Today's Media Pulse
Online video subscriptions hit 2.24 billion in 2025, overtaking pay‑TV revenue
Omdia reports global online video subscriptions reached 2.24 billion at the end of 2025, a 17.6% year‑on‑year rise. Revenue grew 13.5% to $176 billion, surpassing pay‑TV's $170 billion for the first time. Growth is expected to slow to single‑digit levels in 2026 as operators focus on monetising existing users.
Also developing:
BigTime Creative Shop Launches Pepsi Football Nation Ft. David Beckham, Mo Salah, Vini Jr and Other Star Footballers
BigTime Creative Shop, fresh from topping the MENA WARC Creative 100 and ranking fourth among independent agencies worldwide, has launched Pepsi Football Nation, a global multi‑channel campaign for PepsiCo. The platform stars football icons David Beckham, Mohamed Salah, Vinícius Júnior, Alexia Putellas and Lauren James, plus a cameo by Gordon Ramsay, and rolls out across film, digital, social and experiential touchpoints. Directed by Ernest Desumbila and produced with Sauvage.TV, the cinematic film creates a fictional nation powered by fan passion, positioning Pepsi as the catalyst for football culture. The initiative aims to revive Pepsi’s historic role as a cultural shaper within the sport.
How ESPN and NFL Network Ended up with Different Clips of Fernando Mendoza Being Drafted
Fernando Mendoza, the Heisman‑winning quarterback, was selected first overall by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 2026 NFL Draft, but he watched the announcement from his home in Coral Gables. ESPN and NFL Network aired nearly identical footage of Mendoza’s...
HP Quietly Launched a Streaming App to Grow Its Advertising Ambitions
HP has quietly launched HP TV+, a free ad‑supported streaming app for U.S. laptop users, extending its HP Media Network ad inventory. The service aggregates content from publishers such as USA Today, PBS, and the Tennis Channel and is available...
Omnicom Advertising, Google Launch AI-Powered Creative Intelligence System in Middle East
Omnicom Advertising and Google have launched an AI‑powered creative intelligence platform in the Middle East, pairing Google’s ABCD video‑performance framework with Omnicom’s proprietary Brave Bot. The system was first piloted with telecom operator du, where it evaluated ten YouTube video assets...
International Creator Day 2026: American Influencer Council Flags Labor Policy Gap for Creator Workforce
The American Influencer Council (AIC) released its fourth International Creator Day Trend Report, “Built Not Posted,” exposing a stark creator labor gap: 39 million U.S. creators versus only 1.5 million full‑time‑equivalent jobs (3.9% full‑time). The report, produced with an Academic Advisory Circle...
DirecTV Launches Live TV App on Meta Quest VR Headset
DirecTV announced Thursday that its streaming app is now available on Meta Quest 2, 3, 3S and Pro headsets via the Meta Horizon Store. The service offers free ad‑supported channels to all users and requires a paid DirecTV package for...
G-SHOCK, The Company Films Reiterate ‘Never Give Up’ Call for Gen Z Consumers
Casio’s G‑SHOCK brand has launched a new “Never Give Up” campaign aimed at Gen Z and young millennials in the Middle East. The digital‑first initiative, produced with The Company Films, relies on short‑form videos distributed on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube Shorts,...
Coachella 2026: Top Brands, Creators Generated $1.7B in Earned Media Value, Data Shows
Influencer intelligence platform WeArisma reported that creator‑driven brand activations at Coachella 2026 generated more than $1.7 billion in earned media value (EMV), a 69 % jump from the previous year. The analysis captured nearly 30,000 pieces of social content and 3.3 billion engagements...
Trump Breaks Tradition by Attending White House Correspondents’ Dinner Amid Press Tensions
President Donald Trump made his first appearance at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, a move that intensifies an already hostile relationship with journalists. The appearance follows a series of legal battles and public threats that have pitted the administration...
Richard Chamberlain Played Jason Bourne On TV Before Matt Damon's Movies
In 1988 ABC aired a two‑part miniseries of The Bourne Identity starring Richard Chamberlain, marking the character’s first live‑action appearance. The 185‑minute adaptation stayed largely faithful to Robert Ludlum’s Cold‑War novel and earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Miniseries. Decades later, Matt Damon’s...
The Weather Company Names Brian Benedik as CRO to Accelerate Ad‑Tech Growth
The Weather Company announced the appointment of industry veteran Brian Benedik as chief revenue officer. Benedik will lead the overhaul of the firm’s advertising technology and drive new consumer‑membership products. The move signals a strategic push to monetize first‑party insights...
Noscroll Launches $9.99 AI Bot to Automate Doomscrolling for Users
Noscroll, founded by former OpenSea CTO Nadav Hollander, rolled out an AI-powered bot that reads users' X feeds and other web sources, delivering personalized news digests via text for $9.99 a month. The service promises to replace endless scrolling with...
The Most Influential Genre In America Is Rewriting How Women Think About Love, And Conservatives Aren't Even In The Room
The romance genre has become America’s most influential literary category, with the average reader devouring 36 novels a year. These stories dictate cultural norms around love, sex, femininity and family, shaping women’s expectations for decades. Conservative romance writers, despite sharing...
Yellowstone: Dutton Ranch Showrunner Not Returning For Potential Season 2 After BTS Drama
Paramount+ confirmed that Chad Feehan will not return as showrunner for the Yellowstone spin‑off *Dutton Ranch* after completing Season 1. The departure follows reported behind‑the‑scenes friction with series leads Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly, as well as dissatisfaction from creator Taylor Sheridan and producer David Glasser...
Cord Cutting Today: YouTube TV Expands Multiview as Comcast Loses Subscribers and Paramount Merger Advances
YouTube TV rolled out a new Multiview feature that lets subscribers watch up to four channels simultaneously and add any lineup they choose. In the same week, Comcast reported losing 322,000 TV customers and 65,000 internet customers in the first...
Rise Studios and Inter Medya Announce Start First Co-Production, Caged Love
Rise Studios and Turkey’s Inter Medya have begun filming their first co‑produced series, *Caged Love* (Tutsak Sevda). The romantic drama, directed by Canan Çelik and starring Eslem Akar and Mert Altınışık, is being shot on location in Turkey. Both companies describe...
Matthew Rhys' Horror Series 'Widow's Bay' Is Apple TV's Weirdest, Boldest Show Yet | Review
Apple TV is launching "Widow's Bay," a ten‑episode horror‑comedy starring Matthew Rhys as Mayor Tom Loftis. Created by comedy writer Katie Dippold, the series follows a pragmatic mayor battling superstitious townsfolk and a lingering curse in a New England seaside...
‘It Existed Before Fox News Channel’: Inside the 30th Anniversary of Fox News Sunday
Fox News Sunday marked its 30th anniversary on April 24, 2026, celebrating a program that aired months before the Fox News Channel launched in October 1996. The show, a staple of the Sunday political news cycle, has featured three moderators,...
Reliance Jio Mega Content Plan Rs 500 and New Add-On Pack Rs 200 Benefits Detailed
Reliance Jio has rebranded its Rs 500 Entertainment Plan as the Mega Content Plan and launched a new Rs 200 Mega Content add‑on pack for prepaid customers. The Rs 500 plan delivers 56 GB of data, unlimited voice, 100 SMS daily, and subscriptions to YouTube...
Cadbury Dairy Milk Taps Cricket Nostalgia in ‘Khaas Seat’ Campaign
Cadbury Dairy Milk has launched the “Khaas Seat” campaign, celebrating the first live‑stadium cricket experience as a formative memory. The initiative features former India players Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh sharing personal stories, while inviting fans to contribute their own...
Day 5: The Quiz That 7x’d Their Growth
The ADHD Weasel newsletter swapped traditional PDFs for a short, gated quiz and added 1,439 new subscribers in a single week—roughly the quarterly total they previously earned. Daily sign‑ups surged from about 17 to 125, a seven‑fold increase, and the...
The NAB Show Gets in Your Bloodstream
The 103rd NAB Show highlighted the media industry’s shift toward the creator economy, emphasizing that today’s independent producers demand broadcast‑quality standards across platforms like YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. Long‑time exhibitors such as AWS, Sony and Blackmagic Design showcased AI‑driven production...
YouTube Livestream Ads Hijack Mobile Audio, No Mute Option
Live stream ads now on mobile, and they take over the audio -> YouTube is rolling out a new ad format for livestreams on mobile that won't disrupt your viewing experience, but with a big catch "Since the ad runs alongside...
NAB Show 2026: Quantum CatDV Showcases Automated Live Sports Production with North Shore Automation’s Stats Injector
Quantum Corp. announced that North Shore Automation’s Stats Injector now integrates fully with its CatDV media‑asset platform, automating play‑by‑play metadata insertion during live‑sports ingest. The solution is already live with the Miami Heat, pulling league‑API data to tag clips across every...
An Audience So Nice You Bought It Twice (And That’s Not A Good Thing)
Brands still split media budgets between upfront and programmatic purchases, causing the same audience to be hit repeatedly while other high‑value prospects are missed. This siloed approach inflates costs, stalls campaign lift, and creates fragmented brand experiences that erode consumer...
Are We Gonna Have to Do This Corny ‘WWE Guy Makes a Scene’ Thing All Year Long Now?
ESPN and WWE continue their $1.6 billion partnership by inserting WWE talent into regular ESPN‑owned programming, most recently when WWE star Seth Rollins stormed off the set of Good Morning Football after a heated exchange about his wife, Becky Lynch. The...
How to Win in the Age of Interest Media: Live Shopping and AI
In this episode Gary Vaynerchuk dives into the rise of live shopping and AI, arguing that both are transformative forces reshaping commerce and entrepreneurship. He cites China’s $1 trillion live‑shopping GMV and TikTok’s growing affiliate market as proof that the model...
What's New on HBO Max This May
HBO Max’s May slate adds a wave of original series, specials and films, including the second season of the Max Original docuseries *On the Roam*, comedy special *Josh Johnson: Symphony*, and the sports documentary *U.S. Against the World*. New movies such...
Hear No Evil: The Met Police and Epstein
The BBC disclosed that Jeffrey Epstein rented at least four flats in London’s Kensington and Chelsea, using them to house women he trafficked, many from Russia and Eastern Europe. Receipts, emails and bank records show he bought 53 Eurostar tickets...
Newsmax Renews Antitrust Battle Against Fox News in Florida Court
Newsmax has refiled its federal antitrust lawsuit against Fox Corporation and Fox News Network in the Southern District of Florida after a Wisconsin judge transferred the case, criticizing earlier forum‑shopping tactics. The 39‑page complaint alleges Fox uses carriage agreements that...
Inside the Stream: Netflix Chugs Along, Growing Opportunistically
Netflix posted steady Q1 2026 growth as it moves into a more mature phase. The streamer added roughly 4.5 million new subscribers, pushing quarterly revenue up about 6% to $8.5 billion. Management highlighted opportunistic expansion into ad‑supported tiers, gaming titles, live‑sports rights and...
This AI Tool Combats Doomscrolling, Promises Curated Updates
Noscroll, a US‑based startup founded by former OpenSea CTO Nadav Hollander, launched an AI‑powered tool that replaces traditional social‑media feeds with curated daily digests. Users connect their X account, specify topics, and the bot delivers concise updates drawn from X,...
Knicks, Ducks Among Local Ratings Gainers in Tough TV Era
The Nielsen Station Index shows in‑market NHL deliveries rose 15% in the 2025‑26 season, driven by a 51% jump in unique streamers per game. Chicago’s Blackhawks flipped from the league’s worst local performer to the top gainer after Comcast placed...
The Toast that Will Define a Generation of Journalists
Steve Schmidt’s essay warns that the White House Correspondents’ Dinner has become a litmus test for journalistic integrity. He argues that Donald Trump’s sustained attacks—ranging from calling reporters “enemies of the people” to personal misogynistic insults—have turned the banquet into...
Exclusive Clip: ‘Family Guy - Lower G.I. Joe’
Fox announced the upcoming Family Guy episode “Lower G.I. Joe,” scheduled for April 26 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. The plot follows Peter Griffin’s colonoscopy, which uncovers a rare G.I. Joe action figure lodged in his intestine, sparking a comedic conflict over its resale value. The...
Disney Dominates NFL Draft with 135 Sponsorships
Throughout #NFLDraft Week, #Disney has: -135 total sponsorships across 30 advertisers, including 9 new advertisers, airing in NFL Draft coverage -Nearly 80 live sponsorship executions on Days 1, 2 & 3 on #ESPN, #ABC, #NFLNetwork & #ESPNDeportes More than 50 surround sponsorship executions leading up...
Talking Buildings and Pixar-Like Avatars: Cleveland Plain Dealer AI Videos Draw Criticism
The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s digital site, Cleveland.com, has expanded its use of generative AI by publishing AI‑generated videos featuring a cartoon mascot and animated avatars of its editors, without any disclosure that the content was created by AI. This follows...
Charter Loses 51,000 Pay TV Subscribers in First Quarter
Charter Communications posted Q1 2026 results showing a narrowed pay‑TV loss of 51,000 subscribers, leaving 12.5 million video customers, a modest improvement from the 167,000 loss a year earlier. The company also shed 120,000 internet customers while adding 368,000 mobile lines,...
Exclusive Clip: ‘Bob’s Burgers – Keyboard Kid’
FOX is debuting a brand‑new episode of its Emmy‑winning animated series Bob’s Burgers titled “Keyboard Kid” on Sunday, April 26 at 8:31 PM ET/PT. The episode follows Tina Belcher as she tries to boost her GPA through a quirky typing class, setting...
Exclusive Excerpt From ‘Rick and Morty Forever #0’ 48-Page Series Finale
Oni Press, in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products, announced the 48‑page double‑sized finale "Rick and Morty Forever #0," slated for May 27, 2026. Written by Daniel Kibblesmith with art by Troy Little, the issue caps a decade‑long, 100‑plus‑issue run adapting the...
"Wuthering Heights" Begins Streaming Exclusively on HBO Max May 1
Warner Bros. Pictures' adaptation of “Wuthering Heights,” starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, will debut globally on HBO Max on May 1, 2026, with a linear broadcast the following night. HBO Max will also launch an American Sign Language version featuring Leila Hanaumi...
Recruiter's Advice: What It Really Takes to Get a Job in Journalism Right Now
Reach’s editorial talent acquisition lead Danielle Lavin outlines how hiring criteria for journalists are evolving. While core reporting abilities remain vital, publishers now prize transferable skills such as subscriptions, video, audio, and growth. Candidates must demonstrate deep industry awareness, tailor...
ITWeb TV: Audiences Embrace Multi-Platform Entertainment
Thabile Ngwato, co‑founder of Newzroom Afrika and CEO of Rapid Innovation Group, explained on ITWeb TV why linear television remains dominant in South Africa despite rapid OTT growth. She highlighted that fragmented audience habits demand a multi‑platform approach, with broadcasters needing to...
Snapchat’s Ideas Thrive While Its
Snapchat shaped the way millions communicate. Its ideas were copied by every major platform. Yet the company behind those ideas has barely made a profit. Something in the business never grew as fast as the product:
Trade Desk Faces Pricing Pressure From Amazon DSP
Former Trade Desk Manager on challenges within $TTD: 1. It's hard to compete against Amazon DSP "Competing on price is very difficult for them for the reasons I outlined before. It's the sole point of their revenue, so it's very difficult for...
TV and Streaming Viewing Picks for April 24, 2026: How to Watch NFL Draft 2nd Round
The NFL’s 2026 Draft enters its second round on April 24, with live coverage on ESPN/ABC and NFL Network beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern. ESPN Unlimited streams the event alongside the traditional broadcast, while pre‑show programming such as Good Morning Football...
Livestream “Guys Reading Tweets” Signal Media’s New Direction
🎙️ NEW POD: The @loudmouthjulia & I go deep on MTS, TBPN, and the rise of the “guys reading tweets” livestream genre…. and what it tells us about the future of media. Apple: https://t.co/Yf2y5lUzsR Spotify: https://t.co/1RoobRMOQT @PuckNews
Apple's Widow's Bay: Unusual, Yet Not Twin Peaks
Widow's Bay is Apple's most unusual TV series since Severance — but it's no Twin Peaks. https://t.co/YV3YR3xpRF
French PR Exec Uses FB Network to Discredit Heat Pumps
REVEALED: A French PR executive with gas industry ties linked to a coordinated Facebook network spreading heat pump misinformation. Always the same playbook: manufacture doubt, delay the transition, protect the incumbents. https://t.co/2361C6GUYY
NFL Remains Free TV Lifeline as Entertainment Shifts Streaming
D.C. Memo: @RichLightShed Partners Asks, How Important Is NFL to Free TV? 'No Other Programming Matters' - Wall Street analysts predict networks may cut or shift more entertainment content to streaming | https://t.co/1pvZDWB9tD https://t.co/h2C9NuOoGM