The Dan Rayburn Podcast
The Dan Rayburn Podcast curates the most important streaming media industry news of the week in 30 minutes. It offers unvarnished, unscripted analysis and data without hype, providing a clear pulse on the streaming media industry.
Episodes
Episode 173: Fox and Roku Deal Facts and Numbers; World Cup Viewership Stats; Numbers From Bending Spoons IPO Filing; Latest Codec News
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
Episode 1: The Sports Streaming Podcast, with Dan Rayburn & Eric Black
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,
Episode 172: World Cup Preview; Peacock's Vertical Video; NFL Streaming Schedule; Prime Video's Profitability
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 exclu
Episode 171: Infrastructure News from Akamai, Fastly and Cloudflare's Earnings; Anthropic and OpenAI Cloud Spend; Disney, WBD and Fubo Earnings
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 un
Episode 170: Q1 Earnings Data from Roku, Peacock, Amazon, Microsoft and AI Capex Spend; YouTube Custom Multiview; Amazon's Fire OS Confusion
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
Episode 169: Special NAB Show Recap: Content, Themes, Messaging and Lessons Learned
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 Str
Episode 168: NFL and DOJ News Overblown; New Amazon AI Revenue Data; YouTube Raises Premium Pricing; Sling TV/FOX/Fubo/Disney+ News
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
Episode 167: Latest Sports Streaming Viewership Numbers; Oracle Layoffs; The Problem With AI Capex Spending
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 paper
Episode 166: Netflix's MLB Opening Night Stream and Newly Announced Price Increase; News Recap from OpenAI, YouTube TV, DAZN, Roku, Fubo and NFL
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
Episode 165: JioHotstar Hits 72.5M Concurrent; NFL Sunday Ticket for Businesses Goes Streaming Only; New Netflix Data Released
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 N
Episode 164: Peacock Rolling Out Vertical Video for NBA Games; NFL Starts Renegotiating Broadcast Contacts Early; Disney+ Tests Vertical Video
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 rele
Episode 163: An HBO Max and Paramount Platform Merger is Difficult; Sling TV Losses; Versant Earnings; F1 Launches on Apple TV
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
Episode 162: Olympic Viewership Numbers; Apple TV F1 and MLS News; Akamai Earnings; OpenAI Ads Wrongly Compared to Netflix
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
Episode 161: Roku, AMC Networks, Fastly, Cloudflare Earnings; New Bundles from YouTube TV, HBO Max, Sky; Peacock's Super Bowl Stream
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
Executive Interview: Brightcove's GM Gives Update on the Size of the Business, Product Roadmap, Bending Spoons Ownership, and GTM Strategy
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 Bri
Episode 160: Earnings Numbers from Disney, Fubo, FOX, YouTube, Comcast, Netflix; NFL and ESPN Deal Terms; Vimeo, Brightcove and Gcore Vendor News
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 Netw
Episode 159: Prime's NFL Wild Card Viewership; Amazon's New Content Deals in Europe; Stats Perform Acquires Assets of Phenix Real Time Solutions
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
Episode 158: Portions of FIFA World Cup to Stream on TikTok, NFL/NBA Viewership Stats, News Roundup from Dish, WBD, Disney, and Versant
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 percen
Episode 157: Year-End Wrap Up; Review of NFL Streams on Christmas and ESPN's Data-Enhanced MNF Telecast
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
Episode 156: The Problems With AI; Instagram TV; NFL's Exclusive Xmas Games; Recap of Prime Video, YouTube TV and Netflix News
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 ma
Executive Interview: Tiledmedia's Founder Discusses the Latest OTT Multiview Offerings and Technical Implementations
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
Episode 155: NBA and NFL Viewership Stats from Thanksgiving Weekend; Netflix Removes Casting; Versant Media Group Finances; Bending Spoons Closes on Vimeo Acquisition
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 ro
Episode 154: Breaking Down the Netflix and WBD Deal: The Facts, The Numbers, and What We Don’t Know
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,
Episode 153: Detailing the Latest Sports Streaming Deals from Paramount, MLB, Apple; Price Increases and Industry Layoffs (with special co-host Eric Black)
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
Episode 152: Key Details from Disney and Paramount Earnings; MLS Season Pass Ending; New Prime Video Viewership Numbers
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
Episode 151: Earnings Roundup from WBD, Xperi, EchoStar, Altice, Akamai, Fastly; Latest on News from Amazon, ITV, YouTube and Disney
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
Episode 150: Netflix to Implement DAI for NFL on Xmas; YouTube TV and Disney Carriage Dispute; Earnings Data from Fubo and Fox; Layoffs and AI
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 b
Episode 149: Netflix's Earnings and Gen AI Usage; Latest WBD News and Max Price Increases; NBA Streaming Across Peacock and Prime
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, Pr
Episode 148: Review of Amazon's New Vega OS-based Fire TV Stick; Latest News from Apple/F1, WBD, Netflix, Roku, and Ad Tech Industry Challenges
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
Episode 147: Netflix's CEO on Gaming, WBD and UI/UX; News Roundup from Ad Week NYC; DAZN Financial Details
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 mak
Episode 146: Media Stocks up 25% in the Past Six Months; Latest News from Peacock, Max, FOX, Fubo, Disney, Versant, Prime Video, the NBA, and YouTube TV
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, w
Episode 145: Detailing WBD, Netflix, and Roku's Balance Sheets; Disney's DTC Price Increases; Netflix and MLB News
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 be
Episode 144: Debunking AI News; The Challenges in Live Viewership Data; Versant Discloses Revenue; NBA Invests in MediaKind
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 Med
Episode 143: YouTube's NFL Stream Viewership Numbers; Latest WBD News; Vimeo to Be Acquired
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
Special Podcast: New OpenMOQ Software Consortium Launches to Advance MOQ-based technology
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 interoper
Episode 142: News Recap from FOX, Disney, Fubo, Apple TV, BritBox, Netflix, and Upcoming Layoffs from Paramount
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 fo
Executive Interview: Hydrolix's CEO Details the Changing Economics of Big Data and Real-Time Observability for Streaming
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 compellin
Episode 141: Paramount's UFC Deal; Disney and FOX Bundle; Starz Declining Subs; New Features Coming to Sky Sports Premier League Coverage
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 acce
Episode 140: Disney Earnings and NFL/ESPN News; Latest Numbers from WBD, Fubo, Altice and FOX One Launch
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 ear
Episode 139: Earnings Recaps from Comcast, Roku, Fubo, EchoStar, Spotify, Meta and Amazon
This week, I outline the key numbers you should know regarding subscriber gains and losses, as well as the profitability of D2C businesses for Peacock, Roku, Paramount, Sling TV, and Fubo. I also cover revenue growth from cloud providers Amazon and Microsoft and break out capex for Meta and the hyperscalers, which total more than $250 billion this year and are driven by AI-related infrastructure.
Episode 138: MLS Discloses Sub Numbers; YouTube Earnings; Latest News from Disney, ESPN, NBC, MAX and Paramount
This week, we highlight the details surrounding the MLS commissioner's disclosure that MLS Season Pass is averaging 120,000 unique viewers per match on Apple TV, representing a nearly 50% increase from 2024. For earnings, we cover Q2 ad revenue on YouTube, up 13% YoY, and Alphabet's plan to increase capex in 2025 to approximately $85 billion, as well as cord-cutting numbers from Charter
Episode 137: Detailing Netflix's Q2 Earnings; Deltatre Plans to Acquire Endeavor Streaming
This week, we highlight the key numbers and comments from Netflix's Q2 earnings, covering financials, ad growth, live-event strategy, competition, AI, and content strategy. We detail the financial metrics tied to revenue, free cash flow, debt, and estimated full-year 2025 revenue guidance. We discuss all the comments from Netflix's management team regarding measuring household engagement
Episode 136: Disney's Latest Content Deals; Apple and F1 Rumors; Ultra Low Latency Deployments
This week, we highlight Disney's new content bundling deals with Charter and ITV, as well as Paramount's new agreement with DIRECTV. We discuss Amazon's investment in AI to help remaster SD content into HD, and what we think the impact of AI can be in the video streaming workflow. We also discuss why the media is getting it wrong when they suggest that Google has won the living room
Special CDN Podcast: The Latest on Delivery Pricing, Capacity Planning, DIY, Latency and Bitrate Trends
This special CDN-focused podcast details the latest on delivery pricing and industry trends. I discuss delivery commitments, QoE measurement, DIY deployments, HD/HDR bitrates, and the impact of vendors exiting the market. I also cover how content owners perform capacity planning at the ASN level, leaching, latency, and why multicasting and P2P won't positively impact the industry. The data co
Episode 135: Disney Layoffs; Sports Streaming News; BBC Low Latency Trial; Wowza Makes AI Tech Acquisition
This week, we highlight sports news from Peacock, Pac-12, ESPN, Optus Sport, Amazon, IMG, and NASCAR, including viewership stats and new licensing deals. We also cover the recent layoffs at Disney, the BBC's low-latency live streaming trial and the current ad loads on Max, Prime Video and Peacock. Finally, we cover some vendor news, including Wowza's acquisition of AI tech company AVA In
Episode 134: Recapping News From WBD, Disney, Netflix, YouTube, Amazon, F1 and Streaming Vendors Qwilt, Phenix and Brightcove
This week, we cover a lot of news, stats and numbers across WBD, Disney, Netflix, YouTube, MGM, Amazon, F1, DAZN, NFL, Verizon, Starz, Roku, TikTok, Apple TV, Premier League, JioHotstar, Paramount and other sports and OTT services. We also discuss the changes taking place at Qwilt, including the appointment of a new CEO, the auction of Phenix Real Time Solutions' assets, and Bending Spoons&ap
Episode 133: New Ad Tier User Numbers; FOX and ESPN DTC News; YouTube Gets Exclusive NFL Game
This week, we cover the news from the Upfronts, with Netflix and Amazon announcing updated ad-tier user numbers, YouTube disclosing ad conversions on Shorts, and new ad formats coming to OTT platforms. We also detail the upcoming DTC offerings from ESPN and FOX, as well as YouTube's plans to stream an exclusive NFL game for free in September. Finally, we highlight Charter's announcement
Episode 132: Key Q1 Earnings Numbers from Disney, WBD, Paramount, AMC Networks, Altice, EchoStar, Vimeo, Kaltura, Akamai, Fastly and Cloudflare
This week, we highlight the key Q1 earnings numbers from Disney, WBD, Paramount, AMC Networks, Altice, EchoStar, Vimeo, Kaltura, Akamai, Fastly and Cloudflare. We detail the numbers tied to DTC subscribers additions/losses, profitability, bundling, capex and content spend, and the impact of earnings on stock prices. We also break out the 1.73M cord cutters across pay TV providers and vMVPDs, as we
Episode 131: Key Takeaways from Roku, Fubo, Amazon, Apple, and Harmonic's Q1 2025 Earnings
This week, we detail Roku's 16% YoY revenue growth, with streaming hours up 5.1B YoY. We also highlight Roku's announcement that more than a third of streaming households in the U.S. streamed monthly from its content row in Q1, with more than 125 million people streaming each day. We detail Fubo's earnings, with North American subscribers declining 2.7% YoY to 1.47M and a net profit
Episode 130: Q1 Earnings; Peacock Gains 5M Subs; 851,000 Pay TV Subs Lost; NFL Streaming News; Max Password Sharing Crackdown
This week, we detail Comcast's Q1 earnings, including Peacock's subscriber gains thanks to the Charter bundle, with revenue up 16% and an EBITDA loss of $215M, down from $639M YoY. We also cover all the pay TV losses from Comcast, Verizon, and Charter in the quarter, as well as Comcast's worst broadband losses ever in a quarter. We highlight MSG Networks' deal with its lender,
Episode 129: Netflix's Q1 Earnings; Latest Sports News; Funding and Acquisition Deals
This week, we detail Netflix's Q1 earnings, including its free cash flow, content spending, and 2025 guidance forecast of $43.5-$44.5 billion. We highlight all of Netflix's comments around its ad tech platform, Netflix Ads Suite (NAS), and why Netflix says owning the tech stack is foundational to its long-term ads strategy. We also mention Netflix's comments about video podcasts and
Episode 128: NAB Show 2025 Recap and Key Takeaways
For this special podcast, Mark Donnigan and I recap key takeaways from the 2025 NAB Show in Las Vegas, discussing what we heard on the show floor and in sessions. We detail the NAB’s attendance numbers and the impact I saw on the number of attendees due to the uncertainty in the financial market. We also highlight the many different metrics that exhibitors, sponsors and attendees use to determine
Episode 127: MLB Opening Day Outage; More RSN Streaming Options; EdgeCast Relaunch; Bitmovin Reaches Free Cash Flow
This week, we highlight DIRECTV's expanding RSN bundling options, which cover 18 MLB, 16 NBA, and 10 NHL franchises and the addition of Max Basic with Ads to its MyEntertainment Genre Pack. We also highlight the MLB TV streaming outage on opening day, JioHotstar's announcement that JioHotstar now has over 100 million subscribers, and Netflix's news that it is now streaming HDR10+ co
Episode 126: JioHotstar’s 60M Concurrent Cricket Stream; F1 TV’s New 4K Tier; Why Apple TV+ Losses Don’t Matter; Max Platform Updates
This week, we discuss JioHotstar's live stream of the ICC Champions Trophy Final, with a reported 60 million concurrent streams and why the industry needs to stop putting so much clout on concurrent or AMA numbers without any other details on the quality of the stream. We also detail the F1 TV Premium tier, offering 4K video and multiview functionality for an additional $6 monthly, and Comcas
Episode 125: Hulu's Oscars Stream; MSG Networks Likely Bankruptcy; CTV Botnet Discovery; MLB's Streaming Challenges
This week, we talk about the problems with Hulu's Oscars live stream and why streaming cannot take the place of broadcast distribution in terms of scalability and dependability. We also point out the likelihood of MSG Networks and/or its affiliates declaring bankruptcy and the potential consequences for their streaming business. We discuss the announcement that all Elite Wrestling PPV events
Episode 124: Fubo, WBD and Paramount Q4 Earnings; Amazon Launching Live Linear Channel; DIRECTV's New $35 Entertainment Package
This week, we discuss the Q4 earnings numbers tied to subscribers and profitability from Fubo, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, and EchoStar. We also highlight the latest sports news from Disney, DAZN, LALIGA, Fox, LFP, and Sky. We detail the new $35 entertainment package from DIRECTV, which includes 43 linear channels and the streaming services Disney+, Hulu+, and Max. Finally, we cover the new
Episode 123: Sports News Roundup From ESPN, Netflix, Max, Prime, DAZN, DIRECTV, Roku, F1 and Akamai's Q4 Earnings
This week, we discuss all the latest sports news, including ESPN and MLB ending their contract early, the excellent-looking live stream of the NASCAR Daytona 500 on Max and SURJ's investment in DAZN, rumored to be $1 billion. We also highlight news that DIRECTV's MySports package will include 140 NBC affiliates, that Prime Video is offering Ligue 1 matches via PPV, reports that ESPN has
Episode 122: Tubi's Super Bowl Stream Recap; Detailing Roku, Fastly, and Harmonc's Q4 Earnings
This week, we review FOX and Tubi's Super Bowl stream, detailing the video quality, latency, playback, viewership numbers and overall event success. We also detail Q4 and full-year earnings from Roku, AMC Networks, Altice, Fastly and Harmonic, which saw mixed results. We highlight the launch of JioHotstar, which led to the merger of Hotstar and JioCinema; subscriber numbers from Philo; the Ap
Episode 121: Comcast and DirecTV Launch $70 Sports Packages, Peacock and Disney Earnings, Parler Buys Select Edgio Assets
This week, we detail the launch of competing $70 sports-streaming packages from Comcast’s Xfinity and DirecTV, and FOX's plans to launch a DTC streaming service. We also cover the latest earnings from Comcast, Disney and Alphabet, with Disney+ losing 700,000 subscribers, Peacock's DTC business losing $436M, and YouTube seeing advertising revenue of $10.4 billion, with growth driven by th
Episode 120: Super Bowl and NFL Streaming News from Amazon and FOX; Limelight's Network Goes Dark
This week, we discuss all the latest NFL streaming news, including Amazon's exclusive NFL Wild Card playoff game, which reached an all-time high of 24.6M viewers; details from FOX on their 1080p upscaled 4 K HDR stream and their plans to make the stream available on Tubi. We also detail the network shutdown of Limelight Networks as part of Edgio's bankruptcy, what it means for the CDN in
Episode 119: Disney and Fubo Deal; Netflix's WWE Debut; Peacock Viewership Data; CES TV News
This week, I discuss the Disney and Fubo deal, what it means for subscribers and the impact of Venu Sports no longer launching in the market. I detail the deal terms and what's being misreported, separating facts from guesses. I also discuss viewership numbers from Netflix's debut of WWE’s Monday Night Raw, final global viewership numbers for Netflix's NFL games on Christmas and com
Episode 118: Special Podcast; Netflix's NFL Christmas Gameday Recap
For this special podcast episode, we review Netflix's streaming of the NFL games on Christmas, detailing technical aspects related to stream quality, latency, player functionality, reported user feedback, and viewership statistics for the U.S. market. We compare the 27 million peak viewers in the U.S. stat to previous NFL games across broadcast, Prime Video and Peacock and why viewership was
Episode 117: Vendor Layoffs; YouTube TV Price Increase; WBD Separates Linear from Streaming
This week, we detail more layoffs among streaming vendors and what they mean for the industry as everyone looks to be more operationally efficient in their spending. We also cover the latest price increase by YouTube TV, pushing the service to $82.99 a month; FIFA's broadcast deal with DAZN; and Amazon's latest TNF viewership numbers of 18.48 million, making it the most-watched TNF on Pr
Episode 116: Akamai Acquires Contracts From Edgio's Bankruptcy Auction: Roundup Of OTT and Broadcast News
This week, we detail Akamai's successful $125 million bid for customer contracts from Edgio's security and content delivery businesses in Edgio's bankruptcy auction. We discuss Akamai's projected $89-$111 million in revenue over the next five quarters from the contracts and what the deal means for the broader CDN market. We also debunk some reported comments about the news and
Episode 115: The Numbers and Details Behind Bending Spoons Plans to Acquire Brightcove
In regulatory filings, more details have emerged in Bending Spoons' plans to acquire Brightcove, including some terms for employees who stay on with the new company, the number of aggregate shares of company common stock tied to RSU awards, the exact number of Brightcove employees, a disclosure of a "material weakness in internal control over financial reporting,” and other company detai
Episode 114: Unraveling The Misinformation from Netflix's Boxing Event; All the Latest Broadcast, TV and Content News
This week, we detail all the misinformation after Netflix's live boxing event, the danger of not checking sources, and who you trust for news. We discuss the current state of Netflix's business and how the company is playing the long game - chess over checkers. We also highlight the latest content news from JioCinema, MLB, Sling TV, Disney, Amazon, NBA and Hulu. Finally, we focus on the
Episode 113: Earnings Recap from Paramount, Tubi, Vizio, Vimeo, Brightcove, Akamai, Fastly, Cloudflare
This week, we detail all the important numbers from Q3 earnings related to profitability, capex, MAUs and subscriber additions for streaming services from Paramount, Tubi, AMC Networks and Vizio, along with infrastructure players Vimeo, Brightcove, Akamai, Fastly and Cloudflare. We also discuss the latest content news from UFC, The Tennis Channel, Netflix, Sky and FOX and highlight CDN Medianova&a
Episode 112: Q3 Earnings Recap: Roku, Fubo, Comcast, Amazon, Alphabet, Sky, Harmonic, Verizon, Charter, Microsoft and Meta
This week, I recap all the streaming subscriber and pay TV numbers from Q3 earnings and the profit-and-loss financials from Roku, Fubo, Peacock, YouTube, Sky, Verizon and others. I also highlight cloud services revenue from Amazon, Microsoft and Google, with AWS hitting a record $100 billion in revenue for the past 12 months. I discuss why Instagram lowers video quality for unpopular videos and di
Episode 111: Exploring Netflix's Q3 Success; The Latest Sports and RSN News, and The Impact of AI on Podcasts
This week, we discuss the key takeaways from Netflix's earnings tied to its upcoming first-party ad tech platform, subscriber gains in the quarter, and its latest reported engagement metric of 2 hours per paid membership per day. We also cover the latest news from the messy world of RSNs, including the new report that Peacock will begin offering NBC-owned RSNs in early 2025 and the terrible l
Episode 110: DirecTV's FAST Service; Apple TV+ Coming To Amazon Prime Channels; JW Player and Connatix Merger
This week, we discuss DirecTV’s plan to launch a FAST platform and how it might benefit its brand, even as it enters a crowded FAST market. We also highlight why it’s smart for Apple to make Apple TV+ content available to as many viewers as possible through its deal with Prime Video, which will launch as a Prime Video channel later this month. We provide some of the new details released by ESPN&ap
Episode 109: EchoStar and DirecTV Deal; Paramount Drops Nielsen; Netflix and Prime Video's Ad Business
This week, we discuss what could happen to DTC services Sling TV and DIRECTV STREAM if the planned deal for EchoStar to sell Dish to DirecTV gets approved. We also highlight news that Skydance is in talks with the NFL to purchase the NFL Network, and the latest on Diamond Sports Group's decision to release all but one of its MLB contracts in hopes of securing approval for its bankruptcy reorg
Episode 108: IBC News Recap: Edge Compute Video Workflows, Codecs, and AI's Impact on Transcoding
This week, we recap news from IBC on using cloud-based compute services for video workflows, encoding optimization, AV1 codec adoption, live encoding use cases, and AI's potential impact on encoding platforms. We also give updates on the Venu/Fubo lawsuit, price increases for NBA League Pass, the upgraded Roku Ultra, Google rebranding its FAST channels, and viewership numbers from Peacock. Fi
Episode 107: Analyzing NFL Streaming; Edgio's Bankruptcy Filing; Latest Sports Viewing Metrics
This week, I break down news related to the start of the NFL season, including audience figures from NBC Sports, ESPN, and Amazon, as well as my testing of NFL streaming on Peacock, YouTube TV, Fubo, Paramount+, Sling TV, and FOX Sports. I also reviewed the most recent information regarding the expedited hearing on the Venu Sports injunction appeal, for which the opening brief is due this week. Th
Episode 106: Disney Shuts Down TV Everywhere Apps; Latest Venu, NBA and WBD Legal News; Netflix Stock Hits Three-Year High
This week, we detail the latest updates surrounding the Paramount and Skydance merger, the Fubo and Venu Sports pretrial conference on September 12 and the NBA asking New York’s Supreme Court to dismiss Warner Bros. Discovery’s matching rights lawsuit against the league. We highlight the report that Amazon no longer plans to invest $115 million into Bally Sports, Diamond Sports Group agreeing to h
Executive Interview: Michelle Noon of PE Firm Clearhaven Partners Discusses Video Infrastructure Software Valuations, Acquisitions and Cash Flow
Michelle Noon, founder and managing partner of private equity firm Clearhaven Partners, joined me for a detailed conversation about the current state of the financing market, including valuations, interest rates, and balance sheets. Michelle discusses how operators and investors balance growth versus profitability, the importance of recurring revenue with high predictability, the true cost of debt
Episode 105: Venu Ruling; Paramount Layoffs; Higher NFL Sunday Ticket Pricing; Disney's New CTO
This week, we discuss the latest temporary injunction against Venu Sports and what it may mean for Disney, FOX, WBD and Fubo. We also cover the latest pricing increase from YouTube’s NFL Sunday Ticket and new Sling TV and Verizon bundling options. We detail the layoffs at Paramount and the closing of Paramount Television Studios, and how many in the media continue to define the "success"
Episode 104: Recapping Q2 Earnings Numbers from WBD, Paramount, Disney, EchoStar, Vizio, Akamai, Fastly, Brightcove and Lionsgate
This week, we recap the key points from Q2 earnings among media companies and vendors, highlighting DTC subscriber additions and losses, profit and loss, cord-cutting, WBD and Paramount writing down the value of their TV businesses, and media stocks' performance over the past 12 months. We also explain crucial financial terms such as GAAP, non-GAAP, EBITDA, OIBDA, and EPS, making it easier to
Episode 103: Key Earnings Data from Roku, Comcast, Fubo and The Latest Content and Sports News
This week, we detail the key data and numbers from Roku, Comcast, Charter, Fubo, Vimeo, Harmonic, and Alphabet's Q2 earnings. We also discuss the most recent developments in content news, including Venu's pricing, the NBA agreement that permits Disney to air alternate broadcasts, the $4.7 billion antitrust conviction against the NFL that was overturned, and Diamond Sports' agreement
Episode 102: Netflix Earnings Recap; European Football Streaming News; FOX Sports Discloses Streaming Numbers
This week, we detail all of the numbers you need to know from Netflix's Q2 earnings and discuss why Netflix's ad business is not struggling like some in the media suggest. We also highlight interesting comments from Netflix about their upcoming live events, their lack of need to bundle with other services and how fast their ad business is growing. We also review all the headlines related
Episode 101: The Latest Pay TV and Streaming Viewership Figures, The Unknowns of the Skydance Media and Paramount Global Merger, and NBA Licensing Insights
This week, we discuss reports that the NBA has finalized agreements totaling $76 billion, keeping ABC/ESPN as the home of the NBA Finals for 11 seasons while adding NBC and Amazon Prime Video as new partners. But the completed contract must still be sent to TNT Sports, giving WBD five days to match Amazon's offer. We also point out a number of the unanswered questions surrounding the merger o
