Business

Brands are turning marketing budgets into production capital, moving deeper into Hollywood’s development, financing and distribution process as studios and streamers reduce commissioning and look to share risk. The shift gives advertisers more influence over what gets made and creates…

Skip argues media quality is becoming more important as identity signals weaken, giving advertisers another way to value impressions based on attention, placement, clutter, frequency, audibility, fraud, and the surrounding viewing environment. Media quality can help buyers distinguish valuable inventory…

Paramount is threatening to move its headquarters and parts of its operations out of California unless Attorney General Rob Bonta negotiates a settlement in the state’s lawsuit challenging its $110 billion Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition. David Ellison is using jobs,…

Spotify will begin labeling synthetic artist identities as “AI Personas” in mid-September and exclude their music from editorial and algorithmic recommendations by default, while keeping tracks available through search, direct links and followers. The policy turns recommendation access into an…

AI is turning entertainment metadata into a much more valuable piece of the streaming stack. As conversational discovery takes hold, platforms will need constantly refreshed data on rights, availability, IDs, schedules, and deep links to turn a viewer’s intent into…

Hollywood’s high-cost greenlight model concentrates too much capital before audiences can validate demand, while hits like Obsession, Backrooms, and Terrifier 3 show how smaller upfront bets can generate massive returns. Obsession has grossed about $475 million on a sub-$1 million…

YouTube is doubling the monetization thresholds for new Partner Program creators starting February 1, 2027, raising the bar for access to ad and subscription revenue. The move turns monetization into a tighter supply-control mechanism, rewarding repeatable audience demand while giving…

Spotify’s testing a Skip Ahead button for select Premium subscribers that can bypass publisher-sold podcast sponsorships in one tap while Spotify-sold ads remain ineligible, giving its own inventory a structural advantage. The feature could weaken independent host-read sponsorship economics by…

Disney's video-podcast deal with iHeartMedia brings six shows to Disney+ and Hulu, giving the company lower-cost programming that can extend franchise marketing, reactivate library titles and create recurring engagement between major releases. The agreement also gives Disney more advertising inventory…

CNN's adding live text commentary from reporters and experts alongside programming to keep second-screen engagement inside its own product instead of losing attention to search and social platforms. The format gives CNN more output from existing talent, adds differentiation to…