From The Archives

From the Archives revisits how Roku built an advertising business that could monetize streaming activity even when it didn’t own the programming or sell the ads. Direct Publisher expanded ad-supported supply, Audience Marketplace layered Roku’s first-party data onto publisher inventory,…

From the Archives revisits how Samsung TV Plus turned Samsung’s smart TV installed base into a recurring media, advertising, and distribution business. By embedding FAST programming directly into Tizen, Samsung reduced customer acquisition friction while gaining control over discovery, ad…

From the Archives revisits how Pluto TV turned aging television libraries into a recurring revenue engine by packaging catalog programming into scheduled FAST channels and monetizing connected-TV viewing through addressable advertising. Viacom’s $340 million acquisition gave the company direct consumer…

From the Archives revisits Charter’s 2023 carriage fight with Disney, which forced Disney+, ESPN+, and the future flagship ESPN service into Spectrum’s cable packages while removing eight lower-value linear networks. The agreement turned streaming access into a core part of…

From the Archives revisits Cablevision’s RS-DVR victory, which established the legal framework for cloud recording through user-initiated recordings, individualized copies, and private transmissions. The ruling helped operators replace expensive DVR hardware with scalable network storage, but it also created a…

From the Archives revisits FilmOn X’s attempt to use remote antennas and cloud delivery to stream broadcast television without traditional carriage agreements. FilmOn X’s legal strategy briefly opened a path to cable’s compulsory licensing system, which could’ve lowered the cost…

From the Archives revisits how Betamax helped establish the legal and consumer foundation for modern streaming by protecting time-shifted viewing and recognizing that technology shouldn’t be treated as infringement just because it can be misused. The 1984 Supreme Court decision…

From the Archives revisits Quibi’s Turnstyle patent fight, where Eko alleged Quibi’s orientation-switching playback feature infringed interactive video patents before the service launched. The dispute showed streaming competition expanding into software, UX, and IP, with playback features becoming valuable assets…

From the Archives revisits how Amazon’s “Customers Who Bought This Also Bought” feature helped turn recommendation engines into core internet infrastructure. Amazon’s item-to-item collaborative filtering showed that behavior could outperform metadata, creating a discovery model that now powers streaming, music,…

From the Archives revisits TiVo Suggestions, one of TV’s earliest recommendation engines and a preview of how discovery would become core to streaming. TiVo used viewing behavior and feedback to predict what users might like, proving that understanding taste could…