WarnerMedia Archives

AT&T Loses Over $50 Billion on Half-Baked Content Distribution Ambitions

September 27, 2021 FilmTake Comments Off

After losing over $50 billion on a series of failed forays into content production and distribution, AT&T was forced to start selling stakes in its recently acquired media assets or risk weakening its monopolistic grip on telecom and internet delivery.

Movie Theater Attendance Roars Back to Life Despite Ongoing Restrictions

September 12, 2021 FilmTake Comments Off

Embracing this day-and-date strategy follows seismic industry shifts last year that led WarnerMedia to release all its films on HBO Max when theaters were more or less closed due to lockdowns.

AT&T’s Great Media Escape Takes Shape After DirecTV and WarnerMedia Selloffs

September 5, 2021 FilmTake Comments Off

AT&T’s decision to acquire a declining DirecTV in 2015 and a bloated WarnerMedia in 2018 were massive miscalculations. Desperate to pay down its debt, in March 2021, AT&T announced it would sell a 30% stake in DirecTV.

The Lasting Effects

January 12, 2021 FilmTake Comments Off

As a result of diminishing content availability precipitated by production delays and cancellations, there will be large programming gaps for traditional television networks and OTT platforms to fill over the next two years.

Exclusive or Traditional Distribution?

September 29, 2020 FilmTake Comments Off

The rapid expansion of OTT worldwide has profoundly changed the market, unlike any other innovation since the emergence of cable television.

Netflix Claims Originals Win Out

January 1, 2020 FilmTake Comments Off

Netflix continues to publicize unsubstantiated claims that its original films and shows outperform third-party content contrary to all independent research.

Streaming in America

December 18, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Since first delivering DVDs to homes via the postal service, Netflix has come to dominate the SVOD market. The streamer has 67 million subscribers in North America, which takes its total to nearly 160 million worldwide.

New Details Emerge About HBO Max

November 5, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

AT&T’s WarnerMedia released details about its forthcoming streaming service HBO Max, which will officially launch in May 2020. The service will cost $14.99 a month, the same cost as HBO’s flagship service.

Betting On The Past

September 23, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Netflix signed a five-year deal with Sony Pictures Television worth $500 million to become the exclusive worldwide streamer for Seinfeld.

Apple Of Discord

September 15, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Apple TV+ subscription service will launch on November 1st for $4.99 a month. However, with only a handful of shows available, it will not frustrate the launch of Disney+ or challenge Netflix in a meaningful way.

Netflix’s Crown Slips

September 1, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Netflix’s long-time streaming competitors Hulu and Amazon Prime Video are starting to capture more viewing marketshare.

Netflix Market Report: Part Two

August 27, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Part Two: Netflix Trends, International, Feature Films. Through the first six months of 2019, Netflix’s customer acquisition costs have ballooned to $292 per subscriber.

Netflix Market Report: Part One

August 25, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Part One: Netflix Subscribers and Exclusivity. Netflix lost subscribers in the United States for the first time in nearly a decade. The next battleground in streaming will take place over content exclusivity.

Merger In Name Only

August 15, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

CBS and Viacom have reunited as one company after two failed attempts since 2016. The new company will be named ViacomCBS.

Uncharted Waters

August 5, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

By reclaiming their content from licensees to launch standalone streaming services, traditional media companies are sailing headlong into uncharted waters.

Cord Cutting Continues

July 28, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

During the second quarter, DirecTV’s traditional satellite service lost 778,000 subscribers and its streaming service DirecTV Now lost 168,000 accounts.

Netflix Faces Slowdown

July 24, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Beyond ballooning content and acquisition costs, fueled by costly debt, there are five additional obstacles that will challenge Netflix’s streaming dominance.

Netflix Loses Top Shows

July 17, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Netflix will lose its top two shows when Friends returns to WarnerMedia at the end of 2019, and The Office returns to NBCUniversal at the end of 2020.

Hollywood Netflix Divorce

June 9, 2019 FilmTake Comments Off

Recently, anonymous sources have reported to multiple news outlets about the difficulty Hollywood will face in attempting to take back its content from Netflix.