Back catalogue

[Bushwhacker]

If we say that a film company has an Internationally-acclaimed back catalogue of features, what's the meaning of this "back" here?

Kind of "business" language meaning the catalogue is rich and backs the prestige of the company?

Thanks

[BobK]

Yes and no. It is rich, but it's got nothing to do with prestige - except in that it adds to the company's prestige because of its richness.

I think publishers used the term 'back-catalogue' before film companies did. A publisher makes money both by selling newly-published books and by continuing to sell books that it has published in previous years - that is the back-catalogue. I imagine in the film world a company's back-catalogue is made up of films previously made. If you go to see Doctor Zhivago, that is part of MGM's () back-catalogue.

b