Disney‘s ESPN is at a crossroads. For more than 40 years, the world’s largest all-sports network has grown annual revenue by increasing cable subscription fees. ESPN first charged pay-TV distributors less than $1 per month per subscriber in the 1980s. In 2023, ESPN’s monthly carriage fee was $9.42 per subscriber, according to data from S&P … Read more
Bob Chapek, chief executive officer of Disney, speaks at the 2022 Disney Legends Awards during Disney’s D23 Expo in Anaheim, California, Sept. 9, 2022. Mario Anzuoni | Reuters In his first public comments since Disney fired him as CEO in November 2022, Bob Chapek told CNBC he sees no reason for Disney-owned ESPN to add … Read more
Michael Tran | Afp | Getty Images Jimmy Donaldson, also known as MrBeast on the internet, on Monday announced a new reality competition show in collaboration with Amazon MGM Studios, aiming to further blur the lines between YouTube and traditional television. The new series, “Beast Games,” is billed as “the biggest reality competition series ever” … Read more
A worker walks past televisions, including the Vizio brand, on display in a Walmart Supercenter on February 20, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Joe Raedle | Getty Images Walmart is doing some shopping of its own. The retail giant announced last week that it plans to buy smart TV maker Vizio in a $2.3 billion … Read more
The NFL isn’t just the most popular sports league in the U.S., it’s also the most valuable with the highest-rated programming and the priciest ad time. In 2021 the league signed an estimated $110 billion worth of media deals covering 11 years, which reportedly was nearly double the value of its previous contracts. “If you’re … Read more
Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images It’s the third act of the streaming wars. That’s the time a hero, seemingly beaten and broken, rises up and saves the day. But Wall Street is worried that hero may never come for Hollywood. Legacy media companies including Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Comcast and Paramount Global … Read more
