Asia Pacific Journal of Information Systems (APJIS)

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Current Issue

Date	September 2025
Vol. No.	Vol. 35 No. 3
DOI	https://doi.org/10.14329/apjis.2025.35.3.511
Page	511~539
Title	Which Spoilers Help or Hurt?: Effects of Spoiler Reviews on Box Office Revenue
Author	Junho Bae, Woosik Shin, Hee-Woong Kim
Keyword	Electronic word-of-mouth, spoiler, optimal arousal theory, natural language processing, econometric analysis
Abstract	Electronic word-of-mouth (WOM) plays a crucial role in movie-going decisions, yet spoiler content in reviews remains controversial. Although spoilers may potentially harm enjoyment, they may also alleviate uncertainty, thereby enhancing the viewing experience. Despite such tension, there has been a lack of research on which types of spoilers have either detrimental or informative effects on decision-making. To address this gap, we propose a framework to classify spoiler reviews as either detrimental or informative using natural language processing techniques. Based on the classification results, we conducted econometric analyses to assess their distinct impacts on box office revenue by using data from 322 movies. Our overall findings show that informative spoilers increases box office revenue whereas detrimental spoilers have no significant effect. However, moderating analyses reveal important context effects. Detrimental spoilers reduce revenue for narrative-driven or long-duration films and during weekends but show null effects in other contexts. Similarly, informative spoilers do not always increase demand, with their positive effects diminishing under certain conditions. This study offers valuable insights for review platforms and studios by highlighting the need for nuanced spoiler management to enhance audience engagement and revenue.

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