2022
- Op-Ed
Why TikTok Is Beating YouTube for Eyeball Time (It’s Not Just the Dance Videos)
Quirky amateur video clips might draw people to TikTok, but its algorithm keeps them watching. John Deighton and Leora Kornfeld explore the factors that helped propel TikTok ahead of established social platforms, and where it might go next.
- 23 Nov 2021
- Research & Ideas
The Vinyl Renaissance: Take Those Old Records Off the Shelf
If listeners today can stream just about any song they want, why are so many music aficionados still buying records? Ryan Raffaelli and Gold Rush Vinyl CEO Caren Kelleher discuss the resurgence of vinyl. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 17 Mar 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
Consuming Contests: Outcome Uncertainty and Spectator Demand for Contest-based Entertainment
Analysis of Australian Football League data shows that the uncertainty of game outcomes has a large, positive causal effect on stadium attendance. These findings show how competitive balance is important for contest designers in general and sports leagues in particular.
- 04 Jan 2021
- Working Paper Summaries
The Twofold Effect of Customer Retention in Freemium Settings
Many digital products offer “freemiums”: that is, part of the product for free, often with advertising, and an enhanced customer experience for payment. This research, in a mobile game context, shows the importance of recognizing the short- and long-term effects on customer retention when managing the tradeoffs between free and paid aspects of freemium products.
- 03 Apr 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
Learning or Playing? The Effect of Gamified Training on Performance
Games-based training is widely used to engage and motivate employees to learn, but research about its effectiveness has been scant. This study at a large professional services firm adopting a gamified training platform showed the training helps performance when employees are already highly engaged, and harms performance when they’re not.
- 27 Feb 2019
- Working Paper Summaries
Judgment Aggregation in Creative Production: Evidence from the Movie Industry
Selecting early-stage ideas in creative industries is challenging because consumer taste is hard to predict and the quantity to sift through is large. Using The Black List that ranks scripts annually based on nominations from film executives, this study shows that aggregating expert opinions helps reduce quality uncertainty and can influence high-budget production.
- 04 Jun 2018
- Research & Ideas
Think of it as Professors in Cars Having Coffee
Has the art of civil debate returned? In the new Harvard Business School podcast series After Hours, professors Youngme Moon, Felix Oberholzer-Gee, and Mihir Desai discuss issues ranging from gun control to voice-activated digital assistants. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 26 Feb 2018
- Research & Ideas
The Airbnb Effect: Cheaper Rooms for Travelers, Less Revenue for Hotels
Hotels enjoy their highest profits when rooms are most in demand, like during holidays and big events. Unfortunately for them, Airbnb is taking away some of that pricing power, according to new research by Chiara Farronato and Andrey Fradkin. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 12 Oct 2017
- Cold Call Podcast
Telemundo: The Fastest Growing TV Network in the United States
Telemundo is the fastest-growing television network in the United States, but Chairman Cesar Conde must attract millennials to the fold. In this podcast, Henry McGee discusses Telemundo's David and Goliath rise. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 18 May 2017
- Cold Call Podcast
Reversing the Losing Streak on Sesame Street
When CEO Jeffrey Dunn took over Sesame Street in 2014 with a new mission to “Make kids smarter, stronger, and kinder,” skepticism ran high as Big Bird's hair. In this podcast, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, who wrote the case with Ryan Raffaelli, talks about reversing a losing streak, answering foundational questions like, “Who are we if we make this deal?” Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 19 Jan 2017
- Cold Call Podcast
Can Wynton Marsalis and Lincoln Center Save Jazz Music?
With its listenership in steep decline, jazz legend Wynton Marsalis is looking to rebrand the genre and engineer its comeback. Rohit Deshpande discusses his recent case study on the effort. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 06 Oct 2016
- Cold Call Podcast
The Munich Oktoberfest: From Local Tradition to Global Capitalism
Professor Juan Alcacer discusses how the Oktoberfest brand has been transplanted around the globe, whether copycat festivals help or hurt its reputation, and to what extent its original hosts could or should be profit-motivated. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 08 Sep 2016
- Cold Call Podcast
How Netflix Built its House of Cards (and Changed TV Forever)
The TV drama "House of Cards" not only made Netflix a major entertainment player, but it changed the viewing habits of millions of watchers. In this Cold Call Podcast, Anita Elberse discusses her case study on the impact of this pioneering series and the small production company behind it. Open for comment; 0 Comments.
- 29 Jan 2013
- Research & Ideas
Creating the Perfect Super Bowl Ad
Professor Thales S. Teixeira says TV viewers lose purchasing interest when ads get too caught up in entertainment. His advice for the perfect pitch: tie together a good story and a compelling brand. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
- 01 Oct 2012
- Research & Ideas
Better by the Bundle?
Video game companies do it, fast-food restaurants, too. Why don't more companies bundle products and services together in one package at a bargain price? Research by Assistant Professor Vineet Kumar. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.
As Social Networks Get More Competitive, Which Ones Will Survive?
In early 2023, TikTok reached close to 1 billion users globally, placing it fourth behind the leading social networks: Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Meanwhile, competition in the market for videos had intensified. Can all four networks continue to attract audiences and creators? Felix Oberholzer-Gee discusses competition and imitation among social networks in his case “Hey, Insta & YouTube, Are You Watching TikTok?”