Top News:
Variety:
Netflix lays off roughly 300 people out of its ~11,000 global employees, with the bulk of the jobs lost in the US, after initial job cuts of 150+ in May 2022 — Layoffs have hit Netflix again, with the streamer letting go of roughly 300 staffers on Thursday, Variety has learned exclusively.
Discussion:
Insider, MediaPost, @lucas_shaw, Deadline, The Verge, @brookeobie, @scottemovienerd, The Desk, @shanellegenai, @lucas_shaw, @phil_lewis_, @loudmouthjulia, Tubefilter, Too Much TV Newsletter, The Guardian, TheStreet, Fast Company, Engadget, The Streamable, Reuters, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, IndieWire, Bloomberg, The Wrap and Media Play News
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Patience Haggin / Wall Street Journal:
Ted Sarandos confirms Netflix is talking with potential partners to help launch an ad-supported tier and says the company might build its own ad business later
Ted Sarandos confirms Netflix is talking with potential partners to help launch an ad-supported tier and says the company might build its own ad business later
Discussion:
The Streamable, Hollywood Reporter, XDA Developers, Deadline, The A.V. Club, 9to5Mac, UPROXX and MacRumors
Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Comcast and Google have emerged as the top contenders to help Netflix develop an ad-supported tier, and Netflix has discussed ad partnerships with Roku
Sources: Comcast and Google have emerged as the top contenders to help Netflix develop an ad-supported tier, and Netflix has discussed ad partnerships with Roku
Discussion:
Variety, Light Reading, Engadget, Reuters, The Verge, Fast Company, @asharma, Slashdot, Search Engine Land, @digitalshields, @matt_cochrane7, Digital TV Europe, CNBC, Adweek, Tubefilter and The Streamable
Zheping Huang / Bloomberg:
How TikTok is cashing in on its exploding popularity; Source: TikTok plans to grow its e-commerce gross merchandise volume to $2B this year and $23B in 2023 — Alyssa McKay used to work part-time at a frozen yogurt store in Portland, Oregon, making minimum wage to cover her college tuition.
Discussion:
Techdirt, @carolndosi, @coreybehnke, @mattnavarra, @ericjackson, @hancocktom and Insider
RELATED:
Peter Kafka / Vox:
Traditional media companies, especially TV, as well as streamers, face a serious threat from TikTok, and seem to be doing little so far to counter or respond — Facebook knows it has a TikTok problem. TV and streamers do, too. — The people who bring you video entertainment …
Discussion:
@niemanlab, @sportstvratings, @alexweprin, @mattnavarra, @pkafka, @pkafka, @mattgertz, @joshuaogundu, @ryanlcooper and @rmc031
Washington Post:
A look at the techniques used in the live broadcasts presenting the House January 6 committee's evidence, produced by former ABC News president James Goldston — The panel probing the Capitol attack is trying to turn its investigative grind into must-see television
Discussion:
NPR, @ebboyd, @ebboyd, @ebboyd, @emilybell, @oliverdarcy, The Hill, @ebboyd, @washingtonpost, @ebboyd, @ericuman, The Week, Vanity Fair, TMZ.com, The Guardian and CBS News
Brian Stelter / CNN:
A look at the 20-year-old SCOTUSblog, founded by husband-and-wife team Tom Goldstein and Amy Howe, who see it as a public service and say it loses ~$400K/year — New York CNN Business — … Where will you be at 10am ET on Thursday? Like tens of thousands of other people …
Discussion:
@sarahscire, @brianstelter and Bloomberg
Alex Sherman / CNBC:
Semafor will be ad-supported for “six, 12, maybe 18 months” before adding a paywall and will hire talent agents to pair journalists with products and events — - Media executives are hopeful they've learned lessons and streamlined their businesses to weather a potential recession.
Discussion:
@sherman4949, Wall Street Journal, @hshaban, @ashleevance, @taylorlorenz, bookforum.com, @emilybell, @maxkennerly and @owillis
Michael Stahl / TVNewsCheck:
Sources: a staff exodus at Altice's News 12 New Jersey, serving seven Tri-State markets, is due to a toxic workplace and sponsored content overtaking local news — Mass resignations have rocked the editorial staff at News 12 New Jersey. According to three sources close to the situation …
Discussion:
Adweek, @michaelrstahl, @tvnewscheck and @matthewkeyslive
Filipe Espósito / 9to5Mac:
Apple quietly raised the prices for the Apple Music student plan, from $4.99 to $5.99 per month in the US and Canada and from £4.99 to £5.99 per month in the UK — Apple last month quietly raised the price of the Apple Music student plan in several countries such as South Africa …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, XDA Developers, MacRumors and AppleInsider
Mariella Moon / Engadget:
Spotify replaces Concert Hub with a Live Events Feed, populated by Ticketmaster, AXS, DICE, Eventbrite, See Tickets, and other partners, for finding tour dates — Spotify has expanded its old Concert Hub and added more features to make it easier to find information and tickets for live events in your location.
Discussion:
Spotify, Pollstar News, @chrismessina and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »
Deadline:
Warner Bros. Discovery acquired the Unprecedented three-part docuseries subpoenaed by the January 6 Committee, set to air on Discovery+ later in summer 2022 — EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the chairman of the January 6th Committee, said on Wednesday that the hearing schedule will continue into July.
Discussion:
CNN, Variety, New York Times, Vicky Ward Investigates, CBS News, @ntarnopolsky, @sollenbergerrc, @hugolowell, The Wrap, Vanity Fair, The A.V. Club and Hollywood Reporter
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Fox Nation has started running commercials; EVP says they are “very rare,” for “major partnerships,” and are billboards placed at the bottom of the screen — Streaming outlet Fox Nation is already running the commercials its larger rivals say they want to sell.
Marcela Valdes / New York Times:
US book publishing has had waves of fostering Black audiences, followed by retreats; many cheer a new wave of diverse hires and books but don't trust it'll last — For generations, America's major publishers focused almost entirely on white readers. Now a new cadre of executives like Lisa Lucas is trying to open up the industry.