Sony Interactive Entertainment is launching an upgraded version of its PlayStation Plus subscription service that includes access to the separate PlayStation Now cloud gaming platform for one monthly fee. This week’s launch in North and South America will be followed by Europe and Australia in late June, completing the global rollout that Sony began in Asia in late May. “Fans worldwide can now enjoy hundreds of fantastic games available in the PlayStation Plus catalog,” SIE president and CEO Jim Ryan said, emphasizing that “the service will continue to grow with new monthly game offerings” that include PlayStation’s most popular titles. Continue reading Sony Interactive Bundles Cloud Gaming with PlayStation Plus

Some streaming platforms are continuing to stream TV commercials even after viewers turn off their sets, costing brands an estimated $1 billion per year in wasted fees, according to new research. The news comes as streaming gains in popularity and premium services like HBO Max, Disney+ and Netflix dabble in ad-supported streaming tiers. A study by iSpot.tv and GroupM indicates roughly 17 percent of television ads playing through connected streaming devices are playing on a dark TV set, which is possible because when regular TVs are turned off that action isn’t always conveyed through HDMI ports. Continue reading Streaming Ads That Play While TVs Are Off a Costly Problem

Netflix has unveiled new mobile game titles, including some derived from the streamer’s popular shows. Games developed from “The Queen’s Gambit,” “Too Hot to Handle” and “Shadow and Bone” join a gaming lineup that Netflix hopes to grow from an existing library of 22 to at least 50 titles by December, the company revealed at its annual Geeked Week virtual event, which wrapped on Friday. The games are available on iOS and Android, requiring users to authenticate their Netflix accounts. The streamer also introduced game-inspired animated series, including “The Cuphead Show!” and “Sonic Prime.” Continue reading Netflix Builds-Out Its Game Portfolio and Unveils New Series

Trying to assuage fears over what investors are concerned is a limited-growth market, audio streamer Spotify says it plans to hit one billion global monthly average users by 2030. Spotify closed Q1 with 422 million MAUs and 182 million paid subscribers, per Statista. At an Investor Day presentation in New York City this week, CEO Daniel Ek and chief freemium business officer Alex Norström showed slides indicating the company’s goal represents compounded annual growth rates of 26 percent for MAUs, paid subscribers and revenue (on a currency-adjusted basis). To get there, the executives emphasized emerging markets and podcasts. Continue reading Spotify Says One Billion MAUs by 2030 a Path to Profitability

Regional Sports Network NESN is launching a subscription streaming service called NESN 360 for $29.99 per month, with the first month priced at $1. NESN 360 allows fans to purchase a direct subscription to NESN’s live programming and video-on-demand content. Launched in partnership with the Boston Red Sox, the Boston Bruins and Major League Baseball, NESN 360 makes NESN the first regional sports network in the country to launch a direct-to-consumer service bypassing cable. Annual subscriptions are priced at $329.99 and include eight tickets to see the Red Sox play in 2022. Continue reading NESN Is First Regional Sportscaster Offering DTC Streaming

Netflix subscribers are adjusting to its new pay-to-password-share policy, and it’s reportedly been a bumpy transition. In Peru, where active accounts were automatically opted-in for new sharing restrictions, reports of confusion are emerging. At issue, a reported lack of clarity over the company’s definition of a “household,” and new charges related to the term. In March, Netflix announced a test run of paid password sharing for non-household users in Costa Rica and Chile, as well as Peru. The Central and South American markets are on the lower side of Netflix’s revenue-per-user scale. Continue reading Netflix Subscribers Struggle with New Password-Sharing Fee

TikTok is looking to take on Amazon’s Twitch, launching a subscription tier on TikTok Live that offers fans special access to content from their favorite creators for a monthly fee. Currently in beta, access to the new program is at the moment by invitation only, though the company says it will be rolling it out more broadly in the coming weeks. The Live Subscription monetization program is designed to let people “show their appreciation for their favorite Live creators,” TikTok says. Participants will get profile badges, custom emotes and private chat. Continue reading TikTok Rolls Out a Subscription Tier for the App’s Live Feature

Those who thought Netflix’s losses in Q1 meant consumers were falling out of love with premium SVOD subscriptions overall are wrong, according to research firm Antenna, which has issued a new report indicating the streaming category continues to grow, up 4 percent in Q1 compared to Q4 2021, with a 24.7 percent jump compared to the same period the prior year. The growth the first quarter of 2022 “was largely driven by Peacock and Paramount+,” according to Antenna, which says the “two services combined to add over 6.1 million U.S. subscribers,” 80 percent of category growth. Continue reading Peacock and Paramount+ Generate Bulk of Q1 SVOD Growth

Disney+ outperformed its subscriber goals, helping The Walt Disney Company to 23 percent revenue growth in its fiscal second quarter, ended April 2. “Our strong results in the second quarter, including fantastic performance at our domestic parks and continued growth of our streaming services — with 7.9 million Disney+ subscribers added in the quarter and total subscriptions across all our DTC offerings exceeding 205 million — once again proved that we are in a league of our own,” Disney CEO Bob Chapek summarized for investors. Disney+ now reaches 137.7 million subscribers. Continue reading Disney Reports Strong Revenue and Subscriber Growth for Q2

Discovery+ has become the first ad-supported plan among Roku Channel premium subscription offerings. Announcing the deal, Roku and Warner Bros. Discovery said Discovery+ brings 70,000 episodes of network shows and more than 200 originals to become the largest vertical library on The Roku Channel. Discovery+ on Roku TV will cost $7 per month for the ad-free version and $5 per month with ads. Both options are available now, with a 7-day free trial. The deal marks Roku’s first premium subscription for a video-on-demand tier supported by ads. Continue reading Discovery+ Is First Roku Premium Sub with Ad-Supported Tier

Peacock premium subscribers will have streaming access to Bravo shows the day after they air on the NBCUniversal sister service, which has also secured a multiyear output deal with Lionsgate for movies that will begin streaming in 2024. “Bravo fans have another reason to celebrate” in addition to the recent news that BravoCon is returning to New York City this October, NBCUniversal touted. Starting this week, new seasons of Bravo hits “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” “Top Chef” and “Below Deck” will be available on Peacock the day after air. Continue reading Peacock Announces Next-Day Bravo Shows, Lionsgate Films

A strong showing by Netflix in Asia amidst an otherwise lackluster Q1 report has focused attention on the region, where streaming is just coming into its own in territories that house roughly half the global population. There are still potentially hundreds of millions of untapped subscribers in the Far East. But the area has its own challenges, namely local streaming services that offer a wide variety of regional content. Not to mention deep-pocketed domestic rivals, including Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video are also competing for market share. Continue reading Streaming Battle in Asia as Locals Compete for Market Share

Electric vehicle maker Rivian, which produced almost $12 billion in profit for Amazon last year, cratered in the January through March period, prompting the retail giant to record a $7.6 billion loss on the investment. Overall, Amazon posted a $3.8 billion quarterly loss, its first in seven years and a contrast to profit of $8.1 billion during the same period in 2021. A 7 percent increase in quarterly revenue marked the tech giant’s most anemic performance in 20 years, as consumers adopted post-pandemic habits and resumed in-store shopping. Continue reading Amazon’s $3.8 Billon Quarterly Loss Is Its First in Seven Years

As global streaming leader Netflix retools its business model to accommodate a less expensive, ad-supported subscription tier, the industry is turning its attention to FAST service (free ad-supported streaming television). It’s part of the process of accommodating linear television for the streaming age. Pluto TV, a division of Paramount Global, managed to hit the $1 billion revenue mark last year without any paying subscribers and tallied over 64 million monthly active users as of December 2021. Not too shabby for a service that was not taken very seriously when it launched on April Fool’s Day 2014. Continue reading Paramount’s Pluto TV FAST Success a Streaming Case Study

AT&T’s Q1 quarterly earnings — the last to include results for WarnerMedia, which was offloaded to Discovery in early Q2 — reported good news about HBO Max and HBO, which AT&T said ended Q1 with global subscribers totaling 76.8 million, an increase of 12.8 million year-over-year, and a 3 million subscription increase from Q4 of last year. AT&T also disclosed that WarnerMedia’s Q1 operating income fell to $1.3 billion, a 32.7 percent decline year-over-year. Diminished WarnerMedia earnings were attributed in part to “investments incurred in launching CNN+,” which new owner Discovery announced will cease operations as of April 30. Continue reading AT&T Announces Subscription Growth for HBO and HBO Max