History of Box office in Timeline

A box office is a location where tickets are sold for events, often at a counter or window. The term is commonly used as a shorthand in the film industry to describe the financial success (or lack thereof) of a movie or theatrical production, representing the total revenue generated from ticket sales. It also refers to ticket sales locations at arenas and stadiums.

1904: Total ticket sales were being termed box office

In 1904, total ticket sales began to be referred to as 'box office'.

March 3, 1922: Variety started reporting box office results by theatre

On March 3, 1922, Variety began reporting box office results by theatre, initially focusing on Broadway and key U.S. cities like Chicago and Los Angeles, to provide exhibitors with information on film performance.

1929: The Motion Picture Almanac was released

In 1929, the first issue of The Motion Picture Almanac was released, which included a list of the top 104 grossing films of the previous year.

1932: Variety published the studios' top-grossing films of the year

In 1932, Variety started its annual tradition of publishing the top-grossing films of the year from various studios.

1937: BoxOffice magazine began publishing box office reports

In 1937, BoxOffice magazine began publishing box office reports and, starting in the 1930s, published a Barometer issue in January expressing movie performance for the year as percentages.

1946: Variety started to publish a weekly National Box Office survey

In 1946, Variety started publishing a weekly National Box Office survey on page 3, indicating the performance of the week's hits and flops based on box office results from 25 key U.S. cities.

1946: Variety published a list of All-Time Top Grossers

Later in 1946, Variety published a list of All-Time Top Grossers, which included films that had earned or were expected to earn $4,000,000 or more in domestic theatrical rentals, becoming a leading source for film performance data.

January 1, 1968: Variety used an IBM 360 computer to collate the grosses

Beginning January 1, 1968, Variety used an IBM 360 computer to collate grosses from weekly reports of 22 to 24 U.S. cities, analyzing data from up to 800 theaters.

April 16, 1969: Variety started to publish a list of the top 50 grossing films each week

On April 16, 1969, Variety started to publish a list of the top 50 grossing films each week, with "The Love Bug" being number one on the first chart.

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1970: EDI included data on certain films

In 1987, EDI set up a database of box office information which included data on certain films back to 1970.

1974: Nat Fellman founded Exhibitor Relations Co.

In 1974, Nat Fellman founded Exhibitor Relations Co., the first company set up to track box office grosses directly from the studios.

1981: National Gross Service started to collate domestic box office gross information

Around 1981, National Gross Service began collating total domestic box office gross information for films, which led to wider reporting of these figures; Arthur D. Murphy at Variety organized and charted this information.

1984: Art Murphy's Box Office Register was published annually

In 1984, Art Murphy began publishing Art Murphy's Box Office Register annually, detailing U.S. box office grosses.

1984: EDI started to report Canadian grosses

In 1984, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) started reporting Canadian grosses.

1985: EDI was reporting data for 15,000 screens

By 1985, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) was reporting box office data for 15,000 screens.

1987: EDI set up a database of box office information

In 1987, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) set up a database of box office information that included data on certain films back to 1970.

1990: EDI opened an office in the UK

In 1990, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) opened an office in the UK.

1990: Variety discontinued chart

In 1990, Variety discontinued its weekly chart of the top 50 grossing films.

1990: Daily Variety started to report studio's weekend estimates

In the 1990s, Daily Variety started reporting studio weekend estimates on Monday mornings, and when Entertainment Weekly launched in 1990, it published the top 10 box office weekend lists from Exhibitor Relations.

1991: All U.S. studios had agreed to share their complete data reports with EDI

By 1991, all U.S. studios had agreed to share their complete data reports with Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI). Public discussion of poorly performing films increased as box office results were publicized.

1993: EDI moved into Germany

In 1993, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) expanded its operations into Germany.

1994: Variety published their first annual global box office chart

In 1994, Variety published its first annual global box office chart, showcasing the top 100 grossing films internationally for the previous year.

1995: EDI moved into Spain

In 1995, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) began reporting box office data for Spain.

1997: Rental fees varied greatly

As of 1997, rental fees varied greatly, depending on a number of factors, with films from the major studios averaging 43% of gross receipts.

1997: EDI were acquired by ACNielsen Corporation

In 1997, Entertainment Data, Inc. (EDI) was acquired by ACNielsen Corporation for $26 million and became Nielsen EDI.

August 7, 1998: Box Office Mojo was launched

On August 7, 1998, Box Office Mojo was launched by Brandon Gray.

1999: Brandon Gray started posting the Friday grosses

In 1999, Brandon Gray started posting the Friday box office grosses sourced from Exhibitor Relations on Box Office Mojo, making them publicly available for free online on Saturdays, and posted the Sunday estimates on Sundays.

2001: Rentrak started tracking box office data

In 2001, Rentrak began tracking box office data from point of sale, becoming a rival to EDI in providing data to studios.

2004: Films viewers graded as A+ on CinemaScore had a 4.8 multiple

In 2004, films that viewers graded as A+ on CinemaScore had a 4.8 multiple in terms of total gross to opening weekend earnings.

July 2008: Box Office Mojo was purchased by Amazon.com

In July 2008, Box Office Mojo was purchased by Amazon.com through its subsidiary, IMDb.

December 2009: Rentrak acquired Nielsen EDI

In December 2009, Rentrak acquired Nielsen EDI for $15 million, becoming the sole provider of worldwide box office ticket sales revenue and attendance information used by many websites.

2014: Films viewers graded as A+ on CinemaScore had a 4.8 multiple, while films graded as F had a 2.2 multiple

In 2014, films that viewers graded as A+ on CinemaScore had a 4.8 multiple, while films graded as F had a 2.2 multiple in terms of total gross to opening weekend earnings.

October 23, 2019: Box Office Mojo unveiled a dramatic redesign

On October 23, 2019, Box Office Mojo unveiled a dramatic redesign resembling IMDb and was rebranded as "Box Office Mojo by IMDbPro," with some content moved to the subscription-based IMDbPro.

March 2020: US box office reporting largely paused

In March 2020, US box office reporting largely paused for the first time in 26 years, as nearly all theaters nationwide closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, with only drive-in theaters remaining open.