Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I do not search in that way.

What success, anyway? Audiences continue to decline.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Subscriber numbers. Profit margins. ARPU.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I don't think that most people will be switching services every month. Most who switch will do so from time to time as they run out of programmes that appeal on the platform they are currently subscribing to, or when a competitor offers some programming that appeals more.

These streamers mean much more choice, and far too much to view all of it. That cannot be a bad thing. Those who worry about the cost needn't, because there will also be free services with ads available as well.

This may reassure those who are worried about cost!

https://www.digitaltveurope.com/2019...t-ceo-roberts/


Comcast CEO Brian Roberts has laid out the company’s plans for its new streamer, Peacock, saying that the company is looking for the “fastest way to get to profitability with the least amount of investment” with an ad-supported model being the way forward.

The CEO was speaking at a Q&A during Goldman Sachs’ annual Communacopia conference.

He said that the company wanted to “do something different in a very increasingly crowded field”.

Clarifying the situation, Roberts added that Peacock will be offered for free to existing US Comcast customers. The streamer will be available for non-Comcast users for free with ads, or with no ads for an as-yet unknown monthly fee.

He added that “advertising with a light ad load,” combined with “the premium content that will be on this network” will create a platform “unlike any advertising inventory available”.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Well as the yanks are getting it free, I would hope we will as well!

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I suspect Comcast would be reluctant to put Now TV's subscription revenue at risk by offering a subscription-free option.

---------- Post added at 20:46 ---------- Previous post was at 20:23 ----------

Interesting article in the FT suggesting that the only streaming service winners will be YouTube and ByteDance (a Chinese service similar to YouTube).
https://www.ft.com/content/24be6faa-...b-77216ebe1f17

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Comcast's streaming service will be made available free to Sky subscribers not sure on other platforms though

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

YT is doing superb with it's original content isn't it? :D

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

No, but then again, would you watch it if it were free?

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

A lot is now free mate, YT have put their premium content free to view with ads.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Younger viewers grow up (eventually)!

Comcast would not lose out by having a free version as their income on sub-free services would emanate from commercials. I think most streamers will be offering both subscription and subscription-free versions of their services in the future.

---------- Post added at 19:42 ---------- Previous post was at 19:40 ----------

I know, but my point was, is it worth watching anyway? I am not even attempting to look at that stuff.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Younger viewers do grow up but whether they will shift their current consumption patterns as they grow up is unknown.
Revenue from subscription services is far greater than advertising. Comcast would risk losing the subscription revenue if some subscribers defected to the advertising model.
If advertising models generated better revenues, VM and Sky would opt for this over subscription.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I have been reporting on a lot of depressing news about the likely fate of the linear channels over the last four years, but here is a glimmer of light for those who cannot imagine life without them.

I have been struck by how few new dramas are now finding their way to the TV channels, and next week's TV & Satellite Week appears to confirm the decline of our conventional channels. No new dramas starting at all next week apart from a new series of Arrow on Sky One, whereas just three years ago, there were always lots of new good drama series commencing every week at this time of year.

Compare that with all the new stuff on Netflix, Amazon and now Apple+. TV & Satellite Week have gone from two or three pages of programmes on the streamers to nine this week!

Then, this afternoon, I read the article in the link below, which seems to suggest a change in thinking about programme distribution, and it got me wondering. Given that the number of views of programmes on the streamers is likely to decline with time, what if they then allowed the linear channels to have the right to broadcast them, either exclusively or shared with the streamer? This would bolster the revenues of the streaming companies while replenishing the content of the TV channels.

Of course, this will only work if sufficient people continue to watch scheduled TV interrupted by commercials, but it is, as I said, a glimmer of hope.

https://tbivision.com/2019/10/18/how...-again-column/

[EXTRACT]

After Netflix CEO Reed Hastings suggested at the RTS Convention in Cambridge last month that the US streamer may now be more flexible with the global rights they once pushed for so rigorously, it feels that the rules have yet again been re-defined for distributors and broadcasters. Indeed, it was reported in Cannes that rights to Netflix’s epic original drama The Crown will apparently soon be heading back to Sony Pictures Entertainment – a massive reversal to linear distribution. How the game has changed.

In the past, some traditional linear broadcasters could have seen Netflix as the enemy, but are they now viewing them as more of a strategic partner? Will more of the shows that originated on these platforms now actually be up for grabs by linear broadcasters going forward?

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

The quality of Netflix dramas has been poor of late it's probably the least I've used the service , quantity sadly doesn't always bring quality.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I can't say I've seen any poor ones, but I am actually quite selective of what I watch (On the contrary, the shows I watch on Netflix are excellent). I do think that flooding the market with shows isn't going to do Netflix any favours though. I'd rather they cut the quantity down a little, and concentrated on the quality. We are going to get to the point where instead of getting excited about a new Netflix drama, people are just going to roll their eyes, shrug and say "Meh, it's another Netflix drama".

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Passive-aggressive much?

On your other point about new material on broadcast TV, reality does not coincide with your view...

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom...n-of-streamers They delivered more than 32,000 hours of original, homegrown productions across their channels in 2018, which was around 125 times more than was shown on paid streaming services (221 hours). The vast majority of programmes available on streaming platforms are US-made productions, created to play out in multiple countries.

Lots of quotes in there about the growth of streaming, but broadcast TV has lots of life in the old dog yet, as traditional channels still form 70% of TV time, and the five main public service broadcasters’ channels held their share of viewing – at 52% in 2018 compared to 51% in 2017.