Warner Bros. Pictures And Warner Home Video Take First Place In Market Share

(January 3, 2006 - Burbank, CA) – In a precedent-setting entertainment-industry trifecta, Warner Bros. Pictures’ domestic and international grosses each earned them first place in market share for 2005, which was joined by Warner Home Video’s leadership, for the fifth consecutive time, in retail market share. The announcements were made by Dan Fellman, President of Domestic Distribution, and Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, President of International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures, and by Ron Sanders, President of Warner Home Video. Domestic boxoffice for 2005 totaled $1,384,000,000, making it the Studio’s best year ever. Grosses were up 15% over the previous year in the face of industry totals, which fell 5%. Three films -- "Batman Begins," "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire" -- grossed more than $200 million domestically this year, also an industry record. Internationally, the Studio’s totals were even higher, with year-end grosses reaching $1,890,000,000, putting them over a billion dollars for the fifth year in a row, and making Warner Bros. Pictures International #1 for four of the last five years. Overseas releases have resulted in six pictures earning more than $100 million at the boxoffice: "Ocean’s 12," "Constantine," "Batman Begins," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "The Island" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire." “This was a challenging year, with a very crowded marketplace, but we feel that we were able to give audiences something special to bring them into theaters over and over again,” said Dan Fellman. “This is our fifth consecutive year grossing more than a billion dollars, which is an industry record and an acknowledgement of the terrific work of everyone at Warner Bros. Pictures, as well as our partners in exhibition.” Veronika Kwan-Rubinek concurred, “"Our lineup this year really clicked with international audiences. The consistency of our results over the last five years is a testament to the strength of our terrific marketing and distribution teams around the world, as well as the support of our exhibition partners. It helped us reach our second-highest Warner Bros. gross ever and the third-highest highest industry gross of all time.” Warner Home Video ended the year with a 21.2% market share, which put it comfortably in first place for the fifth year in a row. 2005 was a record-breaker for WHV – the biggest in its history, with worldwide revenues up 11%. The fourth quarter was the Studio’s highest ever, with worldwide revenues up 12%. Said Ron Sanders, “We faced a year in which spending on home entertainment was flattening, but we were able to grow our business by offering a diverse variety of films, television programming, and direct-to-video product that really connected with consumers. We also earned critical praise for our special features and imaginative picks from our classic catalogue, which have helped us set the standard for home video entertainment around the world.” Concluded Barry Meyer, Chairman and CEO, and Alan Horn, President and COO of Warner Bros., in a joint statement, “Over this past year, consumer spending has leveled off or dropped in each of these markets, but we have managed to defy industry trends and grow at a healthy rate, both theatrically and in home entertainment. This is an enormous tribute to the quality and diversity of our product, as well as to the marketing and distribution expertise that has kept us at the top of our business. We couldn’t be more pleased.” # # #