Report: Box-Office Betting is a Go

Wall Street's proposal to launch a futures exchange based on box-office receipts may have haters in Hollywood, but regulators in Washington are said to support the idea and may even green-light it in time for gamblers investors to wager on Iron Man 2. Buried in Wednesday's report is this winning quote from Lionsgate boss (and Hollywood Stock Exchange co-founder) Michael Burns: "If the studios have a chance to have an equity position in the actual exchange, if Cantor offers that, I think that's a giant win-win. I think it will ultimately become a terrific hedging vehicle for the studios. You can buy corn futures, orange juice futures, it makes no sense you can't buy movie futures." In other words: Flop insurance, here we come! [Bloomberg]