Mediagazer: Top nine streaming services to end 2020 with combined US subscribers up 50%+ YoY; US households now subscribe to 3.1 services on average, up from 2.7 in 2019 (Wall Street Journal)

11:55 AM ET, December 31, 2020

Top News:

Amazon plans to acquire podcast network Wondery, which will join Amazon Music — We've signed an agreement to acquire Wondery, a top-rated podcast creator and producer that entertains and educates listeners. — We're pleased to announce that Wondery—an innovative podcast publisher …

Wall Street Journal:

Top nine streaming services to end 2020 with combined US subscribers up 50%+ YoY; US households now subscribe to 3.1 services on average, up from 2.7 in 2019 — From Hulu to Disney+, largest streaming services are expected to end the year with 50% more U.S. subscribers

Discussion: Business Insider, @wsj, @jbflint, @drewfitzgerald, Fast Company, New York Post and Context is King

Christopher Palmeri / Bloomberg:
Over Christmas holiday, Apptopia says HBO Max had ~554K app signups; Sensor Tower says Disney+ had ~2.3M global app installations, up 28% from prior weekend

Discussion: ScreenRant, The Desk, DIRT, @michael_calia, The Streamable and TechCrunch

Mark Sweney / The Guardian:
Ampere: UK streaming subscribers grew 34% YoY in 2020, with a combined 32.4M for Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+, the top three services

Discussion: @scottygb, more at Techmeme »

David Folkenflik / NPR:

Boards of RFE/RL and Radio Free Asia and their chairman Michael Pack have added binding contractual agreements that they can't be removed for the next two years — Michael Pack's stormy tenure over the federal agency that oversees government-funded broadcasters abroad - including the Voice of America - appears to be coming to a close.

Discussion: @anneapplebaum, @digiphile, @npr and @davidfolkenflik

Brian Schwartz / CNBC:

Letter signed by leaders of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's news division and editorial board says Michael Pack appointed a board of “inexperienced” partisans — - Leaders of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty blasted the Trump-appointed CEO of the U.S. federal media agency.

Discussion: @27khv, @kevinrothrock, @ckummer, @nprinskeep, @nickschifrin, @schwartzbcnbc, @gkates, @joshgerstein, @schwartzbcnbc and @micheleberdy

Michael J. de la Merced / New York Times:

Alden says it is bidding for full control of Tribune Publishing, in which it has a ~32% stake, with an offer that values the newspaper chain at about $520.6M — Alden Global Capital, which is already Tribune's biggest shareholder, valued the company at about $520.6 million.

Discussion: Axios, Daily Herald, @megreenwell, @scottshanenyt, @pwoodreporter, @marcatracy, @courantguild, @dicktofel, @kdoctor, @w_katz1, @robillard, @kbui1 and @royalpratt

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: Alden Global is seeking to buy Tribune Publishing, in which it already owns a 32% stake — Hedge fund already owns 32% of the Chicago Tribune publisher — A hedge fund that owns a big stake in Tribune Publishing Co. is seeking to buy the newspaper chain behind titles including …

Discussion: Media Nation, Talking Biz News and The Wrap

Todd Spangler / Variety:

ESPN Plus is raising the annual subscription for new subscribers by 20%, from $49.99 to $59.99, and increasing the price of UFC pay-per-view events to $69.99 — UFC fans are going to pay more to catch the promoter's premiere fights on Disney's ESPN Plus streaming sports package next year.

Discussion: The Streamable, Sports Business Daily, @trentreinsmith, @seansheehanba, Gizmodo, @yoda, @jevan_bay, @thenotoriousmma, @mrmwellsart, @yay_yee, The Verge, Awful Announcing and Engadget, more at Techmeme »

Lisa Richwine / Reuters:

Nielsen: Fox News tops all news and basic cable channels for the fifth consecutive year, averaging 1.9M viewers/day; CNN had its most-watched year in history — LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Ratings for Rupert Murdoch's Fox News Channel topped all news and basic cable channels for a fifth straight year in 2020 …

Discussion: TVNewser

Jeremy Barr / Washington Post:
Interviews with 15 longtime Fox News loyalists on why they switched to Newsmax, often seeking programming that denies Joe Biden's victory

Discussion: Mediaite, @seanspicer, @dcdianadc, @kirktousaw, @evilgalprods, @kimmasters, @chessninja, @poniewozik, @elise_jordan, @donal_okeeffe, @ericbolling and @jayrosen_nyu

Reuters:

Reuters cameraman Kumerra Gemechu has been detained in Ethiopia without charge; police say they are investigating allegations of spreading false information — NAIROBI (Reuters) - Reuters cameraman Kumerra Gemechu has been held in solitary confinement for nearly a week without charge …

Discussion: @reuterspr

Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:

Judge rules Viacom shareholders can pursue claims of fiduciary duty breach against Shari Redstone and board members representing Viacom in the merger with CBS — A Delaware Chancery judge rejects a motion to dismiss after reviewing Shari Redstone's role in the transaction.

Discussion: The Wrap, @eriqgardner, Deadline and Variety

Byron Tau / Wall Street Journal:

Acting attorney general says WSJ reporter Daniel Pearl's accused killer could be prosecuted in the US if Pakistani courts fail to keep him in jail — If Pakistanis fail to keep suspect imprisoned, U.S. stands ready, acting attorney general says — The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday raised …

Discussion: @bgrueskin, @rohded, USA Today, @alanmillernlp, @jessepesta, CBS News, @schoofsfeed, Reuters, Al Jazeera, The Hill and Associated Press

Elizabeth A. Harris / New York Times:

Association of American Publishers: audiobooks revenue is up 17%+ YoY, e-book sales are up 16%+; NPD BookScan says US print book sales are up ~8% in 2020 — With people stuck at home and so many other activities shut down, a lot of reading — or at least a lot of book buying — happened this year.

Discussion: @bobproehl, @sejorg, @jldelbourgo, @nytimesbooks, @mariskreizman, @scalzi, @pamelapaulnyt, @likaluca, @fidmart85, @magiciansbook and bookforum.com, more at Techmeme »

Archived Page Info:

This is a snapshot of Mediagazer at 11:55 AM ET, December 31, 2020.

View the current page or another snapshot:

Who's Hiring in Media?

Deputy Ed. - Gen. Assignment Desk, DC — WaPo

EU Technology Reporter, Brussels — Bloomberg

Breaking News Reporter, NY — Guardian US

Harrisburg Reporter, PA — PCBC

Senior Editor - Styles, NY — NYT

Part-time Editor, Remote — Techmeme

Home & Travel Reporter, Ireland — Newsweek

Assistant Digital Editor, MA — Boston Globe

Senior Editor - Visuals (Temporary), DC — NPR

Copy Editor, Remote US — ProPublica

Markets Reporter, NY/CA — Sherwood Media

Staff Writer, MI — Watershed Voice

Food Reporter, CA — SF Standard

Staff Writer, NV — Las Vegas Weekly

Pharma Editor, Remote — Endpoints

Higher Ed. Reporter, Remote CA — EdSource

Politics Reporter, Brussels — Politico

Investigations & Enterprise Ed., WI — Cap Times

Social Strategy Editor, NY — WSJ

Senior Narrative Editor, CA — Cloud Chamber

Editor-in-Chief, NY (flexible) — The 74

Housing Reporter, OK — The Frontier

Writer/AI Content Reviewer, CA — Outlier

Writer/Editor, Remote — Mediaite

Multi Media Reporter, NC — Cardinal & Pine

Afternoon/Night Editor, NH — Keene Sentinel

Education Lab Editor, WA — Seattle Times

Senior Editor, Remote US — PCWorld

State Worker Reporter, CA — Sacramento Bee

Executive Editor, NM — Searchlight

News Assistant, NY — Quanta Magazine

Local Editor, NJ (Remote) — Patch

News Writer, CA — Hollywood Reporter

News Editor/Reporter, KS — Blade-Empire

Add your company here

See Also:

Mediagazer: site main

Mediagazer River: reverse chronological Mediagazer

Mediagazer Mobile: for phones

Mediagazer Leaderboard: Mediagazer's top sources

Subscribe:

Mediagazer RSS feed

Mediagazer on X

Mediagazer on Mastodon

More News:

John Hopewell / Variety:
Comscore: global box office fell between 57%, in the Netherlands, and 76%, in UK, vs. 2019, depending on length of closure and strength of local movie industry

Discussion: Variety

Dave Lee / Financial Times:
FactSet: Amazon's “other” business unit, which is made up almost entirely of its ads business, will make $21B in revenue in 2020, up 47% YoY

Discussion: @raju, @financialtimes, @read_cap, @tonytassell, @juokaz and @hughhewitt

Wall Street Journal:
Unredacted draft version of the lawsuit filed by 10 states earlier this month details a Google-Facebook ad deal that allegedly constituted illegal price fixing

Discussion: @bowknowsbiz, @phyllisstein, @greglinden, @bowknowsbiz, @johnvoorhees, @bikehugger, @repkenbuck, @moonalice, @jonspaihts, @halsinger, @jason_kint, @jason_kint, @jason_kint, @jason_kint, @jason_kint and New York Post

Inside Radio:
Univision sale to Searchlight Capital is formalized, and Wade Davis becomes CEO; FCC granted an exception to a cap on foreign ownership, as Televisa holds 36.1%

Discussion: Variety, The Wrap, Awful Announcing and Radio & Television …

DW.COM:
A sustained cyberattack over Christmas forced several German newspapers published by The Funke Media Group to cancel or curtail editions; the attack is ongoing

Discussion: @davidgerard

Earlier Picks:

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Verizon is telling Fios TV customers that nine local Hearst stations may go dark on Fios on Jan. 1, saying Hearst is demanding carriage fee hikes of 45%+

Discussion: Radio & Television …

Committee to Protect Journalists:
Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Moroccan authorities to release journalist Maati Monjib, arrested amid a money laundering probe

Discussion: @rozen_j, International Journalism …, @shanvav, @aaschapiro, @aaschapiro, @sarahleah1, Morocco World News, Morocco World News, Africanews and Abdellatif EL Hamamouchi

Emily Birnbaum / Protocol:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is tying the fate of $2,000 stimulus checks to the repeal of Section 230

Kristin Robinson / Variety:
A loophole in Spotify's copyright infringement detection tactics is allowing unauthorized remixes and bootlegs of songs to be uploaded as podcasts

Discussion: @delgotloud and Engadget

Will Thorne / Variety:
First ever NFL game streamed exclusively had an average minute audience of 4.8M on Prime, Twitch, and others, almost as much as traditional TV viewership

Discussion: @crupicrupicrupi, @aquinas82nd, @jason_kint, @richarddeitsch and MediaPost

From Techmeme:

Thomas Barrabi / New York Post:
Google fires 28 employees over their participation in a 10-hour sit-in at the company's New York and Sunnyvale offices to protest its business ties with Israel

Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
The US CFPB fines BloomTech, formerly Lambda School, and CEO Austen Allred $164K and bans BloomTech from lending for 10 years over deceiving students on loans

Brian Heater / TechCrunch:
Boston Dynamics debuts an electric version of humanoid robot Atlas for commercial use, a day after retiring the hydraulic Atlas, with a pilot starting in 2025

Sister Sites:

Techmeme
Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web

memeorandum
What US political commentators are discussing online right now

WeSmirch
The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page