Blogs
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Is There Hope for Warner Bros. After Three Miserable Years Under AT&T?
The stunning announcement that AT&T wants to unload WarnerMedia and merge it with Discovery strikes me as a long overdue admission by the giant telecom that when it acquired what was then Time Warner less than three years ago, it had absolutely no idea what the hell it was doing. Similar to Verizon Communications ditching … Continue reading “Is There Hope for Warner Bros. After Three Miserable Years Under AT&T?”
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AVOD Surge a Result of Consumer Quest for All Things Free and Easy
The success, and rapid growth, of ad-supported VOD, particularly if it’s free, doesn’t surprise me. Nor is the expected comeback of the transactional business, which has been kept alive during the pandemic by inventive catalog and anniversary releases and marketing campaigns. As I’ve said on numerous occasions, consumers are primarily driven by cost and the … Continue reading “AVOD Surge a Result of Consumer Quest for All Things Free and Easy”
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Churn Is OTT’s Great Challenge of 2021; Smarter Data Is the Solution
Every click, tap, and keystroke contains valuable information about the customer on the other side of the screen. Multiply those interactions by the 200 million streaming subscribers in the United States, and the result is a trove of data on how Americans are consuming, and abandoning, content. Media executives are turning to that data to … Continue reading “Churn Is OTT’s Great Challenge of 2021; Smarter Data Is the Solution”
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Let’s Give Home Entertainment Teams the Respect They Deserve
One of the more disturbing trends in Hollywood is that while home entertainment teams played a key role in keeping the studios afloat during the height of the pandemic, they are now the target of consolidations and restructurings as studios seek to balance the books at a time when the theatrical business is just beginning … Continue reading “Let’s Give Home Entertainment Teams the Respect They Deserve”
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PVOD, TVOD, Here I Come!
This month’s cover story in the February 2021 issue of Media Play News could’ve been written about me. I love movies. I’m prone to binge-watching episodic series. And I enjoy weird documentaries and concert videos. Since I tend to be a Type A control freak, I like to be in charge of what I watch … Continue reading “PVOD, TVOD, Here I Come!”
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Older Content Is Streaming Gold
During this month’s virtual CES, Nielsen released its top 10 lists of titles streamed in 2020 in terms of minutes viewed. By far, the acquired titles streaming list was dominated by series that began more than a decade ago, led not unexpectedly by “The Office,” which premiered in 2005. Other 2005 debutantes included “Grey’s Anatomy” … Continue reading “Older Content Is Streaming Gold”
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Niche Streamers Need to Innovate, Pivot, Consolidate to Compete with ‘Must Have’ Services
We are entering a new phase of hyper-competitive digital distribution that will make 2021 a critical year with massive growth for some, while many others will fight for survival. The primary factor driving this explosive period is well known, as the Hollywood studios have made a bold and dramatic commitment to the SVOD distribution business … Continue reading “Niche Streamers Need to Innovate, Pivot, Consolidate to Compete with ‘Must Have’ Services”
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A Year of Goodbyes: The Legacies of Ron, George, Melissa, Rosemary, Jay and Evan
Every year, a number of respected home entertainment executives leave their jobs — and sometimes the business — for an assortment of reasons. Some are laid off — in the press, you’ll typically read that they are leaving “to pursue other opportunities.” Others find work in another field, while some simply retire. In this unprecedented … Continue reading “A Year of Goodbyes: The Legacies of Ron, George, Melissa, Rosemary, Jay and Evan”
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PlayStation 5 Review: New Console Takes Gaming to Next Level, But Good Luck Finding One
Sony’s PlayStation 5 was officially released to retail on Nov. 12 at $499 (with physical disc capability) and $399 (digital only) — and it’s been in short supply ever since. As far back as September, TechSpot reported that retailers had sold out of their pre-order allotments in less than 24 hours, and predicted the video … Continue reading “PlayStation 5 Review: New Console Takes Gaming to Next Level, But Good Luck Finding One”
