Explore every episode of the podcast The Dan Rayburn Podcast

This week, I cover the latest in the Paramount/WBD merger, with rumors that Paramount and 12 state attorneys general could reach a deal in the next few days. In other Paramount news, Comcast and Paramount, which owns SkyShowtime, are reviewing strategic options for the business, including shutting down the service.  

I also question whether content owners will re-encode their video libraries to take advantage of the new iPhone Duo's square-like aspect ratio and resolution similar to QHD tablet screens, which isn't HD or 4K, but rather 2K+. I cover the latest infrastructure news from Oracle, including a new round of layoffs, its Q1 FY2027 earnings, and its $30 billion in additional AI cloud deals it closed in Q1.

I cover the latest NFL news and viewership numbers for games across Netflix and NBC/Peacock, and explain why NFL viewership is no longer comparable year over year, since methodologies and definitions vary so much, with NBC Sports already altering how it measures and reports its NFL viewership for the 2026/2027 season. Finally, I cover what happens when brands use AI to try to make an experience faster, more efficient and easier to scale without understanding what customers actually value, using the news that McDonald's will put a renewed focus on the human side of the experience, with plans to retrain more than 2 million workers on hospitality. 

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This week, I cover the messy RSN business, which is only getting worse for NHL fans as six NHL teams will stream on Prime Video for in-market fans, but not all will be free. I also cover Netflix's price increase in the UK, its tenth since the service launched in 2014. I also talk about how, after price increases from Apple, Roku, and Amazon on streaming devices, the Google TV Streamer has risen from $99.99 to $149.99. 

On the content side, I detail new deals, with DAZN securing the rights to broadcast Spain’s top-tier football tournament, LaLiga EA Sports, across Sub-Saharan Africa for the next three seasons, and Warner Bros. Discovery launching HBO Max in Japan through deals for distribution on Nippon TV-owned Hulu Japan and Amazon Prime Video in Japan. 

Also, NBCU Telemundo secured the exclusive U.S. Spanish-language rights to the Serie A Championship, Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana, locking down the football market. In addition, Sony launched more than 100 live FAST TV channels on the PS5 in the U.S., but none of the content is exclusive, and Disney has added to its content deal with Groupe M6, bringing "several hundred" episodes of four shows from the French broadcaster to the service. 

Finally, I cover Jio Platforms, Reliance Industries' digital platform, having received approval from market regulator SEBI to float India’s largest-ever IPO, aiming to raise about $4 billion. 

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This week, we cover major OTT price increases across the industry, including Disney raising prices by $2 per month for ESPN Unlimited and $1 for ESPN Select. We also cover Peacock raising prices by $1-$3 per month, Apple TV raising prices by $2 per month, and Amazon raising prices on its Fire TV, Echo, Eero, and Kindle hardware. 

We also discuss problems users reported across Netflix for the 26-minute GTA 6 trailer, YouTube's announcement of a change in how it defines a viewer, the market-sizing problems reported for vertical video, and series product functionality issues on LinkedIn.

Finally, we detail Amazon's news that it has joined YouTube's Shopping affiliate program, where U.S. creators will now be able to tag Amazon products in their Shorts, long-form videos and livestreams, making it even easier for viewers to buy the products.

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This month, Eric Black and Dan Rayburn discuss the big news that all of Peacock's content will be available on YouTube Premium in the U.S. They discuss what it means for NBCU, which has now become a content licensing company and DTC service, which are very different business models. They debate that over time, Peacock may no longer be a destination for consumers when the content can be viewed on other platforms. They also discuss the announced price increases for Peacock, ranging from $1-$3 per month, on the heels of Comcast announcing during its Q2 earnings that Peacock turned its first-ever quarterly profit since the service launched six years ago. 

They also discuss the news that YES Network and MSG Networks will be shutting down its Gotham Sports app, announcing a deal with DAZN that will make DAZN the exclusive home for their content. They cover the latest in the messy RSN market, dicuss consumer fragmentation and report that DAZN has secured games from the Timberwolves and Pacers, while Victory+ has lost teams from its service after failing to pay them money owed for the content.

They cover how Disney+ is starting to become a sports service, having signed a multi-year partnership with Formula E, along with the sports content they already have with the World Cup, LALIGA, NBA and UEFA in other countries. The discussion also includes Disney's CEO saying they are "looking forward to launching" a free version of their service and what it might look like.

Finally, they detail the latest news from FOX, NFL, Prime Video, Telemundo, ESPN and Versant.

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This week, we cover the Q2 earnings numbers you need to know from WBD, Roku, Paramount Skydance, Fubo and EchoStar, including net profit and subscribers. We discuss the latest bundling and content deals from Disney, Netflix, Philo, Apple TV, and Google TV. 

We also detail the technical issues NFL+ experienced during week one of preseason games, the layoffs at Scripps and VideoAmp, and Dolby's acquisition of 250 patents that are at the heart of the technology that contributed to VVC.

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This week, discuss the news that eligible YouTube Premium subscribers in the U.S. will gain access to ad-supported Peacock Premium in 2027 at no additional charge and debate if this means NBCU will become a content arms dealer. We detail the plan for NFL Ticket to come back to DIRECTV for businesses through a new licensing deal, and DAZN plans to acquire EverPass Media.

We also highlight the YES Network and MSG Networks news that will make DAZN the exclusive home for their content, replacing the Gotham Sports App, which will be shut down. We touch on the latest news from HBO Max, Roku, Disney, SiriusXM, Prime Video, and Rogers Communications. Finally, we cover all the Q2 earnings numbers you need to know from Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, Meta and AMC Global Media. 

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This week, I detail Comcast's Q2 earnings, which, for the first time in six years, showed Peacock had a positive quarter, with $189 million in EBITDA. This positive news was offset by the loss of 280,000 cable TV subscribers and 167,000 broadband residential customers, with total company revenue down 1.2% YoY.

I discuss the news that Roku is raising the MSRP of its streaming sticks and boxes from $10-$50, depending on the model, noting that the largest portion of Roku's overall device unit volume comes from the sale of third-party Roku-made TVs by OEM partners, not Roku boxes.

Finally, I detail the final FIFA World Cup viewership numbers from YouTube, Cazé TV, TikTok, Fox/FOX One, and Telemundo/Peacock, highlighting the different measurement methodologies used, and mention Telemundo becoming the exclusive U.S. Spanish-language rights holder for the next UEFA men's club competitions.

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This week, I discuss Netflix's earnings, the new numbers it disclosed regarding live streaming, confirmation that engagement didn't decline, double-digit revenue growth in all regions, and the largest share buybacks in company history. I explain that while some suggest that Netflix's business is "broken" or "collapsing," none of it is based on facts or supported by any actual numbers. (Nielsen's don't count)

I also cover Fandango's push to become a FAST platform, with its owner, Versant, having acquired rights to air Bundesliga games in the U.S., some of which stream on Fandango. I also talk about the company's goal of having what they say will be a better FAST experience, with lower ad loads and its claims that it has a unique advantage in bringing audiences in through recent theatrical releases.

Finally, I cover why I don't think a streamer will secure U.S. rights to the 2030 FIFA World Cup, since the largest viewing audience will require a combination of linear TV and streaming.

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This week, I discuss Comcast's plans to split its media and technology businesses, spinning off NBCUniversal and Sky into a separate publicly traded company. I questioned why it didn't happen sooner, since for years we've seen from its balance sheet and stock price that combining its content and distribution pipelines hasn't added value. Also related to Comcast, I cover the news that ITV has agreed to sell its Media and Entertainment division, covering the ITV channels, the ITVX streaming platform, and the advertising business that funds them, to Comcast-owned Sky for up to £1.6 billion. 

I discuss Meta's plans to launch a cloud business to sell AI computing power and why it makes sense, when Meta is spending so much on capex without a clear path to directly monetize it. I also use the example of Meta taking a page from Google's playbook, which successfully diversified revenue beyond just advertising by growing their cloud services over many years. Other Meta news covered is that the company took a patent license covering AV1 and VP9 from the Access Advance VDP Pool. 

Finally, I cover the latest news from Netflix, which will add video content from new publishers, ranging from 3 to 20 minutes in length, and why this is not a sign that Netflix is trying to be YouTube.

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This month, Eric Black and Dan Rayburn discuss World Cup viewership, breaking down the numbers between linear and streaming and the problems posed by the lack of a standard measurement. They also cover World Cup latency, including on airplanes, and ask whether viewers would pay more for Dolby Vision HDR, Atmos surround sound, and lower latency. Or, similar to customers gravitating to ad-supported subs for a lower cost, would they do the same for less interactivity? 

They also cover other live streams, including the Tour de France, WNBA, Wimbledon and MLB and debate how these leagues can elevate their visibility during competing top-tier events. They also discussed the price increase for Apple TV, now priced at $199, making it unlikely to grow in the market, since less than 5% of live streams already go to Apple TV hardware. Finally, they covered the news that Fubo CEO and co-founder David Gandler is leaving the company and why the upcoming UFC Conor McGregor fight on Paramount+ might see the largest viewership on the platform, outside of NFL games.

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This week, we discuss the launch of TF1 Groupe programs and live TV channels on Netflix in France, the first such deal for Netflix. We detail the available content and explain why we think TF1 dramas, reality shows, news and sports could help limit churn among existing Netflix subscribers. We also cover viewership numbers for Paramount's UFC Freedom 250 event at The White House, review the latest World Cup viewership stats, and discuss Snap's plans to spin off an internal team that was working on AI-powered generative video into a separate company. 

Finally, we cover news from Meta that AV1 is now enabled on the majority of mobile devices in Meta Real-Time Communication (RTC) applications, Apple raising the price of the Apple TV to $199, and debunk some of the latest rumors of the announced Fox and Roku deal.

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This week, we separate facts from opinions on the news that Fox Corporation has agreed to acquire Roku. We break down all the numbers, the impact on Tubi and The Roku Channel, Roku's hardware business, and all the other details you need to know. We also cover World Cup TV and streaming viewership stats released by Fox Sports, ITV, NBC Sports, STV, and others. We detail the revenue and profit numbers from Bending Spoons' SEC filing, which plans to go public this year. Finally, we go through the latest codec and protocol news, including Apple's HTTP Live Streaming enhancements, the Alliance for Open Media publishing AV2 specs, and the impact on OTT services from current codec and ABR patent suits.

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Sports streaming is kind of a big deal. So, Eric Black and I have teamed up to record a new monthly podcast breaking down the Business and Technology of Sports Streaming. Giving listeners insight into the latest content deals, viewership numbers, user experiences and technical workflows, without any hype.

In episode one, Eric and I talk about the World Cup's streaming quality, latency, piracy, free trials across OTT services and discuss the streaming rollout across FOX, ZEE5, Peacock, and FIFA+ on DAZN. We detail the renewed distribution deal between NBCU and Fubo, Fox’s expanded deal with the NFL that will bring games to Mexico, and Disney's new partnership to carry L’équipe’s TV channel in France on Disney+.

We highlight a recent interview with MLS's Commissioner, who admitted that the added paywall and timing weren’t right for the market, as well as the impact on MLS within the Apple TV ecosystem. We also discuss the impact of RTL's acquisition of Sky Deutschland on sports content, which combines Sky’s premium sports rights with RTL’s entertainment and news brands, forming the strongest local competitor to Netflix in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. 

Finally, we recap comments from those who testified at the congressional hearing on the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, and I question why EverPass Media has been so quiet about providing any technical details to businesses or integrators who are still in the dark about how the NFL Sunday Ticket will be rolled out later this year.

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This week, special guest Eric Black and I discuss the upcoming World Cup, detailing streaming and pay TV viewership numbers from the 2022 event and what to expect this year. We also discuss the MLS game that used Apple iPhones for video capture, noting that they were used only as camera sensors and image processors. We review the NFL's 2026-2027 schedule, calling out the newly announced exclusive games on Netflix and Peacock and detail Netflix's newly extended media rights deal with the NFL through the 2029-30 season.

We discuss the growth of Prime Video and Amazon's disclosure that Prime Video, as a stand-alone business, is profitable, without knowing how Amazon accounts for costs to the business. Eric details his recent experience with Peacock's vertical video stream, noting quality differences when the video source is Peacock versus a third party. Finally, we recap some numbers from Netflix on its monthly active viewers for its ad-supported plan, new price increases for DirecTV streaming packages, and a YouTube stat that two billion hours of Shorts are streamed on TVs each month.

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This week, we discuss a wild week in infrastructure news, with Akamai, Fastly and Cloudflare reporting earnings, sending all three companies' stock up or down by at least 30%. We detail Cloudflare's announcement that it will lay off over 1,100 employees, Akamai's new $1.8 billion seven-year contract for Cloud Infrastructure Services for AI modeling, and Wall Street's lack of understanding of the CDN business. We highlight reports suggesting that contracts involving Anthropic and OpenAI now ‌account ⁠for more than half of the $2 trillion in backlogs at major cloud providers, and how Google and Amazon reported a surge in profits in their Q1 earnings, based on the valuation of the stock they bought in Anthropic, and not any actual net profit.

We also detail the latest numbers you need to know from WBD, Disney, and Fubo earnings, and how, with WBD no longer breaking out streaming subs and Fubo no longer breaking out Hulu+ Live TV subs, it's now almost impossible to compare DTC service growth quarter to quarter. Finally, we break out the pay TV losses by Optimum and discuss the unconfirmed reports that Netflix will get two additional NFL games starting in the 2026-27 season. Finally, we highlight Sky Sports' announcement that it will remain the exclusive home of Formula 1 in the UK and Ireland until 2034 and in Italy until 2032, which prevents Apple from securing the rights to stream F1 content in those countries.

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This week, we detail the numbers you need to know from Q1 earnings from Roku, which, for the first time, separated out revenue for its advertising and subscription business. We also cover earnings from Comcast, the latest Peacock numbers, cord-cutting at Charter, and the massive capex spend in the quarter from Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon, with AWS revenue growth at its fastest in 15 quarters.

We detail YouTube's Q1 revenue, which was down from the previous quarter and highlight YouTube TV's launch of a fully customizable multiview, including some device and content limitations. Moving on to NFL news, we also mention a rumored deal between the NFL and YouTube for a long-form contract review of a five-game package, and Comcast dropping the NFL Network and RedZone Channel from its Xfinity service due to a carriage dispute.

We share live sports viewership numbers from April, including the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship game and NBA on Amazon Prime, and discuss a hardware failure that caused one of Prime's games to lose video for 20 seconds during gameplay. Finally, we discuss why Amazon’s newly announced Fire TV Stick HD, which runs its Vega operating system, is not good for customers, and how Fire TV's lack of explanation of its Fire OS strategy to the market is bad for developers and consumers.

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This week, we recap what we saw and heard at the 2026 NAB Show, covering themes, content, the West Hall exhibit floor, and the speakers at the Streaming Summit. We highlight some of the topics discussed most, including sports, workflow orchestration, MOQ, scaling live events, multiview, UI/UX, and how AI tech is being implemented into the video stack. I also cover what I want to improve at the Streaming Summit next year, what exhibitors can do to improve their messaging and booth presence, and where we both see room for improvement in the attendee experience.

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This week, we detail YouTube's upcoming price increase across all U.S. YouTube Premium plans, Sling TV's new $20 monthly plan that includes ESPN, and FOX's announcement that it will shut down the Fox Sports app for smart TVs and connected devices. We also discuss Fubo's newly released set of long-term financial targets, which projects positive free cash flow by fiscal 2027, and why the news that the DOJ is exploring whether the NFL is engaging in anti-competitive tactics isn't a surprise.

Finally, we discuss AI news, including Amazon's newly released revenue data for its AI business, which shows AWS’s AI revenue run rate is over $15 billion. We break down Amazon's plans to double its total power capacity by the end of 2027, its $20 billion in revenue for its chip business, and its stated model of investing disproportionately behind what matters and pulling back when something isn’t working.

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This week, we detail viewership numbers from Netflix, NBC Sports and Peacock for MLB's opening week, highlighting the multiple issues with how the data is collected and presented, leading to impossible comparisons. We also discuss OpenAI's hiring of Indian streaming giant JioStar to lead its Asia-Pacific operations and news that Main Street Sports Group lenders have formally signed paperwork to close the business after the first round of the NHL playoffs.

Finally, we discuss Oracle's recent round of layoffs and break down the balance sheet numbers that led to them, including $58 billion in new debt, net income, operating cash flow and $50 billion in capital expenditures expected during fiscal 2026. Dan argues that all this reckless spending on AI isn't innovation but rather financial engineering dressed up as leadership, with no accountability, no consequences and a lack of leaders who manage with discipline.

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This week, special guest Eric Black and I discuss Netflix's opening-night MLB stream, which received many negative reviews for its production, relentless, intrusive promotions and poor video quality. We also discuss Netflix's price increases across all its packages and the 18.4 million global viewers who watched the BTS concert live stream. We also highlight the launch of HBO Max in the UK and Ireland, the launch in 12 new markets in the APAC region, and the news that WBD will hold the Special Meeting of Shareholders to vote on the merger with Paramount Skydance Corporation on April 23.

We discuss why OpenAI shut down Sora, the lack of a business model behind the service and why it makes sense for OpenAI's bottom line. We do a quick roundup of the latest news from YouTube TV, DAZN, Roku, Fubo, NFL and Epic Games. Finally, we mention the newly appointed CEO at Deltatre, prompting me to ask whether this now means the company will explain its strategy and focus and tell the market what it wants to be known for.

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This week, we discuss JioHotstar's recent live stream of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, which set a global streaming record with a peak of 72.5 million concurrent viewers. We detail some of the tech specs from the event, including the split between mobile and TV viewing and the rebuffer rate. We cover EverPass Media's news that it will be the exclusive commercial option for the NFL Sunday Ticket package this season, with DIRECTV no longer having a license to carry the games. This change raises many questions, including how the streaming video will sync across multiple TVs streaming the same game. 

We highlight Spectrum's launch of its new multiview feature in the Spectrum TV App, noting that at launch, viewers can't select their own games and must choose from pre-curated options. We share a few new numbers from Netflix's Next on Netflix summit, including that subscribers watch about 7 movies a month and that the company will invest in original storytelling and a renewed focus on theatrical comedy and content for young adults. Finally, we detail new technology in the video streaming pipeline, including MoQ, AV1/2, VVC, SGAI, and ULL, to refute an analyst's claim that there is "no more to get out of the core technology of video streaming."

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This week, we discuss reports that the NFL has begun renegotiating its $110 billion in domestic broadcast agreements ahead of the 2026 season, seeking a 50% increase with some broadcasters, if accurate. We also explain why it's gotten so hard to compare big live streaming events to one another when viewership numbers alone don't provide a clear picture. We use NBCU as an example: it released a rebuffer rate for the Super Bowl stream but did not provide viewership numbers, while JioHotstar provided viewership numbers for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, but not the rebuffer rate. 

On the vertical video front, we detail news from both Peacock and Disney, which are rolling out trials of the new viewing format. Peacock will debut a new vertical video option for all live NBA broadcasts, not just highlights, powered by AI that performs real-time cropping and is optimized for phone screens. Disney+, meanwhile, has rolled out Verts, letting users swipe through a stream of scenes and moments from Disney+ movies and shows, add them to their Watchlist, or jump directly into playback.

Finally, we discuss Apple's claim that viewership for the first weekend of the F1 races was "up year over year" compared with ESPN's coverage, but provided no numbers, as well as the latest on the WBD and Paramount Skydance merger.

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This week, we discuss why a "unified streaming stack" is not the same as combining two streaming services, despite media reports that HBO Max and Paramount+ will merge into a single DTC service shortly. As we break down the latest details of the proposed Paramount and WBD deal, we speculate on the layoff impact across both companies, as Paramount tells bankers it expects to see billions in cost savings while telling employees the savings target will be realized mostly through non-personnel means.

We also cover the launch of F1 on Apple TV, Versant Media's full-year 2025 earnings, Sling TV losing 167,000 subs in Q4, NBCU not planning to publish Super Bowl viewership numbers for Peacock/digital, and YouTube in talks to stream four more live NFL games. Finally, we detail that, due to rising costs for servers, RAM, SSDs, and energy, Akamai has notified customers and partners of upcoming surcharges and contract renewal adjustments.

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This week, we discuss the latest Olympics viewership numbers on Peacock and debate whether Peacock's offer to give me a 72% discount on the service for six months to keep me as a subscriber is beneficial to the company's long-term viability. We cover the latest Apple TV news, including MLS, which kicked off the season this week; Apple's launch of its new dedicated Formula 1 channel in the Apple TV app; and the news that IMAX will show five major Formula 1 Grands Prix in its theatres. 

We also detail the new ultra-low-latency technology behind Comcast’s 30 Mbps upscaled 4K Super Bowl Stream, called RealTime4K, the workflow, and the supported devices. Finally, on the infrastructure side, we cover the latest numbers from Akamai's Q4 and full-year 2025 earnings, as well as the news that it will no longer break out delivery revenue. In addition, we detail the numbers from CDN Netskrt, which has broken out its network capacity, capital-to-revenue ratio, and the unique factors behind its underlying costs.

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This week, I discuss my review of Peacock's Super Bowl stream, which was executed flawlessly, along with some of the limited viewership numbers released to date. I also detail the new live TV bundles from YouTube TV, the launch of HBO Max in the UK and Ireland and a new bundle from Sky that includes Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix, and Hayu. I cover earnings results from Roku (full-year revenue up 15%), AMC Networks (AMC+ price increase), Optimum (lost 49,000 pay TV subs), Amagi (which had its IPO last month) and positive earnings from Fastly and Cloudflare, with Fastly stock up 116% in the week of earnings.

Finally, with the hyperscalers projected to collectively spend close to $700 billion in capex in 2026, I break down what we are seeing in the bond market for their capital raise, the risks, and why analysts expect free cash flow to plummet this year.

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Filippo Maria De Salazar, General Manager of the Brightcove business, sat down with me for a detailed conversation on the state of the business, one year after the Bending Spoons acquisition. Filippo discusses Brightcove's size, its structure under the Bending Spoons umbrella, and the benefits Brightcove derives from being part of a larger software and engineering company. 

We also discuss Brightcove's business, including OTT services for media customers and video use cases for enterprise customers tied to marketing and communications. Finally, Filippo details Brightcove's roadmap, highlighting the new functionality already added to the platform and the 2026 product roadmap they released publicly earlier in the month.

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This week, I detail the numbers you should know from Q4 2025 earnings results from Netflix, Amazon, Fubo, FOX, YouTube, Comcast, and Disney. I cover subscriber additions, profit and loss, Fubo's plans for a reverse stock split, the latest on its carriage dispute with NBCUniversal, and the latest cord-cutting numbers. With the NFL and ESPN deal now closed, giving Disney control of the NFL Network and other NFL Media assets, I break down the terms, the additional content Disney gets, the deal’s value, and how it is structured. I also cover viewership numbers from Paramount's first UFC stream, with 7 million households in the U.S. and Latin America having tuned in, and Crunchyroll raising prices across some of its tiers in the U.S. Finally, I give the latest news on the Netflix and WBD deal, with Netflix's co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, testifying before the US Senate’s antitrust subcommittee.

On the vendor side, I detail the exact extent of Vimeo's layoffs, share my thoughts on Brightcove's 2026 product roadmap, and provide financial figures for CDN and infrastructure provider Gcore, which showed significant revenue growth over the past two years.

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This week, I detail viewership numbers from Prime Video’s exclusive stream of the NFL Wild Card playoff game, making it the most-streamed NFL game in the U.S., as well as those from Peacock’s exclusive NFL game on December 27th. I also review the latest subscription numbers for RTL+ and TF1+, as well as the recent price increases from Paramount+ and Spotify. Additionally, I discuss the new Amazon content deals with M6 in Europe and RTVE in Spain, involving live linear channels. Finally, I explain why the Metaverse was never real and just a fantasy of executive egos with money to burn, and detail Stats Perform's acquisition of the assets of the ultra-low-latency tech company Phenix Real Time Solutions for approximately $7 million.

Added Jan 20th: Correction: I misspoke regarding Paramount's efforts to compel WBD to disclose additional financial information. The judge has not rejected Paramount's efforts but has instead rejected the motion to expedite the trial.

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This week, we discuss news that FIFA has partnered with TikTok to allow select media partners to live-stream parts of matches from the FIFA World Cup, with limited details about exactly what that means. We also review the latest viewership numbers for NFL and NBA games across Netflix, Peacock, and Prime Video, while noting that ESPN (Disney), CBS (Paramount), and FOX don't disclose the percentage of NFL regular-season viewership that comes from streaming. Finally, we cover Dish countersuing Walt Disney Co. and ESPN, Comcast spinoff Versant going public on the Nasdaq, and WBD’s board once again rejecting Paramount's latest bid.

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This week, I wrap up the year with a review of NFL streaming during the holiday week across Netflix, Prime Video, ESPN and Peacock, with no major QoE issues reported. I also highlight ESPN's data-enhanced MNF telecast, featuring a well-designed stats overlay that was informative and not obtrusive. Finally, I wrap up with a few news items from Amazon, Sling TV, and Netflix, a recap of traffic to my posts, and a thank you to readers and listeners for what has been 30 years for me in the streaming media industry.

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This week, we highlight the NFL's distribution strategy during the Christmas holiday, with five games played, none of which will be broadcast nationally on broadcast TV, during some of the year's largest viewership windows. We cover the news that Instagram is launching an app for TVs, rolling out first on Amazon's Fire TV devices in the U.S. and suggest that many in the media are making this out to be bigger CTV ad news than it is, when selling ads in an 8-minute video on YouTube and a 15-second video on Instagram are very different.

We detail how Amazon Prime Video has removed AI recaps from certain shows after users reported errors and why AI is absolutely overhyped in its deployment in the streaming video stack, with almost no examples of how well it works, what it costs to implement, or proof that it works at scale. Finally, we cover the latest news about YouTube, ESPN, Netflix, JioStar, Crunchyroll, FIFA, Brightcove, and Fastly.

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Rob Koenen, Founder and CBO of Tiledmedia, the company that built the multiview player for F1, joined me for a detailed conversation about the latest multiview deployments across the OTT industry. Rob and I discuss the different technical approaches to building multiview functionality, the trade-offs of each, and the challenges of delivering multiview across so many devices. We cover latency, the impact of limited bandwidth, how to customize multiview layouts, and the challenges of offering a scalable, personalized multiview option.

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This week, we detail the viewership stats from Amazon, ESPN, FOX, and Paramount for NBA and NFL games during the Thanksgiving holiday, as well as the changes we saw in Black Friday OTT discounts. We also discuss what we consider a bad decision by Netflix, removing support for casting shows from mobile devices to most TVs and streaming devices, thereby affecting users who stream Netflix in hotel rooms. We also cover NBC News' announcement that it plans to launch a new ad-free paid streaming service; live programming, including CFL, PGA TOUR, Formula 1, and FIFA, coming to Bell Media’s streaming service, Crave; and Fubo's carriage dispute with NBCU.

Finally, we do a news roundup of Versant Media Group's financials, and its acquisition of Free TV Networks, Bending Spoons' acquisition of Vimeo closing, HP and Dell removing hardware decode support for the H.265/HEVC codec in several business and entry-level models, and CW Network calling out Nielsen for "lacking credibility" and being "fundamentally flawed" with regards to their viewership methodology.

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For this special podcast episode, we break down the deal numbers behind Netflix's plan to acquire Warner Bros. film and television studios. We focus on the facts rather than on many varying opinions about the deal, most of which are speculation, given the many unknowns. We detail the impact of the proposed agreement on Netflix's balance sheet, highlight the potential regulatory hurdles, and point out what some people are getting wrong about the news. Finally, we call out uncertainties not yet known, including the possible impact on content bundling, pricing, layoffs, and theatrical releases.

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This week, special guest Eric Black and I detail the latest news in sports streaming and price increases. We cover the impact on UK sports fans, with Paramount Skydance having secured the bulk of UEFA Champions League rights in the UK and Ireland, starting in 2027. We also cover MLB's newly announced licensing deals for 2026-2028, which will feature new packages of games on NBC, Peacock, and Netflix, while ESPN is bringing back a smaller selection of games. We detail the new deal terms between MLS and Apple, with the contract ending three years earlier and payment terms altered and NBC Sports' upcoming "EA SPORTS Madden NFL Cast" stream on Peacock for Thanksgiving. 

We discuss T-Mobile and Xfinity price increases, with T-Mobile announcing it will charge $3 per month for the "On Us" Apple TV perk for all customers who previously received the streaming service for free. Similarly, Xfinity is raising the monthly cost of the Xfinity "StreamSaver" bundle by $3, from $15 to $18. Finally, we do a news roundup across Netflix, Verizon's layoffs, Amazon's CloudFront CDN, and the reported non-binding bids placed for Warner Bros. Discovery. 

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we detail all the numbers you should know from Disney and Paramount's earnings and the comments made by executives during the earnings calls. We discuss the latest subscriber numbers, DTC operating income, ARPU, content spending budgets, Paramount ending free trials and the upcoming Paramount+ price increase. We also debate what Disney's CEO meant when he said that short-form gen-AI UGC will be available on Disney+ in the future. 

We also highlight that, starting in 2026, Apple's MLS Season Pass will be discontinued, and all MLS games will be streamed on the Apple TV service at no additional cost, potentially increasing exposure to MLS content. We break down Amazon's announcement that Prime Video now reaches 315 million monthly viewers globally, and why we don't know what it means, without any details on the methodology. To wrap up, we cover news related to Netflix, Roku, NBC, and Kaltura's plans to acquire eSelf.ai.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we detail Amazon's confirmation that it has begun blocking sideloaded apps on Fire TVs it deems used for piracy, in an effort to restrict users' access to pirated content. We also discuss ITV's confirmation that it is in talks with Comcast-owned Sky about a potential acquisition of its broadcast business, valuing the company at £1.6 billion. We review the latest financial numbers and subscriber counts from Q3 earnings reported by WBD (HBO Max), Xperi, EchoStar (Sling TV), Altice, and AMC Networks, and highlight the strong earnings results from Akamai and Fastly.

Note: I incorrectly stated 'Hulu+ Live TV' when I meant to say 'YouTube TV', and on a second occasion, I meant to say 'YouTube' instead of 'Amazon'. My apologies for the confusion.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we detail Netflix's plans to offer live, dynamic ad insertion (DAI) for NFL games on Christmas and why this is a significant development for the industry. We also debated their new ad viewing definition and the announcement that ads on Netflix now reach more than 190 million MAUs globally. We break down the latest developments on the YouTube TV and Disney Carriage Dispute and how both companies are being disingenuous with users. 

For Q3 earnings data, we highlight Fubo's improving balance sheet, with its net loss shrinking to $18.9 million and churn reduced by 50% year over year. We also detail how Disney will take over advertising sales across Fubo, with Fubo integrating its inventory into Disney’s ecosystem and ad server. Additionally, Fubo announced plans to partner with Disney to expand internationally over the next 18 to 24 months. 

Finally, we discuss how, in their latest earnings reports, Meta, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon have announced plans to increase their AI spending in 2026 to a combined $ 400 billion, but with no details on what percentage of their AI spend is going toward internal projects, versus selling cloud AI services to other companies. Additionally, quick updates on earnings from Broadpeak and Harmonic, Qwilt's new CEO, and Bending Spoons' $710 million equity raise at a $11 billion pre-money valuation.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, I detail Netflix's Q3 earnings, its new interactive ads rolling out this quarter, and discuss its current use cases for GenAI. I also cover the upcoming Max price hikes and the latest WBD acquisition rumors, focusing on the numbers that matter most —revenue, debt, and financial metrics. Also discussed is the new NBA season, with the NBA back on NBC for the first time since 2002, Prime as a new addition to the NBA party, and ESPN returning for its 24th straight season. Finally, I detail the recent F1 viewership numbers on ESPN, FOX Sports' plans to stream the FIFA World Cup 26 in native 4K, and layoffs by Charter Communications and Meta, with more on the way.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we highlight my review of Amazon's new Vega OS-based Fire TV Stick, which claims to offer "remarkably fast app launches,” but when tested against the Fire TV Stick Max, I found there was no difference in speed. We also detail all the news from Apple regarding its deal with F1, Apple's services chief discussing how Apple approaches the live sports business and Apple's new bundle with Peacock. We also dispute Apple's odd claim that Apple TV has better video quality than other broadcasters because it doesn’t compress its video, and the news that Apple will stream Select Los Angeles Lakers games in Apple’s Immersive on Vision Pro. 

Also covered is the latest news from WBD regarding the launch of CNN All Access, Max now streaming in over 100 markets, and HBO Max ingesting the All Elite Wrestling PPV at native 1080p60 HDR (HLG source), transported at 425mbps JPEG XS and PCM audio directly from the venue. Finally, we cover some of my thoughts on my opening talk at the DanAds conference, where I reinforced the case for prioritizing outcomes over impressions in the CTV industry.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we highlight all of the comments from Netflix's co-CEO regarding its upcoming release of five Party Games designed for connected TVs. We also detail his remarks on why Netflix doesn't bid for an entire season of NFL games, why Netflix doesn't want to acquire WBD, the impact of their new UI/UX and why trying to copy YouTube is the "dumbest move" a company can make. We also cover some announcements made during Advertising Week NY, with news from NBC, Paramount Skydance, Roku, Snap, The Trade Desk, Sky Media and Fox.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we highlight the stocks of WBD, Disney, Roku, Paramount, Apple, Fubo, and others that have increased by at least 25% over the past six months, with WBD leading the way at 112%. We detail all the latest news related to Peacock, Max, FOX, Fubo, Disney, Versant, Prime Video, the NBA, and YouTube TV, as well as rumors that Yahoo is in advanced talks to sell AOL to Bending Spoons. Finally, we discuss some tips and tricks for increasing exposure on LinkedIn, including recent best practices from the company regarding content focus, length, reposts and new analytic metrics.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we highlight the balance sheets of WBD, Netflix, and Roku, including their market capitalizations, debt, cash, and profit and loss statements, as we examine some high-level merger rumors in the industry, where no one seems to be considering the financials. We also discuss Disney's DTC price increases and the ridiculous comparisons about Kimmel's monologue viewership numbers between TV and YouTube, as some claim Disney has seen "mass" cancellations. 

We cover the unconfirmed news that MLB has agreed to a three-year deal with Netflix for games that include the Home Run Derby and the 2026 opening day game, and highlight how Apple used iPhone 17 Pros to capture and stream live footage of their last Friday Night Baseball game on Apple TV+. Finally, we discuss Roku's unusual comparison, declaring "FAST is the new cable," in their latest report, and highlight the revenue and profit disclosed by vendor Cleeng.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, I highlight where the hype lies in AI, where the opportunities lie, and why an "AI-first native strategy" by vendors is the wrong approach. I also explain the importance of AI use cases that boost efficiency versus those that are more disruptive to a given industry, and how AI is truly upending the news media industry. I detail the new financial details released by Versant Media Group, Comcast’s spinoff of the majority of its NBCU cable network portfolio and the importance of understanding the difference between free cash flow and profitability.

I also break down the viewership numbers from Netflix’s Canelo vs. Crawford boxing event, Amazon’s TNF kickoff NFL game, and YouTube’s exclusive live global stream of the NFL game from Brazil, which YouTube originally misreported, resulting in updated numbers that increased by two million viewers a few days later. Also covered are Sky's plan to lay off 600 employees, the NBA's investment arm’s investment in MediaKind, and why Antenna's numbers for ESPN Unlimited and Fox One sign-ups should not be trusted.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, I cover the viewership stats from YouTube’s exclusive NFL live global stream, breaking down what the numbers really mean, since many in the media misreported them. I discuss the challenges that the NFL, FOX and ESPN say they have in working with Nielsen, which once again announced it is changing the way it measures viewership, a change that is devoid of impartiality and transparency. 

I also detail the latest news and rumors involving WBD, the upcoming TNT Sports app, and the news that the HBO Max platform will lose live sports in the US next year. Also covered are the rumors that Paramount Skydance wants to make a bid for WBD, and I detail why, if a deal were to happen, it would be far more complex than most realize and would not quickly raise ARPU and reduce churn as some suggest.

Amazon's quality stream for the season kickoff of Thursday Night Football is discussed, along with DISH price increases, DAZN's new multiview feature for select NFL Game Pass subscribers and news that Walmart+ members can choose between the ad-supported plans of Paramount+ and Peacock and switch every 90 days at no additional cost. 

Finally, I provide context on the news that Vimeo has agreed to be acquired by Bending Spoons in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.38 billion, and I detail the numbers from Vimeo's balance sheet that most people are not looking at but should be.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

The OpenMOQ Software Consortium has launched as a new effort among vendors and content owners, focused on advancing MOQ-based technology through open-source software. The consortium is tasked with developing high-performance software that will enable the next generation of media contribution, distribution, and playback. OpenMOQ is a collaborative effort to accelerate development, enhance interoperability and share costs between vendors, distributors and in some cases, even competitors. In this interview, Will Law from Akamai and Tomas Kvasnicka from CDN77 discuss the formation of OpenMOQ and its goals. https://openmoq.org

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, I cover the launch of Fox One and ESPN Unlimited, which appeared to go smoothly, with few user issues reported. I detailed the news of the week, including price increases for Apple TV+ and BritBox, the launch of a new $20 bundle from Sling TV, and news from Netflix, YouTube, MLB, Fubo and NBC Sports. Finally, I discuss the expected upcoming layoffs at Paramount and their implications for the industry.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

Marty Kagan, co-founder and CEO of Hydrolix, joined me for a detailed conversation about the importance of delivering better end-user QoE through real-time telemetry and the challenges of CDN observability. Marty highlights why more hot data is crucial for AIOps and the challenges that M&E customers face today, including the need to discard data due to storage costs. Marty presents a compelling argument against the notion that most data is irrelevant and that content owners only need to retain a small percentage as a sample. We also discuss why Hydrolix isn’t an AI company and Marty's plans to continue growing its streaming data lake platform in verticals outside of video.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we detail Paramount Global's seven-year deal with TKO for the rights to stream UFC fights, the impact on ESPN+ and UFC's approach to move away from PPV to expand its audience. We also discussed the new Disney and Fox bundle launching on October 2nd, which combines ESPN+ and Fox One for a discounted rate. Additionally, we explain why not all pay TV customers will have free access to ESPN's new DTC service when it launches on August 21st. We covered Netflix's price increase in Australia, Sling TV's new daily, weekend, and weekly pricing models, and the changes to Sky Sports' coverage of the 2025/2026 Premier League season. Finally, we detail what it takes to produce quality content on LinkedIn, how to build a brand, and why to ignore many of the so-called content and SEO experts on LinkedIn.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media

This week, we detail all the news from Disney's earnings, its proposed deal between ESPN and the NFL and the launch of ESPN's new DTC service this month. We also discuss the impact of Disney's decision to no longer report paid subscribers or ARPU numbers for Disney+ and Hulu, and to cease reporting ESPN+ numbers as of next month. We also discuss all the essential numbers from Q2 earnings for WBD, Paramount Global, Fubo, Altice, Akamai, Fastly, Vimeo, and highlight the upcoming launch of FOX One on August 21st, as well as recent news from Roku and MLS.

Podcast produced by Security Halt Media