Leading edge station group executives talk about their most innovative digital initiatives and their strategies for meeting key performance indicators. Where are they breaking new ground online, on streaming and on mobile?
What are the newest and most effective strategies for monetizing streaming services? Which aggregation services do the best job of getting services found, keeping traffic growing and contributing to monetization without driving up costs? Pioneers in the streaming world engage in a conversation during this two-hour event.
Peacock has entered the ring as the newest home for World Wrestling Entertainment content. Beginning Thursday, March 18, WWE Network will exclusively be available via NBCUniversal’s streaming service. TVLine has confirmed that the standalone WWE Network streamer, which launched in February 2014, will in turn shut down in March as the content moves to Peacock.
2021’s totally online NATPE Virtual Miami is just but half over. Some inkling of how it might shape out, however, is fast falling into place. Basically, streaming stole the show. Yes, Fox did announce during NATPE that the Jay Leno-hosted You Bet Your Life reboot, bowing this fall, has sold in 85% of the U.S. Yet a once annual launchpad for shows seeking U.S. syndication was dominated this time round by the seismic pivot of Hollywood’s majors and other players into global VOD platforms, and the impact of this tectonic shunt on the industry at large.
Disney and Pixar’s Soul was the most viewed streaming title during the week of Christmas, topping other Netflix original shows and films and even the juggernaut The Office in its final full week on Netflix before moving to Peacock.
Exclusives
Varun Narang has been named chief product officer at Fox, where he will oversee the company’s Fox-branded streaming products, platforms and engineering. Narang had been chief product officer with Disney Plus Hotstar, which he joined in 2015, before it was sold by 21st Century Fox to Disney.
Streaming hit Hollywood fast. In its wake, the industry is racing to find a new way of doing business, rethinking who’s in charge, how contracts are set up and how stars get paid. Studios are overturning their management ranks, empowering executives with backgrounds in business development, technology and strategy. Producers, filmmakers and actors are trying to protect their interests in new contracts that aren’t built around ticket sales in movie theaters. Above, while Tenet got a theatrical release last year, Warner Bros. films this year will simultaneously appear on HBO Max.
The new app combines the latest programming from The CW and fan-favorite library series from CW Seed Free on Vizio SmartCast televisions.
The period drama based on Julia Quinn’s best-selling novels marks Shonda Rhimes’ first series for the streaming giant.
CBS Sports said it plans to stream the Super Bowl across multiple platform, including its subscription streaming service CBS All Access. Broadcast coverage of Super Bowl LV will also stream unauthenticated and for free on the CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app. The big game will also be free on Verizon properties including Yahoo Sports, on NFL digital properties and NFL team mobile properties.
CJP Broadcast has launched StreamSmart+, a flexibly defined service enabling sports clubs to launch their own television channel quickly, easily and affordably. “StreamSmart+ is a complete glass-to-glass solution including latest-generation equipment, fully focused operational training and all relevant supporting services,” says CJP Broadcast MD Chris Phillips. “Operating an online TV channel allows sports clubs to […]
The streaming giant borrowed over $16 billion in less than a decade as it built out its content library. The strategy prompted criticism that the company was unsustainable.
Netflix’s Big 4Q Lifts It Above 200M Subscribers
The subscriber milestone highlighted Netflix’s fourth-quarter results released Tuesday. The service added another 8.5 million subscribers during the October-December period to cap Netflix’s biggest year since its inception as a DVD-by-mail service in 1997. Netflix’s stock surged by nearly 9% in extended trading after the latest subscriber numbers came out.
That day is when the rebranded streaming service will go live in the U.S. and Latin America, with planned launches for the Nordics on March 25 and in Australia in mid-2021. Canada’s version of CBS All Access will also be rebranded to Paramount+ on March 4 and “an expanded offering will be available later in the year.”
A new Deloitte report suggests more than 60% of people who dropped a streaming service did so after they watched the show or movie that got them to sign up.
AT&T’s HBO Max, which got off to a sputtering start, drew the largest share of new streaming subscribers in the fourth quarter, according to Kantar’s Entertainment on Demand Service. Kantar estimates that the number of SVOD subscriptions reached 233 million by the end of December, with the average home having 3.5 streaming video subscriptions, up from 3.1 at the start of 2020.
The streaming service also announces its latest expansion, entering its 26th market, Madison, Wis., in time for the big Packers-Rams playoff game on Fox on Saturday.
TVNewsCheck‘s Michael Depp talks with Jonathan Beard, director of digital product development at Graham Media Group, about the group’s multi-app strategy in its markets, its “choose your view” livestream video innovations and mobile’s monetization prospects.
As streaming TV becomes the default viewing option for Americans, the makers of streaming devices are taking the place of cable operators as gatekeepers, deciding what streaming services will be available to viewers. Increasingly the gatekeepers include not only Roku and Amazon but smart TV makers such as Samsung. NBCUniversal is learning that the hard way as it battles to get its Peacock service onto Samsung TVs.
With AT&T and WarnerMedia anxious to goose subscriber growth, the deal that delivers the streaming service for $11.66 a month has been extended to March 1.
With the help of a de-aged and reanimated legendary Jedi, Disney Plus’ The Mandalorian finally triumphed over visual comfort food favorite, The Office. For the week of Dec. 14 — in which the season 2 finale of the Star Wars spinoff series delivered a healthy heap of fanservice in its surprise cameo and plot twist reveal — The Mandalorian blasted off to the top spot of Nielsen’s Top 10 programs list, edging out the mid-aughts workplace sitcom led by Steve Carell. This win marks the first time that a non-Netflix show landed at No. 1 on Nielsen’s streaming ranker.
Nexstar Media Group’s cable network WGN America has reached a multi-year comprehensive agreement with Vidgo, and will be carried by the live TV streaming platform beginning on Jan. 15. In the last two months, Nexstar has reached five agreements with subscription-based streaming services for the distribution of WGN America, expanding the network’s reach by 8.5 […]
SendtoNews (STN), an independent online video platform, has entered an agreement to add Newsy digital video content to its library, making it available to more than 1,800 digital publishers. Newsy is E.W. Scripps’ national news network that delivers breaking, world, science, tech and political news videos, that empower their audience with facts and context to make informed decisions. […]
Independent video software provider Synamedia has now integrated its security and watermarking solutions with Akamai, an intelligent edge platform for securing and delivering digital experiences, to protect customers’ streaming OTT content. Synamedia’s solutions now detect and disrupt pirate streams in real time over the Akamai Intelligent Edge Platform and redirect viewers to legitimate services. The […]
FuboTV shares are riding high again after the emerging company announced it is acquiring sports betting startup Vigtory and will use it to launch a full-fledged sportsbook later this year. Terms were not disclosed for the deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter. It positions Fubo, which was founded in 2015 as an internet-delivered pay-TV operator akin to YouTube TV, as more of a hybrid company.
In addition to heading the new streaming service, he will retain his role as executive vice president of marketing at Fox News Media.
Spanish-language broadcast giant Univision today announced first quarter launch plans for PrendeTV, joining the crowded streaming market with a free, add-supported service created for the U.S. Hispanic audience. It will featuring premium 100% Spanish-language programming, debuting with over 30 channels and 10,000 hours of video-on-demand content in Spanish from global partners.
The deal calls for Hart to star and produce four features for the streamer and then enter into a first-look deal via his production banner, HartBeat Productions. The comedian previously had a first-look deal with Universal, for whom it made the comedy Night School, and a deal with Nickelodeon.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — If you’re someday in need of a plus-one to liven an unpromising party, consider Amber Ruffin. In fact, skip the party and just hang with Ruffin, whose weekly comedy show is proving her to be excellent company. Ruffin’s exuberant charm can and should lure you in to Peacock’s weekly “The Amber […]
Parler CEO John Matze said Sunday that his social media company has been dropped by virtually all of its business alliances after Amazon, Apple and Google ended their agreements with the social media service. “Every vendor from text message services to email providers to our lawyers all ditched us too on the same day,” Matze said on Fox News.
