There are 20 days left in 2009 including today, and Hollywood can already boast it has had its highest grossing year ever.

Darn those pirates and Redbox!

Hollywood has been crying for ages that movie piracy has been causing a fall in box office revenues, but as of close of business on the 11th, the total domestic income for movies $9.685 billion, making it the highest grossing year in movie history.  With several major releases left between now and the end of the year, it is looking like it will be the first ever $10 billion year.

So, again, how much is piracy hurting the box office receipts?

Of course, failing piracy, some in Hollywood are now claiming that DVD rental kiosk company Redbox will cost the entertainment industry $1 billion in lost revenue due to its low cost DVD rentals.  The major movie studios are on the warpath against Redbox and are trying to do everything they can to delay the newest DVD releases coming to the ubiquitous red kiosks for at least 30 days after initial release.

While the DVD release hold back is more about stopping the decline of DVD sales, the $1 billion loss estimate includes revenues to the box office also, and, I’m sorry, but that is just hard to believe when you are having the biggest year ever.

Now, true, ticket prices continue to increase, and some studios show move attendance has held study for some years now, but that doesn’t change the fact that Hollywood is grossing insane amounts of money.  But, instead of constantly looking for external forces that are causing your problems, how about you look internally?  How about you start controlling the budgets of movies more?  Stop paying actors obscene amounts of money, cut out the lavish parties you are so famous for and so on.  Clean up your own houses before you go looking for targets such as Redbox that are doing nothing wrong?

Oh, I know, how silly of me, they are evil and must be destroyed … while you dine out at expensive restaurants on your corporate card.

The sad thing is, I know I’m whistling in the wind because I have written similar thoughts before, and obviously nothing is going to change.  It would just be nice to see Hollywood stop whining about how bad they’ve got it when they’re facing $10 billion in revenues.