Studies show during tough economic times that people tend to flock in droves to theaters as a cheap form of entertainment and to ultimately try to escape reality. In 2009 that theory was proven once again. Without adjusting for inflation, 2009 became the biggest box-office year to date grossing over 10 billion dollars!

Besides the fact that 2009 was hit hard with a downturn in the economy, 2009 had a respectable cinema line up – worthy of the droves that flocked to theaters. With the recent release of Avatar; James Cameron’s first theatrical movie since Titanic, (i.e. the highest grossing movie ever) along with movies like District 9, The Hang Over, Paranormal Activity and Monsters vs. Aliens, there was something in theaters this year for just about everyone.

2009′s incredible benchmark was aided by a 28 cent increase in ticket prices from the year before that totaled to an average of $7.46 a ticket. With that fact in mind, 2009 didn’t necessarily attract the most people of all time into the theaters – but it was the most financially successful. Although the total number of tickets sold is expected to reach 1.4 billion, that figure is not expected to break the record 1.6 billion tickets sold in 2002.

With such a high number of ticket sales, I’m sure some of our readers have seen one or two films this year. So what about you? What movies have you seen?

Imagine an all in one network that will beam Sony content to it’s products for it users to access at anytime, in any place. Well, according to Sony’s chief executive, Howard Stringer this may be a possibility. Thursday it was announced that Sony will be working towards building it’s Sony Online Service which will provide users content such as games, movies, music and television content beamed directly to their Walkmans, TVs and Playstations.

Stringer said, “We have a supreme advantage once we get software right, because the quality of our hardware is exceptional, I think our hardware is more durable than Apple. You don’t want something that breaks down every 10 minutes.” According to multiple experts, Sony has always had this strategy in mind but has never been quite ready to execute it properly.

Sony has been hurting to return to the top spot in the electronics realm for much of the last few years and Stringer believes this service will bring them onto the forefront yet again. Of the most notable features, one of which will let the gaming universe download music, e-books, and software applications to the already impressive landscape of content provided such as games, TV shows and movies.

The concept for a new beginning to creating a successful new venture was eliminated earlier this year when Sony dropped plans to continue on with EyeVio, a video-sharing site that would link directly to Sony gadgets. Will this new Sony Network be able to take over the landscape? Well, only time will tell.

For a slick 9 billion, Panasonic is set to acquire Sanyo in a move that is sure to position them well as one of the top electronics manufacturers. The deal will be finalized in April 2009, creating a combined revenue of $1.1 billion. Panasonic plans to keep the Sanyo branding separate and continue to grow in the consumer market. According to Panasonic President Fumio Ohtsub, “taking over Sanyo will provide an opportunity for Panasonic to become more competitive to ride out the worsening global downturn. The alliance with Sanyo will provide an engine for growth for us.”

“This is opening a way to fight these tough times that come only once in a 100 years,”Sanyo President Seiichiro Sano told reporters. Sanyo’s green businesses in solar panels and rechargeable batteries has been struggling, and this would allow Panasonic to revamp the gameplan to bring Sanyo back into the forefront.  Sanyo shares dipped 3.6 percent to 136 yen ($1.50) while Panasonic shares gained 2.9 percent 1,051 yen ($11.8). Panasonic will be purchasing Sanyo shares for 131 yen ($1.49) through a tender offer in February.

Yahoo! News picked up the story