Within just a few days of Netflix releasing Season 3 of Stranger Things, nearly half the show’s 40 million viewers had watched all eight episodes. Fortunately for them, there are other ways to inhabit the town of Hawkins, Indiana, circa 1985. In Los Angeles, Netflix has commissioned “pop-up” ice cream parlors throughout the city in conjunction with Baskin Robbins resembling the show’s “Scoops Ahoy” ice cream shop. Fans can visit the fictional “Starcourt Mall” in L.A.’s old Tower Records building. In Santa Monica a “Hawkins fun fair” was held on the pier. The Chicago Cubs hosted an officially sanctioned Stranger Things-themed night at Wrigley Field. And tickets are being sold for an immersive ‘80s Hawkins experience in London this fall, where Netflix has teamed up with Secret Cinema.
When Fandom Clashes with IP Law
More than 20 years ago, two management experts predicted the rise of “the experience economy,” writing that the progression of economic value had moved from goods to services and would continue on to experiences. They were right, especially in the realm of entertainment. From Stranger Things to Harry Potter to Star Wars, fans do not just want to watch or read about their favorite characters — they want to be them. Research suggests that companies are trying to capitalize on this by using their merchandising rights to control how fans experience their favorite stories. But as companies get more aggressive in licensing fan activity, from fantasy-themed summer camps to pop-up bars, we should pause to think about the consequences: overreaching by companies can threaten creativity, competition, fan goodwill, and more fundamentally, the freedom to play and “geek out” on the stories we love. If the law of intellectual property, which was intended to stimulate the creation of artistic works for humanity to enjoy, is being stretched by companies to commodify more forms of that enjoyment, what will the effect be on our ability to play and reference cultural works?