Erik Gruenwedel
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Circling the OTT Wagons With Hyperbole
Ever since Disney announced it would launch a branded subscription streaming video service featuring original content and box office movies previously licensed exclusively to Netflix, a cottage industry has emerged projecting pending gloom for the SVOD pioneer. While Disney CEO Bob Iger promises lower-priced Disney+ isn’t targeting Netflix, some pundits contend the handwriting is on … Continue reading “Circling the OTT Wagons With Hyperbole”
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It’s a Netflix World. Hollywood is Just Living in It
Netflix added almost 10 million new subscribers in its most-recent fiscal period, nearly topping 150 million subscribers globally. The SVOD pioneer added 31 million subs in 2018. The sub growth ended — for the moment — naysayer illusions the SVOD giant had become a cash cow — economic shorthand for a business generating plenty of … Continue reading “It’s a Netflix World. Hollywood is Just Living in It”
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Circling the OTT Wagons With Hyperbole
Ever since Disney announced it would launch a branded subscription streaming video service featuring original content and box office movies previously licensed exclusively to Netflix, a cottage industry has emerged projecting pending gloom for the SVOD pioneer. While Disney CEO Bob Iger promises lower-priced Disney+ isn’t targeting Netflix, some pundits contend the handwriting is on … Continue reading “Circling the OTT Wagons With Hyperbole”
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It’s a Netflix World. Hollywood is Just Living in It
Netflix added almost 10 million new subscribers in its most-recent fiscal period, nearly topping 150 million subscribers globally. The SVOD pioneer added 31 million subs in 2018. The sub growth ended — for the moment — naysayer illusions the SVOD giant had become a cash cow — economic shorthand for a business generating plenty of … Continue reading “It’s a Netflix World. Hollywood is Just Living in It”
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Kevin Tsujihara: A Misplaced Asset at WarnerMedia
As the dust settles from WarnerMedia’s management shuffle, with former NBC Universal executive Bob Greenblatt assuming chairmanship of the media company’s entertainment unit, including budding over-the-top video – Kevin Tsujihara, chairman/CEO of Warner Bros., expanded his duties to include – consumer products? It’s an odd career move for Tsujihara, whose long history in digital content … Continue reading “Kevin Tsujihara: A Misplaced Asset at WarnerMedia”
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UltraViolet: A Lost Opportunity
I, like millions of registered UltraViolet users, received the Jan. 31 email informing me that the digital content storage locker is shuttering July 31. My reaction: Indifference. I, like possibly millions of other UV users, had forgotten I was even registered to the platform launched in 2011 by studios seeking to enhance ownership of packaged … Continue reading “UltraViolet: A Lost Opportunity”
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Wither HBO Now?
With WarnerMedia launching a branded subscription streaming video platform next year that will incorporate original and catalog content from HBO, Warner Bros. and Turner, in addition to third-party providers, the question arises: What will become of standalone SVOD service HBO Now? Launched in 2014, HBO Now topped 5 million subscribers earlier this year. WarnerMedia is … Continue reading “Wither HBO Now?”
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Extending Black Friday in an OTT World
When you rent and sell packaged media in a streaming world, Black Friday (Nov. 22) becomes a mandatory weeklong sales event. Especially for the country’s last-standing brick-and-mortar video rental store. Family Video, the privately-owned Glenview, Ill.-based chain of more than 700 stores operating in 29 states, launched special deals on DVD and Blu-ray Disc titles … Continue reading “Extending Black Friday in an OTT World”
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Amazon ‘Thursday Night Football’ – Spanish, British English and Women
Lost in the all-day Congressional spectacle involving U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh was the first NFL regular season TV broadcast ever exclusively called by women. Veteran sports reporters Andrea Kremer and Hannah Storm called the Sept. 27 “Thursday Night Football” featuring the Los Angeles Rams’ 38-31 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Amazon Prime … Continue reading “Amazon ‘Thursday Night Football’ – Spanish, British English and Women”
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MoviePass 1st Birthday: Who’s Celebrating?
The day after posting more than $100 million in quarterly losses and telling investors its ability to continue as “going concern” is in doubt without additional funding, Helios and Matheson Analytics essentially threw a birthday party – for itself. In an era of fake news, why not a disingenuous press release touting 21 self-serving milestones? … Continue reading “MoviePass 1st Birthday: Who’s Celebrating?”
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Black Friday: MoviePass Parent Market Value Dips Below $100K
A company’s future as a publicly traded stock is undeniably bleak when Wall Street values it less than $100,000. That’s the reality Helios and Matheson Analytics, parent of MoviePass, found itself Aug. 10 when shares fell to 5.5 cents per share in midday trading, leaving HMNY with a market valuation of just $96, 200. By … Continue reading “Black Friday: MoviePass Parent Market Value Dips Below $100K”