The table and line graph illustrate cinema attendance in Australia and the average number of cinema visits by different age groups from 1996 to 2000.
Overall, while the proportion of the population attending the cinema remained relatively high throughout the period, the average number of visits per person declined after 1997. In addition, younger adults consistently visited cinemas more frequently than older age groups.
In detail, the percentage of the population attending the cinema rose from 62% in 1996 to 72% in 1997, remained stable in 1998, slightly fell to 70% in 1999, and rebounded to 72% in 2000. Conversely, the average frequency of visits per person increased from 10.3 in 1996 to 11.1 in 1997, but then experienced a sharp decline, dropping to 8.3 in 1998 and remaining almost steady at 8.2 and 8.3 in the following two years.
Regarding age groups, the 25-35 and 14-24 cohorts were the most active cinema-goers, peaking at around 22-23 visits in 1997 and 1999. The 35-49 group showed moderate engagement, whereas the 50+ age group had the lowest attendance, never exceeding 18 visits and following a similar pattern of peaks and troughs. Notably, all age groups displayed a decrease in visits in 1998, followed by an increase in 1999 before declining slightly in 2000.