*** STREAMING INDUSTRY THREAD ***

42,496 Views | 412 Replies | Last: 20 days ago by Iowaggie
AgGrad99
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AG
I referring to people who say they 'cut' the cord. They just changed which cord the service came in on.

And even toggling various services on and off...I pay more now than I ever did with a bundled cable service.

The hassle was calling ever 12/24 months and haggling with them. But I'd prefer that over the fragmented TV watching we have now.
TCTTS
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Prior to streaming, I used to pay $150ish/mo
for DIRECTV alone.

Now, I pay $150ish/mo for YouTubeTV, Disney+, Hulu, Max, Netflix, Peacock, and Prime Video, which, all together, features infinitely more content than DIRECTV could ever offer, way more 4K programming, and gives me the option to drop/re-add any of them on a month-to-month basis.

So, same price, but way more bang for my buck. That's a win any way you slice it.
AgGrad99
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AG

All the content used to be on one platform. Just because we now have to subscribe to multiple platforms doesnt mean we're getting more bang for our buck. It just means we just have to to go more places to watch the content.

It was way easier before.
TCTTS
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But the quality was worse and there was way less selection. I'm sorry you have to to push a couple extra buttons to get out of one app and into another. But if that's all we have to do in order to get infinitely more content, in way better quality, that's an incredibly small price to pay. Especially considering Apple or someone will inevitably find a way to make it all available in one interface. Heck, they're nearly there now.
AgGrad99
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Dang. Maybe you dont mean to, but it's hard to have an actual discussion, when you come off so smarmy towards other people's opinions. You'd think you created streaming, based on your response: "Im sorry you have to push a couple extra buttons". Since you didnt invent streaming, there's really no need for you to apologize.

It's obviously not just hitting an extra button. What Im saying is not new, and I've heard it echo'd routinely. Everything is in 10 different places, instead of one. Having to sign up and pay for various apps...just to see if I like a new show is annoying (especially if I feel I've wasted my money on a crappy show). Not to mention having to flip between various apps, looking for something to watch. And then remembering to cancel them if Im done with their content.

No matter how you cut it. It was easier before, when it was all in one place.

I mean, heck...there is a post one page back with a quote from David Zaslav saying the exact same thing.
TCTTS
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You have every right to think it was easier before. It was, and I'm not disputing that. I just find it weird that you refuse to admit that we *also* have way more selection (aka nearly everything that's ever been released), and that the quality is far superior. It's a trade off. I'm not saying it's not more of a hassle. I'm saying that switching between apps is an insanely small price to pay, considering all that we now have access to, at the quality it's being offered. Also, again, the switching-between-apps thing is going to get worked out. It's a growing pain, that's all.
AgGrad99
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Im not 'refusing to admit' any of those things, it's just not what I was discussing.

I preferred it, when it was easier. That completes my opinion. You disagree for other reasons...got it.

But it's obviously a concern in the industry, hence the discussion by execs about it.
The Dog Lord
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AgGrad99 said:

Im not 'refusing to admit' any of those things, it's just not what I was discussing.

I preferred it, when it was easier. That completes my opinion. You disagree for other reasons...got it.

But it's obviously a concern in the industry, hence the discussion by execs about it.

I doubt everyone agrees it was easier before though. I mean many were still paying more than one company if they wanted access to Netflix, prime, etc. in addition to cable. Also, I can have my watch lists in each app now rather than needing to channel surf or setup my dvr schedule.

I also pay way less than I did before, so for me it's a huge win to save money and still have access to whatever I want.
walton91
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AgGrad99 said:


All the content used to be on one platform. Just because we now have to subscribe to multiple platforms doesnt mean we're getting more bang for our buck. It just means we just have to to go more places to watch the content.

It was way easier before.

It was easier before. Its better now. No way I trade today's content for yesterday's ease of use.
superunknown
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Was it really easier before when you had cable? Because even my broke ass family had several of those VHS tape cabinets full of movies (recorded in SLP mode off of basic cable of course) and fast-forwarding through one movie to get to the next one or accidentally recording over something because you left the tape in the VCR and your sister had Days of Our Lives set to automatically record wasn't really easier at all.
AgGrad99
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superunknown said:

Was it really easier before when you had cable? Because even my broke ass family had several of those VHS tape cabinets full of movies (recorded in SLP mode off of basic cable of course) and fast-forwarding through one movie to get to the next one or accidentally recording over something because you left the tape in the VCR and your sister had Days of Our Lives set to automatically record wasn't really easier at all.
Yeah. VHS sucked. No one is referring to VHS days.

Nothing wrong with DVR and On Demand though.
EclipseAg
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AgGrad99 said:

superunknown said:

Was it really easier before when you had cable? Because even my broke ass family had several of those VHS tape cabinets full of movies (recorded in SLP mode off of basic cable of course) and fast-forwarding through one movie to get to the next one or accidentally recording over something because you left the tape in the VCR and your sister had Days of Our Lives set to automatically record wasn't really easier at all.
Yeah. VHS sucked. No one is referring to VHS days.

Nothing wrong with DVR and On Demand though.
It's clear that many cable detractors haven't had the service in awhile.

Xfinity (Comcast) isn't the same company it was 10 years ago. The Xfinity platform is completely integrated with seamless switching between cable channels and streaming services, all voice controlled. Want to go from HGTV to an episode of "Succession?" Just push a button on the remote and say "Succession on HBO."

And DVR and On Demand give you access to everything on your own time schedule.

I get the hate for cable. Much of it was warranted. But Xfinity is a vastly improved offering that makes watching what you want easier.
superunknown
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AG
Spectrum (the conglomerate known as Time Warner or BrightHouse or Charter) has a similar offering/setup and it really is great. I just don't find enough stuff to watch to get real value out of cable anymore. I'm definitely the "its on in the background" guy and I'm finding FAST services like Pluto or tubi etc work out just fine in my world. If I didn't have a super cheap internet and cable bundle I don't know I'd keep the cable portion.
Ghost of Bisbee
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So not sure where else to put this…

HBO's pipeline for the rest of the year…

We've got Righteous Gemstones set for June 18.

Why the hell does your Curb your Enthusiasm not have a date yet? Must be gunning for a late summer start after righteous gemstones?

White House Plumbers ain't doing it for me.
-Ben There/R.C.
TCTTS
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HBO usually only ever gives exact dates for the shows that are on deck/up next. In this particular instance that would be The Idol (June 4) and The Righteous Gemstones (June 18). But The Idol is only six episodes and it'll be over July 9. So I'm assuming either True Detective: Night Country, season two of The Gilded Age, or season two of Winning Time will then start on July 16. Though, seeing as True Detective is the only one of those with a trailer so far, I'm guessing it'll fill that spot? As for Curb, I have no idea. It's definitely 2023, but HBO's comedies are a little harder to predict. Season three of The Righteous Gemstones will end on August 13, so yeah., maybe Curb starts August 20? Then again, they cold very well save it for October.
TCTTS
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Ghost of Bisbee said:

So not sure where else to put this…

HBO's pipeline for the rest of the year…

We've got Righteous Gemstones set for June 18.

Why the hell does your Curb your Enthusiasm not have a date yet? Must be gunning for a late summer start after righteous gemstones?

White House Plumbers ain't doing it for me.

I would use this thread for any TV release date discussions...

https://texags.com/forums/13/topics/3049770/last
TCTTS
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TCTTS
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Capybara
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Dismal ****, man. It's difficult to not be a chicken little about this; thankfully, I've weaned myself off Adderall, so no more rants/outbursts here (or elsewhere) lol.
Iowaggie
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Is TCM just going to be a tile/brand on Max or is it completely ending?


Or are the hosts/staff just getting cut in an attempt to save the channel?

Or is the whole thing closing shop?


Sad to see it go, but I haven't watched anything on there for at least 6 years, maybe 8 or more. Even during Covid we would comment on movies on there we wanted to watch, but didn't.
TCTTS
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Zaslav continuing to piss off all the wrong people...

TCTTS
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No one knows for sure. But firing the three people who basically ran it doesn't bode well.
TCTTS
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superunknown
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Oh look another streaming service is launching...

Brian Earl Spilner
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TCTTS said:




This is so confusing. Max just launched, and they want to push off their HBO content (their highest qualify offerings) to their biggest competitor?

Are they essentially waving the white flag?
TCTTS
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AG
No, everyone is starting doing this (again) now. I'm no expert, but I'll try to explain it the best I can...

The original promise, like five years ago, was that each of these streaming platforms was going to host their studio's/company's entire historical libraries for eternity. So everything Warner Bros. has ever made would be exclusively on HBO Max from now until forever, everything Paramount has ever made would be exclusively on Paramount+ from now until forever, etc. To the point where, for instance, say in like 2015 or whenever, Warner Bros. had licensed the Harry Potter potter franchise to Universal so Universal could play it on NBC (NBC is owned by Universal). But then when HBO Max launched, WB bought it back so Harry Potter could live exclusively on HBO Max and no where else. We saw a lot of that kind of thing happening, so everything eventually became siloed off under its original owners. Everyone built up their libraries in that regard, and then competed to get the most users.

Fast forward to last year, though, when basically everyone realized around the same time that was the dumbest business decision ever. Because then you're *only* depending on subscription revenue and nothing else, which is why we're seeing all these streamers losing tons of money now. Basically, big tech duped everyone because all they care about is growth, but then when the shine wore off, and every streamer essentially started plateauing in terms users, everyone realized that profitability of course is what really matters. Which is like... duh.

So then two things happened... 1) all of these streamers started utilizing ads recently, offering an ad-supported tier, thus bringing in a lot more income that way, and 2) they've gone back to embracing how it used to be when studios would license their movies/shows/franchises to other studios for a two-year deal here, a three-year deal here, etc. The latter being a massive source of income, one that made everyone rich back during cable era.

In other words, Warner Bros can make way more money off of Harry Potter if they license it out, rather than having it as one of 20 franchises exclusive to Max, that just sits on the platform for eternity, where they can't really measure if it's leading to more sign-ups or not.

It's early days, so we're seeing the less popular stuff being licensed out for now - they're starting small - but soon it'll be like it used to be where you'll see Harry Potter on Peacock, something like The Matrix trilogy (also a WB property) on Paramount+, etc. New Warner Bros. movies and shows will always *premiere* on Max. Same for new content from all studios premiering on their respective apps. The difference now is, those movies and shows won't live on the same apps for eternity. Dune: Part Two will premiere in the theater, it'll then go to Max like 90 days later, will live on Max for a year or two, but then WB will license it out to another streamer. They just make way more money that way. It might be slightly more annoying for the consumer, but is WAY better for the health of the industry overall.
superunknown
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AG
Excellent "so now what? Where are we?" recap.
TCTTS
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There's a bit more nuance to it all, and some economics I don't quite understand, but hopefully the overall gist is clear.

Basically, we're going back to the cable model, just digitally, across apps. Turns out, the model that worked perfectly for 50+ years, and made everyone tons of money, was a good idea and shouldn't have been broken.
superunknown
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TCTTS said:

There's a bit more nuance to it all, and some economics I don't quite understand, but hopefully the overall gist is clear.

Basically, we're going back to the cable model, just digitally, across apps. Turns out, the model that worked perfectly for 50+ years, and made everyone tons of money, was a good idea and shouldn't have been broken.


Honestly it's the funniest part of it all to me. I think in general people and industries fall back on what they know and innovation is always gonna happen but mostly from new upstarts and then the big money follows and tries to emulate the innovators. Eventually everyone's basically the same until the next disruption.

Any time I hear someone announce "the media" all acts the same, the implications are that we all have secret meetings and decide like we're OPEC or something and I laugh because I sit in on meetings every day and I can't even get people in my own damn company to all at least glance occasionally in the same direction, much less act in any sort of thing resembling synchronicity towards a common goal.
TCTTS
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superunknown said:

TCTTS said:

There's a bit more nuance to it all, and some economics I don't quite understand, but hopefully the overall gist is clear.

Basically, we're going back to the cable model, just digitally, across apps. Turns out, the model that worked perfectly for 50+ years, and made everyone tons of money, was a good idea and shouldn't have been broken.


Honestly it's the funniest part of it all to me. I think in general people and industries fall back on what they know and innovation is always gonna happen but mostly from new upstarts and then the big money follows and tries to emulate the innovators. Eventually everyone's basically the same until the next disruption.

Any time I hear someone announce "the media" all acts the same, the implications are that we all have secret meetings and decide like we're OPEC or something and I laugh because I sit in on meetings every day and I can't even get people in my own damn company to all at least glance occasionally in the same direction, much less act in any sort of thing resembling synchronicity towards a common goal.

This x 1000. The sheer amount of selfishness, laziness, incompetence, and competing interests in Hollywood, in particular, absolutely insures that there could never be any kind of monolithic structure or cabal that acts as one, controls everything, pushes a unified narrative, etc. Contrary to what others might have us believe in a certain other thread on this board right now. I really wish people who insisted as much could realize how ridiculous they sound.
TCTTS
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TCTTS
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GIF Reactor
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TCTTS said:

superunknown said:

TCTTS said:

There's a bit more nuance to it all, and some economics I don't quite understand, but hopefully the overall gist is clear.

Basically, we're going back to the cable model, just digitally, across apps. Turns out, the model that worked perfectly for 50+ years, and made everyone tons of money, was a good idea and shouldn't have been broken.


Honestly it's the funniest part of it all to me. I think in general people and industries fall back on what they know and innovation is always gonna happen but mostly from new upstarts and then the big money follows and tries to emulate the innovators. Eventually everyone's basically the same until the next disruption.

Any time I hear someone announce "the media" all acts the same, the implications are that we all have secret meetings and decide like we're OPEC or something and I laugh because I sit in on meetings every day and I can't even get people in my own damn company to all at least glance occasionally in the same direction, much less act in any sort of thing resembling synchronicity towards a common goal.

This x 1000. The sheer amount of selfishness, laziness, incompetence, and competing interests in Hollywood, in particular, absolutely insures that there could never be any kind of monolithic structure or cabal that acts as one, controls everything, pushes a unified narrative, etc. Contrary to what others might have us believe in a certain other thread on this board right now. I really wish people who insisted as much could realize how ridiculous they sound.
Yeah, like you would tell us you're all colluding.

Iowaggie
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AG
For those interested in the outcome of the Disney/Charter settlement and the likely rebundling of cable with the streaming services as part of the bundle, I'd recommend the Sharp Tech podcast with Ben Thompson. Some of their podcasts are subscribers only, but the two on the Disney/Charter were not. Basically there is a lot to what TCTTS wrote about above in July with two main reasons for the rebundle.

1. The networks/studios could hide their cost/fees when bundled. Everytime they increased fees in the past, we as consumers either complained about the cable company during a blackout or complained about a cable company increasing rates, or both. Charter did Disney a significant favor by pushing them into this relationship.

2. Churn is much greater when the consumer is directly buying from the services. A bundled cable that includes Disney+,Paramount+ or Peacock will likely see less churn than those stand alone services get on their own. This is not saying those providers won't still their own standalone service.

https://open.spotify.com/show/4vk2MfVMEAuOnTWUOz6lnE
superunknown
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Somehow I am comforted that in all these recaps and analyses, it seems like everyone has come to the same conclusion that (overall) we (the hated media) have NO DAMN IDEA where any of this is going and we're all grasping at whatever we can to make the eventual transition to wherever we're going as smooth as possible and when the bottom line is in fact the literal bottom line of revenue and that's what will always drive the results of these things so thats why we are where we are.

Meanwhile...Disney has public suitors already. I did not see Nexstar getting involved but if you've seen how OTA TV ownership groups have consolidated over the last 10 or so years (radio went through this in the late 90s/early 00s) its not terribly surprising. And Byron Allen has quietly been building an empire brick by brick picking up things that the giant mega corps have decided no longer suits them. Who woulda thunk it would have been one of the big 4 networks he could eventually control?

https://www.nexttv.com/news/byron-allen-reportedly-makes-dollar10-billion-offer-for-abc-other-disney-networks


 
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