☀️ HULU Next in Password Crackdowns, but How Potent are They

The 2024 NETFLIX Films count / SONY wins bidding war / SIRIUSXM looks for growth after stagnant 2023 Mornin’! This is Sean McNulty (connect with me on LinkedIn here if ya like), and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on THURSDAY Feb 1, 2024. Where, look - it’s a new month! 2024 do-over anyone 😬? I mean, when more than 14,000 people reply to an Elmo ‘wellness check’ tweet this week, with many sharing fears of being laid off, experiencing depression or financial hardships… I’ll just take that as a prompt at the start of a fresh month for my occasional encouragement to give a call or drop a note to someone you know who was laid off last month, in the later half of last year… or even back in the massive WBD and DISNEY (and elsewhere) layoffs that are now almost 12-18 months ago in our industry (🤯) - folks who may still looking to land a new full-time job, and just say ‘hey’ and check in. I’ve been on both sides of that coin, as I’m sure many of you have been at some point in your careers as well - and it usually means a lot, or at minimum it’s just nice to reconnect with someone and catch up a little… especially in a business where one’s perception about themselves can sometimes get too heavily tied into what one does, or where one works - and when that position goes away, well, it can be a bit of a gut check. Most of us have little control over the bigger picture things happening in our industry - but we all fully control how we react to it on a person-to-person level. When in doubt, listen to Elmo. ERR: Not the best segue, but uh… TODAY IN JOB CUTS: AUDACY’s podcast company PINEAPPLE is laying off 25% of its staff, or about 12 folks. AUDACY is currently in chapter 11. The Messenger is shutting down, and if you have no idea what that is… that was basically the problem. Its approx. 265 employees won’t be getting severance, according to sources cited by Axios. ALSO: SPOTIFY is now putting its Call Her Daddy pod on all platforms, but video will still only be on SPOTIFY (outside of the 5-8 minute clips that go on YT). Gotta monetize yo. THEN: The IATSE & Teamsters negotiations with the AMPTP will begin on March 4 (the deal is up on July 21). PLUS: NBCU will be doing its upfront on Monday May 13 at RADIO CITY. WAKEUP BOX OFFICE POLL UNI/APPLE’s $200 Million Argylle is tracking broadly for an ‘upper teens’ ($15 Mil to $20 Mil) opening… so let’s go a little wide this week now that we uh, have a major theatrical release again!! POLL Where is ARGYLLE at come Sunday night? Under $15 Million $15 Mil to $17 Mil $17 Mil to $20 Mil Over $20 Mil IN TODAY’S EDITION: As #PasswordCrackdown becomes the go-to tool for streaming growth in 2024, let’s do some comps on just how effective it was for NETFLIX, and while I know we all “don’t care” about subcriber numbers anymore… let’s shine a light on the growth situation looks like at other streamers and who might benefit most. A look at the volume approach NETFLIX is taking to films this year. SONY wins one of the many film bidding wars that seem to have proliferated in popularity since the strikes, as SPC makes a high-profile pickup as well. A SIRIUSXM earnings breakdown… and a look at what the timeline for their plan to restore growth looks like, and much more. 📽 THE SILVER SCREEN may need to update this motif for the new one. via Giphy... © 2024 Ankler Media 11990 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA 90049

YOUTUBE Growth Returns, Tops NETFLIX in Q4 Byron Allen makes offer for PARAMOUNT / 'Extraction' director gets new gig / NETFLIX Int'l Films storm back on the chart

Morning! This is Sean McNulty (connect with me on LinkedIn here if ya like), and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on WEDNESDAY Jan. 31, 2023. Where can someone let me know if the sun still exists? The only ☀️ we’ve seen in NYC in like 10 days now is the logo in The Wakeup subject line. Let’s just say I’m really beginning to understand the appeal of hanging out with Sydney Sweeney & Glen Powell at a warm Australian summer wedding for an hour and a half. via giphy ALSO: Latte Larry’s is coming to life! Yes the storyline from season 10 of HBO’s Curb is coming at ya IRL in the form of two locations in LA this weekend in Culver City and Venice Beach (really they’re just MENOTTI’S Coffee Shop locations). So, enjoy some Hot Cup of Spite and Dry Scones on Larry HBO, while supplies last. Larry is also doing some “In Conversation” events in D.C. (March 29) and Boston (April 1). AND: AMAZON MGM’s Anne Hathaway-Nicholas Galitzine pic The Idea of You will close SXSW in mid March. PLUS: Music rights are the new cable channels - TIKTOK and UNIVERSAL MUSIC are in a standoff over a new rights deal that expires… uh, today. So the world’s largest music catalog may disappear from TT tomorrow - yes, that includes the world’s two biggest artists in Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny. UMG posted an ‘open letter’ as to the issues here (hint: it’s about money). Yeah have fun with that BYTE DANCE - thinking you’re more CHARTER 2005 than CHARTER 2023 in the leverage analogy here. A REST IN PEACE: Goes out to Hollywood and Broadway legend Chita Rivera, who died this week at the age of 91. TODAY IN JOB CUTS: COMCAST’s SKY is cutting more than1,000 folks in 2024, or about 4% of the U.K. staff, as the company tries to pivot away from a TV dish present into a streaming future. Most cuts are folks who work in the physical dish business. PAYPAL is cutting about 2,500 jobs, or 9% of its workforce. The WSJ D.C. bureau and TECH CRUNCH are also making small staff trims. UPS is cutting about 12,000 positions of its 85,000 management roles, with employees now expected to be back in the office 5 days a week. UPS expects a savings of about $1 Billion a year… and according to UPS, having to pay employees more due to gains won in their union deal negotiation last year was a factor here, as its hurting profitability. Lower package shipping volume is also playing a role. BUT: Cost savings from increased AI use was also noted as a factor in needing fewer people. Ahem. 👀 OH: Thanks to reader Elena who sent me this piece about an NYC equivalent of a postnatal retreat for brand new mothers after giving birth… whose cost is about 3X that of the South Korean equivalent I linked to yesterday (roughly $1500 a night). Share Upgrade to paid 🎥 THE SILVER SCREEN via Giphy... Subscribe to The Ankler. to read the rest. Become a paying subscriber of The Ankler. to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content. © 2024 Ankler Media 11990 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA 90049

PEACOCK $$ Bleed: An Enigma Wrapped in an Earnings Report

☀️PEACOCK $$ Bleed: An Enigma Wrapped in an Earnings Report More AMAZON Road House unrest / NEON gets Soderbergh / Video Game biz layoffs continue SEAN MCNULTY JAN 25 ∙ Mornin! This is Sean McNulty (connect with me on LinkedIn here if ya like), and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on THURSDAY January 25, 2024. Where AMAZON PRIME will debut the Gyllenhaal MGM Road House pic on Thu. March 21 - just don’t count on the film’s director streaming it. Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow, Bourne Identity) is not going to the film’s SXSW premiere on March 8 in protest of AMAZON MGM not putting the film in movie theaters, and also wrote a column yesterday as to his feelings on the matter. This Road House direct-to-streaming decision of course was also reportedly one of the matters at the heart of Joel Silver uh, ‘parting ways’ with AMAZON on a future project in November. Either way, figure the pic will (or should) get a sizable March Madness 🏀 TV ad buy (it also officially tips off March 21) and one for the UFC 299 fight on March 9 in Miami too (Jake plays an ex-UFC fighter in the pic). So Mr. Gyllenhaal, maybe clear your March promo travel calendar - that is if you’re not taking the same POV as your director here. Ah, and I see you’re going with the original neon👇, nice. Really hope this movie is good! FWIW Doug - I’m with ya… there are currently zero theatrical releases on Friday March 15th, and April 5 only has The First Omen. Also if Beekeper can do $32 million in 10 days, keeping that audience engaged in moviegoing relatively soon after would be a great thing for the business. But, tech streamers gonna tech stream… PLUS: Here’s your trailer, judge for yourselves… ALSO: The Year of Edebiri continues, as The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri is hosting SNL with JLo as the musical guest on Feb. 3. PLUS: It’s always important to remember your roots as you turn 60-years-old… as Jeff Bezos invited those folks who have been with him ever since he was selling books online to his big 60th soireé on Saturday night it seems - from Jay-Z to Iger to Roger Goodell to Paris Hilton to uh, Jewel (ok, maybe she was at least there at the beginning 🤷‍♂️, at least perhaps playing on his radio in his garage office - which apparently got a reproduction at the party too, according to Page Six). Everyone enjoyed a spread that would surely have been Rushfield-approved - from caviar to MCDONALD’S (Jeff apparently worked there in his teens - gonna guess his kids have not). Kudos on the birthday Jeff, and for keeping the bald-is-sexy look going for us other members of the club. THEN: For the Montclair contingent (and all NJ folks who commute into NYC) - NJ TRANSIT is raising fares 15% on July 1. Granted, it’s been 9 years since its last price hike. #JerseyFunFact: The state’s 2022 ban on plastic bags has eliminated 5.5 Billion plastic bags a year, according to a new study. AND: Speaking of Jersey, Jon Stewart will host The Daily Show on Mondays this year starting Feb. 12 (day after the Super Bowl) through the November election, and EP the show the rest of the week, which will have rotating correspondent hosts (Jordan Klepper, Desi Lydic etc). The show also streams next-day on PAR+ (and I’m sure will be well-clipped on YT). TODAY IN 2024 JOB CUTS: Time cut 15% of its unionized editorial staff. Man, billionaire news publication owners are not having a good year so far… hope they’re ok. G/O MEDIA is looking to sell the remainder of its publications according to Adweek, including The Onion, Deadspin, Gizmodo and others. The Publisher of VOX’s SB Nation, Jermaine Spradley, is leaving the company… citing “the constraints the business is under.” And even e-comm stalwart EBAY cut 9% of its full-time employees or about 1,000 folks, and will trim its contract employee count as well. Oh, yeah video games again… not so much - MICROSOFT is axing 1,900 ACTIVISION people in their assimilation process. IN TODAY’S EDITION: A dive into the state of PEACOCK - a look at how could this thing even break even (since COMCAST execs refuse to tell us), plus the numbers behind Donna’s good quarter, the state of advertising and much more at COMCAST (including how the numbers stack up to NETFLIX - scale is important). And… well, the rest of the day’s activity - it’s been a morning, let’s get moving. THE COMCAST/NBCU Q4 STORY #medianerd🤓 is rested and ready Always love breaking this one out 4 times a year. via Giphy... Subscribe to The Ankler. to read the rest. Become a paying subscriber of The Ankler. to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content. © 2024 Ankler Media 11990 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA 90049

The 2024 Box Office Collapse Begins

☀️ The 2024 Box Office Collapse Begins Who made NFL ad buys in Hollywood / Initial SUNDANCE buys / Soderbergh shopping next pic SEAN MCNULTY JAN 22 ∙ PREVIEW READ IN APP Evenin! This is Sean McNulty (connect with me on LinkedIn here if ya like), and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on SUNDAY January 21, 2023. Well 2024 Box Office - it’s been a good run. We gave it our best. Anyone in for this Friday’s big release, Miller’s Girl? And if you’re googling that title right now, that about says it all (and I think there’s a SONY CRUNCHYROLL pic too 🤔). Let’s just say its studio distributor (LIONSGATE) decided to spend its 15-second NFL ad buy this weekend on its Wahlberg dog adventure pic Arthur the Great, which comes out in… two months. ELSEWHERE THIS WEEKEND: I wouldn’t be too optimistic for a rebound in “M&E” (media & entertainment) ad spending in Q1. Here are the Hollywood ad spends we got across the 4 big NFL games this weekend, each likely getting circa 35 Million viewers. DISNEY had no movie ads in its last ABC/ESPN NFL game this season on Saturday. Then again, it has no movies. DISNEY also bought one DISNEY BUNDLE spot in the NBC game. PARAMOUNT bought two ads for its Bob Marley pic One Love (and had one on CBS). NETFLIX had one 3 Body Problem ad. UNI/APPLE did one 15-second Argyle ad, and one 30-second spot. APPLE TV+ did one 15-second Killers of the Flower Moon ad. AMAZON did one Mr. & Mrs. Smith ad, and one 15-second Underdoggs ad. Again, that’s the list across four NFL games. WELL: APPLE actually did plenty of NFL ad buys this weekend… they were just all for iPhones and the VisionPro. Funny how the APPLE VisionPro ad uses clips from movies to sell it… and nothing from APPLE TV+ itself. IN-HOUSE LOVE: NBC did heavy series promo during games (even a PEACOCK Ted spot this time! - then again, NBC got up and going with returning series post-strikes faster than any other broadcast network #ThanksDickWolf! Shout out to NBC for the beautiful and frequent drone shots from around icy Detroit during the game - well done. CBS had a PAR+ MI:7 and Halo promos, PAR+ Mountain of Entertainment promos, and a solid amount of CBS series promo for all of their returning big series. ABC & FX did get some decent in-house promo but nowhere near the extent of NBC & CBS, plus DIS streaming got a DISNEY BUNDLE spot. No DIS+ or HULU streaming projects got specific promo… not that there are any on the Q1 horizon outside of Life and Beth. FOX mostly promoted their current unscripted lineup (the Gordon Ramsey show, Masked Singer and Rob Lowe game show got most of it). IT’S GOTTA BE LOVE: When you go to Buffalo in late January… THEN: Here are the two big NFL Conference Championship games next Sunday: 3 p.m. KANSAS CITY at BALTIMORE on CBS KC has been in this AFC Championship game for 6 years straight. And yes - Taylor in Vegas for the Super Bowl is still alive, CBS. 630 p.m. DETROIT at SAN FRANCISCO on FOX PLUS: A congrats to the OHIO STATE women’s basketball team, who knocked off #2 U OF IOWA and Caitlin Clark in OT before the NFL game on NBC today, in front of over 18,000 fans - a record crowd. ALSO: SNL coming with another banger this week - Dakota Johnson & Justin Timberlake. The Social Network joke in the monologue better be good! UH: In PARAMOUNT 2024 layoff watch… Deadline puts them coming in Feb, and numbering in the “hundreds” across all divisions, possibly in mid Feb (maybe even right after the Super Bowl on CBS), but obviously more to come here. WAKEUP POLL: Well the people have spoken - look for Kiefer and The Man on ABC this September. Honorable mention goes to reader Julius who sent in Rushfield Hour as a suggestion for Peter & Richard’s odd couple cop show, although that would technically be the movie version (and no, I’m not counting the show that CBS attempted). © 2024 Ankler Media 11990 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 350, Los Angeles, CA 90049