The Dan Rayburn Podcast
Dan Rayburn
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Curating all the streaming media industry news of the week that matters most, in 30 minutes. Unvarnished, unscripted and providing you with the data and analysis you need, without any hype. The pulse of the streaming media industry.
Available episodes
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Nov 29, 2023
Executive Interview: Comcast Discusses Ad Measurement Challenges; The Soon-To-Disappear Cookie, and Cohesive, Cross-Media Measurement and Innovation
Larry Allen, VP/GM, of Data and Addressable Enablement at Comcast Advertising joins me for a detailed discussion on how the shift in viewing habits to all screens is making it difficult to provide cohesive cross-media measurement. We discuss the impact of the loss of third-party cookies, the challenges and opportunities that exist with measurement at scale, including with FAST services, and the potential role of AI tech to fill in measurement gaps. Finally, we highlight why the industry needs a clear set of guidelines on how the industry wants to approach measurement across inventory owners and distributors to provide a common language for measurement cross-platforms.
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Nov 19, 2023
Episode 76: Special Sports Episode! All The Latest Sports Streaming News, Viewership Stats and Content Deals
This week we cover all the latest news in the world of sports streaming tied to Apple, Amazon, ESPN, Disney+ Hotstar, Fubo, Max, Peacock, and YouTube TV. We also discuss content licensing and viewership stats across the NFL, NBA, Formula 1, and MLS. Some highlights include:
* Apple reported that they had more than a million viewers to watch the biggest MLS games this season and the rumors that Apple is eyeing Formula 1 as its next big sports investment
* The latest in the NBA media negotiations and why the NBA needs to package national TV rights with local-market rights
* Peacock's first-ever exclusive live-streaming NFL Playoff game on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024, and what the viewership might be
* Disney+ Hotstar news that they hit 59 million concurrent viewers for the World Cup 2023 cricket finals on November 19
* NBC Sports latest stats on the largest streaming audience ever for a regular-season Sunday NFL game on NBC Sports (1.85M AMA) and their most-streamed college football simulcast (605,000 AMA)
* Comcast reported that Amazon's TNF games comprise roughly 25% of all Internet traffic on Thursday nights across their network
* Fox saying it has no intention of taking its premium sports content DTC any time soon, with cable revenues continuing to deliver a lucrative revenue stream for the broadcaster
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Nov 11, 2023
Episode 75: ESPN+ and WBD's DTC Turn a Profit; Streaming Vendors Low on Cash; Other Q3 Earnings Data
This week, we examine the Q3 financial results of OTT industry heavyweights Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, DISH, and Vizio, along with streaming providers Akamai, Brightcove, Kaltura, Comscore and Vimeo. We go over some of the most important conclusions, such as Disney+ having 5 million AVOD customers and ESPN+ making $33 million in profit. We go into detail on how WBD paid off an astounding $12 billion in debt this year and anticipates producing at least $5 billion in free cash flow. The company is attempting to position itself as an acquirer, as evidenced by the $111 million in positive EBITDA that their DTC sector generated during the quarter. We conclude with all the P&L data from streaming providers in the industry that you should know, including an examination of CDN77's remarkable revenue growth and the current macroeconomic environment's potential impact on the industry.
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Nov 5, 2023
Episode 74: Key Q3 Earnings Data From Paramount+, Peacock, Fubo, AMC+, Roku, Brightcove; Latest Pay TV Losses and Sports News
This week we detail the Q3 earnings numbers you need to know tied to Paramount+, Peacock, Fubo, AMC+, Roku and Brightcove including subscriber counts and DTC profit and loss. We also draw attention to the roughly one million new Comcast, Verizon, Charter, and Altice pay TV customers who have cut the cords. We talk about the announcement from Netflix that their ad tier now boasts 15 million monthly active users worldwide; Harmonic's strategic review of their video division; Bitmovin revealing that their revenue for the upcoming year will be in the 30s million; and Nokia suing Amazon and HP for allegedly violating patents related to H.264 and H.265 video decoding.
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Oct 22, 2023
Episode 73: Netflix’s AVOD Business; ESPN’s Balance Sheet; and Lumen Exits the CDN Market
This week we break down the numbers from Netflix’s Q3 earnings, their content spend for 2024, what their ad business looks like today and the reasons why many are undervaluing Netflix's prospects for AVOD in the coming years. We also talk about YouTube's statement indicating that they most likely won't participate in the upcoming round of bidding for NBA broadcast rights and we highlight ESPN's newly released revenue figures. In conclusion, we discuss Lumen's departure from the CDN sector and the recent patent litigation filed by Sling TV and Dish Network against BritBox.
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Oct 8, 2023
Executive Interview: The Complex Road Ahead for Ad Measurement Data and Metrics
Diane Strutner, CEO of Datazoom, joins me for a detailed discussion on the current state of advertising data and the complex road ahead as inventory moves to digital and CTV. We discuss the seismic industry shift from siloed to a converged currency models, and the ensuing challenges in valuing digital and streaming ad impressions. Learn the crucial distinctions between accreditation and certification, particularly in relation to how they relate to audience measurement, and the impact on advertisers.
The conversation takes a turn towards transparency, or lack thereof, in Nielsen's methodology and their conspicuous absence from new industry initiatives and committees. Diane emphasizes understanding true ROI, and the inherent risks of decision-making without adequate revenue insights, and the lack of data that is behind enormous funding decisions, and publishing and media & entertainment’s push for profitability.
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Oct 8, 2023
Episode 72: Exploring Apple's Formula One Bid; Candle Media's Poor Revenue Forecast; Taylor Swift’s Media Domination
This week we discuss the rumors that Apple is weighing an annual bid of $2 billion for Formula 1 racing, with the opportunity to purchase global rights after five years. We also detail how Candle Media's earnings are predicted to be between $140 and $170 million, which is less than the $330 million initial expectation. According to reports, Candle Media spent $900 million for Hello Sunshine and $3 billion for Moonbug Entertainment. Finally, we detail how Taylor Swift has already sold more than $100 million worth of advance tickets at AMC Theatres as she continues her worldwide domination across all forms of media.
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Oct 3, 2023
Episode 71: No Viewership Transparency Included in The WGA Deal Terms; Court Rules Netflix Infringed on Broadcom's HEVC Patent
This week we detail the language in the new terms announced by the WGA in their deal with the studios (AMPTA) that have come as a result of the writers strike. The new deal provides no real transparency into viewership numbers outside of total hours streamed and only for self-produced high budget streaming programs. We also discuss Amazon's news that starting in early 2024 Prime Video shows and movies will include limited advertisements. Finally, we provide some details on the recent ruling from a German court that Netflix is infringing on Broadcom's video patent related to HEVC.
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Sep 21, 2023
Episode 70: The Impact of The Current Economic Climate on the Streaming Media Industry: Budget Constraints, Longer Sales Cycles and Higher Funding Costs
This week I break down the economic and financial factors that are directly impacting the growth and restraints in the streaming media industry. Learn why companies are doing more with less, reducing and consolidating their spending on services like storage and delivery, and the market factors that are influencing their decisions. From banking interest rates for new money, tighter budgets, and lengthier sales processes, this new way of doing business is now the new norm.
I also cover some recent comments from ESPN’s chairman discussing the importance of linear to US sports broadcasters, the triggers that would make ESPN go DTC faster, and why he says ESPN doesn’t necessarily feel any urgency. His overall takeaway is that professional sports leagues say that they prioritize linear because of the exposure and the reach and yet, the same spots leagues are taking big money from Amazon, Apple, and Google while giving them some games as a streaming exclusive.
Also mentioned: Amazon and Nielsen’s Thursday Night Football stats; Warner Bros. Discovery’s new sports tier for Max; and SK Telecom and Netflix’s new partnership that has ended their dispute over network traffic costs.
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Sep 20, 2023
Episode 69: NFL Streaming Kickoff: Detailing How YouTube, ESPN, Peacock, Amazon and Xfinity Did With Opening Weekend
This week I recap the opening weekend of the NFL season reviewing the streaming services across YouTube (NFL Sunday Ticket), ESPN (Monday Night Football), Amazon, (Thursday Night Football), and Peacock (Sunday Night Football). I document why YouTube came out on top, the problems Amazon and Peacock had, and the complete outages that took place on Xfinity and Shaw.
I also discuss the patent suit that Sling TV and DISH Technologies filed against fuboTV alleging infringement on eight patents related to multi-bitrate streaming, with the oldest patent dating back to Move Networks technology. And I briefly cover news from Apple that the new A17 Pro chip will support AV1 video via a dedicated AV1 decoder in the new iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.
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Sep 11, 2023
Episode 68: The Implosion of The Pay TV Market as Blackouts, Increasing Carriage Fees and Cord Cutting Destroy Legacy Business Models
This week we detail how the current model of licensing broadcast networks to pay TV distributors is completely broken. With a recent blackout on Spectrum due to a licensing dispute with Disney and a current blackout on DISH due to their dispute with Hearst, the methodology of how content is valued needs to change. We discuss what consumers want from streaming services, how they want to aggregate them, the business models that work best, and the ridiculous fragmentation fans have when watching sports-related content.
We also highlight the recently announced layoffs from Roku, Nielsen and the new financial numbers that Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix and others have put out tied to revenue and free cash flow, due to the impact of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes.
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Sep 10, 2023
Executive Interview: Roku Discusses the Latest Advertising Metrics, Formats and Trends Across FAST and AVOD
Dan Robbins, VP of Ad Marketing and Partner Solutions at Roku joins me for a discussion about the latest challenges and opportunities with advertising across SVOD and FAST services. We discuss the measurement side of advertising, the powerful role of big data and integrated platforms in delivering accurate and consistent results and what brands are demanding for targeting. Dan also details Roku's vision for TV advertising, new creative ad formats and why Roku decided to build Roku branded TV's with a third-party manufacturer. Learn the complexities of the rapidly evolving advertising market and the multitude of opportunities waiting to be seized.
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Aug 24, 2023
Episode 67: Nielsen's Flawed Comparison of Pay TV to Streaming Services
This week we expose the flawed comparisons of bundled streaming services to pay TV, with Nielsen improperly comparing linear TV to YouTube, but excluding vMVPD services like Sling TV and Hulu + Live TV in their ratings. We also break down the new NFL Sunday Ticket bundle with Max, new student pricing, and multi-view combinations, and speculate on the future potential for platform customization and interactive features available on mobile and TV. Wrapping up our discussion, we discuss the potential of streaming services to reach profitability and the possible future where pay TV operators stop making profits from pay TV services.
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Aug 15, 2023
Episode 66: Analyzing Disney's Financials; Max to Add Higher Priced Sports Tier; Sling TV Loses Subs; NFL+ Price Increase
This week we break down Disney's recent financials and news from their earnings including their DTC revenue and losses; subscriber churn, the announcement of higher pricing for their ad-free tiers, ESPN+ and Hulu + Live TV, as well as their plans to crack down on password sharing next year. We also detail the numbers from other earnings including Paramount’s addition of 700,000 Paramount + subs, Sling TV’s loss of 97,000 subs, and Vizio’s AVOD revenue of $142.3M, which was up 28% from the previous year.
Also discussed is the latest sports streaming news across the industry including the report that Warner Bros. Discovery plans to simulcast live MLB playoffs on cable TV and Max streaming in October, as the debut of a new sports tier, called Bleacher Report, and plans to charge users more if they want to watch sports on Max. We also detail the latest from the NFL, which is raising the monthly prices of their NFL+ plans and for the first time will allow NFL Network and NFL RedZone…
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Aug 8, 2023
Episode 65: Q2 Earnings Recap Numbers for Peacock, Max, Roku, Fubo, Brightcove, Vimeo and Fastly
This week we break down all the important numbers you need to know regarding Q2 earnings from OTT platforms and streaming vendors. Hear about profitability/loss and subscriber gains/losses for Warner Bros. Discovery (Max), Comcast (Peacock), Fubo, Roku, Brightcove, Vimeo, Verizon, Charter, Kaltura, Fastly and Cloudflare. We also pose tough questions about New Relic's valuation following its acquisition and the implications for other vendors in the industry.
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Jul 27, 2023
Episode 64: Analyzing the Future of Streaming: Netflix’s Crackdown and Disney’s Linear and Streaming Strategy
This week we deliver fresh insights on Netflix's password sharing crackdown, analyzing the effects of the introduction of the ad-supported tier, the adjustment of pricing and plans, and how consumer behavior and engagement metrics are driving their decisions. We also discuss the news around Disney's intention to pull back spending and content creation for the Star Wars and Marvel franchises along with Bob Igor’s comments that linear TV channels like ESPN and ABC “may not be core" to their business. Learn how these industry powerhouses are strategically working to bundle, package, and license content while keeping their audiences engaged.
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Jul 17, 2023
Executive Interview: Dr. Fou Details YouTube’s Ad Scandal and the Complexities of Fraud in the Online Video Advertising Market
This episode offers a deep dive into the murky waters of ad fraud detailing the allegations against YouTube. Dr. Fou, an expert in ad fraud joins me as we head straight into the eye of the storm, exploring the latest report alleging Google's TrueView ads appear muted and on autoplay on third-party websites. Discover how these misrepresentations are impacting advertisers' trust, why YouTube's reply to the allegations ignored the issues, and what this could mean for YouTube's revenue.
We also detail challenges in the overall video advertising industry when it comes to detecting ad fraud, why advertisers don’t have much incentive to fix it, the lack of clear measurement, methodology, and transparency in reporting and the impact of AI on the market.
If you're interested in understanding the complexities of ad fraud in the online video advertising market and the challenges and trust issues that plague the industry, or if you're an advertiser wanting to ensure your campaigns are not misr…
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Jul 10, 2023
Episode 63: FAST is Popular, but Not Profitable; Microsoft to Shut Down Azure Media Services
This week we discuss the topic of FAST and how as an industry, we have almost no details on revenue growth amongst the FAST platforms. With Plex’s recent round of layoffs and too many FAST channels in the market, we make the case that popularity, without profitability, is a problem for FAST operators. We also discuss YouTube TV's business including their outage that took place during the NBA playoffs, their decision to drop SNY and the MLB network, and YouTube's experiments with ad-blockers. Finally, we break down why Microsoft announced it will shut down Azure Media Services in 2024 and exit the video workflow business.
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Jun 28, 2023
Episode 62: YouTube TV's Challenges With Sunday NFL Ticket; Interactive Sports Stats; Netflix's Advertising Plans; and The ISP/Content Debate in Europe
This week we peel back the layers of NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV dissecting the potential implications and benefits for the streaming media industry. We discuss the criticality of promptly addressing technical glitches before mainstream media taints the image of streaming technology. Learn how YouTube TV's new 'multiview' feature could amp up the NFL Sunday Ticket experience, or just add another layer of complexity.
We also scrutinize Netflix's future advertising plans and their proposed creation of a new ad format similar to a half-hour commercial drawn out over days. Also covered is the rollout of YES Network's single-screen interactive stats on connected devices in partnership with Ease Live. Tune in as we delve into the fiery debate taking place in Europe with ISPs suggesting that content providers including Netflix, Apple, and Google should pay ISPs to carry their video traffic.
I also call out Sandvine for continuing to publish garbage data on the topic, stating opinions as…
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Jun 20, 2023
Episode 61: How Users Are Consuming Long-Form Content on TikTok; OTT Platforms Aggressively Cutting Workflow Costs; Navigating AI Hype in the Video Industry
What do TikTok's video lengths and user engagement tell us about the future of content consumption? Join us this week as we uncover the surprising data behind this social media giant and its innovative audience. We'll also dive into the growing trend of long-form content including movies and TV shows being chopped up into bite-sized pieces for a more interactive and engaging viewing experience.
As the demand to get to profitability with DTC services grows, content owners are slashing millions in infrastructure costs through optimization of their video workflows, especially around encoding, storage and delivery. We discuss how advanced codecs and content adaptive technologies are enabling reduced bit rates without sacrificing quality. You will also learn about Netflix's multi-year technology and workflow transformation, and the increasing importance of purpose-built silicon in the race for 4K streaming.
Lastly, we tackle the issues of media inaccuracies and AI hype within the industry…
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Jun 12, 2023
Episode 60: Netflix's Stock Rockets; Telly's Free Dual-Screen TV is Pointless; Detailing Orange's New CDN Offering
This week we discuss the recent increase in Netflix's stock price which hit a 52-week high, all based on "assumptions" in new sign-ups based on four-day’s worth of data from third-party firm Antenna. We also question if YouTube TV is cracking down on password sharing ahead of NFL Sunday Ticket, with more users reporting pop-up messages reminding them that they need to return to their home location. We discuss how Telly, the company that plans to give away a dual-screen TV for free, has the ability to deactivate the TV if consumers don't use the TV as they want them to. Finally, we detail the launch of a new commercial CDN offering from Orange, for CDN services within France specifically.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Orange, IPL, Antenna, YouTube TV, NFL Sunday Ticket, Telly, Vizio, Vimeo, Edgio.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 31, 2023
Episode 59: Netflix's Password Sharing Chaos; Max Rolls Out; Twitter Spaces Fails for the Ron DeSantis Live Stream
This week we discuss the Netflix password sharing notifications that have started rolling out in 103 countries and territories and the challenges users are having in understanding how Netflix will enforce the rules and what exactly classifies as a violation. We also detail the roll out of Max, with less than .1% of HBO Max accounts having technical issues and highlight some new details from YouTube TV around NFL Sunday Ticket regarding simultaneous stream counts, multiview and video quality. We also breakdown the laughable comments by Elon Musk and others at Twitter who suggested they "broke the internet" and "melted their servers", due to 600,000 users trying to stream live the audio of Ron DeSantis announcing his 2024 presidential bid on Twitter Spaces.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Disney, Twitter, Max, YouTube TV, Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO Max, AOM, Beamr.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 19, 2023
Episode 58: YouTube TV, Apple TV and Netflix Suffer Live Streaming Outages; Disney's Earnings Numbers; Netflix's AVOD News
This week I discuss the technical issues that YouTube TV, Apple TV and Netflix all had in the past 30-days with a live event/stream on their platform. I also break down all the key numbers from Disney’s earnings including the 3.8 million sequential decline of Disney+ Hotstar subs, their comments that the price increase for Disney+ without ads had no meaningful negative impact on churn, and the latest non-news on ESPN going DTC. Also highlighted are comments from FOX’s CEO on why they don’t have a D2C sports offering and Netflix’s announcement that their ad-supported plan has nearly 5M monthly active users globally.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Disney, ESPN, Hulu, Peacock, NFL, IPL, FOX, Apple TV, YouTube TV, MLS Season Pass.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 8, 2023
Episode 57: Q1 Earnings Recap: Brightcove’s Layoffs; Vimeo's CEO Bonus; Latest Cord Cutting Numbers; Resumes and Job Hunting In Today’s Market
This week we highlight the Q1 earnings news from Brightcove (will lay off 10% of company), Vimeo (CEO could get $800,000 bonus), Paramount (+ added 4.1M subs), Comcast (Peacock subs up 2M), Warner Bros. Discovery (expects DTC business to be profitable this year) and the latest cord cutting numbers with over 1M pay TV losses in Q1.
We also discuss problems we are seeing with many resumes and LinkedIn pages by those looking for new jobs in the industry. We share feedback on what you should be doing if you are looking for a new job and how you should be setting yourself up for success.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 30, 2023
Episode 56: NAB Show Highlights, Earning Numbers from Roku, Netflix, Comcast and Amazon
This week we highlight some of the news from the NAB Show and detail the technologies and business models we heard talked about the most. We also discuss the trends we saw at the show, vendor messaging, specific data shared from speakers and what impressed us. We also cover some numbers you need to know on cord cutting, P&L and ARRU from earnings related to Roku, Comcast (Peacock), Amazon, Verizon, Meta, Netflix and others.
Companies and services mentioned: Roku, Netflix, Amazon, Verizon, Peacock, HBO Max, Comcast, Brightcove, Harmonic, Haivision, Amagi, IMAX, Bitmovin.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 10, 2023
Episode 55: Breaking Down IPL's 16M Concurrent Stream Count; Apple Acquires Wave One and Their AI-Based Video Compression Tech
This week we breakdown the number from Viacom18 of 16 million concurrent streams for the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Jio Cinema, highlighting that the bitrate was around 1Mbps, making comparisons to other events difficult. We also discuss potential new DTC streaming strategies the WWE and UFC could take since their rights deals with ESPN, FOX and NBC Universal all expire by 2026. We recap some industry news that Apple has acquired Wave One, a startup specializing in AI-based video compression with a method for analyzing video files and learning the best way to compress them. And the news from AMD of a new media acceleration solution, that’s targeting video streaming applications that are highly personalized and interactive by nature, demanding low to ultra-low latency.
Companies and services mentioned: Viacom18, Jio Cinema, Endeavor, UFC, WWE, NBC Universal, Peacock, FOX, Disney, MLB, WWE, CBS, Pac-12, Roku, Apple TV, Netflix, Wave One, Apple, AMD, IMAX.
Questions or feedback? C…
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Mar 29, 2023
Episode 54: YouTube TV Price Increase; Problems at Twitch; Apple TV+ Content Might Come to Theatres
This week we discuss the recent price increase at YouTube TV which will now start at $73 a month, which in some cases, is only a few dollars cheaper than cable TV in a triple-play bundle. We also highlight some recent news from Apple including rumors they may be partnering with studios to put more titles in theaters; Paramount+ announcing it will offer mobile-only plans in Brazil and Mexico; a detailed report on the challenges Twitch is facing; and a notice of proposed rulemaking from the FTC it dubs “click to cancel,” requiring companies to make ending a subscription equivalently simple to signing up for one.
Companies and services mentioned: Apple TV+, Paramount+, YouTube TV, Twitch, Netflix, Microsoft, MLB, Fire TV, MLB, FTC.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 29, 2023
Executive Interview: Eric Black Discusses the Latest Business Models and Technical Challenges in The Sports Streaming Market
Eric Black, who for more than 20 years, was a leader for NBC Universal’s media technology strategy across a host of digital properties during pivotal moments in the evolution of live streaming, joins me for a discussion about the sports streaming market. We discuss licensing costs, bundling and packaging of sports content, user personalization, the impact of low/ultra-low latency streaming, and discuss the focus of his new job, as CTO and GM of Media for Edgio.
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Mar 14, 2023
Episode 53: Reviewing Netflix's First Live Streaming Event; Disney's CEO Discusses Pricing, Hulu and DTC Growth
This week we review Netflix’s success with their first live event from both a video quality and user interface standpoint and discuss what live streaming means to Netflix’s business since most consumers are not going to regularly tune into Netflix on a scheduled time. We also highlight a lot of interesting comments made by Disney’s CEO around the pricing and bundling of Disney+, how they are "very carefully” studying the streaming business to decide what to do with Hulu and his thoughts on what growth for Disney’s DTC business looks like going forward.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, ESPN, HBO Max, Warner Bros. Discovery, TikTok.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 6, 2023
Episode 52: Earnings Recap from Warner Bros. Discovery, fuboTV, DISH, Brightcove, Vimeo + Sports Streaming News
This week we detail the numbers you need to know from the Q4/full-year earnings of Warner Bros. Discovery, Vimeo, fuboTV, Vizio, Brightcove, DISH and Altice. We highlight revenue growth, free cash flow, pay TV subs lost, streaming subs gained and ARPU. We also cover some of the news around sports streaming and OTT services from MSG+, RSN licensing, NFL Sunday Ticket and Indian Premier League cricket.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, HBO Max, fuboTV, Warner Bros. Discovery, MSG+, Brightcove, Vimeo, DISH, Altice, YouTube TV, Tubi, Tubular Labs and Chartbeat.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 20, 2023
Episode 51: Netflix Account Sharing Problems; Super Bowl Latency Doesn’t Matter; Earnings Recap from Roku, Paramount, Akamai, Fastly
This week we breakdown the problems Netflix’s is having in Canada with their new account sharing rules that are confusing, incomplete and conflicting. We also discuss the latency of the Super Bowl stream and why lower latency doesn’t equal more viewers, longer viewing times, or more ads delivered. Also detailed are all the numbers you need to know from Paramount, Roku, Akamai and Fastly’s earnings including sub growth, year-over-year revenue growth and profit and loss.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, FOX Sports, Roku, NBC Sports, FanDuel, NFL, Paramount, Nielsen, Amazon Fire TV, Disney, YouTube, DIRECTV, Akamai, Fastly.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 16, 2023
Executive Interview: Harmonic Discusses the Latest Challenges and Opportunities in Cloud Workflows
Gil Rudge, SVP, Video Products and Solutions at Harmonic joins me for a discussion about some of the latest deployment trends for cloud-based video workflows. We discuss the lack of adoption of 4K; the complexity of live sporting events; the trade-off between on-prem versus the cloud; and the success Harmonic has shown in diversifying the company’s revenue from hardware to the cloud.
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Feb 13, 2023
Episode 50: Key Takeaways from Disney Earnings; Sling Launches FAST Offering; Pay TV Isn't Dead
This week we breakdown all the numbers from Disney's Q4 calendar 2022 earnings including subscriber losses with Disney+ (2.4M); Gains at Hulu (800K) and ESPN+ (600K); announcement of 7,000 layoffs; loss of $1.1B from DTC business; latest ARPU numbers; the re-org of Disney into three divisions and the CEO's comments that Disney is not considering a spinoff of ESPN. We also discuss Sling's newly launched FAST service called "Sling Stream" and discuss why pay TV will not be "dead" in three years like some executives are suggesting.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Disney, AMC Theaters, Sling, Amazon Prime Video, Yahoo, Zoom, ESPN, Hulu.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 5, 2023
Episode 49: Key Takeaways From Earnings Recap of Google, Amazon, Apple, Comcast, Verizon
This week we highlight the key numbers you need to know from Q4 2022 earnings results from Google (YouTube revenue growth declined), Amazon (AWS revenue growth of 20%), Comcast (now has 20M Peacock subs but lost $978M), Apple (Revenue down 5% y/o/y), Verizon (Lost 80, 000 pay TV subs), Charter (Lost 145,000 pay TV subs) and additional news around Netflix, Paramount+, World Cup, Liliac Cloud and Harmonic.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Comcast, Apple, YouTube, Amazon, Peacock, Paramount+, Showtime, World Cup, F5, Struum, Liliac Cloud, Verizon, Charter, Harmonic, AWS, Prime Video, CloudFront.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 1, 2023
Executive Interview: Vevo Discusses Their FAST Offering, Monetization, Engagement and User Experience
Kevin McGurn, President of Sales and Distribution for Vevo joins me for a discussion around Vevo's FAST strategy. Kevin discusses the success Vevo is seeing with regards to their content programming and how it changes per region; their monetization strategy with advertising; how they are getting such high engagement numbers; the importance of multi-platform distribution; and why the largest volume of their viewership happens on the large screen.
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Jan 25, 2023
Episode 48: The Key Takeaways From Netflix’s Earnings; Reviewing HBO Max’s First Sports Event; Content Deals by Viacom18 and NBCUniversal
This week I highlight all the key numbers you need to know from Netflix’s earnings including subscriber numbers, free-cash-flow, paid sharing and projected numbers around AVOD revenue. I also give my review of HBO Max's first live sporting event on the platform with the US women's national team soccer match against New Zealand. Finally, I run through all the new sports licensing deals with NBCUniversal, (U.S. Soccer Federation), Viacom18 (Women’s Indian Premier League) and the rumors Apple will bid on the Premier League domestic television rights that come up for renewal in 2025.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, HBO Max, Nielsen, JW Player, InPlayer, DAZN, Amazon Prime Video, NBCUniversal, Peacock TV, Viacom18, Apple, Sky Sports, BT Sport, Alphabet, Microsoft.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jan 15, 2023
Episode 47: Super Bowl Won't Stream in Native 4K; DAZN Discloses Sub Numbers; How Many FAST Channels Are Too Many?
This week we highlight the price increases from fuboTV, DirecTV Stream and HBO Max’s ad-free plan, with many live linear plans now being more expensive than cable TV. We also discuss news from FOX Sports who said their NFL Playoffs/Super Bowl broadcast schedule will not be broadcast or streamed in native 4K, but rather will be captured and produced in 1080p HDR and upscaled to 4K. We breakdown the new subscriber numbers from DAZN and their announcement that it now has 15 million premium paying subscribers and highlight their financial numbers reported by the media. Finally, we debate how many FAST channels are considered too many with Samsung announcing their Samsung TV Plus service now has over 1,800 channels globally and more than 200 in the US alone.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, HBO Max, fuboTV, DirecTV Stream, DAZN, Curiosity Stream, Samsung TV Plus, NBC Sports, Sunday Night Football, FOX Sports, BSD Crown, Amazon, Twitch, DirecTV.
Questions or feedback? Contact:…
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Jan 9, 2023
Episode 46: Industry Layoffs; Latest ARPU Data; Fragmented Video Advertising Metrics
This week we highlight some of the layoffs across the industry (Vimeo, Amazon, Kaltura, Amdocs, JWP) and why getting to positive cash flow for vendors is and should be the number one goal in 2023. We also detail the latest ARPU numbers from OTT services and some TV news from CES, with Roku announcing the first-ever smart TV designed and built by Roku and a still unnamed partner. Finally, we discuss the extremely fragmented landscape for video advertising metrics, the news of Nielsen ONE and how every major media company has struck deals with measurement firms like VideoAmp, EDO, Comscore, and iSpot to replace or supplement Nielsen.
Companies and services mentioned: Vimeo, Kaltura, JPW, Amazon, Netflix, Disney, Nielsen, Videoamp, Amdocs, Transmit Live, Warner Bros. Discovery, Roku, Samsung, Google TV, EDO, Comscore, iSpot.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jan 2, 2023
Episode 45: Ramp, Qumu and The Switch Acquired; NFL Sunday Ticket Tech Specs; 2023 Market Drivers and Restraints
This week we highlight some of the tech details released around the NFL Sunday Ticket package coming to YouTube TV, which won't allow consumers to purchase the package per team or per game. We also discuss YouTube confirming that 4K video quality was not required as part of their deal with the NFL and what we think that impact could be. Also covered are the acquisitions of eCDN Ramp by Vbrick, The Switch by Tata Communications and Qumu by Enghouse Systems. We close out the podcast with our thoughts on how companies will grow in 2023, what the market drivers and restraints will be and how companies can and will grow in the New Year.
Companies and services mentioned: YouTube TV, Netflix, NFL Sunday Ticket, Amazon Prime, Comcast, Disney, Apple, ESPN+, JioCinema, Video, Qumu, Ramp, Vbrick, The Switch, API. video.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Dec 19, 2022
Episode 44: Netflix's AVOD Model Not Struggling; HBO Max Original Content Licensed to FAST Services; fuboTV Suffers Cyber Attack
This week I highlight some of the recent news around Netflix's AVOD business and the media's ridiculous suggestion that Netflix is struggling after only six weeks. I also discuss why Warner Bros. Discovery has recently decided to license certain HBO and HBO Max original programming to third party FAST services, as a smart way to save money on residuals while making money on syndication. Also detailed are a news items from Peacock TV, fuboTV, Edgio, and Vimeo.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Peacock TV, HBO Max, fuboTV, Edgio, Vimeo, Warner Bros. Discovery, JetBlue.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Dec 12, 2022
Episode 43: Netflix Says Sports Isn’t Profitable; Paramount Warns of Declining Ad Revenue; Caesars Sportsbook App Streams a Low Latency NFL Game
This week we breakdown the launch of AVOD on Disney+; the news by Paramount’s CEO of declining advertising revenue in this quarter; Netflix’s comment that licensing sports content isn’t profitable; NBCU’s announcement that Peacock has more than 18 million paid subscribers; how Netflix’s open source deal with GPAC gives them a competitive advantage for video packaging; and we detail Caesars streaming an NFL game via live low latency in the Caesars Sportsbook app.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, Peacock TV, Apple, Paramount, Microsoft, Caesars, Activision Blizzard, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, FTC.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Dec 5, 2022
Episode 42: Breaking Down the World Cup TV and Streaming Viewership Numbers
This week we breakdown many of the World Cup TV and streaming viewership numbers from around the world, with most outlets not breaking out streaming only data. We also discuss the latest comments from Disney and Netflix's CEOs around their ad supported models. Also covered, Sinclair Broadcast Group’s Diamond Sports Q3 earnings (Net loss of $1.2B); Yahoo's 30-year deal with Taboola; NFL TV viewership numbers and the latest conflicting numbers around churn.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, Apple, MLB, Sinclair, Diamond Sports, Ballys Sports+, Yahoo, Taboola, Paramount, Antenna, Warner Bros Discovery, World Cup, BBC, FOX Sports, NBC Sports, NFL.
Link to World Cup numbers: https://www.streamingmediablog.com/2022/12/worldcup-viewership.html
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Nov 22, 2022
Episode 41: Bob Iger Comes Back As CEO of Disney, Why It Matters; Apple Details MLS Pricing and Video Quality
This week we discuss Bob Iger coming back to Disney as the CEO and the impact it could have around Disney’s DTC business involving bundling, pricing, sports licensing and improving Disney's balance sheet. We also highlight the new details Apple released around their MLS streaming service, MLS Season Pass, which will offer 1080p/60 video, launching in February for $15 a month or $100 for the year. Also included in the discussion is a list of all the Black Friday streaming deals and the negative impact that has on ARPU for streaming services.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, WarnerBros. Discovery, Disney+, Apple TV+, MLS, MLB, Hulu, Peacock TV, Paramount+, Discovery+, Roku, DISH, Amagi.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Nov 14, 2022
Episode 40: Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney CEO's Discuss Churn, Pricing, Bundling and Focus on Profitability, Not Sub Count
This week we discuss the recent comments from Warner Bros. Discovery’s CEO around profitability, retention, windowing, bundling and pricing of HBO Max and Discovery+. Profitability, not purely sub count is how they benchmark for success. We also discuss his comments on how collapsing all windows, starving linear and theatrical and spending money with abandon, while making a fraction in return on the service of growing sub numbers, has ultimately proven to be deeply flawed. On the topic of churn, we point out what the industry is getting wrong with their assumptions and highlight the recent comments from Disney’s CEO, who said that price increases don’t meaningfully increase churn or cancellations. We also recap Q3 earnings from Disney, Vizio, Akamai, Edgio, Kaltura.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, WarnerBros. Discovery, HBO Max, Apple TV+, Paramount+, Peacock TV, Vizio, LG, Akamai, Amagi, Edgio, Kaltura, FTX.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Nov 7, 2022
Episode 39: Q3 Earnings Recap from Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Roku, Fubo, WarnerBros. Discovery, FOX, Vimeo, Brightcove and Fastly
This week we breakdown all the key numbers you need to know from Q3 2022 earnings from OTT companies and streaming vendors including Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Roku, Fubo, WarnerBros. Discovery, FOX, Vimeo, Brightcove, Fastly, Cloudflare, Altice, DISH, Lionsgate and AMC Networks. Learn the latest D2C subscriber numbers, ARPU per user and how much money OTT platforms are still losing (Disney lost $1.47B, Paramount lost $343M).
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Roku, Fubo, WarnerBros. Discovery, FOX, Vimeo, Brightcove, Fastly, Cloudflare, Altice, DISH, Lionsgate, AMC Networks, Charter, Xumo, Tubi, NPR+.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Oct 23, 2022
Episode 38: Why Micro-Wagering Within Sports Streaming Services Is a Fantasy; Updated Sports Viewing Numbers
This week we breakdown Fubo's decision to close and exit the Sportsbook market along with DAZN's comments that betting within streaming services isn't a reality in the next few years. We also highlight some new sports viewership numbers from NBC Sports and NFL; cover some recent pay TV losses by pay TV providers; detail Apple's new Apple TV boxes and discuss the NBA's new app that has 12-seconds of latency. Finally, while almost no video vendors are profitable, let alone seeing a positive return on their stock price over the past 12-18 months, we detail the numbers that make Harmonic the exception.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, NBC Sports, Apple TV, Harmonic, Vimeo, NBA, NFL+, MLB, Amazon Prime Video, Verizon, DAZN, Fubo, Disney.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Oct 16, 2022
Episode 37: Netflix Announces New AVOD Tier With 720p Video; Are Consumers Willing to Sacrifice Video Quality for Price?
This week we breakdown Netflix's soon to be released AVOD offering and the fact that the video quality is limited to 720p with no ability for downloads. Are consumers willing to sacrifice video quality for price? Will the streaming industry need to re-think how they define video "quality" if consumers are willing to accept 720p as "good enough"? We also discuss Netflix's measurement deals announced with Nielsen, BRB, IAS and DoubleVerify and what this means for advertisers. We also cover what some of the largest live streaming events on the Internet have generated from a viewership standpoint.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Peacock TV, Nielsen, DoubleVerify, Beamr, Roku, Apple TV, Disney+, BBC, Integral Ad Science, NBC Sports, Amazon Prime Video, Riot Games, Akamai, IPL.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Oct 9, 2022
Episode 36: Nielsen’s Confusing Streaming Ratings; Google's Cloud Deal With MLB; Vizio FAST Ad Revenue; Vendor Layoffs
This week we breakdown Nielsen’s confusing streaming rankings, which aren't accurately comparing shows based on the same metrics. We also highlight Peacock's latest paid sub numbers (15 million); Google's expanded cloud deal with MLB; Mux's recent round of layoffs; Vizio's FAST ad revenue and Roku's removal of all SDK1 channels. We also discuss how many companies hiring for new positions are not doing a good job following up, list jobs no longer open and need to do a better job of putting people first.
Companies and services mentioned: Peacock, Comcast, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, MLB, Google Cloud, Nielsen, Netflix, Disney+, PlayStation 5, ByteDance, Vizio, Roku, Amazon, eBay, Mux.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Sep 26, 2022
Episode 35: Amazon NFL Viewership Numbers; HEVC Support Added to Chrome; IMAX Buys SSIMWAVE; Twitch Encoding Costs
This week we breakdown the viewership numbers from Amazon’s first Thursday Night Football game and the differences between all the numbers reported. (11.8M, 13M, 15.3M) We also discuss the news of Google adding HEVC support in Chrome and some cost details given out by Twitch of how expensive it is to deliver HD, low latency, always available live video to nearly every corner of the world. Finally, we highlight IMAX’s acquisition of SSIMWAVE and their goal to bring a specific level of video quality to consumers at home.
Companies and services mentioned: Amazon Prime Video, NFL, NBC Sports, DIRECTV, NFL+, NFL Sunday Ticket, CBS Sports, Bally Sports, Twitch, Chrome, IMAX, SSIMWAVE, Diamond Sports, Nielsen.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Sep 16, 2022
Episode 34: Recapping The Good and Bad From Amazon's NFL Thursday Night Football Stream
This week we breakdown Amazon's stream of their NFL Thursday Night Football game on September 15th and the wide variety of user experiences that were reported, both good and bad. We discuss the issue that some ISPs had resulting in poor video quality, the terrible job by Amazon support, a large group of people reporting audio and video issues and a host of other comments from viewers. We also highlight how the Amazon game is an example of why streaming will not replace cable TV as a broadcast medium with the same reliability, scalability and stability.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Sep 12, 2022
Episode 33: Special Interview With Barry Tishgart (Former SVP/GM, Disney Streaming) On The Current State of The Sports Streaming Market
This week I’m joined by a special guest Barry Tishgart, who just left Disney Streaming Services as a SVP and GM of Technology Services. Barry joins me to discuss the current state of the sports streaming business including RSN licensing, bundling, pricing, distribution, video quality and what the consumer sports experience will look like in the future.
Companies and services mentioned: Amazon Prime Video, NFL, ESPN+, MLB, Nielsen, Peacock TV, NBC Sports, Bally Sports+, Sinclair Broadcast Group.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Aug 21, 2022
Episode 32: The Problem With Third-Party Viewer Measurement Platforms; Previewing NFL on Amazon Prime
This week we discuss the recent news of Amazon’s plans to use Nielsen for TV measurement of Thursday Night Football on Prime Video and highlight problems the streaming industry faces in defining what success looks like. With no standards or agreed upon methodology, definitions or user metrics, the streaming industry is struggling to measure and define viewership from one service to another. We also recap the Walmart+ and Paramount deal; new sports licensing deals with Big Ten Conference and the UEFA Champions League and discuss more of what Netflix’s AVOD offering could look like.
Companies and services mentioned: Amazon Prime Video, NFL, Netflix, Walmart, Nielsen, FOX, CBS, Disney, Peacock, Lionsgate, Big Ten Conference, ESPN, Paramount+, UEFA Champions League, DAZN, fuboTV.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Aug 14, 2022
Episode 31: Q2 Earnings Recap From Disney, Akamai, Edgio, Vizio, Trade Desk
This week we recap all the news from Disney's April-June earnings including their D2C business losing over $1B in the quarter; their addition of 14.4M Disney+ subs globally; Hulu and Disney+ price raises; Hulu losing 3.4M SVOD subs and 100,000 Live TV subs and their launch of Disney+ with ads in December. We also cover the numbers you need to know from Akamai (Revenue up 6% y/o/y), Edgio (Initial 2023 revenue outlook of between $550-$560 million), Vizio (Platform+ net revenue up 69% y/o/y), and Trade Desk earnings (revenue grew 35% y/o/y).
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, Netflix, Hulu, Tubi, Fox, ESPN+, Paramount+, Disney + Hotstar, Indian Premium League, Vizio, The Trade Desk, Edgio, Akamai, Roblox, Coinbase.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Aug 7, 2022
Episode 30: Why FAST Is Overrated; Earnings Recap from Paramount, Fubo, Warner Bros. Discovery, AMC, Lionsgate, Fastly, Vimeo
This week we discuss why FAST services are overrated; the news that HBO Max and Discovery+ will launch as a single service in the U.S. next summer; we highlight the key data you need to know from Q2 earnings from Paramount (added 4.9M Paramount+ subs), fuboTV, (lost 70,000 subs), Lionsgate (added 1.8M Starz subs) and cover earnings from streaming vendors including Fastly, Brightcove and Vimeo. We also discuss why WPP, which is the world's biggest advertising agency group, raised its revenue growth targets for 2022.
Companies and services mentioned: Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO Max, Discovery+, fuboTV, Netflix, Tubi, Pluto TV, Paramount+, Sling TV, AMC Networks, F1, Lionsgate, Starz, Roku, Canal+, WPP, Liberty Media, Altice, Fastly, Cloudflare, Vimeo, Brightcove.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jul 31, 2022
Episode 29: Earnings Recap; Key Takeaways from Roku, Amazon, Apple, Charter, YouTube, Microsoft and Comcast
This week we breakdown the key numbers you need to know from Q2 earnings at Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Comcast, Roku, Charter, Meta, Microsoft and Samsung. We cover the "significant slowdown in TV advertising” seen by Roku and others; Meta's price per ad falling by 14%; Peacock TV subs being flat quarter-over-quarter; cord cutting from Charter (lost 240,000 pay TV subs) and Comcast (lost 521,000 pay TV subs); and YouTube's slowest ad revenue growth in over two years.
Companies and services mentioned: YouTube, Netflix, Apple, Meta, Comcast, Charter, Peacock TV, Alphabet, Microsoft, Panopto, Kaltura, Shofify, Google Cloud, Quest 2, Samsung, AWS, Roku, Amazon, Apple TV+, NFL, Amazon Prime Video.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jul 24, 2022
Episode 28: Extending Video Delivery To Rural ISPs; Snap and Twitter See Declining Ad Growth; Verizon Cord Cutting Accelerates
This week we discuss the latest advertising numbers from Twitter and Snap's Q2 earnings, which saw slowing demand for their platforms and had declining revenue. We also highlight the rate of Verizon's cord-cutting numbers, with the company losing 86,000 pay TV subscribers in Q2 and have now lost 8.1% of all their pay TV subs in the last 12-months. Also discussed, Qwilt's deal with the NCTC to deploy CDN caches inside 100+ rural ISPs that combined, reach 34 million households.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney, ESPN+, Apple TV, fuboTV, Verizon, Twitter, Snap, MLB, ESPN+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, Qwilt, Vimeo.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jul 19, 2022
Episode 27: Netflix Q2 Earnings Recap: Sub Counts; Balance Sheet; Ad-Supported Tier Opportunity
This week we discuss the key takeaways from Netflix's Q2 earnings report including subscriber losses for two-quarters in a row, what Netflix expects for growth going forward and the current state of Netflix's balance sheet. We also detail what we've learned about their plans to offer an ad-supported tier and why we believe this is a real opportunity for Netflix, rather than a challenge as some are suggesting.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jul 10, 2022
Episode 26: Previewing Netflix's Earnings; Why Disney Passed on IPL Cricket Rights
This week we breakdown a preview of what to look for in Netflix’s Q2 2021 earnings including subscriber losses/gains, ARPU and an expected update on their advertising strategy. We also discuss what the impact of Stranger Things Season 4 might be on churn and retention being Netflix split the release of the series across two financial quarters. We also detail the IPL Media streaming rights (2023-2027) auction won by Viacom18 and why Disney said they didn't compete on the rights, at the priced needed to win the auction, based on the content not offering enough long-term value to their Disney+ Hotstar service.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Disney, Viacom18, Disney+ Hotstar, Amazon Fire TV.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jun 27, 2022
Episode 25: Deltatre To Get Acquired; Pixelot Raises $161M; Free Peacock for Comcast Subs Will Expire; Latest Sports Viewership Numbers
This week we breakdown some financial news including the proposed sale of Deltatre, which is expected to generate $180 million of revenue in 2022 and Pixelot's raise of $161 million in funding. We also discuss Limelight’s final sale price for Edgecast, which ended up valuing the company at $135 million. Mark and I also breakdown Netflix’s confirmation that it is not buying Roku, details on how the Apple and MLS deal will work for viewers, and we highlight what NBCUniversal’s CEO said about Peacock no longer being free for Comcast customers in the future.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Roku, Peacock, Deltatre, Endeavor Streaming, Firstlight Media, Edgio, Pixelot, Apple, MLS, Bally Sports Plus, NBC Sports, ESPN+, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, Sling TV, Adobe.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Jun 9, 2022
Episode 24: Cable TV Seeing Record Sports Viewership; VC Investors Pulling Back on Funding
On this episode, we discuss how sports events (NBA, NHL, Indy 500, PGA, Premiere League) are seeing record viewership on cable TV, with sports leagues and broadcasters making no mention of streaming viewership. We also discuss the new NESN 360 sports streaming service and the impact of Disney potentially losing the IPL (Indian Premiere League), which would impact Disney+ Hotstar’s growth. We also talk about funding problems some streaming vendors are having, with the larger impact in the financial markets making it difficult to secure capital.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney+, Netflix, NESN 360, Netflix, Roku, NBA, NHL, Indy 500, PGA, Premiere League, Apple TV+, Melvin Capital, Tiger Global Management.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 27, 2022
Episode 23: The Latest ARPU Numbers From Streaming Services; Setting Proper Growth Expectations in the Market
With more streaming services adding AVOD plans, this week we breakdown ARPU amongst streaming services, which now have to be properly compared between SVOD, AVOD and a combo of the two. We also highlight new information given out by Disney and Netflix around their ad-supported plans, Telestream's acquisition of Encoding.com, the new NFL+ service and Paramount's thoughts on the windowing of movies. We also detail some of the problems companies are facing, across all sectors, when it comes to setting proper growth expectations on Wall Street and why some companies are being forced to cut costs and lay people off, or slow hiring.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, NFL+, Netflix, Roku, HBO Max, Vizio, Paramount, Peacock TV, fuboTV, Spotify, Pluto TV, Telestream, Akamai, Encoding.com, FIFA, Snap, Edgecast, Limelight Networks, Melvin Capital.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 15, 2022
Episode 22: The Latest Engagement Data and Earnings Recap from Disney, Fubo and DISH
This week we breakdown Q1 2022 calendar earnings from Disney, fuboTV and DISH including subscriber gains/losses, ARPU and revenue growth rate. We also detail some engagement numbers highlighting what engagement looks like across gaming (Roblox, Activision Blizzard), trading (Robinhood, Coinbase), social (Facebook) and other platforms showing how consumer's behaviors have changed since the pandemic.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Disney, fuboTV, DISH, Sling TV, AMC, Hulu, EPSN+, Hotstar, YouTube TV, Vizio, Facebook, Roblox, Peloton, Carvana, Coinbase, Activision Blizzard, Robinhood, Charter, Call Of Duty.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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May 8, 2022
Episode 21: Earnings Recap; Paramount, Roku, Comcast, Akamai, Limelight, Google, Amazon, Brightcove, Fastly, Vimeo, Charter, Verizon
This week we breakdown the key numbers you need to know from Q1 earnings reports including updated subscriber and ARPU numbers from Paramount+, Roku, Peacock TV and cord cutting numbers from Charter, Comcast and Verizon. We also detail the revenue growth rate, GAAP net loss/gain from cloud vendors and streaming vendors including Akamai, Alphabet, Brightcove, Fastly, Limelight, Microsoft, Vimeo. Come up to speed on important Q1 earnings you should know about, all in 30-minutes.
Companies and services mentioned: Comcast, Peacock TV, Paramount+, Roku, Amazon, Fastly, Limelight, Akamai, Brightcove, WicketLabs, Microsoft, Amazon Prime Video, NFL, Alphabet, YouTube TV, Vimeo, Charter, Verizon.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 30, 2022
Episode 20: NAB Show Special, Thoughts and News From The Event
This week we discuss some of the news from the NAB Show, detail some of the products and services we saw on the exhibit floor and talk about the hottest topics discussed at the Streaming Summit. We also detail attendee numbers, some of the NAB's plans for the new show in NYC in October, how engineering teams are building out video applications and what the future of the media business looks like.
Companies and services mentioned: Meta, Agora, FOX Sports, LaLiga, Hulu, Sling TV, Netflix, HBO Max, Eluvio, Livepeer, Brightcove, Mux.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 24, 2022
Episode 19: Special Interview With Google About Their New Media CDN Offering
On Monday April 25th, Google announced a new commercial CDN offering called "Media CDN", as part of their Google Cloud platform. For this special podcast, I sat down with David Reisfeld, Customer Engineering Manager, Network Specialist at Google to discuss the news. We cover why Google is entering the CDN market, what their new service consists of, how Media CDN is leveraging YouTube's infrastructure, the importance of Media CDN to Google's Cloud platform and what their product roadmap looks like for the rest of the year.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 17, 2022
Episode 18: Detailing The Challenges and Opportunities in Roku’s Business
This week we breakdown Roku’s business model discussing their challenges but also the large opportunity they have in the market when it comes to the strength of their advertising platform. We also discuss Roku’s ARPU, international growth and the success they have seen in their OS platform for TV manufacturers. We also highlight some AVOD news in the market and discuss Netflix adding an ad supported tier (before Netflix earnings came out).
Companies and services mentioned: Roku, HBO Max, Hulu, Netflix, Apple, Facebook.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 10, 2022
Episode 17: Debating The Holy Grail Of The Streaming Industry, OTT Service Aggregation
This week we discuss the holy grail of of the streaming media industry, a single platform to aggregate streaming media services. With new Discover and Universal Watchlist functionality from Plex and news from Verizon about their +Play platform to centralize subscription services, we debate what might really take place in the market. We also cover some streaming viewership numbers from March Madness, the news of Disney+ getting live content with Dancing With the Stars and breakdown some of the technical limitations of the MLB stream on Apple TV+.
Correction: The MLB games on Apple TV+ will be free for the "first 12 weeks", not just the first game like I suggested.
Companies and services mentioned: Apple TV+, MLB, Disney+, Plex, Verizon, Netflix, Peacock TV, NFL.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Apr 3, 2022
Episode 16: The MLB and NFL Are Chasing “Streaming” Money, At The Risk of Losing Viewers and Fans
This week we discuss the complex streaming sports licensing business and the challenge sports fans now have in finding and consuming games from MLB and the NFL. With both league's doing exclusive streaming only deals for distribution, many consumers will now need cable or cable like bundles to get access to all games. With MLB on Apple TV+, Peacock, ESPN, TBS and some RSN services, it's getting to be a complex mess. The NFL is also getting more complex with Thursday night games now exclusive to Amazon Prime Video and won't be broadcast anywhere else, even in local markets. We debate what the impact could to the NFL and MLB when it comes to the future of fan viewership and engagement.
Companies and services mentioned: Apple TV+, MLB, NFL, Amazon Prime Video, MLB.TV, Sinclair, Peacock, ESPN, TBS, MoviePass.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 28, 2022
Episode 15: Debating The Impact of Password Sharing and Free Trials; Questioning Who’s Watching AVOD Services; The Financial Impact of Lower Priced Ad-Supported Tiers
This week we debate the real impact that password sharing could have on revenue and ARPU of streaming services. We also try and decipher confusing data from Antenna on the conversion rate from free trials to paid subscribers. We question who’s watching AVOD services when so much of the content is old and not exclusive to any single platform and discuss what the financial impact could be to OTT services when adding a lower priced ad-supported tier. And we touch on the launch of CNN+ and wonder who the target demographic is for the service when so much news content is now just commentary.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, Antenna, YouTube TV, Pluto TV, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Disney+, CNN+, Roku, Xumo, Tubi, IMDb TV, Vizio, Discovery.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 20, 2022
Episode 14: NAB Show Streaming Summit Preview; Discussing the Future of Conferences and Hybrid Events
This week we preview some of the speakers and content that will be at the NAB Show Streaming Summit, taking place April 25-26 in Las Vegas. Hear what companies like Netflix, HBO Max, Paramount+, Disney, Fire TV, FOX, MotorTrend, La Liga, DAZN and others will be discussing and some of the main topics that will be covered in the program. We also discuss how industry conferences have changed since the pandemic, the role of hybrid events, what show organizers are doing well and what others need to improve on.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, HBO Max, Paramount+, Disney, DAZN, fuboTV, Oracle, Red Bull Racing, AWS, Salesforce, Korea Content Platform, Adobe, Dolby, Samsung, LG, Demuxed, Roku, Fire TV, Vizio.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 13, 2022
Episode 13: Breaking Down The Apple TV+ and MLB Deal; Verizon Launches New Aggregation Platform +play, Hulu Makes Unlimited DVR Free
This week we discuss the Apple and MLB deal and debate the importance of sports streaming to the content strategy of Apple TV+ going forward. We also highlight what the deal might mean for other sports streaming companies like Sinclair’s DTC service, which will have go-fenced games from some MLB teams and we talk about the difficulty consumers are having in finding sports content from one league on a single platform. The discussion also breaks down the news by Verizon of a new platform called +play, which will allow consumers to purchase and manage some of their favorite subscriptions across entertainment, audio, gaming, fitness, music, all with a single point of billing.
Companies and services mentioned: Apple, MLB, Sinclair, Apple TV+, MLB.TV, Netflix, Hulu, Verizon, Roku, Vizio, LG, Samsung, CNN+, Verizon Fios, Disney, NBCU, Peacock TV, YouTube TV, Amazon Prime Video, Antenna, FOX Nation, Sony.
Questions or feedback? Contact: dan@danrayburn.com
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Mar 6, 2022
Episode 11: Interview with Limelight’s CEO Bob Lyons on Their Acquisition of Edgecast, Plans to Rebrand as Edgio and Current State of The CDN Market
For this special edition of my podcast, I sit down with Limelight’s CEO Bob Lyons to discuss the details around their news to acquire Edgecast from Apollo Funds in an all stock deal valued at approximately $300 million (1x Edgecast revenue) and to rebrand the combined companies as Edgio. We also discuss the current state of the CDN market including the competitive landscape, pricing trends, the expected mix of Limelight's revenue between CDN and security as well as what Limelight’s product strategy looks like going forward.
Note: The podcast was recorded the night before the news was announced, so any impact to Limelight's stock price on Monday March 6th is not covered. The new website for the combined companies will be www.edg.io
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Mar 6, 2022
Episode 12: HBO Max Gets Into Live Sports; The Challenges and Opportunities for CTV; Vizio’s AVOD Revenue Growth
This week we highlight HBO Max entering the live sports market with the news that they will broadcast more than twenty Women’s and Men’s National U.S. Soccer matches each year. We also discuss what Disney’s new ad-supported subscription for Disney+ might look like, when the option launches in late 2022. We also break down AppLovin’s acquisition of CTV platform Wurl for $430 million, based on projected 2023 revenue of $75 million and the challenges and opportunities for the entire CTV market going forward.
Companies and services mentioned: HBO Max, WarnerMedia, Netflix, Turner Sports, Disney+, Paramount+, Netflix, Vizio, Pluto TV, AppLovin, Wurl, Human, fuboTV, Roku, Samsung, LG, NBC Sports.
*Articles Mentioned
- *AppLovin, which announced their plans to acquire Wurl for $430 million has now disclosed Wurl revenue. Wurl is projected to do $75 million in revenue by 2023.
- Vizio Q4 Earnings: Platform+ revenue of $105.1M, up 74%; SmartCast Active Accounts grew 24% to 15.1M; ARP…
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Feb 26, 2022
Episode 10: Sling TV Loses Subs; DAZN Raises $4.3B; Streaming Vendors Project Slowing Year-Over-Year Revenue Growth
This week we breakdown the 70,000 subscriber losses from Sling TV in Q4, the injection of $4.3B into DAZN and the upcoming soft launch of Bally Sports RSN streaming service. We also cover the key numbers you need to know from FuboTV, who ended 2021 with 1.13M subs and Discovery, who wrapped up 2021 with 22M D2C subs. We also discuss what’s behind so many streaming vendors slashing revenue growth projections for this year when compared to 2021.
Companies and services mentioned: DAZN, FuboTV, Sinclair, Bally Sports, BT Sports, DISH, Sling TV, Discovery, HBO Max, Sabio, Vidillion, Haivision, AVIWEST, Kaltura, Brightcove, Fastly, Vimeo, Agora, Limelight Networks, Akamai, Qumu, Hopin.
*Articles Mentioned
- *Discovery Q4 2021 Earnings: Gained 2M paying D2C subs, ended 2021 with 22M; Expects merger with Warner Bros. to close in Q2
- DISH Q4 2021 Earnings: Lost 70,000 Sling TV subscribers in Q4 to end 2021 with 2.49M Sling TV subscribers; Total revenue in Q4 of $4.45B, flat y/o/y*
- *FuboT…
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Feb 20, 2022
Episode 9: Confusing Super Bowl Streaming Numbers; Earnings Recap From Roku, Paramount, Fastly, Akamai and Brightcove
This week we breakdown the confusing streaming numbers given out by NBC Sports from the Super Bowl and cover what you need to know about revenue growth, profit/loss, market cap and revenue guidance based on earnings from Roku, Paramount, Fastly, Akamai and Brightcove. We also call out Phenix for their bogus ultra-low latency claims around the Super Bowl and the narrative they are pushing with the media claiming “sports streaming is broken”, when it isn’t. Finally, we cover the latest impact to streaming media related stocks which had another bad week, with some seeing big declines in their stock price.
*Companies, services and people mentioned*: NBC Sports, Peacock TV, Paramount+, AMC Networks, Roku, Akamai, Fastly, Brightcove, Kaltura, Phenix, Chas Mastin, Alex Zambelli, Will Law, Catie Keck.
*Articles Mentioned*
- Q4 Earnings: Key Numbers From Brightcove, Akamai, Fastly, Cloudflare and Vimeo
- NBC Sports Confusing Super Bowl Streaming Numbers
- The Super Bowl Didn’t Offer U…
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Feb 13, 2022
Episode 8: Disney Earnings Recap; Problems With Vimeo's Business; Brightcove Gets a New CEO
This week we breakdown earnings from Disney including the new subscriber numbers and ARPU they announced for Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+, while also losing $593 million in their D2C business in Q4 2021. We also detail earnings at Vimeo along with some major problems in their business and multiple changes they announced regarding their go-to-market strategy. Other news highlighted include revenue numbers from FOX Corporation, new bundling pricing from fuboTV, Brightcove's appointment of a new CEO and the problem many in the media and industry have separating facts versus opinions.
Companies and services mentioned: Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, Disney Streaming Services, FOX Corporation, Tubi, Vimeo, Brightcove, fuboTV, Needham & Co., Netflix, Allure Security, Discovery, WarnerMedia, Innovid, TVSquared, Roku, Peloton.
Questions or feedback? Contact us at dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 6, 2022
Episode 7: Earnings Recap from Meta, Google, Amazon, Starz; Latest Ad Revenue from YouTube and Amazon; Brightcove and Dolby Make Acquisitions
This week we breakdown earnings from Amazon, Meta and Alphabet including Amazon's disclosure of revenue from its fast-growing advertising business, AWS revenue growth of 40% and Amazon raising their Prime membership fee. We also cover Apple’s negative impact on Meta’s business, estimated to be in the order of $10 billion in 2022, and YouTube's ad revenue of $8.6 billion, up 25%. We also cover Brightcove's acquisition of audience insight platform Wicket Labs and Dolby’s acquisition of ultra-low-latency video platform Millicast.
*Companies and services mentioned*: Amazon, Meta, Alphabet, YouTube, Discovery, HBO Max, Starz, Brightcove, Millicast, Lionsgate, Apple, Wicket Labs, Dolby, AWS, Instagram, BT Group, WarnerMedia, Comcast.
Questions or feedback? Contact us at dan@danrayburn.com
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Feb 1, 2022
Episode 6: New Numbers From Peacock, HBO Max and Latest Pay TV Losses (Earnings Recap Apple, Comcast, AT&T, Verizon)
This week we breakdown Q4 earnings data from Comcast, Verizon, Apple, AT&T and Charter and discuss different pricing and bundling trends of OTT services. We also highlight new subscriber numbers given out on Peacock TV and HBO Max as well as the latest number of pay TV losses reported by the cable operators. We also debate the global TAM for streaming media households, estimated by Netflix to be 600-800 million, and question why if that number is accurate, Netflix is having trouble growing faster in low-penetration regions such as Europe and APAC.
*Companies and services mentioned*: Netflix, Comcast, Peacock TV, Apple TV+, Verizon, Charter, HBO Max, Discovery, Disney+, Spotify, AT&T, Hulu.
Questions or feedback? Contact us at dan@danrayburn.com
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Jan 23, 2022
Episode 5: Netflix Earnings and Competitive Pressure; DOJ and FTC’s Potential Impact on Microsoft Acquiring Activision Blizzard
This week we breakdown Netflix's Q4 earnings after watching the stock drop over $100 the next day, also causing new 52-week lows for stocks from Disney, Roku and fuboTV. We also discuss the proposed $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, announced on the same day that the DOJ and FTC discussed plans to update and modernize merger enforcement guidelines, something that could mean more rigorous scrutiny of major tech and media transactions. Other news highlighted includes Limelight Networks earnings, the rumor of DAZN in talks to acquire British channel producer BT Sports for $800 million and fuboTV raising their RSN Fee in New England.
*Companies and services mentioned*: Netflix, Disney, Roku, fuboTV, Limelight Networks, DAZN, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Discovery, WarnerMedia, Amazon, MGM, Vimeo, Peacock TV, Apple, Amazon, NHL.
*Executives mentioned*: Bryan Walls, Eric Iverson, Eric Black, Lexie Knauer, Lisa Bennett.
Links to articles mentioned:
Netflix Q4…
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Jan 16, 2022
Episode 4: Netflix's Price Hike; New Churn and Retention Data; Latest Sports Licensing Deals (Sinclair, ViacomCBS)
This week we talk about industry challenges with churn and retention and highlight some of the major problems when it comes to the methodology being used to compare services. We also discuss Netflix's recent price increase and the potential impact it could have on their subscriber growth. We also cover the recent sports licensing deals with the news that ViacomCBS secured the exclusive rights to stream English Premier League soccer; Sinclair announced a new distribution rights agreement with the NBA and we've read rumors of Apple talking to MLB. We also highlight new subscriber numbers from fuboTV, the growth of IMAX's revenue in 2021 and our take on the attendance numbers from the CES Show.
Companies and services mentioned: Netflix, ViacomCBS, Paramount+, Discovery, Sinclair Broadcast Group, fuboTV, IMAX, Vimeo, Roku, NBA, Apple, MLB, V-Nova, Disney, Salesforce.
Links to articles mentioned:
Over 58% of OTT Services Surveyed Have “Limited” to “No” Insight Into The Main Reaso…
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Jan 9, 2022
Episode 3: Latest HBO Max Numbers; Debating the Growth of vMVPDs; Fire TV and Google TV Data from CES
This week we breakdown the latest HBO Max/HB0 subscribers numbers just released by AT&T and question how the industry should define sub growth. While 73.8M sounds like a big number, the service had 61M at the end of 2020 and won’t have day-in-date releases this year. We also debate some of the latest “estimates” released on vMVPD subscriber growth and highlight the challenges faced with vMVPD packages now averaging $65 a month. We also touch on some of the latest numbers given out at the CES show around Five TV device sales and Google TV adoption.
Companies and services mentioned: HBO Max, Fire TV, Peacock TV, Sling TV, Hulu, Disney, Netflix, Discovery, WarnerMedia, Apple, Roku, Samsung, TCL, Google TV, YouTube TV, fuobTV, Philo, DIRECTV STREAM, PlayStation Vue, ESPN+, Comcast, AT&T, Fastly, Cloudflare, Brightcove, Limelight Networks, Haivision, Kaltura, Qumu, Vimeo, Twitter, Akamai.
Executives mentioned: Jay Utz, Noah Levine, Robert Coon, Guy Paskar, David Belson.
Links to ar…
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Jan 3, 2022
Episode 2: Poor Video Advertising Experiences; Growth of AVOD Services; Potential Content Roll-up in 2022 (Starz, AMC, ViacomCBS)
This week we discuss how the industry gushes about video advertising growth, without really addressing the problems around personalization, measurement, formats and low CPM rates. We also discuss the growth of AVOD services and question how many can exist when they are offering essentially the same thing — a bundled offering of free networks with a lot of old movies and TV shows and syndicated programming. We also debate which content companies might get acquired in 2022 including Starz, AMC and ViacomCBS.
Companies and services mentioned: Tubi, Pluto TV, Starz, AMC Networks, ViacomCBS, TikTok, Noggin, Comcast, Sony Pictures, MLB.TV, Amazon IMDb TV, Roku, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Samsung TV, LG, Amazon, MGM.
Executives mentioned: Darren Lepke, Stephen Condon, Yueshi Shen, Andy Beach.
*Links to articles mentioned*:
Video Advertising Experiences Got More Annoying and More Frequent in 2021
https://www.streamingmediablog.com/2021/12/video-ad-experiences.html
Streaming wars drive me…
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Dec 19, 2021
Episode 1: Metrics, Churn and Retention; Unified Video Stacks; Unrealistic Vendor Valuations; Roku and Google Dispute
This week we discuss the problem with Nielsen's reporting and how the industry should define churn and retention; the importance of HBO Max and Disney defaulting to a single video stack; how some vendors are overestimating their valuations; and why Roku and Google's dispute isn't over.
Companies and services mentioned: Roku, Google, Disney Streaming Services, Hulu, HBO Max, NFL, ESPN, Amazon, NFL, YouTube, WarnerMedia, Discovery, Nielsen, SiriusXM, Vudu, Hive Streaming, Firstlight Media, Vimeo, Mux, Hopin, Brightcove, Fastly, Panopto.
Executives mentioned: Joseph Inzerillo, Jonathan Stock, Rick McConnell, Mike Green, Nathan Veer, Doug Castoldi, Tony Miranz.
Questions or feedback? Contact us at dan@danrayburn.com
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