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For What It's Worth

Michael Rushton on pricing the arts

Night at the museum

September 19, 2014 by Michael Rushton 1 Comment

mavericksBack in February, Business Week reported:

When Maxwell Anderson took over as director of the Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) two years ago, he told the board he wanted to offer free memberships to anyone willing to share some data—even when it’s just their name and e-mail address. Anderson’s idea is novel in the staid world of art museums, but it echoes what companies such as Google (GOOG) and Facebook (FB) have long understood: Learning as much as you can about your customers’ behavior can be more valuable than the price of admission. “We’re trying to incentivize people to represent what they’re doing, where they’re going, and how they’re spending their time,” Anderson says.

So, I’m just wondering, is this the outcome of all that data mining?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  1. ArtsJournal – Top AJBlogs For 09.21.14 says:
    September 21, 2014 at 10:00 pm

    […] Neutral Milk Hotel at the Hollywood Bowl AJBlog: CultureCrash | Published 2014-09-19 Night at the museum […]

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Michael Rushton

Michael Rushton taught in the Arts Administration programs at Indiana University, and lives in Bloomington. An economist by training, he has published widely on such topics as public funding of the … MORE

About For What It’s Worth

What’s the price? Everything has one; admission, subscriptions, memberships, special exhibitions, box seats, refreshments, souvenirs, and on and on – a full menu. What the price is matters. Generally, nonprofit arts organizations in the US receive about half of their revenue as “earned income,” and … [Read More...]

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Recent Comments

  • antonio c. cuyler on Equality, the arts, and the problem of expensive tastes: “I applaud your courage in dissenting, Michael, even if it may place you at odds with the sector. I also…” Feb 2, 10:57
  • Michael Rushton on Equality, the arts, and the problem of expensive tastes: “Thank you David. In terms of costs, the quick, and I think too-easy answer, is cost-disease, which affects any sector,…” Feb 1, 15:04
  • David E. Myers on Equality, the arts, and the problem of expensive tastes: “Hi Michael, Always grateful for your perspectives, though as you know, I do not always agree. At the risk of…” Feb 1, 11:16
  • Michael Rushton on Equality, the arts, and the problem of expensive tastes: “Thank you, antonio. There’s a lot here – I’ll answer bit by bit… 1. I’m not sure the “equality vs…” Jan 29, 09:43
  • antonio c. cuyler on Equality, the arts, and the problem of expensive tastes: “As economists educated to believe that “some inequality” is not bad, I appreciate reading how you and Robert Reich think…” Jan 29, 09:21
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