Stuck In ‘Messy Middle,’ How Long Will Disney Disappointments Continue?
Disney disappointed in its latest quarterly earnings, muddling in a “messy middle” between parks that aren’t yet at full speed and softening streaming-video signups. How long will it stay there? Read More
Would Netflix’s ‘N-Plus’ Be a Value-Add, or More Digital Clutter?
It’s clear what Netflix might want to do with something like N-Plus… but does anyone need it? Read More
With NFL Deal, 175 Million Customers, Amazon Prime Video Moves Into Netflix’s Neighborhood
Long one of the least-talked-about streaming services, Amazon Prime Video has had lots to brag about lately, with an extended NFL deal, Oscar wins, and 175 million customers Read More
OK Boomer, Pizza Rat Viral Online Videos To Join The NFT Boom
With Views, a new joint venture from Jukin Media and Night Media, even viral online videos such as OK Boomer and Pizza Rat will become collectible NFTs. Read More
Apple Beefs Up Streaming With New Apple TV 4K, ‘Ted Lasso’ Season
Amid a flurry of announcements, Apple unveiled a more powerful Apple TV 4K streaming device, and a second season of its most popular show on that device, ‘Ted Lasso.’ The company also unveiled new iPads, iMacs, AirTags and much else. Read More
Online Movie Promos Shift To Theaters And Hybrid Releases
As the pandemic eases, Hollywood studios are shifting to promoting films available only or partly in theaters, the latest data from Tubular Labs suggests. Read More
That Didn’t Take Long: T-Mobile Ghosts Its Skinny Bundles
T-Mobile killed off its T-Vision skinny bundles just five months after launching them. What took so long? Read More
ViacomCBS Rollercoaster Highlights Challenges Facing Smaller Streamers
ViacomCBS and Discovery shares went on a Rollercoaster of Doom over the past few days, possibly a harbinger of more challenges to come for smaller streamers trying to keep up with some of the world’s biggest companies. Read More
Netflix Still King, But Losing Mindshare Fast In Original Shows
Original shows on Netflix remain the most in demand with audiences in major markets, a new study found, but competitors led by Disney+’s ‘The Mandalorian’ are starting to reshape the fan landscape. Read More
Comcast Flexes Unexpected Muscle To Reduce Churn
Comcast’s Xfinity Flex device was often derided when it first debuted, but has made a big difference in the company’s effort to keep broadband subscribers around. Read More
Disney+ Hits The Century Mark Amid Mouse House Transformation
Disney+ crossed the 100 million subscriber mark, CEO Bob Chapek announced at the annual shareholders meeting. Now comes the harder part, getting the next 100 million to catch Netflix, while solving some thornier questions about the rest of its streaming empire. Read More
Paramount Plus Movie Strategy Yet Another Approach To Hollywood’s Thorniest Problem
Paramount Plus launches this week with lots of familiar franchises, and yet another new approach to streaming high-profile movies. Will it be enough for ViacomCBS to keep up with services from much bigger companies? Read More
Discovery Streaming Adds 7 Million Subs But Can It Sustain Linear Too?
Discovery more than doubled its streaming subscribers in the past seven weeks, with plans to add 1,000 more hours of programming this year. But can it really afford to sustain its legacy cable operations too? Read More
HBO Max, Disney+ Bet On Premium Puts Pressure On Competition
Early data on the consumer appeal of new premium content initiatives at Disney+ and HBO Max suggest their competitors will have to come up with a lot more money to continue to compete, and with more than just high-profile movies. Read More
Is Live News The Next FAST Frontier?
Tubi announced a huge expansion of its News section, adding live 24-hour feeds from nearly 80 stations owned by four big groups. Is live news the hot new fashion for free streamers? Read More
European Streaming Hitting Records Too, Thanks to Netflix, Amazon
Netflix and Amazon were just as big in Europe’s record year for streaming video as they have been in the United States, a new survey shows. But there were some distinctive Continental differences when you look further into the numbers. Read More
What TV Shows Does Amazon’s New CEO Watch?
Amazon is about to make Andy Jassy, the company’s just anointed successor to Jeff Bezos and an expert on cloud computing, one of the most powerful people in Hollywood. So does this guy even watch TV? Read More
Smart TVs Looking Even Smarter In Latest Pandemic Usage Study
Smart TVs saw the biggest growth in a great quarter for the online-video business, a new Conviva study found. Roku and YouTube also had big quarters, while South America and Africa viewership boomed. But ads got longer, despite consumer preferences. Read More
Tubi’s Pitch To Brands Shows Where FAST Services Should Go Next
Tubi pitched advertisers this week with some big numbers on its first year with Fox. But contained within the pitch were key factors that all the free, ad-supported services will need to embrace amid stiffer competition for audiences. Read More
Does Roku Need To Invest In More Shows To Justify Sky-High Share Prices?
Roku’s shares are up almost a third in less than two weeks. How to keep them there? We have an idea. Read More