Posts for 'Podcast'

Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

First up this week, Colin and I discuss CNN+ which launched this week. For now there’s limited connected TV availability, so that’s a key challenge to surmount. Overall we agree it’s a smart strategy by CNN and will fit well with other streaming services from WarnerMedia Discovery.

Then we catch up on Apple’s latest streaming moves, including starting to stream Major League Baseball games and winning the Oscar for CODA.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

At NBCUniversal’s One22 developer conference this week, ShoppableTV was one of the innovative ad experiences showcased. ShoppableTV allows viewers to buy products while they’re watching TV. In this week’s podcast Colin and I discuss ShoppableTV’s opportunity and what the potential challenges are.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This week Colin and I discuss a deal announced earlier this week in which Apple TV+ will become available on Comcast’s various broadband and connected devices. The deal is the latest in which Comcast is offering third-party streaming services directly to its subscribers, an evolution from the traditional bundled cable TV model.

As Colin points out, an innovative part of the deal is that Apple TV+ won’t be offered within its customary Apple TV app, but rather one that was developed using “a common set of development tools and resources of Comcast’s global technology platform” and that apparently won’t have the typical aggregation feature. We explore what this might mean for Apple going forward.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This week Colin shares thoughts SVOD growth, citing a new forecast from Digital TV Research forecasting subscriptions will reach 1.75 billion globally in 2027. Then Colin shifts to data from Omdia indicating that vMVPD subscribers use 13.5 streaming services per month, almost double non-vMVPD subscribers.

We also spend some time discussing the evolution of alternative currencies developing to Nielsen for measuring ads on premium video services.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Last Sunday’s Super Bowl was viewed by over 112 million people with around 10% or more streaming the game. On today’s podcast Colin and I discuss the mostly positive experiences that streamers had, albeit with latency that ranged up to 40+ seconds.

We also discuss strong results for Paramount+ and what’s ahead for the company.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Disney+ added nearly 12 million subscribers in the recent holiday quarter, an encouraging sign that bundling Disney+ with Hulu and ESPN+ is a highly effective strategy. Disney+ also had strong gains in the US and Canada market, adding 6.6 million subscribers in the quarter, while Netflix by comparison added only 1.2 million. Colin and I dig into all the Disney+ numbers and discuss what might be next.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Google reported another strong quarter of advertising revenue for YouTube in Q4 ’21, up 25% to over $8.6 billion. For the entire year YouTube ad revenue was nearly $29 billion. Add in subscription fees from YouTube and YouTube Premium and the company’s total revenue in 2021 was likely in the $35 billion range.

Colin and I discuss the details. Colin also shares new data from Conviva highlighting Roku’s viewership advantage vs. all other streaming devices.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

The past 2 afternoons were VideoNuze’s Connected TV Advertising PREVIEW: 2022 virtual. Over 25 speakers participated on 9 sessions across the 2 afternoons. On today’s podcast we discuss some of the highlights of the conference and our takeaways.

I plan to post all of the session videos on VideoNuze early next week.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This week we discuss Netflix’s Q4 ’21 earnings report released yesterday and its forecast for Q1 ’22. Both came up a little light, as the SVOD category continues to mature, Covid pull-forward creates tough comparisons, there’s intensifying competition, and Netflix’s release schedule for popular content shifts.

All of that said, with over 220 million global subscribers, Colin and I still see Netflix as the SVOD category leader well into the future.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This week Colin has been following various reports of NBA, MLB and Premier League potentially coming to streaming, courtesy of Sinclair, Apple and DAZN. Colin explains more about what this might mean for the industry, as consumers seek out new alternatives.

Then we discuss NBCUniversal’s move that it has selected iSpot.tv as its first cross-platform video certified measurement partner. NBCU’s move is the latest by the industry to find a new currency alternative to Nielsen, the long-time standard and to better compete with digital options. NBCU said more measurement partners will be announced.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This week Colin leads off with highlights of smart TV innovations announced at CES. Then we discuss why Peacock streaming every moment of every event of the upcoming Winter Olympics is a big win for the service and also a milestone decision for parent NBCUniversal.

Finally, HBO and HBO Max ended the year with nearly 74 million subscribers, which we both shows clear momentum and how they’re moving past the decision to withdraw from Amazon’s Channels programs earlier this year. HBO Max is one of few subscription services that doesn’t need Amazon’s distribution strength.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

It’s been another incredibly busy year in streaming video, with more than enough to write and talk about each week. As is our tradition for the last podcast of the year, today Colin and I parse through the year’s activity and identify what we believe were the top 10 most important stories of the 2021 and why. Please let us know if you agree or disagree with any of our choices, and if we missed something huge that should have been on the list.

We wish you all happy holidays!

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

This year people used more streaming services and more of them were free and ad-supported. Many more of us did without pay-TV. And discovery+ is one example of a streaming service that thrived since broadly launching. On this week’s podcast Colin shares four data points that illustrate each of these trends.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

IMDb TV, Amazon’s free ad-supported streaming TV service has issues with how the advertising experience is implemented. There is a lot of ad repetition and randomness of ad insertion. This creates a jarring experience for users, and is somewhat incongruous because a show on IMDb TV like “Mad Men” has built in ad breaks from its original broadcast that aren’t being used.

Colin and I discuss why these issues exist, and further, why they’re not uncommon among other FAST services. Some of the issues are quite thorny and don’t lend themselves to quick resolution. Still, we’re both optimistic long term that they will be resolved, and we’re also optimistic about IMDb TV’s likelihood of success. Its ownership by Amazon means eventually there will be strong targeting and lower funnel, actionable ads (Colin actually saw one like this for a hair dryer).

A programming note - join us on Zoom for a live version of Inside the Stream on Dec. 15th at 2:30pm ET / 11:30 am PT. We’ll be discussing the top stories of 2021 and doing live audience Q&A. It’s free - join us!

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Earlier this week was VideoNuze’s Connected TV Ad Brand Suitability Summit virtual, which featured 32 senior executives speaking on 10 sessions across 2 afternoons (all session videos will be available on VideoNuze starting on Monday).

Some of the sessions focused more generally on the massive shift to CTV advertising, and what’s ahead, while others focused more specifically on brand suitability/safety, DE&I, measurement, identity management, brand building and multi-platform.

On today’s podcast, Colin and I discuss key takeaways from the conference - both the main opportunities being created by CTV advertising and also the important challenges that still must be addressed for it to reach its full potential.

One important conclusion that we agree on is that CTV’s ability to enable advertisers to target specific audience segments helps drive more diversity in content creation, which in turns helps foster more inclusivity and multiculturalism. All of this supports society’s evolution to great acceptance and tolerance, which should be critical goals for all.

CTV advertising’s opportunity is only going to grow in the new year, and there will be ongoing work to solve its challenges. To help better understand all of this, keep an eye for a save the date email from VideoNuze coming soon, announcing the January dates for our inaugural CTV Advertising: Preview 2022 virtual event!

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Disney+ now has 118.1 million subscribers, less than 2 years since its launch. But Disney+ added just 2.1 million subscribers in the fiscal fourth quarter of 2021, a huge slowdown from the blistering pace of the past 2 years. This raises the question many investors are asking: can Disney+ reignite growth in 2022, and if so, how? Colin and I explore these questions on this week’s podcast.

Meanwhile, Hulu keeps chugging along, albeit in the shadow of Disney+. But as we also discuss, Hulu is already likely profitable (at least marginally), but looking out, it is poised to become a genuine profit engine for Disney. That’s because Hulu is one of a handful of scaled, ad-supported services and its Live TV + SVOD services is already generating nearly $85 per month in average revenue per subscriber. As CTV advertising becomes increasingly central to advertisers, Hulu is well-positioned to benefit.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

On Comcast’s Q3 ’21 earnings call, management was vague about how Peacock is performing. In Corporate America, not highlighting numbers is typically a sign that things are not going as well as hoped and/or the numbers are not as impressive, comparably speaking, as those of competitors. A round of speculation about Peacock’s performance and what might happen next has ensued.

On this week’s podcast, Colin and I try to explain what we think is happening. The hard truth for Peacock is that it came to market very late and that it is competing against well-funded and highly aggressive competitors which are spending heavily on originals and on promotions - a commitment that Comcast/NBCUniversal have not publicly committed to match. Another issue - at least relative to Paramount+/Showtime, which gained 4.3 million subscribers in Q3 - is that Peacock doesn’t include NBC’s linear feed, and also doesn’t specialize in mature content, which has a strong draw. These two benefits (and “Star Trek”) have no doubt helped Paramount+/Showtime. Yet another issue is that popular NBC programming continues to be available in Hulu.

All of these factors, and others, are limiting Peacock’s appeal. As if that wasn’t enough, Comcast has mixed incentives related to Hulu, because it still has a 30% stake that is getting more valuable by the day, as Netflix stock hits new highs. Comcast is financially disincented from harming Hulu by pulling programming to help Peacock (all of this would have been moot if only Comcast had acquired Hulu when it had the chance back in 2018). Comcast has missed out on billions in additional revenue and value creation.

In short, Comcast/NBCU are now facing a dilemma with Peacock that can be boiled down to: Go Big or Go Home. Either commit to spending what's required to compete effectively (either at the AVOD or SVOD level), or recognize Peacock is going to keep treading water and will likely never break out. It’s a tough decision, but it reflects the penalty late entrants face, especially when squaring off against competitors like Netflix, Amazon, Disney, HBO Max, etc.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

In Q3 2021 YouTube advertising increased by 43% to $7.2 billion, extending to 7 out of the last 8 quarters that revenue has grown by 30%+. It’s an enviable track record and on this week’s podcast Colin and I dig into what’s driving the outsized performance.

In short, as I wrote earlier this week, YouTube advertising is succeeding by focusing on the lower part of the marketing funnel, where advertisers concentrate on driving user actions/conversions (e.g. purchase, subscription, etc.). The value of these actions/conversions can be modeled into an ROI formula, and once they’re proven in with high conviction, advertisers will spend more and more, because there’s essentially an unlimited ROI. This is what has driven Google’s and other digital businesses over the years.

But, as we discuss, the untargeted ads running all over Major League Baseball’s post-season games show that targeting and conversions are still a long way away in TV advertising. That means that despite YouTube’s massive growth, there is still huge opportunity ahead, for both it, and all players in the CTV advertising ecosystem.  
 
(Note, I misspoke slightly when referring to TV ads I’ve seen in baseball’s post-season; I mentioned Chipotle, but it was actually Taco Bell whose ads I continue to be inundated with…showing how little attention I pay to them. My point about these ads being totally untargeted - since I’m uninterested in Mexican/fast food and there’s no data to suggest otherwise - remains.)

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

The new James Bond movie “No Time to Die” reportedly cost $250 million to produce and another $150 million to promote. So MGM, the movie’s studio, would need to make approximately $400 million to break even. Assuming a 50% take on box office sales, that would mean $800 million of overall ticket sales. According to Box Office Mojo, the movie has currently grossed approximately $331 million worldwide. While anything is possible, it is unlikely the movie will ultimately be profitable, at least based on the box office.

On today’s podcast Colin and I discuss the hard realities for Hollywood studios and theaters that even the ever-resourceful James Bond can’t solve. In short, if James Bond can’t turn a profit at the box office, the likelihood that others can - aside from super-hero, animation and sequels - is improbable.

All of that spells big-time trouble for Hollywood and theaters, as I wrote this past summer in “5 Reasons Going to the Movies is Facing an Irreversible Demise” and “Matt Damon Gives a ‘Hollywood 101’ Class on What Ails the Industry.” It also has significant consequences for movie fans and for how streaming is going to become even more central in our lives.

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Welcome to this week’s edition of Inside the Stream, the podcast where nScreenMedia’s Chief Analyst Colin Dixon and I take listeners inside the world of streaming video.

Rather than focus on just one story this week as we usually do, today we do segments on 5 different stories that caught our attention. First we pick up on last week’s podcast about the dustup between YouTube TV and NBCUniversal. The companies avoided going over the cliff together and managed to extend their relationship. But it is a harbinger of more fights between networks and virtual (and traditional) pay-TV operators as the size of the pie continues to shrink due to cord-cutting.

Then Colin and I have a spirited debate about Google’s Fiber TV, which is being retired, and the broader question of whether Google Fiber’s 1 gigabit per second broadband service is a worthwhile product offering (Colin thinks it is and I think it isn’t, and I haven’t since it launched way back in February, 2010, see “Google’s Fiber-to-the-Home Experiment Could Cost $750 Million or More.” Also see "Google Fiber is Out of Synch With Realities of Typical Consumer Technology Adoption" from July, 2012 and "No Surprise, Google Fiber is Falling Short of Expectations" from August, 2016.)

From there we discuss the steep drop in L7 TV ratings that has continued in the first week of this Fall season. But even at these depressed levels, I assert that the most popular broadcast TV shows like “NCIS” still draw audiences that may likely be bigger than the first 7 days following the drop of a popular show on a big SVOD service like Netflix. Related, we discuss new Kantar data on SVOD churn in Q2. For more insight, have a look at my post from November, 2019, “Will Spinning Video Subscriptions Become a Thing?”

Finally, there’s a game of musical chairs happening in our industry and this week’s move by Kelly Campbell from president of Hulu to president of Peacock is just the latest example. We discuss why these executives’ shuffling matters to all of us as consumers.

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