The streaming industry obsessed over subscriber counts while a few players focused on something more important: control. Control over user experience. Control over distribution. Control over monetization. Those who chased subs are now cutting costs and consolidating. Those who chased control are just getting started.
Apple Bought Formula 1 to Lock Viewers Into Its Ecosystem
Apple didn’t buy F1 to build a sports audience. It bought F1 to make the Apple TV platform indispensable. Races will stream ad-free for subscribers, with free sessions pulling in new users through the Apple TV app. F1 TV Premium gets bundled directly into the experience.
Apple will surface F1 content across its services: News, Fitness+, Podcasts, and Music. All of it runs through Apple’s design, distribution, and business rules. The value isn’t just in streaming the races. It’s in making users navigate Apple to get there.
This is ecosystem enforcement through premium IP.
Sony Built a Monetization Engine While Everyone Else Built Overhead
Sony skipped the streaming arms race. It focused on licensing and IP expansion while other studios locked themselves into losing battles over exclusivity. It never built a global SVOD. It never needed to.
Sony leaned into formats that scale: anime, gaming, music. It monetized each property across every possible channel. Crunchyroll feeds fan engagement. PlayStation extends IP value. Theatrical, merch, AVOD, SVOD, and FAST all generate returns.
Demon Slayer works in theaters, on streaming, in games, and in retail. And it doesn’t depend on subscriber retention to succeed.
Sony doesn’t own a platform. It owns outcomes.
FAST Became Embedded Distribution
TiVo is out of the DVR business. Now it is an OS company powering smart TVs and car dashboards. Its partnership with Free Live Sports puts 45 sports channels directly into TVs, set-top boxes, and BMWs. No downloads. No hunting for apps.
Free Live Sports is not building a destination. It is scaling through syndication. It packages sports channels and embeds them across high-traffic surfaces. Not as an app, but as part of the interface itself.
FAST is no longer a content category. It is a distribution layer.
The Streaming Wars Take
Apple owns the interface. Sony owns the monetization stack. FAST is embedding itself into the places viewers already are. None of them are relying on subscriber growth to justify their existence. They’re focused on distribution leverage, monetization flexibility, and staying unavoidable.
Control drives pricing power. Control drives engagement. Control drives yield. Subscriber growth was the distraction. Infrastructure is the advantage.
