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805+ (Hard)|   Weaken|      
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Bunuel
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 06 Dec 2020, 02:20
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95% (hard)

Question Stats:

38% (01:58) correct 62% (02:03) wrong based on 219 sessions

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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained almost the same over the past twenty years – about twelve per cent. When new forms of entertainment become popular, they do not expand this percentage; instead, they take consumer spending away from other forms of entertainment. Therefore, film producers have observed the video boom with concern, knowing that every dollar spent on rental of videos means a dollar less spent on movie theatre admissions.

Which of the following, if true, most forcefully undermines the argument of the passage above?

(A) The cost of renting a video is generally substantially less than the price of a movie theatre admission.
(B) Most film producers receive a portion of the income from the sale of video rights to their movies.
(C) Fears of some film producers that videos would completely supersede movies have not come to pass.
(D) Since the start of the video boom, money spent on forms of entertainment other than videos and movies has dropped.
(E) Some movies that were unprofitable when shown in theatres have become successful when released in video form.
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D
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RayyanTanvir
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 06 Dec 2020, 03:22
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My answer is option B but please someone explain the answer.

Posted from my mobile device
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 06 Dec 2020, 04:23
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Bunuel
The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained almost the same over the past twenty years – about twelve per cent. When new forms of entertainment become popular, they do not expand this percentage; instead, they take consumer spending away from other forms of entertainment. Therefore, film producers have observed the video boom with concern, knowing that every dollar spent on rental of videos means a dollar less spent on movie theatre admissions.

Which of the following, if true, most forcefully undermines the argument of the passage above?

(A) The cost of renting a video is generally substantially less than the price of a movie theatre admission.
(B) Most film producers receive a portion of the income from the sale of video rights to their movies.
(C) Fears of some film producers that videos would completely supersede movies have not come to pass.
(D) Since the start of the video boom, money spent on forms of entertainment other than videos and movies has dropped.
(E) Some movies that were unprofitable when shown in theatres have become successful when released in video form.
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The answer will be D.
Here the author assured that families spend money in other forms other than cutting money for videos and movies.
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Sumi1010
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 06 Dec 2020, 08:30
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Premise - The new forms of entertainment take consumer spending away from other forms of entertainment.
Conclusion - The film producers have observed the video boom with concern, knowing that every dollar spent on rental of videos means a dollar less spent on movie theatre admissions.

Prethink - Of the total 12% spending on entertainment, video boom is cannibalising movie theatre. But, the concern is true only if
1. The 12% does not mean much more in absolute now because of overall growth in the incomes.
2. Of the total entertainment spending, what is the proportion of other forms of entertainment. If X is taking away Y's consumers, the total consumers of (X+Y) grows because other(say Z) form is contributing lesser, then there is no concern.

(A) The cost of renting a video is generally substantially less than the price of a movie theatre admission.
This is irrelevant to the concern. What if the number of videos rented are much more than the number of theatre admissions.
(B) Most film producers receive a portion of the income from the sale of video rights to their movies.
Still the concern is valid.
(C) Fears of some film producers that videos would completely supersede movies have not come to pass.
The concern will stay in this case too.
(D) Since the start of the video boom, money spent on forms of entertainment other than videos and movies has dropped.
This says what Z's proposition in the 12% of entertainment. Even if video is cannibalising the theatre , there is no concern as other forms are contributing lesser in the entertainment.
(E) Some movies that were unprofitable when shown in theatres have become successful when released in video form.
The profit on some movies still let the concern continue that the videos are cannibalising the theatre.

IMO D
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 06 Dec 2020, 15:15
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IMO: B

D,E come close.
Its not D because this does not specify if money spent on videos are the same or going up (it just says the money spent does not go down).
Its not E because successful does not necessarily mean profitable. The movie might be a critically acclaimed (=successful) but this does not increases its profitability. Hence videos may still eat into the profit of movies for e.g.
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Bunuel
The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained almost the same over the past twenty years – about twelve per cent. When new forms of entertainment become popular, they do not expand this percentage; instead, they take consumer spending away from other forms of entertainment. Therefore, film producers have observed the video boom with concern, knowing that every dollar spent on rental of videos means a dollar less spent on movie theatre admissions.

Which of the following, if true, most forcefully undermines the argument of the passage above?

(A) The cost of renting a video is generally substantially less than the price of a movie theatre admission.
(B) Most film producers receive a portion of the income from the sale of video rights to their movies.
(C) Fears of some film producers that videos would completely supersede movies have not come to pass.
(D) Since the start of the video boom, money spent on forms of entertainment other than videos and movies has dropped.
(E) Some movies that were unprofitable when shown in theatres have become successful when released in video form.
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OFFICIAL EXPLANATION



The author argues for the following connection: videos take money away from movies. What choices (D) asserts, in effect, is that the money spent on videos came from some other source. So, (D) statement undermines the given passage.
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The percentage of family income spent on entertainment has remained al 13 Dec 2020, 04:22
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Think I got what this question is about with some numbers -

Total---Video---Movie---Others---Notes
100------4---------4--------4--------Original
100------5---------3--------4--------Film producers concern
100------5---------4--------3--------Choice D states Others goes down
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