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:
Community Radio Delivers $153 Million to Australian Music Economy
A new Monash‑Griffith study finds Australian community radio creates roughly $101 million USD in added value each year. The 292 volunteer‑run stations aired 390,960 hours of Australian music in the past year, more than twice the volume of commercial networks. The 39 highest‑intensity stations alone contributed about $69 million USD and deliver up to $5.55 in economic return for every dollar invested. Around 30% of weekly listeners cite community radio as their first exposure to local or emerging artists, driving ticket and merchandise sales for over 1.3 million Australians.
Free Open‑Source Tool Turns Any EPUB Into Audiobook
Audible is cooked after this. A developer built an open-source tool that turns any EPUB into a full audiobook on your own laptop. It's called Audiblez. You drop in an ebook. It generates a proper .m4b audiobook. You listen in VLC, Apple Books, or any...
Anderson Cooper Celebrates ‘Independence’ of ‘60 Minutes’ as He Bids CBS Show Farewell
Anderson Cooper announced his departure from "60 Minutes" after two decades, citing family priorities while praising the program’s independence, quality, and longevity. He joined the CBS newsmagazine in 2006 through a CBS‑CNN agreement and worked primarily on weekends. His farewell...
Influencer Boost Budgets Are Throwing Gas on Social Video Spending Fire
Brand spending on social video is accelerating as influencer amplification budgets surge. Marketers now routinely allocate part of paid media spend to boost creator videos, with budgets ranging from a few thousand dollars to as much as $5 million per campaign....
Inside The Trade Desk’s Claude-Powered Campaign Agent
The Trade Desk unveiled Koa Agents, an AI‑driven layer that automates key steps of programmatic campaign creation using models like Anthropic’s Claude via its Open Agentic Kit. The agents ingest media plans, format them for the platform, troubleshoot creatives and...
The Case for and Against Clipping
Clipping—short‑form remix of long‑form creator content—has become a $7.7 million business in its first ten months, powered by over 20,000 contracted editors. Founder Anthony Fujiwara’s Clipping and Jimmy Donaldson’s Vyro illustrate how creators and brands are buying cheap, algorithm‑friendly views, with rates...
Why Amazon and YouTube Pitched Operating Systems, Not Just TV Inventory at This Year’s Upfront
Amazon Ads and YouTube turned this year’s TV upfront into a showcase for ad‑tech operating systems rather than pure programming slots. Both firms highlighted authenticated identity, commerce data, AI‑driven buying and programmatic measurement as the core of their pitches. Amazon...
“The Independence of ’60 Minutes’ Has Been Critical”: Anderson Cooper Bids Farewell to CBS News Show With a Plea
Anderson Cooper announced his departure from CBS’s 60 Minutes after a two‑decade tenure, citing demanding schedules and a desire to spend more time with his young children. His farewell highlighted the program’s reputation for independence and deep‑dive reporting, even as the show...
‘Less Money For Talent’: Karl Stefanovic Issues Grim Warning For TV & Explains Why He Launched A Podcast
Veteran broadcaster Karl Stefanovic warned that shrinking advertising returns are forcing Australian TV networks to slash talent salaries and production budgets. After three years of negotiations with Nine, he launched The Karl Stefanovic Show podcast to gain creative freedom, noting...
Spotify Expands Video Podcast Production at Hollywood Sycamore Studios
Spotify is scaling video podcast production at its 11,000‑sq‑ft Sycamore Studios in Hollywood, where more than 25 creators now record. The move builds on a $10 billion five‑year spend in podcasting and the 2020 $250 million acquisition of The Ringer, aiming to...
Madhive Appoints Luke Valvano CFO to Steer AI‑driven Finance Transformation
Madhive, the New York‑based demand‑side platform for local broadcasters, announced Luke Valvano as its new chief financial officer. The hire is aimed at integrating finance with the company’s AI‑centric product roadmap as the local media ad market confronts automation and...
Amagi Cuts Costs 45% with Unified Data Lake on Databricks
Amagi, the global media‑technology provider, announced a 45% reduction in operating costs and faster product rollout after consolidating its fragmented data environment onto Databricks' lakehouse platform. The move resolves cross‑region governance challenges and creates a single source of truth for...
VIOOH and VENDO Media Link Canada's 550‑Billboard DOOH Network to Programmatic Buying
VIOOH announced a strategic partnership with VENDO Media that opens programmatic access to more than 550 digital out‑of‑home screens in 125 Canadian locales. The deal immediately makes 33 screens live for real‑time automated buying, positioning VIOOH as the first SSP...
Amazon MGM Pays $70 Million for Will Smith Thriller Supermax to Boost Prime Video
Amazon MGM has secured worldwide rights to Will Smith’s upcoming action thriller Supermax for $70 million, planning an exclusive Prime Video debut. The deal reflects Amazon’s intensified content‑licensing push as it battles Netflix, Disney+ and other streaming rivals for premium titles.
Social Media Ad Spend Projected to Hit $640 Billion by 2030, Omdia Says
Omdia’s new market landscape report projects global social‑media advertising revenue to reach $640 billion by the end of 2030, expanding at a 12% CAGR. The share of social in total online ads is expected to rise from 33% to 44%, underscoring...
NFL: Broadcast Partners Had ‘No Hesitation’ Loading Lions with Primetime Games
The NFL awarded the Detroit Lions eight national television windows for the 2026 season, including four primetime games, despite the team finishing last in its division last year. Lions senior vice president of broadcasting Mike North said broadcast partners showed...
YouTube Adds Chapters and Title Cards for CTV Viewers
YouTube rolled out a suite of updates for its connected‑TV (CTV) platform, extending AI‑powered voice search to more smart‑TV users and adding new navigation tools such as chapter panels in video descriptions, gaming title cards, and visible like counts. The...
YouTube Debuts ‘Keep the Meter Running,’ Original Show by ‘Subway Takes’ Creator
YouTube premiered “Keep the Meter Running,” a 36‑minute original series created by Kareem Rahma, the mind behind the viral “Subway Takes” videos. The launch, staged at New York’s Metrograph theater, underscores YouTube’s ambition to compete with traditional TV and streaming...
Creator‑Driven Video Takes Center Stage at 2026 TV Upfronts, Ad Spend Projected at $44B
Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox Corp. and Amazon’s Prime Video highlighted creator‑driven video in their 2026 upfront presentations, reflecting a shift toward influencer‑led programming as advertiser spending on creator content is forecast to climb to $44 billion. Executives say the move taps...
‘K-Everything’ Series Examines How South Korea Became a Global Cultural Force
CNN launched the four‑part documentary series "K‑Everything" on May 9, exploring South Korea’s meteoric rise in film, music, food and beauty. Hosted and executive‑produced by actor Daniel Dae Kim, the series features interviews with industry icons such as Lee Byung‑hun, Psy, and K‑beauty...
How Stephen Colbert Is Heading Out
Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show will air its final episodes next week, ending a year‑long run on CBS. The closing week includes a “Worst of” episode featuring Jon Stewart, Steven Spielberg and David Byrne, followed by a penultimate show with the popular...
HBO Max, Hulu and Disney+ Bundle Priced at $19.99, Targeting Cost‑Sensitive Viewers
WarnerMedia and Disney have introduced a three‑service bundle that includes HBO Max, Hulu and Disney+ for $19.99 per month with ads, a 42% discount versus buying each separately. The move comes as subscription fees rise across the industry, prompting providers...
YouTube Unveils 2026 Creator Marketing Playbook Claiming 86% Higher ROAS vs Paid Social
YouTube released its 2026 Creator Marketing Playbook on May 7, presenting data that creator‑driven campaigns generate 86% higher incremental long‑term ROAS than paid social. The document underscores the platform’s unique reach, dual‑format appeal, and creator trust, positioning YouTube as a...
Fox Corp Shifts to News, Sports and Tubi to Drive Growth
Fox Corp announced a strategic pivot toward its news, sports properties and the ad‑supported streaming platform Tubi, calling the move "focus and momentum." Analyst John Nallen highlighted high‑single‑digit rating gains, two new NFL windows and a $10 billion shareholder return record...
First-Price RTB Bidding Requires Joint Causal Value Learning
Can causal value be learned jointly with auction mechanics in a first-price RTB setting? A new paper from researchers at NYU and elsewhere argues that RTB bidding in first price auctions is fundamentally a causal inference problem, not simply an auction...
Journalist Georgia Fort Still Silenced After Arrest
NEW: I sat down with Georgia Fort, who was arrested in January while covering a protest at a St. Paul church. Months later, she says she is still being silenced. https://t.co/ghecg4GyYW
This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: May 11, 2026 to May 15, 2026
The FCC announced Auction 114, slated to begin Feb 2 2027, which will make 132 FM channels—including 33 previously unsold permits—available for new stations. The agency also issued a filing freeze on modifications to the vacant FM allotments and opened comment periods on...
Trade Desk’s Q1 Margin Squeeze Dampens Connected TV Outlook
The Trade Desk posted a first‑quarter earnings miss, citing a sharp decline in net income despite revenue growth. The company completed a $2.43 billion share buyback that retired 45.94 million shares, but analysts warned that tighter margins could curb its Connected TV...
OpenAI Paid $100 Million for a Talk Show. James Murdoch Is Eyeing an Even Bigger Deal. The Hot New Asset...
James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems is in late‑stage talks to buy New York Magazine and the Vox Media podcast network for $300 million or more, aiming to fuse premium journalism with creator‑driven audio. Earlier this year OpenAI paid over $100 million for the tech talk...
Netflix’s Greg Peters on Why It Walked Away From the Warner Bros. Discovery Deal
Netflix co‑CEO Greg Peters explained why the company abandoned its $82.7 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, citing a valuation that exceeded the benefit to members. The decision triggered a $2.8 billion termination fee but underscored Netflix’s focus on organic growth through...
Drake's Triple-Album Drop Nets 197 Million Spotify Streams, Shattering 2026 Records
Drake released three surprise albums—ICEMAN, Maid of Honour and Habibti—on a single day, generating 197 million Spotify streams worldwide. The haul includes 140.2 million streams for ICEMAN and a record‑breaking 13.219 million streams for the single “Make Them Cry,” eclipsing Kendrick Lamar’s previous...
SNL Ends Season with Trump‑Epstein Satire and Surprise Musical Cameo
Saturday Night Live wrapped season 51 with a politically charged cold open that paired a Trump impersonation with a ghostly Jeffrey Epstein, while host Will Ferrell returned for his sixth stint. The episode also featured a surprise musical moment from...
Netflix Sets Fall Premiere for ‘A Different World’ Sequel
Netflix announced that its 10‑episode, single‑camera sequel to the 1990s sitcom “A Different World” will debut in the fall of 2026. Showrunner Felicia Pride leads the project, which follows Deborah Wayne, the daughter of original characters Dwayne and Whitley, as...
10 Best Recording Software for Podcasts in 2026
The article ranks the ten best podcast recording software for 2026, stressing that the right tool depends on workflow fit rather than raw feature count. Adobe Audition is highlighted as the industry‑standard DAW for teams that demand high‑end post‑production and...
Chinese AI Groups Pull Ahead of US Rivals in Video Generation Race
Chinese AI firms have overtaken U.S. rivals in generative video technology, delivering higher‑resolution, faster outputs. Companies such as Baidu, ByteDance and Kuaishou unveiled models that can produce 4K video at 30 frames per second, outpacing OpenAI’s Sora and Google’s Imagen...
Amazon Stops Supporting Pre-2013 Kindles Today. Some Owners Turn to Jailbreaking
Amazon announced today that it will discontinue Kindle Store access for all first‑ and second‑generation Kindles, Kindle Touch, Kindle DX and other devices released in 2012 or earlier. Existing owners can still read previously downloaded books and sideload DRM‑free titles...
Amazon Unveils AI‑Powered Shopping Ads Tied to Streaming TV, Reaching 90% of U.S. Households
Amazon announced a new ad offering that blends AI‑driven campaign tools, authenticated audience data and premium streaming inventory. The platform claims to reach roughly 90% of U.S. households and will power “agentic shopping” experiences across live sports and on‑demand video.
Texas Sues Netflix over Alleged Child Data Surveillance and Dark‑pattern Addiction
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit on May 11 alleging that Netflix covertly tracks children’s viewing habits, employs dark‑pattern autoplay to foster addiction, and sells the data to advertisers. Netflix denied the claims, saying its privacy practices comply...
Scripps Completes $0 Cash Station Swap with Gray Media, Expanding Mountain West Footprint
The E.W. Scripps Company has closed a cash‑free swap of five local TV stations with Gray Media, boosting its presence in the Mountain West. The deal adds Colorado Springs, Twin Falls and a new foothold in Grand Junction, while keeping...
Monimus Capital Boosts TripAdvisor and Ziff Davis Stakes, Signaling Faith in Digital Media Ads
Monimus Capital Management increased its TripAdvisor holding by $23.9 million and opened a new $8.9 million position in Ziff Davis, bringing its exposure to two key digital‑media companies to roughly $34 million. The moves highlight the fund’s belief that advertising‑driven platforms can thrive...
Data Not Found
The Social Media Data Transparency Index, released by Hugo Leal and Marie Santini, is the first systematic audit of data‑access conditions across fifteen major platforms. Conducted between October and December 2025 and validated in early 2026, it covers the EU,...
Thousands of FiveThirtyEight Articles Seemingly Vanish From the Internet
An archived version of FiveThirtyEight, the data‑driven polling site founded by Nate Silver, is now redirecting visitors to ABC News, effectively removing thousands of articles published between 2008 and 2023. The shutdown follows ABC's 2025 decision to close the brand...
Local TV Stations Shift to Low‑Cost, Podcast‑Style Shows as Big‑Budget Syndication Fades
Local television stations are abandoning multi‑million‑dollar daytime talk shows in favor of lower‑cost, podcast‑style programming. Executives from Fox, Gray Media and NBCUniversal confirmed the shift at TVNewsCheck’s Programming Everywhere conference, citing the cancellation of high‑budget shows and the need to...
Did You Mean to Share That Selfie? What to Know About Instagram Instants.
Instagram introduced "Instants," a feature that automatically posts a photo to a user’s mutual followers or close‑friends list the moment it’s captured. The rollout on May 16, 2026 has already sparked a wave of complaints as users inadvertently share unflattering...
Metric‑Driven News Once Offered True Democratic Revenue
People don’t think fondly back on the “traffic” era of news media. But there was a certain democracy to it. If you executed on particular metrics (pageviews, etc), you could generate real revenue, without worrying about audience capture or taste...
Steyer Campaign Faces FPPC Probe Over Undisclosed Influencer Payments
The Fair Political Practices Commission filed a complaint alleging that Tom Steyer's campaign paid social‑media influencers without proper disclosure. The probe spotlights a growing compliance challenge as political candidates turn to influencer marketing to reach voters.
Ocean Outdoor Unveils Ocean Portal, a Walk‑In DOOH Experience at Battersea Power Station
Ocean Outdoor UK has launched Ocean Portal, a freestanding half‑cube DOOH installation that lets audiences step inside a 4.5 m × 3 m LED‑filled stage. Debuting at Battersea Power Station, the format blends motion‑tracking, mixed reality and 3D content to give brands a programmable, walk‑in...
The 15 Rules of Paywalling on Substack in 2026
Substack’s paywall strategies have matured into a nuanced playbook, outlined in the new "15 Rules of Paywalling" guide for 2026. The author, now advising 700 private clients, shares tactics ranging from tiered pricing to data‑driven personalization. Emphasis is placed on...
AI Drives $1.23 B U.S. DOOH Surge, Forces Data Collaboration Overhaul
Artificial intelligence is accelerating demand for high‑quality audience data in digital signage, propelling U.S. programmatic DOOH spend toward $1.23 billion by 2026. Networks must add audience segmentation, clean‑room access and closed‑loop measurement, a shift highlighted by Decentriq’s Juan Baron.
The Smart TV OS Nobody Recommends but Everyone Should Know About
KDE Plasma Big Screen is an open‑source Linux desktop environment adapted for smart‑TVs, offering a privacy‑focused alternative to Android TV, Roku, and other proprietary platforms. It runs on any Linux distribution and includes native support for media apps like Kodi,...