Reed Hastings is transitioning from co-chief executive to executive chairman of Netflix, with Greg Peters, who was instrumental in launching the platform’s new ad-supported tier, stepping up from COO and chief product officer to serve as co-CEO with Ted Sarandos. Hastings co-founded Netflix in 1997 and has run it ever since, transforming the company from a DVD-by-mail rental outfit to the world’s dominant streaming service. The C-suite shift comes as Netflix announced it beat its forecast for subscriber gains, ending Q4 with 230.8 million paid subscribers globally, news that spiked Netflix shares nearly 7 percent. Continue reading Reed Hastings Transitioning to Executive Chairman of Netflix

YouTube TV has unveiled redesigns of its Live guide and Library feature. The new Live guide touts a more traditional timeline-based grid presentation, topped by curated recommendations. Overall, YouTube says the grid layout is condensed yet provides more information. It also makes it easier to record. The updated Library has added content management features, including a “catch up on your favorites” shelf. Instead of side-navigation, a row of filters invites content categories exploration. YouTube says “Live and Library are the most used pages by YouTube TV watchers, so we decided to focus on improving those areas.” Continue reading YouTube TV Upgrades Are Designed to Streamline Navigation

YouTube is embarking on tests of a new FAST channel hub. The move is the latest by the Alphabet-owned platform to expand its ambitions to become a full-service video provider. YouTube is reported by The Wall Street Journal to be in talks with entertainment firms about featuring films and TV series in a configuration not unlike that typically offered by cable (i.e., packaged) and is testing the approach with a limited number of media companies in anticipation of a potential full-on launch later this year. Deployment of a free, ad-supported TV hub would put YouTube on a path to become a go-to destination for general video in competition with entities such as Roku, Pluto TV and Tubi TV. Continue reading YouTube Tests Waters with Hub of FAST Streaming Channels

Over the holidays, the National Football League announced a multi-year deal with Google that will provide YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels with exclusive rights to the NFL Sunday Ticket package, which includes all out-of-market Sunday games broadcast via CBS and FOX. Beginning with the 2023 football season, NFL Sunday Ticket will be available for U.S. consumers “on two of YouTube’s growing subscription businesses as an add-on package on YouTube TV and standalone a-la-carte on YouTube Primetime Channels,” according to Google. The agreement is valued at about $2 billion annually over seven years. Continue reading NFL Sunday Ticket Is Coming to YouTube TV and Primetime

Netflix is tooting its own horn for 10 years of Open Connect, an initiative designed to provide customers with improved technical performance. Since launching the program in 2012, Netflix has worked with global ISPs to optimize servers in high-density customer areas so programming will stream at high quality and with minimal lag time. Open Connect identifies the most efficient delivery route based on ISPs’ preferences, and ensures that the show or film is available on local servers ahead of time, ensuring access even when demand is at its highest, according to Netflix. Continue reading Netflix Open Connect Program Helps ISPs and All Networks

Spotify is estimated to have a one-third share of the global music-streaming market, and now the company is making a mark in B-to-B with Backstage, an open-source framework for building developer portals that is now in use by an estimated 200 companies, including American Airlines, Netflix, Roku, Epic Games, VMware and LinkedIn. Backstage centralizes management of engineering tools, resources and documentation — from CI/CD status and Kubernetes monitoring to API and library docs and more. While Spotify has made Backstage available free, it’s now introducing a package of five premium plugins via paid subscription. Continue reading Spotify Launches Premium Plugins for Backstage Framework

Verizon is opening its +play streaming hub in beta to mobile, 4G LTE and 5G home Internet customers. To sweeten the deal, the carrier is offering Netflix Premium free for a year to customers that sign-up for “a 12-month or seasonal subscription” to one of its other content partners. Verizon claims there are 20 platforms onboard for the beta launch, among them: HBO Max, Discovery+, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, NFL+ and Peloton. Netflix Premium usually costs $20 per month (or $240 a year) and includes 4K streaming as well as ability to simultaneously download or watch on four devices. Continue reading Verizon’s +Play Rollout Includes a Free Netflix Premium Offer

Twitter has reintroduced its Twitter Blue paid subscription service, which will cost $11 a month for those using Apple mobile devices and $8 monthly for those who sign up using web browsers. The iOS premium compensates for the 30 percent initial fee Apple charges developers for subscriptions purchased through its App Store (which falls to 15 percent after a year). Twitter owner Elon Musk previously tweeted complaints about Apple’s pricing policy, which has also rankled other developers. Twitter Blue subscribers get access to features including editable tweets, upgraded video and a blue verification check mark. Continue reading Twitter Reboots Blue Subscription, Charges iOS Users More

Disney+ has launched its anticipated ad-supported tier, Disney+ Basic, for $7.99 per month in the U.S., while the cost of its ad-free Premium subscription bumps up to $10.99 per month. The company has also reconfigured its bundles, adding the Disney Bundle Duo (Disney+ Basic with Hulu’s ad-supported plan) for $9.99 per month, and the Disney Bundle Trio Basic (Disney+ Basic, with ad-supported Hulu and ESPN+) for $12.99 per month. Disney says it’s launching “with more than 100 advertisers across all major categories.” An ad-free Disney Bundle Trio Premium is also being offered, for $19.99 per month. Continue reading Disney+ Rolls Out Basic Ad-Supported Tier and New Bundles

The House Judiciary Committee has approved the American Music Fairness Act, which would require broadcast radio stations to pay royalties to performance artists and musicians. Currently only songwriters and publishers get royalties for terrestrial radio play. The U.S. is unusual among developed nations in failing to provide a legal framework for performer compensation for songs played on-air — a vestigial artifact from the days when radio was a fledgling media and airplay was considered promotion for record sales. Newer media, including streaming and other subscription services, pays performance royalties. Continue reading Music Fairness Act to Secure Radio Payments for Performers

Apple has updated its App Store pricing in what some have interpreted as a preemptive move against regulatory and legal pressure over store policies. Apple is offering developers “700 additional price points and new pricing tools” to make it easier to set prices per App Store country or region and manage foreign exchange rate changes, among other things. The move brings the total number of available App Store price points to 900 and allows developers in the U.S. to set prices ranging from $0.29 to $10,000. The new policy is expected to roll out soon in global markets. Continue reading Apple Revises App Store Pricing Policy, Adding 700 Options

Big Tech’s battle with news publishers has moved to the U.S. where Congress is considering legislation to help publishers collectively negotiate compensation from social media sites disseminating their copyrighted content. Meta Platforms reacted strongly to the bill, called the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act. “If Congress passes an ill-considered journalism bill as part of national security legislation, we will be forced to consider removing news from our platform altogether rather than submit to government mandated negotiations that unfairly disregard any value we provide to news outlets through increased traffic and subscriptions,” the company tweeted. Continue reading Meta and Alphabet on the Frontlines of Big Tech News Battle

Amazon Prime Video has overtaken Netflix as the most popular OTT video service in the U.S., according to a new study by Parks Associates, marking the first time Netflix fell from No. 1 in the history of the company’s annual report. Peacock entered the top 10 list for the first time in 2022, debuting at No. 9, while Showtime dropped off. The research firm reports that 83 percent of U.S. broadband households have at least one OTT service, while 23 percent subscribe to nine or more OTT subscriptions. While Netflix, Prime Video and Hulu have traditionally held the top three spots, the list has recently become more varied due to an influx of new players. Continue reading Amazon Prime Video Knocks Netflix from Top Streamer Spot

Cord-cutting among U.S. consumers hit record highs in Q3, according to research firm MoffettNathanson, which reports total pay TV subscriptions dropped by 6.3 percent in the July through September period, up from a 5.2 percent decline in Q3 2021, and slightly ahead of the 6.2 percent contraction of Q2 this year. MoffettNathanson defines “pay TV” as paid subscription services, including from cable and satellite operators in addition to vMVPDs packaged through companies like Verizon and AT&T. The Q3 loss totaled roughly 655,000 subscribers, as compared to 617,000 from the same period last year, and 91,000 in Q3 2020. Continue reading Report: Cord-Cutting Translates to New Low for Pay TV in Q3

Netflix is now live with its ad-supported tier, but company co-CEO Reed Hastings said he regrets not having launched it sooner. Speaking at The New York Times’ DealBook Summit, Hastings said he was preoccupied with digital competition from Google and Facebook. “I didn’t believe in the ad-supported tactic for us. I was wrong about that. Hulu proved you could do that at scale and offer customers lower prices,” Hastings told NYT columnist and DealBook founder and editor-at-large Andrew Ross Sorkin. “I wish we had flipped a few years earlier on that, but we’ll catch up.” Continue reading Netflix Expanding Previews as Ad Tier Gets Up and Running