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Industry Leaders Discuss Possible Change to VOD Window

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April 18, 2013

In an effort to regain revenue lost from shrinking DVD sales, Universal Pictures chairman Adam Fogelson suggested that studios should consider partnering with theaters to test out the idea of premium video on demand. Fogelson made his remarks during a panel discussion at the Cinema-Con convention in Las Vegas this week. Typically, movies are made available on-demand at home about three months following theatrical distribution. Premium VOD would shrink that window. Continue reading Industry Leaders Discuss Possible Change to VOD Window

Netflix CEO Says 4 Billion Hours of Video Streamed in Q1

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April 12, 2013

Reed Hastings announced on his Facebook page yesterday that Netflix subscribers viewed 4 billion hours of video during the first quarter. Media analyst Richard Greenfield of BTIG Research suggests that subscribers are viewing an average of 87 minutes of streaming content per day via the video-on-demand service, up from 79 minutes in June 2012. “Netflix is now likely the most-watched cable network,” said Greenfield. Continue reading Netflix CEO Says 4 Billion Hours of Video Streamed in Q1

NAB 2013: Akamai Demos Hyperconnected Living Room

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April 11, 2013

Akamai is aiming to get the second screen experience right. It demonstrated its Hyperconnected Living Room concept at NAB in Las Vegas, showcasing a dual-screen experience that pushes out on-demand movies and other streaming content to a user’s slate right when they would expect to see it. It is a contrast to other such services that tend to lag and provide content later than desired. Continue reading NAB 2013: Akamai Demos Hyperconnected Living Room

HBO GO to be Packaged with Broadband Internet Services?

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March 29, 2013

The online streaming service HBO GO, which allows subscribers to watch their favorite HBO content via mobile devices and PCs, may be revamping its access. The premium cable channel is considering teaming with broadband Internet partners in order to provide its service to customers who do not subscribe to a cable TV service. This could lead to competition with popular streaming sites such as Netflix and Amazon Instant Video. Continue reading HBO GO to be Packaged with Broadband Internet Services?

Motorola Mobility Report: More Video, but Viewers Frustrated

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March 29, 2013

According to Motorola Mobility’s recently released Fourth Annual Media Engagement Barometer, consumers are watching a great deal of video on multiple screens, but are frustrated with the process. Time-shifting technology and mobile devices have led to a significant shift in global media consumption. The Engagement Barometer is an independent global study of video consumption habits among 9,500 consumers in 17 countries. Continue reading Motorola Mobility Report: More Video, but Viewers Frustrated

Advertisers Set Their Sights on Transition to Online Video

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March 11, 2013

With the growing popularity of streaming video and original Web content, the Internet is becoming a place of disruption for the TV industry. Amidst other signs, one is significant: Nielsen ratings standards will begin to include online streaming audiences in their metrics in the coming fall. And another report from Ooyala suggests a very real change is on its way for the TV and ad industries. Continue reading Advertisers Set Their Sights on Transition to Online Video

Subscription VOD Earnings Do Not Offset Falling DVD Sales

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March 8, 2013

Subscription Video On Demand services are helping ease the film industry’s pain regarding slumping DVD sales. But is it happening fast enough? Speaking at the Film Finance Forum West, Eli Baker, a partner at Hemisphere Capital Management, noted that determining whether the industry is making that money back dollar-for-dollar is a difficult thing to pinpoint — though he does say there’s reason to be optimistic. Continue reading Subscription VOD Earnings Do Not Offset Falling DVD Sales

Samsung to Launch TV Discovery for Video, Live Television

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February 25, 2013

Samsung’s new TV Discovery service will enable viewers to search for and watch live TV, on-demand video and online videos from outlets such as YouTube. The company plans to unveil the new platform at Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona. TV Discovery will work on Samsung’s line of smart TVs and its mobile devices. The service will learn user preferences and give recommendations based on each user’s viewing history and interests. Continue reading Samsung to Launch TV Discovery for Video, Live Television

CES 2013: Vizio To Launch 3DGO! App On its Smart TVs

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January 10, 2013

Vizio is adding an app for 3DGO! — Sensio Technologies’ 3D VOD service — to its Vizio Internet Apps on its Theatre 3D Smart TV models. Sensio is making the app, and is talking with additional set makers about this opportunity. Aimed at growing the amount of available 3D content in the home, 3DGO! currently offers roughly 30 titles, primarily documentaries. Continue reading CES 2013: Vizio To Launch 3DGO! App On its Smart TVs

In a Multichannel World, Pay TV Fought its Future in 2012

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January 4, 2013

According to Variety, 2012 was more about what didn’t happen than what did happen when considering the intersection of TV and digital media. As the multichannel world continues “begging for disruption,” the cost of the “average pay-TV subscription has skyrocketed 68 percent over the past 10 years,” notes the article. It seems something will definitely have to give, “but despite the fragility of their delicate bond, programmers and distributors didn’t face any real challenge in 2012 from any of the expected upstarts hoping to gain rights to live TV and package it in more innovative ways.” Continue reading In a Multichannel World, Pay TV Fought its Future in 2012

Streaming: Is Netflix Popularity with Kids a Double-Edged Sword?

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December 13, 2012
  • In August 2011, Netflix launched its “Just for Kids” page, which features commercial-free age-appropriate content organized by “superheroes” and “princesses.” Recently, the streaming service signed a content deal with Disney for an estimated $300 million a year.
  • “But Netflix’s popularity with children could be a double-edged sword,” the Wall Street Journal suggests. “Analysts say the streaming service could be undermining the very companies that supply it with most of its children’s television content, namely Disney and Viacom.”
  • Sanford C. Bernstein analyzed TiVo data, finding that kids’ cable ratings were up 8.5 percent in the first quarter among viewers who didn’t stream content compared to the relatively small 0.4 percent uptick among those who did. “Disney ratings grew 11 percent for nonstreaming users and 6 percent for streaming users, while Viacom ratings grew 6 percent for nonstreaming users and only 2 percent for streaming users,” WSJ reports.
  • “Bernstein says those trends have persisted through the year. And looking at an individual network tells the same story. From the end of 2011 through August 2012, ratings at Nickelodeon were up 11 percent among nonstreamers, compared with only 3 percent among streamers,” the article continues.
  • Unlike Nickelodeon, Disney Junior and Disney XD ratings are rising. “But both channels are relatively new and are coming off a small base. And even there, Netflix appears to be having an effect,” the article states.
  • “For Netflix, the risk is that Disney and Viacom demand significantly more for children’s content to make selling it worthwhile. In extremis, they could even decide to stop selling it to the streaming company.”

Will Verizon Take on Netflix and Others with its own Streaming Video Service?

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December 7, 2011
  • Verizon is planning to launch a standalone video streaming service for 2012 that would offer movies and TV shows via the Web, according to several people close to the plan.
  • “The phone company is talking with prospective programming partners about the service, which would be introduced outside of markets where it currently offers its broadband and TV package, known as FiOS, these people said,” reports Reuters. “That would make it available to some 85 million U.S. households.”
  • Verizon may be concerned about cord cutters and competition from Netflix, Amazon and Google.
  • “Verizon has been back and forth with programmers over the last two years exploring the possibility,” suggests the article. “While a lot of the discussion has been around fees, the programmers have also been concerned about the possibility of hurting their existing — and lucrative — relationships with the cable operators.”
  • Having its own streaming service would allow Verizon to grow its customer base and thereby lower its programming costs.
  • “News of the service will have added controversy in the wake of sister company Verizon Wireless’s plans to resell cable TV service for Comcast Corp, Time Warner Cable Inc and Bright House Networks,” points out Reuters. “Under that deal, announced last week, Verizon Wireless will pay $3.6 billion for valuable spectrum from the cable companies.”

Damage Control: Will Netflix Bounce Back from Reaction to Price Increase?

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December 1, 2011
  • Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter believes Netflix cannot repair itself from the damage inflicted earlier this year after the streaming company raised prices on subscribers.
  • CNET reports that, “according to Pachter, by year’s end, Netflix will show a loss of 11 million ‘hybrid’ customers that previously rented DVDs and streamed video content. He said he believes that 7 million of those customers will have traded down to the streaming-only option, while another 4 million will have ‘quit the Netflix service altogether.’”
  • Shareholders also seem uncertain if Netflix can bounce back. “Over the past six months, the company’s stock is down 75 percent,” indicates the article.
  • Netflix has not given up, and believes things can be turned around. However, the company offered this honest evaluation: “If we are unable to repair the damage to our brand and reverse negative subscriber growth, our business, results of operations, including cash flows, and financial condition will continue to be adversely affected.”
  • In the wake of a devastating couple of months, the company is looking to rebound “brick by brick” with a strong rebranding, suggests a related Home Media Magazine article.
  • In addition to ongoing damage control, Netflix is working to increase its content selection, update its interface and improve user algorithms. These changes, the company hopes, will restore credibility after its recent 60 percent price increase led 800,000 people to unsubscribe.

Viewing Trends: DVR and VOD on the Rise in U.S. Households

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November 9, 2011
  • Leichtman Research Group reports 44 percent of U.S. households with TVs have a DVR, up from 8 percent in 2005.
  • LRG also found that one-third of DVR households have more than one DVR, and 73 percent of digital cable subscribers have used VOD.
  • “On-demand TV viewing in the forms of DVR and VOD, as well as Netflix streaming, have significantly increased in terms of usage and popularity over the past few years,” said Bruce Leichtman. “Yet these on-demand TV platforms remain largely complementary to traditional TV services and viewing, with about 90 percent of all TV viewing in the U.S. still being via live TV.”
  • Additional LRG findings (on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being excellent): 80 percent of DVR owners rate the service 8 to 10, 62 percent of cable VOD users rate the service 8 to 10, 63 percent of Netflix subscribers rate the Watch Instantly feature 8 to 10, 20 percent of Netflix subscribers use Watch Instantly daily.

Social Cinema: Will Film Distribution via Facebook Cut Out the Middleman?

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October 31, 2011
  • Hollywood studios are starting to use Facebook as a direct-to-consumer platform for streaming films, possibly cutting out services such as Hulu, Netflix and Amazon in the process.
  • Universal, Lionsgate and Warner Bros. have distributed some 45 films via the Social Cinema app from Milyoni (pronounced million-eye). “What Zynga is to social gaming, Milyoni is to social entertainment,” reads the company’s website.
  • Miramax and Paramount have used similar apps to offer movies for Facebook credits on fan pages.
  • Rentals based on credits are running the equivalent of $3-$5. Facebook draws a 30 percent cut of transaction revenues.
  • Ad Age Digital suggests the studios’ willingness to offer rentals via social network sites “may reflect their desire to foster competition among online distribution platforms,” adding, “Miramax CEO Mike Lang said that digital monopolies were a greater threat to the film industry than piracy and that his studio had been aware of the importance of a competitive marketplace when doing deals with Netflix and Hulu.”

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