$500 Million Scale... Ceremony Viewership Plummets, Facing Difficulties
Viewers Drop from 44 Million to 19.5 Million in 10 Years
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), which hosts the American Academy (Oscar) Awards ceremony, is launching a fundraising campaign called 'Academy100' ahead of the 100th anniversary of the awards ceremony in 2028.
According to AFP and other sources on the 10th (local time), AMPAS recently started a fundraising campaign aiming to raise $500 million (approximately 686.2 billion KRW). This is because the broadcast rights fees, which make up most of the Academy's revenue, have sharply declined worldwide as viewership of the awards ceremony has dropped significantly.
The Academy Awards ceremony held on March 10 this year [Image source=Academy Awards Facebook capture, Yonhap News]
Bill Kramer, CEO of the Academy, stated in a press release, "The Academy is now entering its second century, and we want to continue to be an outstanding leader in the international film industry," emphasizing, "Like any healthy organization, the Academy needs a diverse and sustainable support base." The fundraising campaign is intended to diversify the Academy's finances, which have the responsibility to nurture the film industry and new filmmakers, and to continuously hold the annual awards ceremony.
The Academy Awards ceremony has long been broadcast by the American ABC network, but the broadcasting rights contract is reportedly nearing its end. The Academy announced that sponsors have already donated more than $100 million (approximately 137.2 billion KRW), which is one-fifth of the fundraising goal. Research firm Statista reported that the global TV viewership of the Academy Awards decreased from 44 million in 2014 to 19.5 million this year.
First held on May 16, 1929, the Academy Awards honor American films released the previous year as well as foreign films screened in the United States. Currently, the Academy is the most influential film organization in the world, with about 10,000 distinguished domestic and international members from the film industry. In 2020, director Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' became the first Korean film to be nominated, winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature Film, and Best Original Screenplay. Following that, in 2021, actress Youn Yuh-jung won Best Supporting Actress for 'Minari.'
The Academy Awards are also famous for the lavish gifts worth about 200 million KRW given to nominees. These gifts are not provided directly by the Academy but are planned by a Los Angeles marketing company called 'Distinctive Assets.' The contents of the gift bags change every year depending on sponsoring brands, mainly including luxury travel vouchers, beauty treatment coupons, jewelry, cosmetics, food, and sometimes adult products. The average market value is between $100,000 and $150,000 (approximately 130 million to 200 million KRW).
Nominees for the '96th Academy Awards' held last March received gift bags worth $180,000 (approximately 230 million KRW). Distinctive Assets stated, "This year's gifts consisted of products from over 70 companies, including small businesses, minority-owned brands, women entrepreneurs, and socially responsible companies," adding, "We hope these companies gain recognition." It is known that these companies provide products for the gifts free of charge and pay an additional fee of about $4,000.
This year's gifts included an all-inclusive luxury Swiss resort stay voucher for up to 10 people, a 7-day stay at a luxury healing resort in California, a 3-day stay at a private villa on the Caribbean island of Saint Barth?lemy, gifts for pets, high-end kitchen appliances, tableware, tequila, skincare sets, gluten-free cookies, sugar-free jelly, and various other products.
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