Do franchises make money?

It is very difficult to get estimates on the industry, so I found this quote from the San Diego Union-Tribune quite interesting:

"Analysts estimate that, on average, about one-third of franchises make money, one-third break even and one-third lose money, although there is only a 10 percent turnover, or transfer, rate within the industry"

I wonder what analyst is saying this? Doesn't this sound conveniently categorized into a third, third and a third? Wonder how close the middle third is to break-even when they say one-third break even? That means that at least two-thirds break-even or better. Don't you love reporters who give information like this without telling you where it's coming from? I have a grandma that I turn to for advice from time to time. I wonder if I can quote her opinions as an analyst? On the surface, it sounds like the average franchise struggles to make any money, but mathematically it all depends on how wide each group is from break-even point.

The sidebars on this article agree with the statistics I have seen on the industry. There are some 767,000 franchises in the United States employing some 9.8 million people. It's a big wide franchise world with many opportunities. The top five chains are biggies though, making up some 14% of the franchise pie. But don't think that these few chains fill up the market. There are many national, regional and new start-up franchises that occupy 86% of the market, competing and growing against the big players. In short, the field is wide.