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Category: MediaTransformationUpdate

MediaTransformationUpdate

  • FTC Will Review Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard Purchase

    FTC Will Review Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard Purchase

    The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is preparing to review Microsoft’s $68.7 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard amid increased scrutiny of major acquisitions by Big Tech.

    Microsoft announced in mid-January that it was purchasing Activision Blizzard, the maker of StarCraft, Warcraft, Call of Duty, Overwatch, and more. The deal is poised to completely shakeup the gaming landscape, provided Microsoft can close it.

    According to Bloomberg, the company’s plans are coming under close inspection by the FTC. Chairwoman Lina Khan, in particular, has been an outspoken critic of Big Tech and their acquisitions.

    Should the deal fall through, there are many potential ripple effects, not the least of which is Activision CEO Bobby Kotick. It’s believed Kotick will leave the company once the acquisition is complete. Kotick has been under fire for some time over his (mis)handling of various discrimination and sexual harassment complaints. Until now, the acquisition was seen as a graceful way for him to leave the company and pave the way for change.

  • Sony Purchasing Game Make Bungie for $3.6 Billion

    Sony Purchasing Game Make Bungie for $3.6 Billion

    Less than two weeks after Microsoft announced it was purchasing Activision Blizzard, Sony has announced a deal to purchase Bungie.

    Bungie rose to fame as the original makers of Halo. Microsoft quickly swooped in, purchasing the company in 2001. Just a few years later, in 2007, Bungie was spun off as a privately held company. Since becoming independent again, Bungie has continued releasing games, most notably the Destiny franchise.

    Bungie will once again be purchased by a larger company, this time Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE). The two companies announced the deal, worth some $3.6 billion, on Monday, January 31.

    “In SIE, we have found a partner who unconditionally supports us in all we are and who wants to accelerate our vision to create generation-spanning entertainment, all while preserving the creative independence that beats in Bungie’s heart,” reads Bungie’s blog post. “Like us, SIE believes that game worlds are only the beginning of what our IPs can become. Together, we share a dream of creating and fostering iconic franchises that unite friends around the world, families across generations, and fans across multiple platforms and entertainment mediums.​“

    Bungie says it will continue to have the same creative freedom it has enjoyed for years.

    “We remain in charge of our destiny,” the blog continues. “We will continue to independently publish and creatively develop our games. We will continue to drive one, unified Bungie community. Our games will continue to be where our community is, wherever they choose to play.​“

    As the video game market heats up, larger companies are snapping up smaller ones that fit in with their plans. The metaverse — the intersection of physical, augmented, and virtual reality — is speeding up this consolidation, with companies seeing game makers as a way to game a foothold.

    It should be interesting to see what Bungie will be able to develop with Sony’s deep pockets backing the company.

  • Spotify Chooses Joe Rogan Over Neil Young

    Spotify Chooses Joe Rogan Over Neil Young

    Neil Young gave Spotify an ultimatum: Him or Joe Rogan — and Spotify chose Joe Rogan.

    Despite Spotify accounting for 60% of Young’s streaming music worldwide, the artist took the platform to task for hosting Joe Rogan. Rogan — and by extension Spotify — has come under fire for spreading misinformation regarding the COVID pandemic and various medical treatments, including vaccines.

    Young decided he could no longer stand by and do nothing, telling Spotify to remove his music from their service.

    “Spotify has recently become a very damaging force via its public misinformation and lies about COVID,” Young wrote. “I first learned of this problem by reading that 200 plus doctors had joined forces, taking on the dangerous life-threatening COVID falsehoods found in Spotify programming.”

    “I realized I could not continue to support Spotify’s life threatening misinformation to the music loving public,” Young continued. 

    The artist also took the opportunity to promote other platforms, highlighting the fact that other platforms have high-fidelity auto, something Spotify has promised but failed to deliver.

    “Many other platforms, Amazon, Apple, and Qobuz, to name a few, present my music today in all its High-Resolution glory — the way it is intended to be heard, while unfortunately Spotify continues to peddle the lowest quality in music reproduction. So much for art,” Young wrote.

    The artist thanked Warner Bros for standing with him, despite the hit their business will take from Young’s music leaving the platform.

  • YouTube Originals Shutting Down

    YouTube Originals Shutting Down

    YouTube is shuttering its YouTube Originals division, with lead Susanne Daniels expected to leave in March.

    YouTube Originals was the company’s foray into original content, began in 2016. Susanne Daniels headed up the division, and helped it create award-winning content.

    According to a tweet by Robert Kyncl, YouTube Chief Business Officer, YouTube Originals is shutting down.

    Today, there are over 2M creators in the YouTube Partner Program and our creator community has never been more successful: we’ve paid more than $30B to creators, artists, and media companies over the last three years.

    However, with rapid growth comes new opportunities and now our investments can make a greater impact on even more creators when applied towards other initiatives, like our Creator Shorts Fund, Black Voices Fund, and Live Shopping programming to name a few.

    Separately, Susanne has decided to leave YouTube and her last day will be March 1. I want to thank her for her vision, creativity and leadership.

    Together, these factors contributed to our decision to reduce our YouTube Originals slate. Going forward, we will only be funding programs that are part of our Black Voices and YouTube Kids Funds. We will honor our commitment for already contracted shows in progress and creators who are involved with those shows should expect to hear from us directly in the coming days.

    — Robert Kyncl (@rkyncl), January, 18

  • Microsoft Buying Activision Blizzard, CEO Kotick Likely Leaving Soon After

    Microsoft Buying Activision Blizzard, CEO Kotick Likely Leaving Soon After

    Microsoft announced it is buying Activision Blizzard in a deal worth a whopping $68.7 billion.

    Activision Blizzard is responsible for some of the biggest, most successful game franchises in history, including Warcraft, Overwatch, Starcraft, Diablo, Call of Duty, and Candy Crush. Microsoft sees the acquisition as a way for it to continue to cement its position in developing the metaverse, where in-person and virtual reality merge.

    “Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” said Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO, Microsoft. “We’re investing deeply in world-class content, community and the cloud to usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive and accessible to all.”

    At the same time, Forbes is reporting that Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is likely leaving once the deal is completed. Kotick has been under fire for his role in Activision’s culture, and has been accused of knowing about sexual harassment and discrimination accusations, but not taking the necessary steps to address the problem.

    Given that Microsoft is working to establish itself as a safe work environment, it’s unlikely Kotick would have place within the company once the deal is finalized.

    According to NPR, Nadella alluded to the challenges involved in reining in Activision’s culture in a call with investors.

    “After the close, we will have significant work to do in order to continue to build a culture where everyone can do their best work,” Nadella said. 

    In the meantime, here’s to hoping Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard will lead to a Starcraft 3…

  • Spotify Misses Deadline For HiFi Audio, Gives No Further Updates

    Spotify Misses Deadline For HiFi Audio, Gives No Further Updates

    Spotify has failed to deliver on its promise to roll out HiFi audio in 2021, and is offering no update on when users can expect it.

    Spotify announced in February that it planned on introducing CD-quality HiFi audio in 2021. Unfortunately for users counting on the feature, 2021 has come and gone with no HiFi update.

    The company has posted an update on its community boards, but has failed to provide an updated timetable.

    Hey folks,

    We know that HiFi quality audio is important to you. We feel the same, and we’re excited to deliver a Spotify HiFi experience to Premium users in the future. But we don’t have timing details to share yet.

    We will of course update you here when we can.

    Take care.

  • Zoom Acquires Liminal Assets to Power Virtual Events

    Zoom Acquires Liminal Assets to Power Virtual Events

    Zoom is continuing to go all-in on virtual meetings and events, purchasing assets from Luminal to help power its evolution.

    Zoom became a household name as a result of the pandemic, a far cry from its previous roots in the enterprise. The platform is used in the workplace, in schools, in churches, and in countless homes, as people work, learn, worship, and socialize remotely.

    The company also recognizes that the future of events is likely a combination of in-person and virtual attendance, and is moving forward with its efforts to address those needs, according to the company’s blog.

    Like the future of work, we believe that the future of events will include a combination of virtual and in-person formats. Whether it is a large trade show, corporate summit, internal event or online classes, our customers will need a holistic solution that provides them with what they need to confidently build, host and manage virtual and hybrid events.

    Zoom has purchased key assets from Liminal, assets that will help it better power these hybrid-style events.

    As part of our ongoing efforts to offer these solutions, we are pleased to announce that we recently acquired certain assets from Liminal, a startup company that offers event production solutions built largely on Zoom’s SDK. Two of Liminal’s co-founders, Andy Carluccio and Jonathan Kokotajlo, will also join Zoom. Liminal’s solutions, including their ZoomOSC and ZoomISO apps, will help bridge Zoom with traditional and emerging event control applications and hardware to help theaters, broadcast studios, and other creative organizations address complex technical production needs, and collaborate and create online effectively.

  • YouTube TV Loses and Regains Disney-Owned Channels

    YouTube TV Loses and Regains Disney-Owned Channels

    YouTube TV lost, and quickly regained, Disney-owned channels following issues negotiating a new contract.

    YouTube TV warned several days ago that it could lose Disney-owned channels when its current deal expired on Friday. Ultimately, the two companies failed to reach an agreement by the deadline, with Disney-owned channels going dark as of 12:00 AM Saturday morning.

    Fortunately for YouTube TV customers, the two companies have managed to hammer out a new agreement, according to a statement provided to WebProNews by Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution Sunday afternoon:

    “We are pleased to announce that after a brief disruption, we have reached a new distribution agreement with Google’s YouTube TV for continued carriage of our portfolio of networks. We appreciate Google’s collaboration to reach fair terms that are consistent with the market, and we’re thrilled that our robust lineup of live sports and news plus kids, family and general entertainment programming is in the process of being restored to YouTube TV subscribers across the country.”

  • DirecTV Prices Going Up in January

    DirecTV Prices Going Up in January

    DirecTV is raising its streaming and satellite TV packages starting in January.

    DirecTV was spun off from AT&T in August, and now competes with the likes YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV, and fuboTV streaming services, while still competing with Dish Network for the satellite market. Unfortunately for DirecTV customers, the company is planning on raising prices across both of its services in January.

    According to The Verge, satellite TV customers will see their plans go up anywhere from $1 to $10. Meanwhile, streaming TV customers will see increases ranging from $4 to $10.

    Many providers often give up channels rather than increase prices. YouTube TV recently announced it would drop its price by $15 if it loses Disney-owned channels. In contrast, DirecTV said in a statement seen by The Verge that its prices were increasing because it is committed to offering the most robust packages. 

    “While competitors continue to shrink their offerings, your DirecTV team maintains a steadfast commitment to carrying the most robust channel line-up in the industry and unrivalled [sic] leadership in premium sports and news content,” the company wrote. “In addition, we continue to invest in providing better customer service, releasing new technology upgrades that will enhance our signal reliability, and launching improved features. We are also delivering greater flexibility to watch what you want, when you want it, from virtually anywhere in the U.S.”

  • YouTube TV May Lose Disney Channels

    YouTube TV May Lose Disney Channels

    YouTube TV may lose access to Disney-owned channels as the two companies work to hammer out a new deal.

    YouTube TV is one of the premier streaming TV services, offering a good blend of channels, price and industry-leading cloud DVR. Unfortunately, for its customers, YouTube TV may be on the verge of losing one of its most appealing channel packages.

    The company is warning that it may lose all of Disney-owned channels once the current deal expires on Friday, December 17.

    We’re now in negotiations with Disney to continue distributing their content on YouTube TV so you can continue watching everything from your favorite teams on ESPN to The Bachelor to Good Morning America. Our deal expires on Friday, December 17, and we haven’t been able to reach an equitable agreement yet, so we wanted to give you an early heads up so that you can understand your choices.

    If the two companies are unable to reach an agreement, YouTube TV says it will lower its price to reflect the loss of channels.

    If Disney offers us equitable terms, we’ll renew our agreement with them. However, if we are unable to reach a deal by Friday, the Disney-owned channels will no longer be available on YouTube TV and we will decrease our monthly price by $15, from $64.99 to $49.99 (while this content remains off our platform).

    Given that Disney has its own bundle for $13.99/mo, the price break YouTube TV will give if it looses the channels should be more than enough to offset subscribing to The Disney Bundle. That being said, here’s to hoping the two companies can reach an agreement instead.

  • Roku and Google Settle YouTube TV Spat, Agree to Multi-Year Deal

    Roku and Google Settle YouTube TV Spat, Agree to Multi-Year Deal

    Roku and Google have settled their spat over YouTube TV, agreeing to a multi-year deal that will keep YouTube TV on the platform.

    Roku and Google have been at odds since April over terms for renewing their agreement for YouTube TV streaming. Google wanted access to more customer data than Roku was willing to give.

    “We have only asked Google for four simple commitments,” a Roku spokesperson told WebProNews at the time. “First, not to manipulate consumer search results. Second, not to require access to data not available to anyone else. Third, not to leverage their YouTube monopoly to force Roku to accept hardware requirements that would increase consumer costs. Fourth, not to act in a discriminatory and anticompetitive manner against Roku.”

    Roku ultimately pulled the YouTube TV app from its platform. Google retaliated by including streaming TV in its standard YouTube app for Roku.

    Despite the dispute, it appears the two companies have reached a new agreement, as announced by Roku on Twitter.

    It’s unclear at this time which company backed down from its demands.

  • Patreon Building Video Product to Help Creators Break Free of YouTube

    Patreon Building Video Product to Help Creators Break Free of YouTube

    Patreon is working on a video platform to help creators break free of their reliance on YouTube, a move that could have a major impact on the market.

    YouTube has long been the preferred video platform for content creators, although the relationship has not always been a rosy one. YouTube’s algorithms occasionally de-prioritizes content unfairly, and YouTube has de-monetized entire categories of videos.

    Many creators have taken to using Patreon to supplement their income, receiving donations from patrons that enjoy their content. According to The Verge, Patreon CEO Jack Conte says the company is building a video platform that could completely replace YouTube for many creators.

    “We already host podcasts, and now we’re starting to host video, as well,” he says. “We’re building a video product … So in terms of how we’ve approached our strategy, and what exactly it is that we’re building, we’re building the horizontal architecture for any creator, no matter their medium, or no matter the upload format, to be able to build a business around their work.”

    A Patreon video platform could be a game-changer for the subscription economy, and could eventually put a serious dent in YouTube’s popularity.

  • Netflix Games Comes to iOS

    Netflix Games Comes to iOS

    Netflix has brought its Netflix Games service to iOS, including both iPhones and iPads, as the company expands its offerings.

    Netflix has been working toward entering the video game market for some time, even hiring former EA exec Mike Verdu to head up its efforts. The company said its mobile game service would be ad-free and available at no extra cost.

    Netflix Games is now available on iOS/iPadOS, roughly a week after debuting on Android.

    Starting today, members everywhere can play five mobile games: Stranger Things: 1984 (BonusXP), Stranger Things 3: The Game (BonusXP), Shooting Hoops (Frosty Pop), Card Blast (Amuzo & Rogue Games), and Teeter Up (Frosty Pop). Whether you’re craving a casual game you can start from scratch or an immersive experience that lets you dig deeper into your favorite stories, we want to begin to build a library of games that offers something for everyone. We’re in the early days of creating a great gaming experience, and we’re excited to take you on this journey with us.

  • T-Mobile Giving Customers a Free year of Paramount+

    T-Mobile Giving Customers a Free year of Paramount+

    T-Mobile has announced it is giving users a free year of Paramount+, the latest effort by the carrier to add value to its services.

    Wireless carriers have been aggressively bundling various streaming services, adding value and trying to prevent churn — the industry term for customers switching carriers. As part of its latest efforts, T-Mobile is bundling Paramount+ for all new and existing T-Mobile and Sprint customers.

    “At T-Mobile, EVERYONE means EVERYONE. And now, every one of our postpaid consumers can get a mountain of awesome entertainment with Paramount+ Essential on Us for a full year. That’s true whether you have a consumer or a home internet plan and whether you have a new Magenta MAX plan or are on a plan from 10 years ago,” said Jon Freier, President, Consumer Group at T-Mobile. “With Paramount+, in addition to all our other streaming benefits, customers can truly watch virtually anywhere, anytime, on any smartphone and all at no extra cost with T-Mobile.”

    The partnership provides customers with live sports, original programing and a deep catalog of content, including from ViacomCBS.

    “The partnership with T-Mobile is a key part to our growth strategy as we continue to scale Paramount+ to become a global leader in streaming,” said Jeff Shultz, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Business Development Officer, ViacomCBS Streaming. “This incredible offer is available to T-Mobile’s full suite of postpaid consumers, exposing Paramount+ to a massive new and diverse audience that will have the opportunity to experience the service’s unmatched content portfolio and unique value proposition as a total household product.”

    The deal is available to customers starting November 9 and lasts for 12 months. At the end of 12 months, the subscription will renew for $4.99 a month.

  • Amazon Expands Free Local News Coverage on Fire TV

    Amazon Expands Free Local News Coverage on Fire TV

    Amazon has expanded its free local news coverage on its Fire TV streaming device.

    Amazon introduced its free news app last year, initially in just 12 cities. In March, the company expanded to 88 markets. The company has once again expanded the service, this time to 158 cities across the US.

    Today’s expansion includes cities like Charleston, Wichita, Tucson, Reno, Raleigh-Durham, Honolulu, and Lincoln, and will double the local stations available from 126 to 259.

    Customers can access their local news under the “Local News” tab in the app, or by saying “Alexa, play local news” using the Alexa Voice Remote.

  • Facebook Will Pay For News in France

    Facebook Will Pay For News in France

    Facebook has said it will pay for news in France, a departure from the company’s previous stance.

    Facebook and Google have both received criticism for benefiting from the news industry, benefit they gain without paying. News organizations and legislators have started taking a harder stance against the practice in an effort to force Big Tech to pay for the content it uses.

    Despite previously being opposed to paying, Facebook has reached an agreement with the APIG, an alliance of French newspapers, according to International Business Times. The agreement “means that people on Facebook will be able to continue uploading and sharing news stories freely amongst their communities, whilst also ensuring that the copyright of our publishing partners is protected.”

    Pierre Louette, head of the APIG, praised the deal as one that will benefit the industry, providing “significant financing” for the individual organizations, “particularly the smallest of them.”

  • YouTube TV Reaches Deal to Keep All NBCUniversal Channels

    YouTube TV Reaches Deal to Keep All NBCUniversal Channels

    YouTube TV and NBCUniversal have reached a deal for YouTube TV to continue carrying NBCUniversal’s (NBCU) channels.

    YouTube TV warned last week that it was on the verge of losing NBCU’s portfolio of channels over a contract dispute, with the deadline set for September 30. In the eleventh hour, the two companies announced an extension, keeping the channels on YouTube TV while negotiations continued.

    It appears the two companies have reached a long-term agreement, ensuring YouTube TV customers won’t lose access to NBCU’s content. The YouTube team made the announcement in a blog post:

    We’re thrilled to share that we’ve reached a deal to continue carrying the full NBCUniversal portfolio of channels. That means you won’t lose access to any of their channels, and YouTube TV will continue to offer 85+ networks for $64.99. We appreciate NBCUniversal’s willingness to work toward an agreement, and we also appreciate your patience as we negotiated with them on your behalf.

  • Netflix Buys Night School Studio, Creator of Oxenfree

    Netflix Buys Night School Studio, Creator of Oxenfree

    Netflix has purchased Night School Studio, its first game studio, as the company expands from streaming into gaming.

    Netflix has been making a move into gaming, hiring former Electronic Arts executive Mike Verdu to head up its efforts. The company later confirmed its plans to offer games to its subscribers at no extra cost and ad-free.

    Night School Studio is the maker of the critically acclaimed Oxenfree. Significantly, the purchase would seem to indicate Netflix’s efforts will not be restricted to mobile games, given that Oxenfree is a cross-platform game.

    Verdu made the announcement in a blog post.

    Founded by Sean Krankel and Adam Hines in 2014, Night School Studio is best known for their critically acclaimed debut game, OXENFREE. We’re inspired by their bold mission to set a new bar for storytelling in games. Their commitment to artistic excellence and proven track record make them invaluable partners as we build out the creative capabilities and library of Netflix games together.

    We’ll continue working with developers around the world and hiring the best talent in the industry to deliver a great collection of exclusive games designed for every kind of gamer and any level of play. Like our shows and films, these games will all be included as part of your Netflix membership — all with no ads and no in-app purchases. Stay tuned for more.

    The purchase price was not disclosed.

  • YouTube CEO Promotes Free Speech After Removing Russian App

    YouTube CEO Promotes Free Speech After Removing Russian App

    YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki promoted the company’s support of free speech in Russia — after the company removed a free speech app in Russia.

    Google and Apple found themselves in a firestorm of controversy after removing Putin opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s “Smart Voting” app. Privacy critics, free speech proponents and politicians condemned the companies’ actions.

    Wojcicki is hitting back, saying free speech in Russia is still part of the company’s core values.

    “But when we work with governments, there are many things that we have to take in consideration, whether it’s local laws or what’s happening on the ground,” Wojcicki told Bloomberg Television. “So there’s always going to be multiple considerations.”

    Interestingly, despite Google at one time being willing to pull out of China over censorship concerns, the company doesn’t see that happening in Russia — at least not now.

    “I think we really want to make sure that we’re working and serving audiences as much as we possibly can,” Wojcicki continued. “And if it comes to a point where there’s an issue with the government, we’ll do our best always to work that out.”

  • Demise of Adobe Flash Has Led to Loss of Important 9/11 Coverage

    Demise of Adobe Flash Has Led to Loss of Important 9/11 Coverage

    Important news coverage of 9/11 has been lost as a result of Adobe Flash being discontinued.

    Adobe Flash reigned supreme for years, the preferred way of presenting videos on the internet. Ultimately, a seemingly endless array of security issues, combined with resource-intensive performance, led Apple to stop including the Flash Player with new Macs. Other companies soon followed suit, spelling the demise of the product and the format it spawned.

    A further nail in the coffin was the rise of standards compliant alternatives, such as HTML5, that addressed many of Flash’s shortcomings.

    Unfortunately, much of the video coverage of 9/11 was uploaded to the internet using Flash, meaning it is no longer accessible, according to CNN Business. 

    “This is really about the problem of what I call the boneyard of the internet. Everything that’s not a piece of text or a flat picture is basically destined to rot and die when new methods of delivering the content replace it,” Dan Pacheco, professor of practice and chair of journalism innovation at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School, told CNN Business. “I just feel like the internet is rotting at an even faster pace, ironically, because of innovation. It shouldn’t.”

    While the death of Flash was a welcome improvement to the Internet, it illustrates the challenges and importance of finding a way to archive important content when older technologies and formats fade away.

  • China’s Regulators Block New Video Games

    China’s Regulators Block New Video Games

    China is taking more steps to combat video game addiction, blocking new games from being licensed in the country.

    China is on a crusade to combat video game addiction in children. The country recently restricted minors to only three hours of gaming per week — an hour a day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, as well as on holidays.

    Regulators are now taking an additional step, putting new game approvals on hold “for a while,” according to sources that spoke with the South China Morning Post. The goal is to “cut the number of new games” and “reduce gaming addiction.”

    The decision is sure to impact some of China’s most successful companies, including Tencent and NetEase, companies that have made billions from the very type of games China now seeks to curtail.