TheGrill is an annual gathering in Beverly Hills presented by TheWrap. Over its prior six years, organizer Sharon Waxman (CEO and Editor In Chief) has assembled an impressive array of top flight Hollywood insiders. There were myriad pithy insights, a handful of which which I will assemble and discuss. The three biggest themes I found were gaming, virtual reality and music streaming.
The intersection of Hollywood and gaming goes back many years. I recall well my years working at Philips Media, when we were part of a growing trend of trying to bring cinematic properties into gaming. Whether it was discussions with George Lucas about bringing interactivity to his then-current “Young Indiana Jones” series or licensing the film elements of “Jumanji” (originally a book about a game, then turned into a film with Robin Williams), the issues remain similar as the technology improves.
At TheGrill this week Chris DeWolfe (CEO Jam City, formerly SGN Games) noted that 72% of app store revenue is from gamers, and myriad people who do not self-identify as gamers are engaged. A blockbuster game often far outstrips a blockbuster film in terms of opening weekend revenue. Phil Keslin (CTO, Niantic) was justifiably glowing in the penumbra of his company’s Pokemon Go success. Keslin noted that a countless number of players have lost weight and gotten healthy as a result, and all the Pokemon Go players have taken a collective walk halfway to Pluto. The session wrapped up with the observation that Activision has started a movie studio.
As to the second of our three topics, augmented reality (AR) understandably represents an easier path to consumer adoption due to the heavier hardware footprint and cost associated with virtual reality (VR). For those needing a differentiating example, Pokemon Go is AR. Some folks apparently eschew VR as it messes with the makeup on their face. Ted Schilowitz (Futurist, 20th Century Fox) believes the VR hardware on the head will be replaced with rooms equipped with small integrated nodes on the wall, such that the entire room will be holographic. He also opined that “VR represents a spatial experience you don’t get in the traditional squares and rectangles of TVs and movies. Live theatre to a slight degree offers a spatial experience, but still you are in a seat. Theme parks are the closest reference point.” Location based VR is exploding in China, but the US domestic market competes with the improved in-home entertainment experience. Gaming consoles like PlayStation will accelerate VR in the home. Many in the audience were familiar with the perennial chicken and egg conundrum of not enough hardware to justify the expense of software production (can anyone say DVD or Blu-Ray). Nonetheless, millions of dollars are pouring into the VR format ($5B according to some sources). Another swinging pendulum in the production of VR titles is the degree to which the VR experience is participatory. The greater the participation, inevitably the less linear the storytelling. An older generation is invariably more accustomed to the language of cinema and linear storytelling. At Philips Media back in the day, we spent many hours trying to figure out how we could have various endings to the “Clue” game and still precede the ending with compelling story lines. Put another way, if the ending can be chosen by the participant, how important is the prior story line?
Music streaming was the third major topic of interest to me at TheGrill.
Irving Azoff (Chairman & CEO Azoff MSG Entertainment), is generally considered to be the most powerful man in the music business. He pointed out that thousands of jobs have been lost in the music business, yet more people are enjoying more music than ever. Paid streaming admittedly is doing better, he said, voicing a reality that highlights the foregoing dichotomy. Streaming has brought older music to a younger generation; my teenage daughters are indeed huge fans of Eagles, Azoff’s biggest act.
Azoff presented what he called YouTube Value Gap statistics, showing the effect of all the free music available on YouTube. He indicated he remains in direct dialogue with YouTube. “If musicians could put their work behind the YouTube Red paywall, that would be acceptable,” stated Azoff. Streamripping provides a perfect digital copy, said Azoff, “so a consumer has no need to go to Apple or other paid sources. Therefore YouTube is a pirate. They are standing against everyone else in the industry. For the first time you have a united music industry: musicians, labels, publishers. The finances are irritating, but I have less concern about that than the control issue.” By that he referred to the fact that no musician chooses to have his music freely available on YouTube, the law puts the burden on the musician to request his music be pulled down.

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