OTT + SVOD
OTT TV provider fuboTV announced that it has added Fusion TV to its service. The cable net, which is geared toward lifestyle and entertainment content, is part of Univision Communications’ Fusion Media Group.
Here’s something to keep tabs on: James Sweet and Chuck Mere – a pair of creators whose Zombie Go Boom channel showcases the graphic dismemberment of zombie-like dummies – are suing YouTube. Back in March, hundreds of advertisers suspended YouTube advertising after revelations surfaced that some ad content had been appearing on violent and extremist content. YouTube has since appeased advertisers by making it easier for brands to avoid matching their ads with risky videos – and that’s precisely the problem for Sweet and Mere. The creators say that they’ve lost 90 to 95 percent of their ad revenue since the changes were made. The two hope to recruit other creators into their suit, ultimately turning it into a class-action affair.
PROGRAMMING
Shark Week is coming to Snapchat. Discovery Communications will develop a Shark Week-themed series for the social messaging app; it’ll debut on July 23, the same day that Shark Week gets underway on Discovery Channel. The series will be a three-parter, and each episode will stay on Snapchat for two days before the next episode debuts. Snap Inc. and Discovery Communications have been in business for a little while now: The companies reached a short-form programming pact back in February. Shark Week runs from July 23 to July 30.
APPS + PLATFORMS
Another industry giant may soon leap into the social messaging fray. AFTV News reports that Amazon has begun to survey customers about a new messaging service called Anytime, asking customers which features are most important to them in a messaging app. (The Amazon-focused news site published screenshots revealing the product’s name and some of its features; the site received the images from a user who claimed to have received the survey.) In addition to basic messaging features, the app would reportedly feature voice and video calling, photo and video sharing, the ability to @mention other users, as well as filters, stickers, and gifs. Anytime would be a direct competitor to Facebook products such as Messenger and WhatsApp.
RESEARCH
In an update to its long-term forecast, Publicis’s Zenith unit predicts that the digital ad marketplace will be “mobile first” by next year. This year, the unit predicts that ad spend on fixed devices – i.e., connected TVs, PCs, game consoles, etc. – will amount to $15.2 billion, as compared to $12 billion for mobile. But next year, the report projects $18 billion of mobile ad spend, as compared to $15 billion for fixed devices. Zenith points out that the shift seems to result from users’ increasing consumption across mobile devices, as opposed to any factors that make mobile formats particularly desirable for advertisers. On the contrary, Zenith points out that “videos viewed on fixed devices are displayed on larger screens, and often in less distracting environments” than their mobile counterparts.
No surprise here: Gen Z-ers are significantly more likely to play video games than any other demo. According to Nielsen’s Q1 Total Audience Report, seventy-three percent of people aged 2-20 own gaming consoles; for millennials (age 21-37), the number is 66 percent. The report also finds that Gen Z’ers are the most likely demo to own tablets; 78 percent of them have one in their homes, as compared to 70% of millennials, 74% of Gen X’ers, and 63% of baby boomers. When it comes to subscription video services, millennials still narrowly come out on top; 76 percent of them live in homes with SVOD subscriptions, compared to 73 percent of Gen Z’ers. The number is 69% for Gen X’ers, and only 51% for baby boomers. You can check out the full report here.
MEASURING UP
SHAREABLEE SOCIAL TV RATINGS: Top U.S. Streaming Shows Overall by Engagement for the week of July 10-July 16, 2017
Program, Total Actions (000), Total Content, Actions per Post (000), Fans/Followers (000)
Source: Shareablee Inc. The total actions metric includes the total volume of post-level likes, shares, favorites, retweets and comments. Total content includes all posts, tweets and media posted by each TV property across all platforms. Actions per post metric notes the average e number of actions garnered by each property. Total fans/followers includes Facebook and Twitter and Instagram followers.
The ListenFirst Television Interest (TVI) Rating (TM) is a standardized measurement of the most buzzed-about TV programs on linear TV and streaming services. A complement to ListenFirst’s other syndicated data products (such as the ListenFirst Digital Audience Rating – TV), the metrics included in the rating capture organic actions that are largely unaffected by paid media. Programs that surface on the TVI leaderboards are the most hashtagged on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Tumblr, as well as most searched for on Wikipedia (used as a proxy for organic search volume).
All Series (7/10/17 – 7/16/17)
Source: ListenFirst. The TVI Rating aggregates metrics that measure organically generated activity by fans of the TV show. The metric includes total volume of official hashtag mentions on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Tumblr, along with Wikipedia page views (as a proxy for organic search volume) for a show as a percentage of the total volume of the same activities for all shows.
EXECUTIVE MOVES
TYT Network just landed a new Head of Programming. The progressive news and politics network, whose flagship property is the political commentary show The Young Turks, has named Matt Atchity to the role. Based in Los Angeles, he’ll oversee growth and audience development for TYT Network’s shows and channels. Atchity hails from the movie review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, where he’d served as editor-in-chief.
Twitter recently lost Darren Lachtman, the head of its influencer marketing network. Called Niche, Twitter acquired the network in 2015 for about $30 million. Lachtman was a co-founder. (Niche’s other co-founder, Rob Fishman, left the company in November to found the video platform Brat.) While Twitter initially acquired Niche to serve as a sort of matchmaker between brands and creators on the now-shuttered Vine app, the unit continues to organize such partnerships on other platforms. Nick MIllman, Twitter’s Director of Global Partnerships, will lead the division moving forward. Kristen Lachtman, Niche’s former head of content strategy (and Darren Lachtman’s wife) will head up the unit’s U.S. operations.
TRIVIA
Our Last Trivia Question: GLOW star Alison Brie also has a role on second Netflix series. Which one? Answer: She’s part of the main voice cast of BoJack Horseman. Kudos to Andy Pittman-TAMU/TX, Louis Lewow-Lewow Media Group/GA, Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/NY, David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union CA, Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/CA, and Lorrie Shilling/CA
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg serve as Executive Producers on an upcoming sci-fi/comedy series for Hulu. What it’s called? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and state.)
