Blogs – Media Play News

Bundling Is the Streaming Future

My husband recently asked me if we should keep our Discovery+ subscription. We’d gotten it through some sort of free trial and that trial was up. Having perused the content and watched a little, I said, “No. That will be combined with HBO Max soon.” Indeed. That’s what every streaming subscriber is looking for, a … Continue reading “Bundling Is the Streaming Future”
Doom and Gloom Over Netflix Sub Loss Is Overblown

Let’s not overreact to Netflix’s bad quarter — and warnings of even greater subscription losses to come. The flurry of critical news reports and analyses would make you think that Netflix is a sinking ship — and that at long last the streaming wars, triggered by the arrival more than two years ago of Disney+ … Continue reading “Doom and Gloom Over Netflix Sub Loss Is Overblown”

Bundling Is the Streaming Future

My husband recently asked me if we should keep our Discovery+ subscription. We’d gotten it through some sort of free trial and that trial was up. Having perused the content and watched a little, I said, “No. That will be combined with HBO Max soon.” Indeed. That’s what every streaming subscriber is looking for, a … Continue reading “Bundling Is the Streaming Future”
Doom and Gloom Over Netflix Sub Loss Is Overblown

Let’s not overreact to Netflix’s bad quarter — and warnings of even greater subscription losses to come. The flurry of critical news reports and analyses would make you think that Netflix is a sinking ship — and that at long last the streaming wars, triggered by the arrival more than two years ago of Disney+ … Continue reading “Doom and Gloom Over Netflix Sub Loss Is Overblown”
Steve Nickerson: DVD Launch Memories from the Front Row

Twenty-five years is a long time that passes in the blink of an eye. The No. 1 song in March 1997 was “Wannabe,” by the Spice Girls, and the two biggest movies that month were Liar, Liar, starring Jim Carrey, and Private Parts, starring Howard Stern. Also in that month, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” made … Continue reading “Steve Nickerson: DVD Launch Memories from the Front Row”
Mad for Ads

I’m old enough to remember that when cable first appeared on the television scene, one of its biggest enticements was little to no advertising with the content compared to broadcast. Slowly but surely, over the decades each cable channel gathered more and more advertising until watching a two-hour movie could stretch to nearly four hours … Continue reading “Mad for Ads”
Amy Jo Smith: Recollections From DVD to DEG

As the digital entertainment business celebrates 25 years, so does DEG. DEG was there at the beginning, and I with it, when the DVD Video Group was formed in 1997 with the express purpose of promoting the first digital entertainment format — DVD — in collaboration with content owners and hardware makers. I have so … Continue reading “Amy Jo Smith: Recollections From DVD to DEG”
Jim Wuthrich: Lifting and Shifting From the Disc Into the Digital Stream

“Put it on a Disc.” That was the name of our relay team that back in August 1995 ran the 200 miles from Mount Hood to the Oregon coast over a 24-hour period. I didn’t have a clue how that phrase would come to dominate my career. The startup company I was working for at … Continue reading “Jim Wuthrich: Lifting and Shifting From the Disc Into the Digital Stream”
Watching Together

Once again, families and friends gathered around the TV this month for the annual Super Bowl, one of the last big communal viewing events — which are getting rarer all the time. With streaming services offering so many choices to satisfy individual tastes — programs that are available anytime — we are all watching different … Continue reading “Watching Together”
Gary Shapiro: Five Takeaways From CES 2022

CES 2022 was unlike any show we’ve hosted in our 55-year history. As we prepared our return to Las Vegas for the first in-person CES in two years, we could feel the momentum and excitement building in the consumer tech community. Hundreds of companies signed on to exhibit, even after the emergence of the Omicron … Continue reading “Gary Shapiro: Five Takeaways From CES 2022”
Omicron Surge Impacts Movie Business With Smaller Theater Audiences

Has the recent jump in COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant kept U.S. movie fans from heading to the theater? New survey data from Whip Media suggests it has. Whip Media — after surveying more than 1,200 American users of its TV Time app, a free TV and movie tracking app with more than … Continue reading “Omicron Surge Impacts Movie Business With Smaller Theater Audiences “
Content Business Now Global: What It Means for Streamers and Broadcasters

Now that entertainment is an internet delivered product, the brands that deliver it need to play by the internet’s rules. The foundation is differentiation. In the endless sea of choices available to the audience today, one burning question for every brand is how to stand out. Such that audiences find you, stay, and then invite … Continue reading “Content Business Now Global: What It Means for Streamers and Broadcasters”