Posts for 'Podcast'

I’m pleased to present the 460th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Apple partially pulled back the curtain on its video strategy this past Monday. In today’s podcast Colin and I dig into what Apple revealed, weighing the pros and cons of the strategy.

Apple is checking a bunch of boxes: bolster its TV app to try making it a hub for OTT viewers, enable third-party SVOD/premium TV subscriptions with Apple TV Channels, and tease its Apple TV+ SVOD/originals strategy with a bunch of A-list stars. It’s a start, but Apple is coming to video extremely late and Colin and I agree that all of the above taken together is unlikely to generate a lot of new services revenue in the short term with Apple facing a variety of challenges.

But…Apple has unparalleled user experience DNA, deep pockets, huge flexibility in how it bundles its forthcoming SVOD service with others (i.e. music, games, news) and of course has a massive user base to build from. And Apple is playing the long game, as it must in the new post-iPhone, services-centric era.

With Apple’s SVOD service, Disney+, WarnerMedia and who knows what else set to come to market in the next 6-8 months, it’s going to be a very busy year.

Listen in to learn more!
 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 44 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!
 

I’m pleased to present the 458th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Earlier this week, DirecTV Now changed its packaging and pricing by introducing 2 new tiers, DirecTV Now Plus and DirecTV Now Max. They are both anchored by HBO, but also lose popular networks from Viacom, Discovery and AMC.

On today’s podcast Colin and I discuss the likely rationale behind the changes and what impact they’ll have. One thing seems clear: given the spectrum of TV networks they carry, Hulu Live TV and YouTube TV are poised to become leaders in the virtual pay-TV industry.

Next, Colin updates us on several statements a Netflix executive made earlier this week that he believes need further clarity. Colin delights in “keeping them honest” and his watchdog role benefits all of us trying to understand industry data.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 30 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!
 

I’m pleased to present the 457th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast we’re joined by Dan Robbins, who is Roku’s director of advertising and programming research. We explore all of the angles around Roku’s connected TV (CTV) ad business, which has become a critical driver of its growth. As Dan explains, Roku is hyper-focused on helping ad buyers understand how CTV can add incremental value to their campaigns, by using sophisticated tools and industry partnerships.

Among the topics we discuss include which agency buying groups are focused on CTV, how Roku’s measurement partner program is creating new value for advertisers, how Roku is serving the full funnel from lower to upper, why Roku considers itself a “data company, first and foremost,” why the “social contract among advertisers, programmers and viewers is broken,” and lots more.

For anyone interested in how Roku is successfully transitioning its business to ad-supported and the dynamics of the booming CTV category, Dan’s insights are extremely valuable.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 4 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

Note, Roku is a Branding Partner at our 9th annual Video Advertising Summit on May 29th in NYC. Register early to save and to double your chances of winning a Roku 55-inch 4KTV!

I’m pleased to present the 456th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast we cover 3 different topics. First, AT&T had a busy week - its deal for Time Warner was finally cleared after the DOJ’s appeal was rejected, both HBO CEO Richard Plepler and Turner president David Levy resigned, and a Variety report has Disney interested in buying AT&T’s 10% stake in Hulu. Colin and I discuss all of these and their implications.

Next, Colin weighs in on the new collaboration between the BBC and ITV to launch a version of BritBox in the U.K. and why it matters. Finally, another week, another YouTube content malefactor(s), leading to an advertiser pullback. We discuss how YouTube is playing whack-a-mole but that at the end of the day advertisers need YouTube and are unlikely to leave altogether.
 
Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 47 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 455th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Connected TVs are rapidly re-making the TV landscape and, according to new data from Extreme Reach yesterday, an emerging benefit is that they’re reenergizing 30-second ads delivered online. On today’s podcast Colin and I talk about why this is happening and more importantly why it’s likely the beginning of a strong trend.

We then transition to talking about “password sharing” which has been a longstanding, but quite murky topic in SVOD. Most SVOD services have dealt with it by imposing caps on concurrent streams, users or devices, relying on subscribers to get hooked on the programming and then feel the need to upgrade or add plans. Colin reviews recent data that supports the idea that password sharing is mostly a nonissue.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 34 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 454th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Colin’s site published a provocative piece this week focused on whether YouTube is doing as much as it should for its vast network of content creators. In our first segment this week we debate this question. Colin asserts YouTube isn’t, while I counter it’s likely doing as much as it feels it needs to, and especially focuses on its biggest creators. We do agree that with YouTube’s audience still growing and advertisers returning, the question may be moot anyway.

We then dig into this week’s deal by Brightcove to acquire Ooyala’s OVP business, joining two traditional competitors. For me the deal illustrates the rising bar video platforms must meet for both publishers and users, driven by in-house technology found in Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, YouTube and others and the need for greater scale. From a strictly financial standpoint, Brightcove’s move seems savvy and opportunistic.

Listen in to learn more!
 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 3 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 453rd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This past Sunday’s Super Bowl set the record for the lowest total score in the Big Game’s history, but it also set the highest record for number of people watching the action via the Internet. According to Colin’s excellent analysis, upward of 7 million people streamed some portion of the game. About 2.6 million did so via CBS and NFL digital properties. But per Colin’s calculations nearly twice as many watched via virtual pay-TV operators, which stream their services over the Internet. We both believe YouTube TV played a leading role.

So while the total TV audience watching shrunk to 98.2 million, its lowest level in over 10 years, the number of people who trusted the Internet to stream the action rose to a new high. We discuss the implications of this and the growing role virtual operators are playing now. We also observe how the Big Game’s advertising roster included SVOD providers and other digital-first companies, a sign of its ongoing superiority in reaching a mass audience.

Listen in to learn more!
 
Click here to listen to the podcast (22 minutes, 36 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 452nd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This week’s news that DirecTV Now lost 267K subscribers in Q4 ’18 (a swing from 368K it added in Q4 ’17) raises critical questions about where the virtual pay-TV industry goes from here? As virtual operators’ discounted promotions trail off, prices rise, programming gets rationalized, competition rises and viewers turn to SVOD and ad-supported OTT options, a far more challenging road lies ahead for growing and retaining subscribers.

In this week’s podcast, Colin and I dig into these issues and speculate on whether, 2 years from now virtual operators combined are more likely to have 15 million subscribers or 1 million subscribers? In other words, which direction is this industry really going in? AT&T seems determined to play a key role with the collection of assets it has assembled. But timing and execution are critical to its success.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 16 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 451st edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

First up this week we talk about Sling TV’s new initiative to promote third party SVOD services, including to consumers who aren’t  subscribers to its underlying virtual pay-TV service. Colin and I differ about its potential and whether Sling TV has “permission” to pursue this. We debate the upside of a separate new Sling TV initiative to provide a layer of free on-demand content. We also dig into Hulu’s new emphasis on SVOD aggregation which seems promising to both of us.

We then shift to discussing NBCUniversal’s plan to launch its own direct-to-consumer (DTC) service for non pay-TV subscribers. Colin is somewhat underwhelmed, while I think it’s a step in the right direction and too early to tell how aggressive the offer will turn out to be.  

Less than 3 weeks into the new year, it’s clear that big video providers are continuing to experiment and jockey for position.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 53 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 450th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

At CES this week Apple unveiled partnerships with big TV manufacturers including Samsung, LG, Vizio and Sony. While these represent progress, as Colin and I discuss, Apple still finds itself at a disadvantage both in enabling TV-based viewing for its upcoming slate of original TV shows (which reportedly cost $1 billion) and in trying to become a Connected TV (CTV) leader.

Colin and I dig into how others like Amazon, Netflix, Roku, etc. have succeeded in CTV, enabling their content to thrive. Conversely, we explore why Apple’s CTV presence has remained minimal, with the result now being limited viewer accessibility to its originals. Apple came into the CTV era with just about every advantage imaginable, but its “gilded cage” mentality has left it at the back of the pack of big tech companies forging into TV.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 20 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 449th edition of the VideoNuze podcast (and our first of the new year!), with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast, Colin and I discuss why we both believe most subscription video services will trend away from a pure direct-to-consumer (DTC) model and instead embrace large platforms for distribution. Roku’s plan to support subscription services (following Amazon Channels and Apple’s TV app) bolsters the trend.

There are numerous benefits to third party distribution for both content providers and consumers. DTC will still have a place in go-to-market strategies, but it will become smaller, except for major players like Netflix and Hulu.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 10 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 448th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Continuing our tradition for our final podcast of the year, this week Colin and I discuss the top 10 video stories of 2018 - at least in our humble opinions. Once again it has been a very active 12 months, with lots of innovation and change. Colin and I have had a great time analyzing and discussing the critical industry trends each week and we hope you’ve enjoyed listening to our thoughts in 2018.

Let us know what you think of our choices, whether you agree or disagree!

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (37 minutes, 16 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 447th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

It’s been a tough couple of months for fans of classic movie streaming video services, with AT&T pulling the plug on FlimStruck while another independent/classic movie service, Fandor, is laying off most of its staff and putting its assets up for sale.

On this week’s podcast we explore possible explanations for why these services  didn’t succeed, including relatively high monthly rates, lack of fit with target audiences, overall economics and more. Colin was a big FilmStruck fan, so he’s now going to have to find other outlets until the classic movies re-appear in the WarnerMedia’s SVOD service coming later in 2019.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 50 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!
 

I’m pleased to present the 446th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

YouTube has long been the 800-pound gorilla of online video advertising; now it is positioning itself for further gains in premium video. On this week’s podcast, Colin and I discuss a couple of the highlights: YouTube’s recent decision to add over 100 movies for free, ad-supported viewing and to shift its originals strategy from an SVOD model (YouTube Premium) to ad-supported.

As we explore, there is another interesting angle here as well, which is the interplay between Roku and YouTube. As I wrote earlier this week, The Roku Channel’s success was no doubt an influence on YouTube’s decision to launch free movies. As well, Roku’s huge footprint of connected TVs (as well as others like Chromecast, etc.) has created a living room environment perfect for longer viewing times and a more TV-like experience that YouTube is capitalizing on.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (22 minutes, 11 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 445th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast Colin and I explore the pay-TV industry’s record high video subscriber losses sustained in Q3 ’18 (more here and here). The two big satellite services, DirecTV and Dish Network were major contributors. But perhaps more important was a dramatic slowdown in subscriber additions for the two biggest virtual pay-TV operators, Sling TV and DirecTV Now.

As we discuss, with these virtual services in flux and not stanching the bleeding of traditional multichannel TV, the critical underlying trends of cord-cutting and cord-nevering burst onto full display in Q3. Meanwhile, the strategies and success of virtual services like YouTube TV, Hulu Live and others is murky at best. All of this shows how unstable the pay-TV industry as a whole currently is.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 35 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 444th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

In Q3 ’18, Roku continued its pivot to an advertising and licensing based business model, with “Platform” revenues accounting for 58% of total revenues, up from 46% in Q3 ’17.

On this week’s podcast, Colin and I discuss this shift and Roku’s other key metrics, which were all very strong, once again. Roku occupies a unique place in the video ecosystem - at once a device powerhouse with 24 million monthly users, a content provider through its fast-growing The Roku Channel, a connected TV advertising innovator and something akin to a next-gen pay-TV provider offering a la carte access to thousands of content choices.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 31 seconds)
 

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!
 

I’m pleased to present the 443rd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Comcast is on a roll in broadband. In a highly saturated market, Comcast managed to add 334K residential broadband subscribers in Q3 ’18, nearly double the 182K it added a year earlier. On today’s podcast, Colin and I discuss the factors that are driving Comcast’s broadband growth and how the company has fully pivoted to a “connectivity” strategy.

The only wrinkle is that Comcast could be more aggressive in defending its video business. While subscriber losses improved in Q3 ’18 vs. a year ago, the macro trends of  skinny bundles, SVOD, cord-cutting, etc. are unremitting. It’s still not clear Comcast has an aggressive response, other than to be an “aggregator of aggregators” via X1 and continually reiterate it doesn’t want to pursue low margin video services (i.e. skinny bundles).

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 52 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 442nd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This week we first discuss AT&T’s recently unveiled plans to launch a new streaming service sometime later in 2019, anchored by HBO and including assets from other WarnerMedia properties. Details are still slim, but both Colin and I highlight many different challenges for this service would get executed and priced, especially with respect to HBO’s role.

We then transition to talking about YouTube TV’s winning sponsorship of this year’s World Series. As I wrote yesterday, the execution is superb and includes many creative elements. For millions of viewers, it is impossible to not be exposed to the brand, and the campaign is surely leading to many new trial subscriptions.   

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 4 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 441st edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

(Apologies my audio quality is low this week)

On this week’s podcast Colin shares highlights of a panel discussion he led last week in London focusing on the best practices of three different direct-to-consumer video services. As Colin covered in his post about the session, these include keeping the service’s brand front and center, providing access to a base level of free content and having a comprehensive retention program.

This week’s podcast is really a continuation of last week’s interview with Paywizard’s CEO Bhavesh Vaghela who discussed how video service providers can improve their competitive. As Colin and I agree, these days, having great content is table stakes, but what really differentiates successful services is delivering outstanding experiences.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (22 minutes, 52 seconds)
 

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!

I’m pleased to present the 440th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This week Bhavesh Vaghela, CEO of Paywizard, joins us for a fascinating discussion about how video service providers can use technology to become more customer-centric and competitive. Paywizard specializes in subscription, billing and CRM software solutions for the video industry which enable actionable customer insights.

Bhavesh shares highlights of the company’s recent survey that focuses on the role positive customer experiences play. He also gives multiple examples of how different operators are learning to use data to improve retention and drive new revenues. Bhavesh explains how there’s still a real learning curve among both pay-TV operators and OTT providers. Using data to deliver a positive user experience requires real organization change and focus. 

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 23 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!