What do you think is the most important trend that is cutting across all media industries and having the biggest impact on both professionals and users/consumers?
*Note: For the final blog posting, you must use at least one
reading posted for this week in the “Tu 4/19” folder. Your other two sources can
be assigned readings from any point in the semester. No additional outside
article/source is required this week. Limit: 15 responses
Hannah Berkel
ReplyDeleteTruthfully, I think anything related to streaming really is the most important trend. It is impacting all media industries and impacts both professionals and consumers. Over the past few years, we have seen the emergence of a variety of streaming services. Platforms cover media such as films, television, music, audio, sports, and more. I think that this trend is going to continue over the next few years as different companies decide whether to hop on the bandwagon and create their own streaming services.
One thing that professionals should be keeping an eye on is the fact that there is a churn where people subscribe to a platform, then cancel their subscription once they are done with whatever they signed up to watch or listen to. I know that I have been guilty of this myself, as I have canceled a Disney+ subscription as soon as I finished watching The Mandalorian. In order to fight this occurrence, I think we can expect to see more bundles between streaming services. Disney currently offers a bundle that includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ and so far the churn rate for the bundle is much lower than subscriptions to one of those services alone (Faughnder). There are even bundles between different types of streaming services, such music and televisions with a bundle between Spotify and Hulu. This is a really smart strategy, especially since not everyone will want to have individual subscriptions to a million different streaming platforms. Price and amount of content available to them are driving consumers’ decisions about whether to subscribe to a platform or not.
Although cable is not dead yet, streaming is definitely on its way to taking over. In the United States, the percentage of people who watch cable dropped 20% in 2021, with only 56% of Americans still using it (“19”). This is good news for people working in cable, since about half of the population still use cable. A majority of the people still using cable do not plan on cutting the cord at this time, but I think we can expect to see this percentage continue to drop. It is mostly older people who are still using cable, but younger people prefer streaming. So, as time goes on streaming is just going to increase while cable decreases. This is not to say that cable is bad or that it should not be used, but I think this is just one area that will eventually be phased out as the media industry evolves. Furthermore, when looking at sports and linear TV, the big winners are sports broadcasts. Networks that broadcast sports such as NBC Sports, TNT, and ESPN all saw rises in viewership in 2021 (Schneider). However, even sports networks are going to be impacted by streaming. Between the deal with the NFL and Amazon for Thursday Night Football to be on Amazon Prime and the NFL floating around ideas about creating their own streaming service, the sports networks could end up hurting because of this. Consumers may not be thrilled about these moves either, especially if they prefer cable over streaming.
Overall, I truly think that streaming is the biggest trend at the moment. It feels like everyday you hear about a new streaming service or about an existing streaming service buying other companies. I think this is going to shape the media industry in all areas for a while.
Works Cited
“19 Cord Cutting Statistics and Trends in 2022 [The Dusk Of TV Is Here].” Techjury, techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref.
Schneider, Michael. “Most-Watched Television Networks: Ranking 2021's Winners and Losers.” Variety, Variety, 3 Jan. 2022, variety.com/2021/tv/news/network-ratings-2021-top-channels-1235143630/#recipient_hashed=62dfc0b27ad1de67d64a0c44fb55f17fe8a7cd610e9d3f50edf2cced899812f7.
Faughnder, Ryan. “Want to Understand the State of Streaming Churn? Here Are Four Charts to Help.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2022, www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2022-04-05/here-are-four-charts-that-explain-future-of-streaming-the-wide-shot#:~:text=Data analytics firm Antenna found,in the last six months.
Alyssa Mangone
ReplyDeleteOne of the most important trends to examine for the future is streaming. Streaming has had a significant impact on both professionals and consumers. Over the past 5 years, we have seen the amount of streaming services multiply and take over the industry. Streaming platforms have made their way into sports, television, films and more. It will be interesting over the next few years to see the shift of streaming and how it evolves. Streaming has not only had an impact on how consumers watch content, but it has also affected filmmakers and sports organizations.
Streaming is not just impacting television and films, it is also impacting the sports field. Prior to streaming, sports were shown through cable television and they have slowly made their way to the streaming world. This is a major shift for both streaming and sports. Recently, the MLS has decided to sell all of its broadcast rights to streaming. Their games will no longer be played on cable television. It was found that, “More than a dozen companies have expressed interest in acquiring the rights, including tech giants like Amazon.com Inc., and Apple Inc., and traditional media companies like AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS” (Shaw). In addition, the MLB has created a partnership with Apple TV+. The MLB will be streaming weekly doubleheader games exclusively on Apple TV+. it’s important to recognize that streaming is not just affecting movies and television.
Another thing to monitor over the next few years is churn. There are so many different streaming options to choose from, but streaming services need to focus on retention. People spend a lot of money subscribing to multiple streaming services. Often times, people will subscribe to one platform to watch a particular show. When they are done watching the show, they will automatically unsubscribe. But, platforms are trying to understand why people cancel their subscriptions and how can they make their platform “better”. Streaming services have started to create bundles with other platforms. Ryan Faughnder from the Los Angeles Times stated, “As companies try to slow the exodus of subscribers from their streaming services, they’ve come up with more mini bundles and packages, promoting them as a way for viewers to get more shows for less money” (Faughnder). One example of this is the Hulu, Showtime and Spotify bundle. People will be less likely to cancel a membership, because it gives them other content to watch.
Streaming platforms, like Netflix and HBOMax, have also created award winning shows and movies. Their content have given them a ton of clout and recognition. Yahoo Entertainment Staff said, “In a year bookended by Bridgerton and Squid Game, Netflix firmly established itself as the first name in streaming for global households” (Yahoo). Streaming services have proven to produce high quality content. their content is also critically acclaimed and has even been nominated for awards. They have proven that their teams can produce quality content, giving filmmakers competition. It will be intriguing to examine the effects this will have on film studios. Personally, I think some of these larger film studios will look to partner with streaming platforms in the future.
Works Cited
DeleteFaughnder, Ryan. “Want to Understand the State of Streaming Churn? Here Are Four Charts to Help.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2022, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2022-04-05/here-are-four-charts-that-explain-future-of-streaming-the-wide-shot#:~:text=Data%20analytics%20firm%20Antenna%20found,in%20the%20last%20six%20months.
“From 'Squid Game' to 'The Morning Show' Here Are the Winners and Losers of 2021 Television.” Yahoo!, Yahoo!, 22 Dec. 2021, https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/tv-winners-and-losers-2021-squid-game-the-morning-show-marvel-sucession-010526647.html.
Shaw, Lucas. “How Soccer Became Every Streaming Service’s Favorite Sport.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 12 Dec. 2021, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-12-12/mls-playoffs-set-up-the-league-for-a-big-payday-from-streaming-services?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=211219&utm_campaign=screentime.
Ben Labadia – Part 1
ReplyDeleteWhile I think streaming is an important trend that is overtaking all media industries as companies fight for users to subscribe to their platforms, I believe that the focus on celebrities and influencers is the real driving trend. As we have seen throughout the semester, a big reason many companies, apps, series, movies, and sports are successful, are because of the power of the celebrity. Whether influencers who started on TikTok or talented stars who started in the music or film industries, celebrities have a great deal of power over audiences. And this power is vital to the success of the rest of the media industry because of the tight grip on consumers.
Lucas Shaw says in his article about Hollywood predictions that streaming services are plateauing. For years, Netflix has ridden the success wave, gaining subscribers exponentially. Following behind is Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max. But now, practically everyone has a streamer, and it is most likely that they are loyal to specific ones. Shaw says the services are no longer fighting cable, but each other (Shaw). The draw that these platforms could use is their access to celebrities. Hulu just came out with a new reality show, The Kardashians. This isn’t necessarily because they have a compelling story, but because they’re the Kardashians; they bring big ratings. The same could be said for shows like Euphoria, using a beloved Gen Z celebrity, Zendaya, to draw audiences in.
In addition, if the celebrity can connect to their audience and build a strong relationship, the more famous both the celebrity and the content gets. Zendaya truly connects to the Gen Z audience on social media and is widely adored. Other social media stars, like Charli D’Amelio, having started on TikTok and having a large following, are adored by their fans in similar ways to larger Hollywood stars simply because they make these personal connections. Tik Tok followers especially are “obsessive,” feeding off the short content posted to see more because of how hooked they can get (Pisani & Francis). This obsession helps media companies like TikTok bring in users and allow them to build their brand, spotlight creators, and even sell products, without really needing to do much work of their own. Spotify has started using this approach to reach out to social media influencers to get their content onto Spotify’s platform to draw Gen Z’s attention. Alex Cooper’s “Call Her Daddy” podcast was one that drew a lot of young female listeners to Spotify when her show was acquired (Shaw). Spotify has even used stories, like Snapchat and Instagram, to use celebrities to promote their songs or content. This is yet another way celebrities are being used to influence consumer trends.
Ben Labadia – Part 2
DeleteOther industries utilize celebrities, too, showing their importance across all platforms. Sports is another big usage of celebrities to draw in fans, as fans tend to be loyal to both singular players and well-known teams, such as the LA Lakers or the Dallas Cowboys. Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest followed person ever, with 517 million followers across all platforms (Wallach). Other athletes with big influence include Conor McGregor, who was the highest paid athlete of 2021, making $180 million throughout the year. $158 million of this was from endorsements alone (Knight). The use of celebrities is sometimes the only way to get consumers to notice something truly special as a product or form of content. Student athletes are becoming celebrities now too, with the passing of legislation allowing NIL deals. Students can now brand themselves and create a following, which they can then use to both profit them and their school. Schools are garnering more attention if they have a star athlete on their team. Thus, celebrities don’t just help media; they help all platforms and industries.
Works Cited
Knight, Brett. “The World's 10 Highest-Paid Athletes: Conor McGregor Leads a Group of Sports Stars Unfazed by the Pandemic.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 4 Feb. 2022, https://www.forbes.com/sites/brettknight/2021/05/12/the-worlds-10-highest-paid-athletes-conor-mcgregor-leads-a-group-of-sports-stars-unfazed-by-the-pandemic/.
Pisani, Joseph, and Theo Francis. “These TikTok Stars Made More Money than Many of America's Top CEOS.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 14 Jan. 2022, https://www.wsj.com/articles/these-tiktok-stars-made-more-money-than-many-of-americas-top-ceos-11642078170.
Shaw, Lucas. “Spotify Has a Gen Z Problem. Or Is It an Opportunity?” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 19 Dec. 2021, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-12-19/spotify-has-a-gen-z-problem-here-s-how-it-s-learning-from-tiktok.
Shaw, Lucas. “A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022.” Bloomberg.com, Screentime, 2 Jan. 2022.
Wallach, Omri. “The World's Top 50 Influencers across Social Media Platforms.” Visual Capitalist, 17 May 2021, https://www.visualcapitalist.com/worlds-top-50-influencers-across-social-media-platforms/.
Lilly Davidson
ReplyDeleteEven though it may be obvious, streaming is an important trend cutting across all media industries. It has taken over TV/film, music, radio, live events, and more. Streaming is so important to the way both users and consumers experience media as well as the ways professionals gauge their business plans. People are starting to expect streaming and are disappointed when they don’t find it or if it is not up to their standards. And it doesn’t look like streaming services will be backing down any time soon.
The streaming wars are taking place across the media industry, with services popping up and dying out left and right. While the overall magnitude of streaming may be relatively new, streaming has been around for a while. However, we are still seeing new and innovative creations all the time. With so many video streaming services taking over the media landscape today, it seems like we are just waiting for the next big thing to arrive. Even with hit after hit, we are waiting for something to truly catch our interest unlike any other. But, as Lucas Shaw points out in his article, “A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022,”
“the most popular TV shows of the streaming era are the ones that no one saw coming.” Somehow remarkable content still surprises us. I think with so much coming at us all the time, we expect something that will keep our interest, but we don’t always expect to see something life changing. That is the power streaming has. To surprise us even if we think we’ve seen it all. And the truth is, we’re never going to see it all. As of 2021, “the number of scripted series available in the United States hit an all-time high” (Porter). Even after years of streaming, there is still so much more to see.
But streaming is more than just TV and film. We are now seeing the full effects streaming has on listening experiences such as music and podcasts. More and more musicians are finding their home on Spotify, with social media apps like TikTok promoting them and encouraging people to listen to their music on streaming platforms. And streaming services are looking at this too. By staying up to date with the latest trends, streaming once again proves to be an important part of the media industry. Spotify, for example, is doing deals with social media influencers in hopes to increase Gen Z appeal and incorporating their songs and podcasts with text and video (Shaw). Professionals are making sure their services appeal to a broad demographic to stay at the top of the media landscape.
Streaming services are looking at the importance of consumers just as much as consumers are looking at the importance of streaming services in their lives. Take anyone’s phone or computer and look at their apps and bookmarked tabs. More often than not, you are going to see various streaming services. They are so engrained in our daily lives. Whether that be Spotify or Apple Music we listen to on our daily runs or Netflix and Disney+ queued up when we have a break from work or Audible loading our next book. There is no denying the importance of streaming throughout the media industry. We have been looking to them for years and there is no reason why that shouldn’t continue in the future.
Works Cited
Porter, Rick. “Peak TV Update: Scripted Series Volume Hits All-Time High in 2021.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Jan. 2022, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/peak-tv-scripted-series-all-time-high-2021-1235075677/.
Shaw, Lucas. “A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022.” Screentime (Bloomberg Newsletter), 2 Jan. 2022.
Shaw, Lucas. “Spotify Has a Gen Z Problem. Or Is It an Opportunity?” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 19 Dec. 2021, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-12-19/spotify-has-a-gen-z-problem-here-s-how-it-s-learning-from-tiktok.
Kaplan 1
ReplyDeleteThere is one clear trend that is currently taking over all media industries and that is steaming. There is no doubt that streaming has had a huge effect on both professionals and consumers. Over the past decade, streaming has drastically impacted the television, film, music, and sports industries and it will continue to do so in the future.
The first industry that was largely impacted by steaming is the television industry. Over the past decade, many people have switched from watching cable television to streaming television shows on different platforms. Many people are actually canceling their cable and satellite television subscriptions and opting to subscribe to streaming platforms instead. This has become very prevalent over the past couple of years. In 2020, pay television lost over 5 million subscribers. In 2021, only around 56% of Americans watched satellite or cable TV (G., 2022). More and more consumers are cord-cutting each year. While this is great news for streaming companies, network television companies are going to continue to struggle.
People are not only streaming television shows on Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, and other streaming platforms, they are also streaming movies. Streaming services used to only have movies that had been released in the past and their own original content. People still had to go to the theater in order to see new releases. This all changed when the pandemic hit in 2020. Streaming platforms like HBO Max and Disney+ started releasing their movies on their streaming platforms the same day they were released in theaters. Even when movie theaters were open for the majority of 2021, people were still opting to stream new releases from the comfort of their own homes. Box office revenue in 2021 was down almost 60 percent compared to 2019 (McClintock, 2022). The box office is losing money which means actors, directors, and producers are losing money. Movie theaters are also losing a lot of money due to less traffic at the theaters and many have had to permanently close in the past year.
While it may seem as though the film and television industries are the only industries impacted by streaming, that is not the case. The music industry has also been largely impacted by streaming services. The top streaming music services are Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music. Most people are stopped downloading music and have downloaded those streaming apps instead. Spotify had 406 million active users at the end of 2021 (How many users do Spotify, Apple Music and streaming services have?, 2022). That number is only going to continue to grow. Artists are no longer making as much money as they used to through their music. The majority of money made on music streaming platforms is going to the record labels that own the songs (Andrews, 2022). Only the top artists on Spotify get a substantial amount of money and even then it is not a lot.
Kaplan 2
DeleteThe sports industry could be considered the last industry to fully feel the impact of streaming. Sports is one of the only programs a large number of people still watch on traditional television networks. This, however, could change within the next couple of years. A lot of major sports conglomerates are in the process of partnering up with streaming services for exclusive access to the broadcasts of their games. For example, it is rumored that the NBA is asking for 8 billion dollars a year for rights to their programming. It is predicted that both Apple and Amazon are thinking of making that deal. Amazon already has a package with the NFL so this partnership would not be surprising (Shaw, 2022). Either way, sports are starting to transition over to streaming. If the streaming industry ends up having the same impact on the sports industry as it did on the other industries discussed, streaming may become the popular way to watch sporting events.
There is no denying that streaming is currently taking over all media industries. I do not see this trend changing any time soon. I believe that the streaming industry is going to continue to grow in size and popularity. Streaming has become the new way to consume media.
Work Cited
Andrews, T. M. (2022, February 23). Spotify backlash offers rare insight into reeling music industry - and struggles of working musicians. The Washington Post. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/02/14/spotify-young-rogan-music-industry/
G., N. (2022). 19 cord cutting statistics and trends in 2022 [the dusk of TV is here]. Techjury. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref
How many users do Spotify, Apple Music and streaming services have? (2022, February 3). Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://musically.com/2022/02/03/spotify-apple-how-many-users-big-music-streaming-services/
McClintock, P. (2022, January 4). Box Office ends year 60 percent behind 2019 with $4.5B domestically. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/2021-box-office-revenue-stormy-year-1235067966/
Shaw, L. (2022, January 2). A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022. Bloomberg.com. Retrieved April 16, 2022, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-01-02/netflix-adds-sports-programming-disney-looks-overseas
Rita Sherban
ReplyDeleteOver the course of a decade, the television industry and more specifically the streaming industry has evolved itself so much so, that more and more young Americans are looking to trade in their cable subscriptions for streaming. Services like Netflix and Disney+ have seen an uptick in subscriptions, smash hits like Squid Games boosts subscriptions for Netflix, but tend to die down. Especially now, “services aren’t just fighting to get people to shift from cable to the internet now. They are competing with one another for attention and share of wallet. This means services will thrive when they have a big new hit, but slow down Therefore, it’ll be crucial for streaming companies such as Netflix to figure out strategic next steps. The best option is to focus on sports.
Companies like Amazon and Apple have dipped their toes in the sports world with the media rights for Thursday Night Football and MLB. These media goliaths have also shown interest in acquiring NFL Sunday Ticket and it’s suggested that the addition of football and baseball to the streaming services is to show the NFL their commitment. Companies like Netflix may not have the same capacity to compete in a bidding war for NFL Sunday Ticket, but that shouldn’t stop them from trying out another sport. The company already produces the docuseries, Formula One: Drive to Survive. The show alone introduced new spectators to the sport. Currently, Sky Sports is responsible for the Formula One coverage, a syndicate of Comcast. Fortunately, “co-founder Reed Hastings has already said the company would consider bidding on the right Formula One, which became available in much of the world at the end of 2022” (Shaw, 2022). With the docuseries already available it would increase the traffic as people could switch between accessing race weekends and watching episodes of the show. Although, they will have to try and combat the churn of subscriptions. If streaming services do decide to acquire sports, they will need to create additional content with it, like exclusive interviews or archived games that can be accessed anytime. Despite the churn it would also attract the ideal viewer to Formula One as the predominate fan base are 18–35-year-olds and “nearly all Americans aged 25-34 access TV content through the internet” (G. 2022). It would be an easy transition for Formula One as it’s unlikely they would lose a large portion of their fanbase, especially as Netflix is accessible in 190 countries. Sports should be the next move for all major streamers considering last year 1.6 million viewers tuned into ESPN’s primetime (Schneider 2021). This proves that amidst all the reality TV, binge-hits, and new released movies, sports will always attract the biggest audience. While Apple and Amazon haggle for NFL Sunday Ticket, other streamers like Netflix should be making strategic moves to add more sports to their digital menagerie.
G., N. (2022, March 14). 19 cord cutting statistics and trends in 2022 [the dusk of TV is here]. Techjury. Retrieved April 18, 2022, from https://techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref
Schneider, M. (2022, January 3). Most-watched television networks: Ranking 2021's winners and Losers. Variety. Retrieved April 18, 2022, from https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/network-ratings-2021-top-channels-1235143630/#recipient_hashed=62dfc0b27ad1de67d64a0c44fb55f17fe8a7cd610e9d3f50edf2cced899812f7
Shaw, L. (2022, January 2). A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022. Bloomberg.com. Retrieved April 18, 2022, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-01-02/netflix-adds-sports-programming-disney-looks-overseas
Media trends will forever be changing as society becomes more intuitive with technology. I believe that the current trend that is under the spotlight and most important, is streaming. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, streaming from the comfort of your own home was the only way to get by most of the time. Whether that be tv, music, podcasts, films, sports, or something else, there was and still is a huge impact on both professionals and consumers. The issue though, is that streaming growth is starting to become stagnant.
ReplyDeleteStreaming’s overall viewership has been stagnant for months now. The issue is that services aren’t only fighting for people to shift from cable to the internet anymore. They’re competing for attention and that means that services will thrive when they have a big new hit and slow down when they don’t (Shaw). People are starting to rely on new content to constantly be pushed onto platforms, and when nothings being put out, people push away from these services. For example, I haven’t seen anything that has caught my eye recently on HBO Max, so I haven’t been viewing anything on there for a few months now. For the television industry, it’s important for professionals to know that nearly all Americans aged 25-34 access TV content through the internet now (G.). So many people are cutting the cord and going to streaming.
For the music industry, it’s important for professionals to know that most people pay for streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music now. Not only do these streaming services provide music, but they also provide podcasts which is important to attract different consumers. Music streaming paid subscription fee is so affordable making it so much more attractive for consumers. Also, in Spotify’s first plan to take over podcasting, they signed up big names like Michelle Obama, Joe Rogan and Dax Shepard which was important for professionals because it attracted so much income from consumers from the start (Shaw). So many up-and-coming artists are able to also easily post their content to Spotify and Apple Music which makes it beneficial to both the services reputation and these new artists careers. “People hear a song on TikTok and then go to Spotify to listen to the whole thing” (Shaw). While us consumers are getting new features from these services every day, it’s important that professionals keep pushing these out to keep us satisfied AND to grow their profit.
Overall, throughout all industries, I believe streaming to be the biggest trend at the moment. Everyone is so used to having access to everything at the tip of their fingers, and streaming can give you that. You can stream anywhere and anytime which I think makes it so appealing to everyone. Streaming will always have its ups and downs, but it won’t be going anywhere for a while.
Works Cited
G., Nick. “19 Cord Cutting Statistics and Trends in 2022 [the Dusk of TV Is Here].” Techjury, 14
Mar. 2022, https://techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref.
Shaw, Lucas. “A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022.” Bloomberg.com,
Screentime, 2 Jan. 2022.
Shaw, Lucas. “Spotify Has a Gen Z Problem. Or Is It an Opportunity?” Bloomberg.com,
Bloomberg, 19 Dec. 2021, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-12-
19/spotify-has-a-gen-z-problem-here-s-how-it-s-learning-from-tiktok.
Amanda Perlin
ReplyDeleteBlog 9, Question 1
Part 1
One of the most important aspects of social media marketing is understanding the latest trends. This is also a must-do aspect of any successful strategy. One of the most important trends that will be affecting the media industry in the future is streaming. It has affected both consumers and professionals in various ways. The streaming phenomenon is one of the most important trends that is affecting the media industry right now. Despite the continued growth of streaming subscriptions, the pace of growth has slowed down in the U.S., especially in the country where most people already pay for a service like Netflix. Disney+ has also struggled to maintain its initial pace. According to article, A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022, “Streaming’s share of overall viewership in the U.S. has been stagnant for months now”. (Shaw). The streaming wars have become more of a conflict. Instead of just trying to get people to switch from cable to the internet, these services are competing for attention. This means that when a new hit comes along, they will likely continue to grow. One of the most important factors that can slow down the growth of streaming subscriptions in the U.S. is the company's international expansion. In 2021, Netflix had over 140 million international subscribers, which is more than any of its competitors. “It ended 2021 with about 140 million customers outside the U.S.” (Shaw). In the article, HBO Max is doing fine. But is streaming a good business? They talk about how the parent company of the streaming service revealed that its premium services, HBO and HBO Max, had over 70 million subscribers at the end of 2018. This represents an increase of over four million from the previous quarter's numbers. “The streamer’s parent company AT&T last week disclosed that HBO and HBO Max reached 73.8 million subscribers at the end of the year.” (Faughnder). The impressive growth of these two services is compared to the pace of expansion of their major competitors. For instance, Netflix added over four million subscribers in the last quarter. Disney+, on the other hand, only managed to grow by 2 million. “Netflix (in the lead still at 214 million) added 4.4 million in its latest tally.” (Faughnder). Companies are willing to shake up their 100-year-old legacy businesses (these old-fashioned things called movie studios) on the idea that streaming represents a better future, or at least one in which they remain relevant in a world of TikTok, video games and metaverses. It’s fair to ask if streaming really is the better way. “Streaming represents a better future”. (Faughnder).
Amanda Perlin
ReplyDeletePart 2
I believe that streaming is becoming more and more of a trend in the media industry. It feels like every day, there's a new streaming service or an acquisition of another company. As more people cut the cord and start their own streaming services, the traditional TV providers are having a hard time attracting new subscribers. According to a new study, many consumers are choosing to stream their own content instead of relying on the services of the big networks. According to article, “New Study: Consumers Prefer Ad-Supported Streaming Tiers to Paid Subscriptions”, A study revealed that almost half of consumers prefer to pay a monthly fee for a streaming service that offers a free or ad-supported option. On the other hand, almost 20% of them prefer a service that only has limited ads. “Almost twice as many consumers prefer tiered subscription services that offer a paid, ad-free option and a free or less expensive ad-supported option. “(Chorpenning). The study also found that more affordable ad-supported streaming services are also appealing to non-subscribers. For instance, a quarter of consumers would consider signing up for an ad-supported service such as HBO Max. “More affordable ad-supported services also appeal to non-subscribers.” (Chorpenning). One of the fastest-growing sectors in the media industry is live streaming, which allows content producers to reach a wider audience with relatively low cost. One of the main factors that sets live streaming apart from other platforms is its level of engagement. This is very important for brands and individuals as it allows them to reach a wider audience.
Works Cited:
Chorpenning, Aubrey. “New Study: Consumers Prefer Ad-Supported Streaming Tiers to Paid Subscriptions.” The Streamable, The Streamable, 26 July 2021, https://thestreamable.com/news/new-study-consumers-prefer-ad-supported-streaming-tiers.
Faughnder, Ryan. “HBO Max Is Doing Fine. but Is Streaming Actually a Good Business?” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2022, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2022-01-11/hbo-max-is-doing-fine-but-is-streaming-actually-a-good-business-the-wide-shot.
Shaw, Lucas. “A Few Predictions — and Questions — For Hollywood in the New Year.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 2 Jan. 2022, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-01-02/netflix-adds-sports-programming-disney-looks-overseas.
Blake Guerriero
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that streaming is the most important trend cutting across all media industries and having the biggest impact. My reasoning for believing this is simple, it is on a huge rise and there is no reason or it to stop. Streaming services are becoming more and more popular by the year, not only by consumers but by companies too. This trend will most certainly continue and get more popular as the years go on. I believe streaming is so popular is because there always seems to be a huge thing coming out of them. Shows like “Outer banks” “Squid Game” and many others took the consumer world by storm and people are using streaming searching for the next big thing to obsess over. These shows seem to come out of nowhere as well, the most popular TV shows of the streaming era are the ones that no one saw coming Somehow remarkable content still surprises us (Porter).
Not only is streaming impacting films and television but it is now starting to have a big impact on sports. Sports were always shown of cable and now thanks to new deals within the sports industry, sports are now a click away from a tablet. The MLS recently decided that none of their games will be played on cable as all their broadcasting has been thrown to streaming services. This is because it was said that more than a dozen companies have expressed interest in acquiring the rights, including tech giants like Amazon.com Inc., and Apple Inc., and traditional media companies like AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS” (Shaw). I personally have relied heavily on streaming sports while in college, and nearly every sporting event I have watched live this year has been streamed by me.
Churn is something that people should keep a close eye on as well, this is when people subscribe to a specific platform and then cancel when they get what they want, basically like a toxic girlfriend/boyfriend. I personally have never done anything like that, but I have friends who have, and it doesn’t make sense to me, there’s other content that they can look at too. Disney has done a good job at keeping this at a low rate as Disney currently offers a bundle that includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ and so far, the churn rate for the bundle is much lower than subscriptions to one of those services alone (Faughnder).
DeleteWorks Cited
Porter, Rick. “Peak TV Update: Scripted Series Volume Hits All-Time High in 2021.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Jan. 2022, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/peak-tv-scripted-series-all-time-high-2021-1235075677/.
Shaw, Lucas. “How Soccer Became Every Streaming Service’s Favorite Sport.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 12 Dec. 2021, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2021-12-12/mls-playoffs-set-up-the-league-for-a-big-payday-from-streaming-services?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=211219&utm_campaign=screentime.
Faughnder, Ryan. “Want to Understand the State of Streaming Churn? Here Are Four Charts to Help.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2022, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2022-04-05/here-are-four-charts-that-explain-future-of-streaming-the-wide-shot#:~:text=Data%20analytics%20firm%20Antenna%20found,in%20the%20last%20six%20months.
Jordon Bennett 1
ReplyDeleteWe’ve seen over the last few years how impactful streaming services are towards professionals and consumers. In my opinion, streaming services will continue to grow and will ultimately be the front runner not only consumption of content but also advertising for companies. We have seen the trends of how consumers have moved to streaming services and seeing more movement for sports in streaming. Sport is still the front runner for TV broadcasting, it’s still gaining the viewers that entertainment is losing to streaming services.
NBCUniversal receives $70 billion from advertising companies for their services on NBCU. (Battaglio) When looking into the future, NBCUniversal and Comcast are investing heavily into their streaming service, Peacock, who offers deals where consumers have access to the library with advertisements. NBCUniversal is a client of Nielsen and in the future, we will see the ratings company transform to streaming services. It’ll be interesting to see how successful Peacock is, and where NBCUniversal should prioritize their advertising. Nielson plans on being in homes of people who use streaming services over the 2022, which something they have been criticized for as the world is switching to streaming. They claim that advertisers will not only be able to see the ratings, but also how long consumers watch their advertisements. (Battaglio) This is showing how not only networks, but also advertisement and rating companies are preparing for the world where we only use streaming services.
The pandemic has been a major reason for streaming intake. For example, Marvel have been producing mini-series for Disney+, which has been a major success. Wanda Vision in particular was the first miniseries and was a major success. (Yahoo) We now see in 2022, with COVID-19 being less on everyone’s mind, Marvel is still producing miniseries. Squid Game was one of the most successful series in Netflix history, and a big help was because of the timeline it was released. It logged 1.65 billion hours of viewing over a 28-day period. (Yahoo) In the United States, sport is the only content that continues to receive views on broadcast television, even though they have declined with the Tokyo Olympics being one of the lowest viewed Olympics in history. Every year, streaming services like Netflix and Disney+ are gaining subscribers, showing how people are moving more and more towards streaming.
Jordon Bennett 2
DeleteSaying this, in the United States, with the large number of streaming services offered, as well as cable, subscribers are slowly gaining compared to 2020. We have now entered streaming wars, and the services are fighting against not only fellow streaming services, but also cable. (Shaw) The reason Netflix is far more successful than US based services is because they are international which means more people can subscribe. Services like Peacock, HBO Max and Paramount+ need to find ideas to set themselves apart from the competition, so in the future we could be seeing these services move internationally. We are already seeing this with Peacock, moving into Europe.
Shaw, Lucas. “A Few Predictions – and Questions – for Hollywood in 2022.” Bloomberg.com, Screentime, 2 Jan. 2022.
“NBCUniversal Selects Audience Measurement Alternative to Nielsen.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2022, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2022-01-13/nbcuniversal-selects-audience-measurement-alternative-to-nielsen?utm_id=46862&sfmc_id=4782528.
“TV Networks Are Mad at Nielsen. Can That Company Still Count in the Streaming Age?” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2021, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2021-12-13/nielsen-tv-ratings-streaming-nbc-david-kenny.
Gage Kilborne 1
ReplyDeleteThe media industry has by far gone through its fair share of various trends to try to fit the new norm, and this new trend that media industries are trying to follow suit with might stick for a while. The next big trend that media industries are trying to jump onto streaming services as the next big trend in media. We have already seen some media industries add streaming services to its content, such as Disney+, Discovery+, ESPN+, and Paramount+ to name a few.
According to an article by Bloomberg where they made predictions on what the future of media industries, they stated that Disney+ will be overtaking the streaming world by providing content for the Marvel Universe and Star Wars Universe (Shaw). This forecast was created in 2020 during the peak of the pandemic, and it still holds true today as Disney came out with WandaVision in 2021 and the Mandalorian series. This proves that there is a competitive market in the streaming world and by the looks of the audiences who are interested, there is no sign that this trend is going to end.
Gage Kilborne 2
DeleteAs we dive into some cord cutting statistics, that majority of Americans have gone to cut the cords and went to streaming instead. Some statistics to prove this is 30% of US consumers plan to cut the cord in 2021, nearly all Americans aged 25-34 prefer streaming content over linear television, and with the younger audience, 18-24, it is still pretty similar numbers as 87% prefer streaming services over linear television (Nick G.). This clearly proves that streaming services are here to stay and are the biggest trend in the media industry as of this moment.
The biggest impact on consumers with this trend is probably making the adjustment from linear to streaming. For instance, my father is very traditional and likes paying for his entertainment via linear television. I told him that Apple TV+ bought broadcasting rights to broadcast Friday Night Baseball games of MLB on its streaming platform. This is a way to compete with ESPN, and other small local broadcasting teams for each team. My dad was not in full agreement of this because he believed that streaming services are competing with one another and are trying to take more of my dad's money.
The bottom line with this story I shared with you is, although many of our younger demographics are interested in streaming services, the older demographic does not agree with the change because it will mess everything up. Also, majority of the older demographic may not be so familiar with the new technology and how it works so they will find a struggle to keep up with the rest of society.
Gage Kilborne 3
DeleteBridge, Gavin. “Fading Ratings: Viewership Declines in Key Cable Genres.” Variety, Variety, 30 Dec. 2021, https://variety.com/vip/fading-ratings-viewership-declines-in-key-cable-genres-1235144463/.
G., Nick. “19 Cord Cutting Statistics and Trends in 2022 [the Dusk of TV Is Here].” Techjury, 2020, https://techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref.
Shaw, Lucas. “Here Are A Dozen Predictions About the Future of Entertainment.” Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, 2020, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2020-12-20/here-are-a-dozen-predictions-about-the-future-of-entertainment?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=220102&utm_campaign=screentime.
Lauren Clemons
ReplyDeleteI think the most important trend that is cutting across all media industries and having a big impact on consumers and professionals is streaming services. Streaming services are making so much money and taking away from cable television in a huge way.
Streaming services are much cheaper than cable, and they provide a lot of different content on them. Netflix is the largest streaming platform with over 214 million subscribers and has been at the top compared to other platforms for years. Netflix offers a variety of content, and they even have their own “Originals”; and they are global. Netflix also does a great job great job collaborating with other countries and producing hit shows like Money Heist and Squid Game: according to “From 'Squid Game' to 'The Morning Show' Here Are the Winners and Losers of 2021 Television.” In a year bookended by Bridgerton and Squid Game, Netflix firmly established itself as the first name in streaming for global households. The South Korea-produced Squid Game shattered records when it logged 1.65 billion hours of viewing during a 28-day period (Yahoo). But I think Netflix’s biggest competition is Disney, there’s Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+. I know there’s some type of bundle people can do and it’s very popular.
But sports are going to start going onto to streaming; we are seeing it now with the NFL being shown on Amazon next season. People who want to watch games are going to have to invest in Prime, since they won’t be able to see it on cable. I think this is a test to see if it’s worth putting sports on streaming services. If it is successful, I think a lot of streaming services will pick up sports. But I do think professionals should be careful with putting certain things on platforms. For example, the NFL on Amazon, I think a lot of people will buy into prime at first, but some people aren’t going to want to keep paying for that just for football: according to “19 Cord Cutting Statistics and Trends in 2022 [the Dusk of TV Is Here].” the percentage of people that watch cable TV in the United States has significantly dropped by 20%. Even more revealing cord-cutting statistics for 2021 show that over 60% of those that don’t use the services were subscribers at some point (G). People do that now with subscriptions subscribe for a bit and cancel when they’re over it.
Also, consumers are buying into multiple platforms for streaming content. But my question is how long will consumers invest into multiple streaming platforms with prices rising? Streaming platforms are supposed to be affordable, but Netflix is now $20 for a certain plan a month. By Netflix raising their prices it may cause people to start unsubscribing: according to “Want to Understand the State of Streaming Churn? Here Are Four Charts to Help.” data analytics firm Antenna found that the average monthly churn for streaming video services reached 5.2% by the end of 2021, up from 3.2% at the start of 2019. According to a survey by Deloitte, 37% of people canceled a streaming subscription in the last six months (Faughnder). This is probably due to people living their lives again since COVID is going nowhere.
Overall, I think people will continue cord cutting and streaming will replace cable television one day. But I do think we will see issues with people still wanting to subscribe to a streaming platform if prices continue to rise.
Faughnder, Ryan “Want to Understand the State of Streaming Churn? Here Are Four Charts to Help.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2022, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2022-04-05/here-are-four-charts-that-explain-future-of-streaming-the-wide-shot#:~:text=Data%20analytics%20firm%20Antenna%20found,in%20the%20last%20six%20months.
ReplyDelete“From 'Squid Game' to 'The Morning Show' Here Are the Winners and Losers of 2021 Television.” Yahoo!, Yahoo!, https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/tv-winners-and-losers-2021-squid-game-the-morning-show-marvel-sucession-010526647.html.
G. Nick “19 Cord Cutting Statistics and Trends in 2022 [the Dusk of TV Is Here].” Techjury, https://techjury.net/blog/cord-cutting-statistics/#gref.