LEAD STORY
Netflix Misses Its Subscriber Goals
The COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns that were initiated as a result of that were a blessing in disguise for the streaming service Netflix in 2020, which recorded a global subscriber count of 203 million.
Viewers flocked to the streamer looking to alleviate boredom and/or just make the time pass as they were stuck in their homes.
But, with cities and states reopening and people resuming their outdoor activities things are not looking too good for Netflix as it missed its quarterly subscriber forecast.
The streamer, which now has 208 million subscribers, added four million subscribers from January to March, two million less than what it had forecast. It blamed the subscriber miss not on the opening of cities and states, but on the lack of new content due to production lags from the pandemic.
Netflix also did not acknowledge that in the past year it has encountered heavy competition arising from the likes of NBC Universal with Peacock, WarnerMedia with HBO Max, Discovery Communications with Discovery Plus, Apple with AppleTV Plus, and ViacomCBS’s Paramount Plus.
That is in addition to the heavy competition it is already getting from Disney’s Disney Plus and Hulu.
Despite the subscriber miss Netflix’s revenue grew by 24% year over year, which translated to $7.16 billion.
To counter all this Netflix says that it will spend $17 billion on content for the remainder of the year and it has resumed production in all of its hubs except for India and Brazil. They are also looking to crack down on password sharing.
Netflix expects to add one million subscribers by the end of this current quarter.
( AdWeek, Edmund Lee/Twitter, Axios, CNBC)
RECAP
CNN Was The Most Watched Network During The Derek Chauvin Trial Verdict
A total of over 18 million viewers flocked to their TV screens to watch the verdict from the Derek Chauvin trial. CNN led the way beating both broadcast and cable networks with 4.03 million viewers. ABC News was a close second with 4 million viewers, followed by Fox News with 3.4 million, MSNBC had 3.07 million, CBS News saw 3.02 million, and HLN came in with 825,000 viewers. CNN also led in the coveted advertiser demo of 25-54-year-olds with 1.5 million viewers, ABC News was next with 980,000, Fox News had 742,000, CBS News with 682,000, MSNBC had 562,000, and HLN at 309,000. (MediaPost)
NBC Sports Eager To Renew Its English Premier League Rights
NBC Sports has held the US rights to the UK’s English Premier League for the past five years and it will be looking to renew the deal after the completion of the 2021-2022 season. The sports network will not be alone in trying to work on a new deal as ESPN and CBS Sports are also showing interest in acquiring the EPL. ESPN would be trying to reclaim the EPL, which it had prior to NBC Sports’ deal, while CBS Sports would be the new kid on the block. NBC Sports currently pays $1 billion for its package, but it will be expecting to pay a whole lot more with a new deal. (Front Office Sports)
HBO Max Adds 3 million Subscribers In The First Quarter
WarnerMedia’s HBO/HBO Max saw a subscriber boost in the first quarter of 2021 adding 2.7 million U.S. subscribers. This brings the total subscriber count to 44 million, which still trails Netflix’s 67 million U.S subscribers. Aiding HBO Max’s growth is the decision by WarnerMedia to release its 2021 film catalog simultaneously on both HBO Max and in movie theaters. Movies like Judas and The Messiah, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Godzilla vs. Kong, and Mortal Combat have helped propel the streaming service’s numbers. (New York Times)
QUICK RECAP
Mike Santangelo a Fox News zipper writer passes away. (TVNewser)
CNBC hires Kate Dore as a personal finance reporter. (Talking Biz News)
Steve Levy, Brian Griese, and Louis Riddick will return to the booth for ESPN’s Monday Night Football. (Richard Deitsch/Twitter)
Fox News hires Bill Melugin as a national correspondent. (TVNewser)
Kristen Gibbons Feden joins MSNBC as a legal analyst. (MSNBC PR/Twitter)
Ex-NFL Player Julian Edelman joins the cast of Inside the NFL. (Awful Announcing)
Eric Woodyard will be covering the Detroit Lions for ESPN. (ESPN PR/Twitter)
Bob Costas returns to HBO. (TVNewser)
NFL Network reveals NFL Draft week plans. (Awful Announcing)
Carolyn Sung a CNN Producer was wrongfully arrested in Minnesota. (Alec Karakatsanis/Twitter)
What does the future hold for broadcast news operations after recent executives shuffles? (NBC News)
CBS Evening News and CBS News Investigative Unit win the Scripps Howard Award for Excellence in Broadcast National/International Coverage. (ViacomCBS Press Express)
CNN’s Lisa Ling to launch a travel food show on HBO Max. (TVNewser)
More news anchors to guest host on Jeopardy! (Jeopardy/Twitter)
Former New York Mets owners might be selling the SNY Network. (Sportico)
ABC News’ Johnathan Karl earns the Merriman Smith Award. (TVNewser)
ESPN anchors Elle Duncan and Kevin Neghandi talk about their NFL Draft day plans. (ESPN Press Room)
Nielsen to start measuring streaming views like how it does linear TV. (AdWeek)
CNN International launches a new show One World with Zain Asher. (CNN Press Room)
DraftKings and Sling TV launch a basketball betting channel. (Media Post)
NFL Network and NFL RedZone will be available on Hulu Live TV. (Jacob Feldman/Twitter)
DAZN denies role in Europe’s Super League. (Awful Announcing)
Fox Business’ website has a record first quarter. (Talking Biz News)
CNN Digital has its best quarter ever. (CNN Press Room)
Chris Wallace talks about his time as host of Fox News Sunday. (TVNewser)
How did the world react to the Derek Chauvin trial verdict? (The Guardian)
OAN fires producer who revealed staffers don’t believe the news they push out. (Mediaite)
World Series of Poker is moving to CBS Sports Network. (Awful Announcing)
CNN Digital earns 11 Webby Awards nominations. (CNN PR/Twitter)
Tubi should see $1 billion in advertising revenue by 2023. (MediaPost)
How media deals influenced the formation of Europe’s Super League. (CNN Business)
CNN made visual changes to its revamped morning show, New Day. (NewscastStudio)
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A MarkHenry Media LLC publication - Issue #56 - 2021