After Germany's exhibitors' fortunes revived in 2006 following a catastrophic 2005, box-office takings and admissions have fallen back again this year by 8-9%, according to figures collated by Nielsen EDI.

Box-office revenues amounted to $ 983.5m (Euros 684.13m), compared to $ 1.06 bn (Euros 740.09 m) in 2006 although still above 2005's $967.6m (Euros 673.15 m), while total admissions ahead of the Christmas releases was 111.74 million, below 2006's 123.06 million and 2005's 113.72 million.

Warner Bros. made a remarkable recovery to pole position among the distributors with a 19.3% market share after last year had seen its slice of the box office pie shrinking by over 50% from 17.7% to 7.5%.

TwentiethCentury Fox had been the top distributor in 2006, with UIP taking the top spot in 2004 and 2005.

Warner Bros had the territory's top grossing release with Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix amassing more than $ 65.5m at the box office.

Universal was at second position - with an 18.9% share - thanks to ShrekThe Thirdand Mr Bean's Holiday, among others, while Walt Disney (formerly Buena Vista International) consolidated its share up from 2006's 15.3% to 16.6% with such blockbusters as 2007's second and third most successful films Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End ($62.2m) and Ratatouille ($ 46.8m).

In spite of such Top 10 hits as The Simpsons Movie and Die Hard 4.0,Twentieth Century Fox saw its market share slip from 17.3% to 12.6% - in comparison, last year it had released Germany's top grossing film with Ice Age 2 and had another four titles in the Top 20: The Devil Wears Prada, Walk The Line, Borat and X-Men 3.

Sony Pictures saw its share fall from 2006's 13.2% to 8.1%, just above the performance of 8% for 2005, and had one film - Spider-Man 3 in the year's Top 10.

Constantin retained its market leader position among the German independent distributors, albeit with a reduced market share of 7% (down on 2006's 9.9%), with Michael 'Bully' Herbig's animation feature Lissi Und Der Wilde Kaiser which wasthe only Constantin release and local German film to reach this year's Top 10 - with $ 19.1m box-office takings.

Top 10 Germany

1 Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix, US, Warner, $ 65.5m (Euros 45.6m)

2 Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End, US, Disney, $ 62.2m (Euros 43.3m)

3 Ratatouille, US, Disney, $ 46.8m (Euros 32.6m)

4 The Simpsons Movie, US, Fox, $ 37.9m (Euros 26.4m)

5 Spider-Man 3, US, Sony Pictures, $ 31m (Euros 21.6m)

6 Shrek The Third, US, Universal, $ 30.2m (Euros 21m)

7 Mr Bean's Holiday, UK, Universal, $ 26.4m (Euros 18.4m)

8 Die Hard 4.0, US, Fox, $ 25.1m (Euros 17.5m)

9 Lissi Und Der Wilde Kaiser, Ger, Constantin, $ 19.1m (Euros 13.3m)

10 Ocean's Thirteen, US, Warner, $ 17.8m (Euros 12.4m)

Source: Nielsen EDI

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