Television

Corona Capital: Hockey, HBO, Minority businesses

27 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: A plan to get pucks back on the ice offers a sporting template. Meanwhile, HBO’s streaming service may have missed its moment, and a survey shows minority-owned businesses have mixed feelings about life after Covid.

Cable networks risk post-virus vicious cycle

7 May 2020

Live sports are a big reason Americans tolerate pricey pay-TV packages. The lack of games is an excuse to cut the cord. Yet the NFL and others will want more for broadcast rights to make up for empty seats. That could push cable bills higher, and more subscribers toward the exit.

Disney’s advantages over Netflix are now flaws

5 May 2020

The Magic Kingdom’s theme parks and movies once seemed safer bets than high-cost, high-growth video streaming. Lockdown and a possibly protracted period of social distancing have changed that. Netflix will be stronger by the time Disney regains its former glory.

Thruppence: A guide to Covid-19 lockdown pursuits

3 April 2020

Roughly half the world’s population is now subject to social restrictions because of the coronavirus. That makes weekends a new kind of challenge. In an occasional series where Breakingviews columnists give more than their usual tuppence, here’s how some are spending their time.

Corona Capital: Banking bonuses, Local TV M&A

30 March 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: BBVA’s ditched bonuses pressure peers; local TV deal has more than one struggle.

Disney business risks getting frozen

16 March 2020

More than half the $171 bln entertainment giant's sales come from divisions encompassing theme parks and movie theaters, both empty thanks to the coronavirus. Canceled sporting events are also trouble for ESPN. Former CEO Bob Iger has left his successor with serious headaches.

Baby Yoda makes life harder for NBC and HBO

4 February 2020

The buzz around the new Star Wars character helped Disney end the year with 27 mln paying subscribers on its streaming service, beating analysts’ estimates. That’s 16% of Netflix customers. Their two TV rivals, which have yet to launch a product, may struggle to compete.

Netflix investors risk ruing streaming-stock binge

21 January 2020

Reed Hastings’ firm has little if any need for TV ratings, box-office sales or ads, unlike rivals. Shareholders focus on subscriber and revenue growth, fueling its stock-market success. But a slowdown in new users and an excessive, if declining, cash burn put that under threat.

Peak subscription economy approaches in 2020

23 December 2019

It’s not just streaming services from Disney and Apple that are competing for steadily paying subscribers. Online banks, wine sellers and even furniture retailers want them, too. Buyers can only spend and consume so much, though. For many vendors, the summit will be beyond reach.

Disney will lose its magic touch

19 December 2019

The media giant’s valuation has soared on high hopes for its Netflix-like streaming service Disney+. While rivals have struggled, boss Bob Iger has seldom put a foot wrong. Expectations are now so high that meeting them will take a different sort of sorcery.

Bolloré nears rare draw in messy Italian campaign

29 November 2019

Vivendi is to sell 20% of Mediaset, part of a broad truce with the Berlusconi-controlled broadcaster. The deal ends a wasteful legal row with little financial damage for Vivendi’s top investor Vincent Bolloré. Yet his larger Telecom Italia investment is still deep under water.

Disney streaming service has plus for Netflix too

31 October 2019

Others are also going live, but with a low price and a vault of content Disney+ will be Netflix’s toughest rival. There’s a benefit for CEO Reed Hastings, though: Being lumped together with the Magic Kingdom makes his firm look less like a tech giant in need of regulation.

The Exchange: PBS CEO Paula Kerger

28 October 2019

Streaming is upending the media landscape, including public television. Its funding model, local structure and social mandate make broadcaster PBS unlike any other U.S outlet. Its longest-serving boss, Paula Kerger, discusses the challenges and possibilities of the new era.

Viacom-CBS is the Rip Van Winkle of TV

14 August 2019

The two firms split 13 years ago to extract value and boost growth. That plan failed, while peers got larger like Disney, or sold like Fox. A reunited Viacom and CBS can best shake off its slumber by amassing a portfolio of great shows to sell to more established video streamers.

CBS-Viacom merger is more whimper than Big Bang

13 August 2019

The broadcaster and the MTV owner, both controlled by the Redstone family, have finally inked a $30 bln reunion. Rogue CEOs, supine boards and dumb disputes gummed up the process. Hefty synergies won’t make up for perhaps more than $15 bln of value lost in three years of limbo.

European TV M&A belongs on the cutting-room floor

7 August 2019

Broadcasters like Italy’s $3.5 bln Mediaset are pushing for cross-border deals as the sector loses viewers to Netflix and advertisers to Google and Facebook. M&A is not the answer: most TV costs are local, meaning few savings, while the added complexity may be counterproductive.

Disney, Netflix similarities diverge at ambition

6 August 2019

The Magic Kingdom’s stock is near an all-time high as the $250 bln media firm readies its streaming video service. Disney has the content and brand to be a strong Netflix rival as their paths converge. But unlike Reed Hastings’ company, cord cutters will test investor patience.

Disney movie mojo is tight squeeze on small screen

22 July 2019

The $250 bln media giant’s “Avengers: Endgame” is now the No. 1 grossing film in the world. The Mouse House is home to another six of the top 10 movies, too, thanks to boss Bob Iger’s savvy deals. Transferring the magic to its forthcoming video-streaming services may be hard.

Netflix runs into an age-old Hollywood problem

17 July 2019

The $159 bln video-streaming service added fewer subscribers than forecast. A price hike played a part, but Netflix also blamed a less appealing line-up of shows. Predicting hits and flops has long flummoxed Tinseltown. The ensuing lumpy results are now in Netflix’s script, too.

Netflix gets the last laugh in HBO “Friends” deal

10 July 2019

WarnerMedia’s new video service HBO Max will exclusively air the comedy series for a mooted $425 mln – snatching it back from its online rival. A blow to Netflix? Not quite. The streaming giant has effectively made sure the next buyer has to shell out a high price to win it back.