Brief - The Hustle

Digits: Coldplay tickets, hump day, and more

Written by Rob Litterst | May 16, 2022 8:31:37 AM

1) Coldplay’s latest tour may be the best deal in live music at an average of $77.80 per ticket — no other act in the top 10 is charging under $100. Amid rising prices for everything, it’s actually less than what Coldplay charged for tickets 5-6 years ago.

2) Redbox Entertainment, operator of 38k DVD kiosks, has seen its revenue dive 50%+ during the pandemic. Now it has a surprising new owner: Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (CSSE), which bought the company for $375m. CSSE owns its namesake books along with Crackle, an ad-supported streaming service.

3) With companies rolling out hybrid workweeks, Wednesday has emerged as the most popular day to return to the office. Forty-six percent of workers went to the office on Wednesdays in March, compared to 35% for Mondays.

4) MicroStrategy, led by bitcoin bull Michael Saylor, took a $330m paper loss on its bitcoin holdings last week. The company holds 129,218 bitcoins, purchased at an average price of $30.7k.

5) Goop, Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand, released luxury diapers lined with virgin alpaca wool and fastened with amber gemstones for $120 per pack. After drawing outrage, Paltrow admitted the move was a publicity stunt to draw attention to high diaper taxes. The diapers are hardly Goop’s wildest product — that title goes to this candle.