Furthermore, "shipping" (romantic relationships between characters) and fan fiction have moved from the fringe to the center of media strategy. Studios now hire "fan engagement officers" and track Ao3 (Archive of Our Own) trends to gauge which characters to spin off into their own series.
: Any activity, media, or event designed to hold the attention and interest of an audience, providing pleasure, delight, or emotional resonance. As Wikipedia's entry on entertainment notes, it encompasses everything from individual ideas to massive structured events developed over millennia to engage the public. Lustery.E1349.Igor.And.Lera.Stick.And.Poke.XXX....
While the production of new entertainment content has exploded, the appetite for original IP (Intellectual Property) has paradoxically shrunk. Studios are terrified of risk. In the last three years, 80% of the top-grossing films and most-streamed shows were based on existing IP. Sequels, prequels, reboots, and adaptations dominate. In the last three years, 80% of the