Any movie geeks who spent an inordinate amount of time in the nineties surfing the web are certainly familiar with the Hollywood Stock Exchange, a site that allows users to buy and sell shares in both films and movie stars as if they were companies. Just like the real stock market, the value of said shares are derived from both current and future earnings potential, only swapping out quarterly revenues for weekend box-office receipts. However, with the HSX, all the money that traded hands only existed in the virtual space (i.e., there was no way to convert your earnings into “real” money). Until now.
According to a report by Roger Friedman, a man named Howard Lutnick is in the final stages of preparing the Cantor Exchange, which would function in the same way as the HSX but be funded with real currency. Cantor is awaiting regulatory approval before officially launching his service, but if it does get the go-ahead, it could certainly have a large impact on Hollywood’s release schedule. Our advice? Now might be a good time to try and work all of your connections in an attempt to get Paul Dergarabedian’s direct line.
Movie Box Office: Real Betting Is On Its Way [Showbiz 411]
