Julia Boorstin: Media & Entertainment
Grading last year's predictions, I'll take a B+.
1. Cable and satellite giants will resist cord-cutting
They're still fighting to keep consumers paying, but they haven't suffered too badly. The real threat isn't cord-cutting, but college graduates who seemingly never pay a cable bill and "cord-shavers" who cut back.
2. Facebook will get bigger.
Facebook has over 800 million members. My prediction was an understatement.
3. 3-D technology will decline in importance.
Three dimensional TV is absolutely less important. Movies like Walt Disney's"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" and "Kung Fu Panda 2" (distributed by Viacom'sParamount Pictures) drew less than 50 percent of their opening weekend box office from 3-D screens. And despite more, higher-priced 3-D tickets, the overall box office is down 3.7 percent year-to-date.
4. Console game business will be set for a big battle.
It hasn't been a great year for second-tier video games. Total game sales are expected to be flat or lower, despite the fact that Activision Blizzard's launched the biggest game ever, "Modern Warfare 3." And as I expected, companies are rolling out more subscription services, like Call of Duty Elite.
5. Celebrities will monetize their brands
It's hard to deny that celebrities are monetizing their brands. Check out the ever-expanding Kardashian empire, but I think we're still in early days. This should play out more next year when YouTube launches 100 channels enabling celebs to broadcast directly to consumers.
