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The NYT reports Q4 revenue up 7.5% YoY to $726.6M, subscription revenue up 16% YoY to $334.9M, and operating profit up 13.6% YoY to $146.6M — NEW YORK, February 5, 2025 - The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) announced today fourth- quarter and full-year 2024 results. Key Highlights
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The NYT says it spent $10.8M on costs associated with generative AI litigation in 2024, one of the few outlets that can afford to engage in yearslong litigation — The paper, buoyed by its 11 million-plus paid subscribers, is one of the few news outlets that can afford to engage in yearslong litigation with Big Tech.
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@tvgrimreaper and @proggrrl.bsky.social


The NYT says 32% of its subscribers do not pay for its news product and subscribe only to either its Games, Cooking, Wirecutter, Audio, or The Athletic products — The number of news-only NYT subscribers dropped 30% year-on-year as the company encouraged them onto “bundled” subs.
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@labelbda.bsky.social


The NYT reports adding 350K digital-only subscribers in Q4, and 1.1M+ in 2024, taking its total count to 11.4M+; digital ad revenue rose 9.5% YoY to $117.9M — Adjusted operating profit for the fourth quarter increased 10.7 percent from a year earlier, to $170.5 million, the company said.
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The Wrap and Streaming Better


In Q1, Disney+ lost a net 700,000 customers worldwide while Hulu gained 1.6M, and operating income hit $312M, up from a $224M loss in Q1 2024, driven by Moana 2 — Domestic theme parks operating income hurt by hurricane expenses in fiscal Q1 2025 — Animated blockbuster “Moana 2” …
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IndieWire, Reuters, Ad Age, The Information, Benzinga, @xpangler, Associated Press, Cord Cutters News, Media Play News, Los Angeles Times, Deadline and Yahoo Finance
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Disney reports Q1 revenue up 5% YoY to $24.7B, net income up 23% YoY to $2.64B, and entertainment division revenue up 9% YoY to $10.87B — Disney posted fiscal first-quarter earnings Wednesday that beat on the top and bottom lines, but revealed the beginnings of expected streaming subscriber losses at Disney+.
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Financial Times, Sherwood News, Broadband TV News and Walt Disney


Alphabet reports YouTube Q4 ad revenue up 14% YoY to $10.47B, vs. $10.23B est., driven by the US election as both political parties almost doubled 2020 spending — YouTube, the internet's biggest streaming video platform, delivered a healthy 13.8% increase in global ad revenue …
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Fast Company, StreamTV Insider, Alphabet Inc, TVNewsCheck, MediaPost, CNBC, Motley Fool, Fortune, Music Business Worldwide, The Hollywood Reporter, @xpangler, The Register, Neowin, Android Authority, Business Insider, The Desk, The Wrap, Deadline, 9to5Google, Sherwood News and Benzinga, more at Techmeme »


PBS-YouGov poll: 65% of Trump voters think PBS is underfunded or adequately funded; 82% of voters value PBS for its children's programming and educational tools — Amid a slew of new efforts by Republicans to revoke funding for public broadcasters, PBS has commissioned a new poll …
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Poynter, NPR, Reuters, @mattmoses.bsky.social, Mediaite, Current and Baltimore Sun


UK news anchor Kay Burley retires from Sky News after 36 years and “over a million minutes of live TV news”; Burley was one of Sky's original presenters in 1989 — Kay Burley, one of the UK's best-known news anchors, is retiring from Sky News after 36 years.
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Press Gazette, The Guardian, TVNewsCheck, Variety, The Mirror, Broadband TV News, Daily Mail, Sky News, The Independent, Metro.co.uk, Telegraph, @gavreilly, Guido Fawkes, @scottygb, Press Association, GB News and City A.M.


Sources: Sonos will release an Android-based streaming box in the coming months, priced between $200 and $400, combining Netflix, Max, Disney+, and more content — After the most tumultuous nine months in Sonos' history, the brand is trying to find its footing again.


FT Policy Director Matt Rogerson tells a UK parliamentary committee that creating “opt-out” copyright exemptions for AI companies would be “a huge mistake” — Preserving copyright protections for news publishers against theft by artificial intelligence companies is …
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The Mirror


Each legal settlement with Trump by powerful media organizations weakens the freedoms they rely on, damages their credibility, and pressures other outlets — Judge Learned Hand, revered for his eloquent and consequential defense of free speech at the height of World War I, came to fear …


Sources: OpenAI has spent months talking to Hollywood's largest studios about the potential of video generator Sora, but no deals have emerged yet — - Startup has met with Hollywood studios about commercial deals — Studios worry about business implications of new technology
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TVNewsCheck