Cordkillers 369 - Stop the Merging! (w/ Merrill Barr)
Netflix good and bad: domestic subscribers are down, but games are coming! HBO Max is going to get Warner films again in 2022. Plus, trailers for Lower Decks, Dune, and Gaiman's Anansi Boys ordered at Amazon. All that and more on Cordkillers! With special guest Merrill Barr ( https://twitter.com/merrillbarr/ ).
This week on It's Spoilerin' Time: Ted Lasso (201), Rick and Morty (506), Hannibal (309-310)
Next week: Ted Lasso (202), Rick and Morty (507), Hannibal (311-312)
CordKillers: 369 - Stop the Merging!
Recorded: July 26 2021
Guest: Merrill Barr
Intro Video
Memories of a Murderer
Primary Target
Netflix beats on paid subscriber growth, but misses earnings expectations
Netflix bleeds subscribers in US and Canada, with no sign of recovery
Netflix’s gaming expansion starts with mobile
Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos Throws Flag On The Idea Of Buying Live Sports Rights: “Our Fundamental Product Is On-Demand And Ad-Free”
Netflix Signals No Acquisition Plans as It Adds 1.5 Million Subscribers
Netflix says its gaming push will begin with mobile
- You're going to see all kinds of headlines about Netflix, good and bad. Here's the scoop.
- The bad. Netflix's domestic subscribers, the ones in Canada and the US, dropped by 430,000.
- And its earnings per share, a mark of profitability, came in below expectations at $2.97.
- Netflix attributed all that to a lighter offering of shows and pandemic choppiness. What about all those new competing streaming services? Co-CEO Reed Hastings said "Does HBO or Disney... have a differential impact compared to the past? We’re not seeing that in the [data] we have. That gives us comfort.”
- Now to the good news. Revenue was $7.34 billion, just above expectations. And worldwide, Netflix added 1.54 million subscribers. That brings Netflix to 209 million paid memberships worldwide. Still ahead of Disney Plus's 104 million.
- And Netflix confirmed it's moving into gaming.
- In its shareholder letter, Netflix wrote:
- "We view gaming as another new content category for us, similar to our expansion into original films, animation and unscripted TV. Games will be included in members’ Netflix subscription at no additional cost similar to films and series. Initially, we’ll be primarily focused on games for mobile devices. "
- This is the latest move ancillary to video content, along with podcasts and merchandise.
- Hastings said they don't expect these new efforts to be profit centers of their own, but instead focus on making streaming better.
- “We’re a one-product company with a bunch of supporting elements."
- Co-CEO Ted Sarandos confirmed the company has no interest in acquiring live sports right now, for instance. “Our fundamental product is on-demand and ad-free, and sports tends to be live and packed with advertising,”
- In fact Netflix doesn't have much interest in acquiring even other companies. As it watches other media companies merge and consolidate, Netflix wrote in its investor letter "We are mostly competing with ourselves to improve our service as fast as we can."
- COO Greg Peters said the gaming effort will capitalize on Netflix IP.
- “We are in the business of making these amazing worlds and great story lines and incredible characters, and we know the fans of those stories want to go deeper, they want to engage further.”
How to Watch
HBO Max Launches Free Episodes on Snapchat
HBO Max will release 10 Warner Bros. films straight-to-streaming in 2022
AT&T CEO John Stankey Says WarnerMedia-Discovery Merge On Track
AT&T Q2: HBO Max/HBO Gain 2.8 Million Subscribers, Ups Year-End Target
HBO Max Banks 'House of the Dragon,' 'Peacemaker' to Offset Movie Loss
- HBO Max is doing well and had some good news this past week. It's feeling so good it's letting Snapchat users watch pilot episodes of select shows for free. You can even chat and share emojis with friends while you watch.
- That's' just the latest way HBO Max has two keep its number going up.
- HBO Max announced a gain of 2.85 million domestic subscribers to reach 47 million at the end to he last quarter. That's up 10.7 million over last year. 12.1 million of those are HBO Max direct subscribers, meaning they aren't accessing it through an existing HBO membership.
- Globally HBO and HBO Max have 67.5 million. AT&T raised its expectation from 67-70 million to 70-73 million global subscribers but the end of the year.
- Some of that growth came from releasing blockbuster titles on HBO Max the same day as they appear in theaters. Warner Brothers said previously it won't do that in 2022, but it now says it will release 10 films straight to HBO Max. That along with strong content like House of the Dragon and Suicide Squad spinoff Peacemakersare expected to help HBO Max keep momentum in 2022.
- Warner Media head Jason Kilar did not say what the 10 HBO max movies would be. While Warner Media has agreed with Cineworld on a 45-day window for a portion of its films, Kilar said the company does not plan tor return to a one size fits all strategy. “I certainly don’t anticipate us going back to the way the world was in 2015 or ’16 or ’17, where windows were quite lengthy between theatrical and home exhibition."
- Whether Kilar will keep the job after Warner Media is spun off from AT&T and merged into Discovery is a separate question. As to that merger AT&T CEO John Stanley said "no news is good news" and the merger is on track to close on or about May of next year. Another spinoff of DirecTV into a separate company is on schedule to close in August.
What to Watch
‘Dune’ Trailer: Timothée Chalamet Fights for His Life Against Armies and Sandworms
‘Dune’ HBO Max Series Enlists Diane Ademu-John as New Showrunner
- A new trailer for Dune is out showing off the star-studded cast that includes Zendaya, Timothee Chalet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Issac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgard, Dave Bautista, Jason Momoa, Javier Bardem, Charlotte Rampling.. And so n and so on. Dune premieres at the Venice Film Festival September 3 and comes to theaters and HBO Max October 22. In related Dune news, HBO Max's prequel series Dune: The Sisterhood, about the Bene Gessirit, has named Haunting of Bly Manor's Diane Adamu-John as showrunner.
‘Star Trek’ Animated Series ‘Prodigy’ and ‘Lower Decks’ Debut Trailers at Comic-Con
- Paramount Plus showed off trailer for Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Prodigy. Prodigy is about six young aliens who commandeer an abandoned starlet vessel which is not called the Prodigy but the USS Protostar. It has a holographic Captain Janeway who will be voiced by Kate Mulgrew. The Lower Decks trailer showed guest appearances from Jeffrey Combs and Robert Duncan McNeill. Prodigy is coming "this fall" and Lower Decks premiers August 12.
Universal & Peacock Close $400M Deal For ‘Exorcist’ Trilogy; Ellen Burstyn To Reprise Classic Role
- Peacock and Universal have a partnership with Blumhouse and Morgan Creek to make three Exorcist films which will continue from the original 1973 film but sounds like it might ignore the four sequels. It will star Leslie Odom Jr. alongside Ellyn Burstyn in the role of Chris MacNeil which she portrayed in the original film. The first film will premiere theatrically on October 13, 2023 before going to Peacock. The other two movies may premiere on Peacock.
Netflix Might Save ‘Manifest’ After All
- Deadline and the Hollywood Reporter say Netflix has started talking to Warner Brothers about making another season of Manifest, the show canceled by NBC but suddenly hugely popular on Netflix.
Netflix’s ‘Army Of Thieves’ First Teaser Trailer, Key Art And First-Look Images Out
- Netflix released a trailer for the prequel to Zach Snyder's Army of the Dead, called Army off Thieves. It tells the story of Ludwig Dieter and how he was hired to pull off a heist with a crew of aspiring thieves. Listed only as "coming soon"
Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys got a series order for the Amazon co-production.
Adult Swim and Crunchyroll released a trailer for Balde Runner: Black Lotus set between the original Blade Runner and 2049
Watch the latest teaser trailer for Netflix’s upcoming animated Witcher film
- Netflix released a teaser for the animated The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, focusing on the early life of Geralt's mentor Vesemir. It comes to Netflix August 23.
Lucifer season 6 will arrive on Netflix September 10. It's the final season of Lucifer.
‘Doctor Who’ Drops First Season 13 Trailer At Comic-Con Panel
- Doctor Who released a season 13 trailer featuring returning companion Mandip Gill as Yasmin Khan and new companion John Bishop. It will be a single storyline over 8 episodes, returning later this year.
A trailer is out for the final season, 11, of The Walking Dead. Premiering August 15 on AMC Plus and August 22 on AMC.
The return of Dexter got a trailer and a premiere date of November 7.
Pokemon Live-Action Series in Early Development at Netflix From ‘Lucifer’s’ Joe Henderson
- Variety's sources say a live action Pokémon series is in development at Netflix with Lucifer show runner Joe Henderson reportedly attached to write and executive produce.
Eyes On
Merrill: Woodstock 99: Peace Love and Rage, Tubby Nugget webcomic
Brian: I Think You Should Leave, Aunty Donna
Tom: Jungle Cruise
On the Lookout: Ted Lasso Season 2
Front Lines
Tokyo Olympics Viewership Way Down From 2016, But Streaming Up For NBC
- The opening ceremonies of the Tokyo Olympics reached 17 million viewers, well down from previous Olympic opening ceremonies. At least on broadcast. However streaming numbers were up 76% from the 2018 winter games and 72% from the 2016 summer games. However the first day of games on Saturday rose 26% for an 8.2 rating. And Peacock had its best Saturday since launch. NBC Sports Digital set a milestone for the most streamed Olympics primetime show ever, averaging 648,000 viewers per minute. Viewers also reportedly streamed 371 million total minutes from the Tokyo Olympics, a 21% increase from the same day at the Rio Olympics.
NBC Ratings Rise During Olympic Opening Saturday; Peacock Posts Best Saturday Ever
‘F9’ Tops $600M WW, ’Black Widow’ Passes $300M & China Still Confounds With Hollywood Locked In Release Date Limbo – International Box Office
- M. Night Shyamalan's "Old" brought in $16.5 million domestic and $23 million worldwide, beating Snake Eyes $17.4 million worldwide. However the worldwide winner was China's White Snake 2: The Tribulation of the Green Snake which brought in $29.8 million. Meanwhile F9 hit $600 million worldwide, and Black Widow passed $300 million.
Why ‘Snake Eyes’ Missed Its Mark at the Box Office — and What It Means for the ‘G.I. Joe’ Franchise
Apple Looks to Lease Hollywood Hub for Filming Shows and Movies
- Apple is looking to lease a large production campus in the Los Angeles area to produce its Apple TV Plus movies and series. Apple leases sound stages right now but is finding it harder to get space.
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and ViacomCBS Chairman Shari Redstone Met to Discuss Streaming Partnership
- Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and ViacomCBS Chairman Shari Redstone met at the end of June to discuss a streaming partnership in international markets according to the Wall Street Journal. This could be a prelude to a merger but the WSJ sources say Roberts doesn't feel like a merger is necessary. An overseas partnership could involve Peacock and Sky among other properties
‘Days Of Our Lives’ Limited Series With Lisa Rinna, Deidre Hall, More Ordered By Peacock
- Soap Operas have been in a slow decline but they're not gone and now showing a little bit of a sign of life. Peacock has ordered a five episode limited series in the Days of Our Lives expanded universe. Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem. The plot is a mystery involving stolen jewels, trying to gather stories of characters traveling all over the world.
Verizon's Fios TV app comes to Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV this week
- A couple of app updates for you. If you're lucky enough to have got your hands on a PlayStation 5, you can get six months of Apple TV Plus for free simply by installing the app on your game console. And Verizon has released new versions of its Fios TV app for Apple TV and Fire TV. You'll still need at least one set-top box from Verizon in your home though you can only have two simultaneous streams per box.
PS5 owners can get six months of Apple TV Plus for no charge
Dispatches from the Front
Hi guys,
I was just looking for your take on a couple thoughts that have kept recurring to me while listening to the show over the last few months.
1. Will sports continue to be the king of ad dollars going forward? I'm not so sure, as it seems to me that not only is the audience shrinking; but that as ad rates continue to grow, the allure of finding a cheaper way to reach the same people, must surely be growing as well.
2. I want an alternative commentary track for sporting events that is just the ambient noise on the field and the official's calls, otherwise watching on mute is the best option, imo.
3. Why pay? I mean, broadcast is free, YouTube is free, Prime Video is a freebie that comes with my prepaid shipping, and for now at least, HBO Max is free for me with my AT&T mobile plan. I have more stuff on those services than I can keep up with and that's not counting other free options like Pluto. Right now the only thing I pay for is the Motor Trend app and they keep giving me half off every year.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts,
- Kenneth
Hey Killers,
I just watched your segment where y'all talked about CNN+, and while you guys compared it to ESPN+, I think it actually compares closer to Fox Nation, as it gives viewers access to new content by existing cable news talent. Hopefully they will follow Fox Nation's lead and include the primetime shows too.
I think something like CNN+ might actually have appeal for millennials who care about the news AND boomers who watch cable news all the time. Millennials who are like my dad like cable news, but prefer to watch their favorite shows on demand, and many boomers might still enjoy watching a live channel if CNN+ decides to provide one so long as they use the same studios and talent for most of their programming, so that it feels familiar to them.
Where I see mainstream appeal for CNN+ is if they integrate their free live content into the app, such as press conferences and especially democratic debates, which I think have never been available to legally stream solely through a smart TV without actually having CNN (although casting should work).
From,
- Amar
Links
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