This week, we discuss the decline in TV services used by viewers, the Disney+ password-sharing crackdown, Prime Video ads, and the cable ad revenue decline.

Innovation was abundant at IBC 2023, with new AI-powered solutions delivering instant speaker fact-checks, regionally optimized movie marketing, and personalized highlight reels.

Charter and Disney settled their dispute, and we discuss the outcome. Also, this week, Eluvio’s streaming platform, Gracenote for FAST discoverability, and Hulu’s ownership puzzle.

Charter and Disney are at a standoff over rates, bundling, and how DTC apps are treated. Neither side is blinking, and the future direction of linear TV distribution is up for grabs.

Broadcaster SVOD services are struggling to compete with CTVs elite, but their FASTs are doing great. SVOD services that added ad-tiers late suffer a long-term disadvantage.

Free ad-supported TV (FAST) continues to expand, and this week, we discuss new initiatives from TCL, Fire TV, Google TV, and Cox Media Group.

Nielsen says that linear TV fell below half of July viewing. Is it right? Q2 2023 pay TV losses continue. Watching with subtitles is the default for many. And The Roku Channel adds local Fox and CBS stations.

Disney made progress toward direct-to-consumer profitability in the last quarter. Another Disney+ price increase and password-sharing curbs could finish the job on schedule in 2024. But at what cost?

In Q2 2023, WB Discovery lost 1.8 million DTC subscribers globally, though it recorded a slight increase in ARPU. We discuss the loss, DTC profitability, and what to expect going forward.

Comcast’s cable TV subscriber losses continued to accelerate in Q2 2023. We discuss whether Peacock is picking up the slack and how it will fare if the writers’ and actors’ strike continues into the new year.