NFL Flexes Power During TV Upfronts Week
Welcome to TV Upfronts week - or, “Watch the NFL Flex Its Muscle” week: https://t.co/RGDNwEoH6o
Roku Streams Inaugural Enhanced Games to 90M Households
Boom 🚀 $ROKU becomes the North American streaming home for the inaugural @enhanced_games - part of Enhanced Group $ENHA - airing live on May 24 at 9pm EST / 6pm PST. This gives both the Enhanced Games sporting event and the “Live...
Upfronts Echo 1941 Media Landscape Shift
Flipped Script: At This Week’s Upfronts, It’s 1941 All Over Again ⤵️ https://t.co/MRnzCgEnZO via @sportico @crupicrupicrupi
Fiber Pivots Lift Shentel, TDS Amid Cable Sell‑off
D.C. Memo: Wall Street Keeps Selling Cable Stocks While the S&P 500 Hits All-Time Highs; @Shentel and @tdstelecom stand apart from the carnage, likely because their bold pivot to fiber keeps yielding net subscriber additions https://t.co/fduK7S6GKB https://t.co/cRG24KNbKl
Major Cineplex Jumps 11% on Booming Q1 Profits
Thai cinema operator Major Cineplex MAJOR TB (one of my biggest positions) +11% today thanks to its 1Q2026 report: • Revenue +14% • Net profit +126% • The Thai box office was strong, driven partly by Avatar and The Undertaker 2 •...
Investors Overreact to Hardware Forecast, Software Uncertainty
Price increase, lower hardware sales forecast, and lack of visibility on software pipeline have investors spooked. I think the concern is a bit overblown fwiw.
Category 10 Expands to Orlando’s CityWalk By
Luke Combs and Opry Entertainment Group are bringing Category 10 to Universal Orlando Resort's CityWalk, a 33,000 square-foot, three-story venue opening in late 2027. The brand is growing fast, and Orlando is next. https://t.co/zNLC2cBINy
Huge Investment, Tiny Audience: Just 182 Subscribers
"So far, the investment has produced an astonishingly small audience: just 182 YouTube subscribers, with many videos attracting only a few dozen views." More from @nataliekorach: https://www.status.news/p/washington-post-opinion-video-adam-oneal
Most NFL Viewing Costs Are Just Cable Fees
"In September, The Athletic calculated that watching major @NFL games last season would cost more than $600," @retauber of @TheAthletic reports. But isn't 85% of that six months of cable, satellite, or @YouTubeTV? Every Washington @Commanders game was aired on...
Critics' Scores Rarely Influence Opening Weekend Box Office
"For the record, before I go, I will say yet again… I do not believe that RT scores or CinemaScore or film critics in general or even word of mouth have a significant effect on the opening weekend...
Start Small: Sign Few Libraries, Land Syncs First
Sign with a few production music libraries. Get your feet wet Get some sync placements You can get picky later.
Don Lemon's Lemon Media Hits 10M, Expands Team
NEW: Don Lemon is expanding Lemon Media Network, his independent media co, which he says has surpassed 10 million followers across all social platforms… • McKinsey alum Douglas Robins is joining as Director of Operations. • Spectrum News alum Daniel Grimes is...
Ad Stack Rebuilt Around Generative Retrieval
Fantastic new (from April) paper from Kuaishou on GR4AD (Generative Recommendation for ADvertising). Kuaishou has made several important recent contributions to generative recommendation systems, particularly with its OneRec architecture. But GR4AD advances a more radical proposition: that the modern advertising...
Variety Gives You a Head Start on TV Upfronts
TV's annual 'upfront' market kicks off tomorrow, but if you've been reading @Variety you are already weeks ahead of the news cycle.... https://t.co/gUUOL1UmlS
Disney Hits $2B Global Box Office, First Studio
#Disney becomes the first studio to cross the $2B global box office mark in 2026. $DIS
Mortal Kombat Sequel Doubles Domestic
The R-rated video game follow-up opened to nearly double that of its 2021 predecessor while nearly matching the previous ‘Mortal Kombat’s lifetime domestic totals, but overseas is a different story
YouTube's $62B 2025 Forecast Proves It's Thriving
Is YouTube dying? $62 billion in revenue in 2025. That's not a platform that's dying. That's one that's just getting started. 👑 YouTube isn't just a video platform. It's the new king of media. 🔥 https://t.co/hoDMm5a8jX
Project Hail Mary Beats Pegasus3, Becomes
#ProjectHailMary crossed the 650M mark, beating #Pegasus3’s 649.9M run as #2 highest grossing film of 2026 at Global #BoxOffice, after grossing STELLAR 3.8M on 8th weekend overseas, just a -48.6% drop, despite losing all PLF, hitting a 328M intl. cume over...
Mortal Kombat II Sets Franchise Record Despite Missed Projections
#MortalKombatII was slaughtered overseas by a combo FATALITY from #TheDevilWearsPrada2 & #MICHAEL, coming way below projections - but still a record debut for #MortalKombat franchise at Global #BoxOffice - after #MortalKombat2 grossed 23M 5-day opening over 71 intl markets. Allied to...
Theaters Surge 88% YoY with $30M+ Hits
Theaters are in a GREAT place right now as this weekend was an astounding +88% higher than one year ago with PRADA, MORTAL KOMBAT & MICHAEL all at $30M+ The first two $40M+ And summer hasn’t even really kicked in https://t.co/tRjwICFwCe
Advertisers Prioritize Sports in Annual TV Upfronts
What do TV advertisers want most during the sector's annual 'upfront' sales market? 1. Sports 2. Streaming 3. Spectacles 4. Not Much Else https://t.co/gUUOL1UmlS
Digital Revenue, Not Songwriting Style, Drives Music Decline
Adam If you think that a (partial) shift back to professional songwriting rather than the objectively paltry digital revenue scheme caused a decline in music revenues you’re gonna need a robust model to justify that. Cause digital revenue formulas explain the...
Billie Eilish's Debut Earns $20.1M Worldwide, Outselling Swift
#BillieEilish debuts with just $7.5M stateside, adds $12.6M overseas for $20.1M global bow No Taylor Swift is she https://t.co/qMG2aexiGZ
YouTube Leads Upfronts, Spotlighting Creator‑Growth Professionals
As the media world descends on New York this week for Upfronts, YouTube will anchor the festivities with Brandcast on Wednesday night. There’s a class of people who make their living working with the most popular creators on the platform to...
Generative AI Reshapes Creator Economy Landscape
The state of #GenerativeAI in the creator economy by Alyssa Mercante @Digiday Learn more: https://t.co/J9d6dsdZYu #AI #LLM #GenAI #ArtificialIntelligence #MI #MachineLearning https://t.co/uSqCzCmfiB
New Podcast Features @Pkafka Discussing ESPN, NFL Media, Creator Economy
New pod: @pkafka joins to hash topics ranging from the business behind ESPN to NFL media talks to the creator economy. https://t.co/yLidM9Uupr
WNBA TV Surge, yet $40 League Pass Still a Steal
There's a record 200+ WNBA games on national TV this year, but WNBA League Pass still looks like a good deal at $40/season. It'll include 167 games (minus local blackouts) by my math.
Just Eight Bars Away From Your Sync Breakthrough
A lot of you reading this thread are 8 Bars away from a sync placement. Don't give up Pitch More Music
Twitter Tests Video Duplicate Detection; Earnings Go to Original Creator
X is now testing duplicate detection for videos Earnings will accrue to the original creator, not the account that stole the video
Judge Seeks Two‑week Extension Amid Packed Schedule
FWIW: He's also incredibly busy. He just asked the DC Circuit for an unopposed two-week extension to reply to an @FCC motion in the @NXSTMediaGroup-@TEGNA merger case because his schedule is so jammed ... https://t.co/iuOViZGyxK
NESN App Costs $1.41 per Sox Game, Extra Fees Looming
So, @Dave_Dyer @PressHerald: @NESN app has 145 @RedSox games in 2026 (at 89.5%, isn't that a super-majority?) The app is $29.99 a month, which comes to $205.03 for the seven-month @MLB campaign. Not bad, at $1.41 a game. (Do MLB...
Cameron's New Film Breaks 30-Year #1 Streak
In non-'Mortal Kombat’ news, ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft 3-D’ will mark James Cameron’s first movie to not open atop the weekend charts since ‘The Abyss’ back in 1989. His average global gross for his last five wide-release films will...
Devil Wears Prada 2 Poised for Mother’s Day Sales
Solid box office recently... The Devil Wears Prada 2 is likely to score major Mother's Day sales too @augurinfinity https://t.co/HE0D4ITfFS
First Weekend with Three $30M+ Films Since Thanksgiving
We are going to have our first wknd with THREE different films doing over $30M each since Thanksgiving 2024! https://t.co/aKL10RVtO2
TV Shifts Focus From Viewers to Foot Traffic
TV has long been an industry based on eyeballs. Now media companies are winking more at feet. TV networks are eager to strike ad deals based on connecting commercials to driving foot traffic in showrooms, sales of movie tickets and requests...
Media
TV Ratings Revolt: Big Media hopes this year's upfront is filled with drama that connect commercials to making advertisers' cash registers ring and puts a lid on being judged by Nielsen's count of viewers' eyeballs.... https://t.co/4qqfRnDXGf
Only Third Post‑COVID Weekend With Three $30M+ Films
Momentum on FIRE at US #BoxOffice: This weekend will be only the 3rd since 2019 to have 3 movies grossing over 30M each, with #MortalKombat2’s debut + #MICHAEL & #TheDevilWearsPrada2 holding STRONG on MAY 08-10. Post-Covid, it only happened on: JUL 17-19, 2022 #JurassicWorldDominion,...
Mortal Kombat 2 Dominates US, Flops Overseas
#MortalKombat2 doing well in North America, but rest of the world is on the weak side. Just $5.1M on FRI from 79 intl mkts, none over $1M. UK tops with $869k while China only did $363k. Intl opening wknd #boxoffice may only...
Star Power and ABC Boost WNBA Viewership Surge
If you want an early line on WNBA viewership, as my guys @AustinKarp and @paulsen_smw will attest, watch out for the @IndianaFever-@DallasWings viewership number when it comes out next week. Caitlin Clark is back healthy. Paige Bueckers is a TV...
Networks and Streamers Bring Plenty to Upfronts, Yet Need More
As Networks and Streamers Head to the Upfronts, They Have Plenty to Tout — And Just As Many Needs https://t.co/5wC7R4ltVC via @variety
Mortal Kombat 2 Dominates Friday Box Office with $17M
Box Office - FRI MAY 8 $17M - #MortalKombat2 $9.8M - #TheDevilWearsPrada2 $8.9M - #Michael $4.5M - #BillieEilish $4M - #SheepDetective $1.54M - #ProjectHailMary $1.51M - #SuperMarioGalaxy $1M - #Hokum #boxoffice #MortalKombat #MichaelJackson
Sports Media Shifts: NFL Courts Netflix, March Madness
NEW PODCAST: @paulsen_smw, @Armand_Broady & @derekfutterman return for the Sat. roundtable. Topics: What March Madness expansion means for consumers/media; the NFL vs. Fox vs. Congress; the NFL heavily courting Netflix & big NBA viewership. TO LISTEN: https://t.co/ldSOoKDIvD
Instagram Pivots to Champion Long‑form Creators for Next Years
Instagram’s VP of Product says she’s thinking about how the platform can best support long-form creators over the next 1-2 years — a complete reversal of IG's previous focus on short-form, shareable content https://liahaberman.substack.com/p/icymi-instagrams-return-to-long-form
Bill
#BillieEilish amps $4.5M Friday, Paramount has 3-day at $8M Taylor Swift this is not https://t.co/4EHm5qKtbb
Creator Economy Now Tiered: Elite Signals Drive Success
People think the creator economy is: Post videos that go viral and make money. That was closer to reality in the early days of social media. Today, the creator economy looks more like a layered system. 1- The Elite Distribution Class: Celebrities, legacy influencers,...
Influencers Earn Money Through Brands, Virality, or Division
The 3 routes to influencer $ (v.i.): 1. Brand deals/"human billboard," & usually beholden to (multiple) brands 2. Platform partners/desperate pursuit of virality, usu via clickbait/negative emotional arousal 3. Monetize audience/usually involves cultivating "us vs them" dynamic.
Third Highest Payout Yet Shows Creator Revenue Growth
Got my third highest payout ever from the @X creator revenue share program this fortnight, very grateful. The rules keep changing, we are learning and adapting. Hope you are entertained and enjoy. As always, all numbers here: https://t.co/ZCzaPqMHrB
Amazon Nails NFL, NBA Streams but Mismanages Crowd Noise
Amazon has overall done a great job with NFL and NBA. But I don’t think they’ve gotten the crowd noise levels right for either yet.
Programmatic Ads Now Drive over a Third of Spotify Revenue
Interesting data point from Spotify’s $SPOT earnings call last week: more than 1/3rd of its advertising revenue is now generated from “biddable” (programmatic) buying. https://t.co/iO6L7ngsmh
Twitch CEO: Embeds Account for Just 0.37% View Hours
Twitch CEO Dan Clancy says embeds are not a primary source of viewbots on Twitch. According to him, only 0.37% of Watch Hours come from people watching on embedded players.