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Shares of the "big three" video game publishers were in focus after Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson told investors in a research note that the firm's analysis of video game viewership data is most positive for Activision Blizzard (ATVI), while more in-line for Electronic Arts (EA) and Take-Two (TTWO). 'TWITCHADVISER' TAKEAWAYS: According to Piper Jaffray's TwitchAdviser, a monthly analysis of viewership data on video game streaming platform Twitch (AMZN), cumulative viewership of Activision titles increased 37% quarter-over-quarter in the third quarter, while Take-Two minutes viewed rose 44% and EA's minutes fell 17%. Olson added that the data also shows Activision and Take-Two's share of top 25 viewership was up quarter-over-quarter at 20.5% and 2.8%, from 16.2% and 2.1%, respectively. The analyst said he believes that the jump in Activision viewership offers upside potential, while Take-Two's viewership increase is in-line with the firm's expectations. As far as EA goes, the decline in Twitch viewing minutes was also essentially in line with Piper's expectations, Olson said. The analyst maintained Overweight ratings on all three major publishers. Meanwhile, Olson noted that the TwitchAdviser data showed the first quarterly decline for "Fortnite" viewership, which fell 4% quarter-over-quarter. Epic Games, the creator of "Fortnite," is 40% owned by Tencent (TCEHY) and is part of Disney's (DIS) Accelerator Program. WHAT'S NOTABLE: Last month, Olson said that Piper's TwitchAdviser analysis for the month of August showed a 48% month-on-month increase in viewership of Activision titles, driven at the time by "World of Warcraft" and "Destiny 2." PRICE ACTION: In early afternoon trading, Activision Blizzard rose 3.7% to $76.60, Take-Two gained about 3.6% to $126.73 and EA was up 1% to $104.56.

Last week's two new releases -- Sony's (SNE) "Venom," and AT&T (T) subsidiary Warner Bros' "A Star is Born" -- are looking to battle for the top spot again this weekend. Comic book adaptation "Venom," starring Tom Hardy as the titular character, is expected to earn around $30.5M at 4,250 theaters, while musical drama "A Star is Born," starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, is expected to earn about $30M at 3,708 theaters. Three new releases for this weekend are expected to round out the top five -- Comcast (CMCSA, CMCSK) subsidiary Universal's "First Man," Sony's "Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween," and 21st Century Fox's (FOX, FOXA) "Bad Times At The El Royale." Awards hopeful drama "First Man," starring Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Armstrong, is expected to open at $21M, family comedy horror sequel "Goosebumps 2" is expected to open at $16M, and Drew Goddard thriller "Bad Times At The El Royale" is expected to open at $9M. Other publicly traded companies in filmmaking include Disney (DIS), Lionsgate (LGF.A, LGF.B), and Viacom (VIA, VIAB).