The Effect of Social Influence on Market Inequalities in the Motion Picture Industry

In this paper we investigate the degree to which two social influences, namely imitation and coordinated consumption, effectuate inequalities in the motion picture industry. We develop an agent-based model based on micro movie visitors’ decision-making that generates the observed macro market outcomes. The simulation model makes use of the findings of an empirical survey amongst 1112 cinema visitors. We find that social influences explain market inequalities and that the impact of coordinated consumption on market inequalities is stronger than the impact of imitation.