Hollywood may not be recession-proof this time

Changes in consumer behavior signal trouble for media companies. For decades, entertainment executives have boasted that Hollywood is "recession-proof." No matter how dire the economy, the argument goes, consumers will always be willing to spend on entertainment to escape. Studio executives note that during the Great Depression, when more than a quarter of the country was out of work, people still scraped together dimes to see the latest motion picture. In subsequent economic slumps, consumers spent freely on new technology, expanded their home video libraries and, most recently, invested $1,000 or more on high-definition, big-screen TVs. This time, however, past may not be prologue. Unlike the rudimentary entertainment economy of 75 years ago, when the downtown Bijou was about the only diversion, consumers now have a near-limitless array of entertainment options to occupy their leisure time.