Media
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Ballmer’s Bad Bundle Economics, Netflix Loses Epix Movie Deal
The Daily Update is back with a renewed focus on streaming, bundling, and over-the-top offerings. First up is an analysis of Steve Ballmer’s rumored plans to launch an over-the-top network for Clippers games, and more broadly, a discussion about why bundling works. Then, Netflix loses movies, but it’s the content companies that are losing more from…
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Aggregation and Antitrust, BuzzFeed Makes News, BuzzFeed’s Valuation in Perspective
The differing approaches to antitrust in the U.S. and Europe could mean completely different outcomes in the long run for aggregation companies. Meanwhile, BuzzFeed has raised a new round and seems to be doing better than ever, which is great news for journalism. Plus, how to think about startup valuations.
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Amazon Continued and the Role of Journalism, Three Streaming Developments: HBO, Amazon Prime, and ESPN
The Amazon story continues, and it is striking how there is zero common ground between people who work in tech and the journalists who cover it. Will this mark a shift in the relationship? Plus, what HBO’s Sesame Street deal, Amazon’s Top Gear deal, and NBC’s Premier League deal say about the future of streaming.
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ESPN Follow-up, BAM Tech and Bundle Logic, No Apple MVNO and the Apple TV
A follow-up to my piece on ESPN
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Why Disney and ESPN Will Be OK
An increasing number of questions are being raised about the future of the pay-TV bundle, and of ESPN. The former may indeed be doomed, but that doesn’t mean the latter is in as much trouble as people think: after all, Disney is the master of differentiated content.
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Amazon’s Transformation, The Apple Music Backlash
Amazon turned a surprising profit: was it on purpose? More importantly, what does it say about the fundamental nature of Amazon as a company and as an investment? Plus, why the Apple Music backlash shouldn’t be a surprise, and a survey about meet-ups for this summer.
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Why Web Pages Suck
Everyone complains about web pages that suck, but the reality is that it is advertisers who call the shots. This should, at a minimum, put Facebook’s Instant Articles and Apple’s News app in a new light.
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Correcting the Netflix Story, ESPN’s Challenge — and Opportunity, Yahoo to Stream NFL Game
My Netflix chart from Netflix and the Conservation of Attractive Profits wasn’t quite right: after all, I was talking about time, and networks and studios are already modularized. Still, fixing my error provides an interesting view on ESPN and its challenges and opportunities.
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Apple Loses E-books Appeal; Apple Music and Antitrust; Producers, Consumers, and Apple
Apple’s E-book case finally came to it’s likely end a few week’s ago; it’s worth reviewing what was at stake in light of recent news that Apple Music could face a similar investigation. Then, if Apple Music will do for musicians what the App Store did for developers, is that a good thing? Plus, why sites…
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Netflix and the Conservation of Attractive Profits
Netflix has a lot more in common with Uber and Airbnb than you might think: it all comes back to the Law of Conservation of Attractive Profits, a core principle of disruption