SeaWorld (Photo : REUTERS/Mike Blake)
A theme park in California has the documentary "Blackfish" to blame for the 84 percent drop in its net income for the second quarter. SeaWorld Entertainment reported Q2 net income of $5.8 million, down from the $37.4 million for the same quarter in 2014.
But the decline in revenue was slower at 3 percent to $391.6 million from $405.1 million. In terms of visitors, the park had 100,000 fewer visitors.
Besides the docu on Orca whales, SeaWorld CEO and President Joel Manby also explained the lower attendance to the spring break, the wet weather in Texas and "brand challenges" in California. Manby said in a statement, "We realize we have much work ahead of us to recover some of our attendance base, increase revenue and improve our performance as returning to historical performance levels will take time and investment.
Aired in 2013, "Blackfish" was about life in captivity of Orca whales in SeaWorld. It asked question about how the theme park treats the killer whales and how the mammals interact with trainers.
To counter the negative impact of the docu, SeaWorld offered discounts to visitors. SeaWorld would also open a shark-themed exhibit at its Orlando park and the biggest, tallest, longest and fastest roller coaster in the area in 2016 to further attract visitors. The exhibit would allow visitors to swim with dolphins in a naturalistic setting, Manby said.
Manby added that despite the weak Q2 quarter, the company would still meet its profit target for 2015.
