Back in 1979, Trevor Horn and his band the Buggles released the song “Video Killed the Radio Star”. Guys should have gotten an award of some kind in the category “Foresight”. They went on to produce 2 albums and other singles, and the band already saw its demise in early 80’s. MTV got it right, actually programming the song as its first ever video. They are still around.

This week, news got out MGM studios engaging with Amazon for a $9 BN deal with Amazon gaining access to MGM’s vast collection of content and franchises including the likes of James Bond and The Handmaid’s Tale. It is spring already, things are looking bright, and people are in a buying mood, exemplified by the earlier news of AT&T and Discovery in talks of a merger to form a new streaming giant. The latter two combined have almost 80 Mio subscribers through their HBO and Discovery. AT&T holds the rights to Warner Bros featuring among others Harry Potter and Batman.

The path of movie studios towards streaming video will create a whole new world, with major implications for advertisers and TV networks. Captivating audiences in a regular “non-streaming” way is getting harder, exemplified by the news (again this week!) of TV shows “Evil” and “Seals” to migrate from CBS to Paramount+. Not only TV but also movie theatres will enter a new era. Who could have believed the reality of the new James Bond movie with a production budget of reportedly $250 MIO (!!!) to be delayed for more than 1.5 years (same like Top Gun) and Mulan to only premier on Disney+ to make over $265 MIO in its first week?

Netflix still is the big fish in the pond with over 280 MIO subscribers, producing its own franchises. Disney+, Prime, the new Warner Bros channel and HBO are closing in. Major franchises like Star Wars are turned into TV series with various spin offs. Are these the new channels on TV? I can imagine in a near future you’ll be flipping through streaming channels like we are used to with regular TV now. If so, will some smart person in a garage figure out how to channel all these streamers into one media box without having to do with all kinds of separate subscriptions?

Live TV looks like the one to remain strong, sports being one of the key reasons to get behind the TV at a specific time. People are gearing up for Euro 2020 (how does this not sound weird in 2021?) and the Olympics this summer. Or will the next bold streaming franchise buy the rights to these kinds of events too? Nordic Entertainment group has bought the 3-year Formula 1 broadcasting rights for the Netherlands to stream on its ViaPlay network. It is already happening. I wasn’t there to witness the introduction and impact of television back in the day. I did watch TV in black and white and had to press buttons to change the channel. Will this be the next turning point in entertainment? How will advertisers deal with this new world with even more elusive audiences? Will brands get more involved with entire shows, giving product placement a whole new meaning? Or will Tellco’s enter the streaming video arena as they would then be able to combine location, interests and viewing behavior into target audiences?

Radio seems to have come back alive, with the huge leaps podcasting is making these days. Look at the excitement around the recently introduced Clubhouse app. Theatres and concert halls are turning themselves into gigantic recording studios attracting new audiences and revenue streams delivering content to people’s screens at home. So maybe we are in a continuous loop, with formats reinventing themselves over time, finding their ways back to consumers and advertisers’ hearts. TV just might not be dead; it is being reinvented.

I need to run, the latest season of my favorite show just went live. Time for some binge watching. Happy weekend!