October 2023 M&E Newsletter

Harvesting Media Insights for the Fall Season

Andy Beach
October 17, 2023

Intro

October is often a haze of autumnal hues and ever-shortening days, accompanied by the familiar comfort of pumpkin-spiced everything. Yet, this year, these comforting markers have been overshadowed by global politics and suffering. My heart goes out to all those impacted by the recent events in Israel and Palestine.

This month, Microsoft has underscored its emphasis on integrating advanced technology into our daily digital experiences—from its monumental acquisition of Activision Blizzard to pioneering watermarking for AI images. Meanwhile, the transition from traditional cable systems to Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) streaming and the innovations driving more interactive viewer experiences, notably in sports, herald a shift in content consumption dynamics. However, amidst the allure of these advancements, a cautionary tale unfolds—streaming services must navigate the delicate balance of growth without mirroring the pitfalls of their cable predecessors.

As we stand at the start to a season bustling with diverse celebrations—be it Diwali's Festival of Lights, the warmth of Thanksgiving, or the reflections from the recent Yom Kippur—it's a fitting time to delve deep into the transformative shifts in media and recognize the tapestry of stories that connect us all. Enjoy this month's insights!

Microsoft in Media

Microsoft completes Activision Blizzard acquisition, Call of Duty now part of Xbox

The deal has closed after 20 months of legal battles.

www.theverge.com/2023/10/13/23791235/microsoft-activision-blizzard-acquisition-complete-finalized

Microsoft and Adobe push new symbol to label AI images

Check for 'cr' bubble in pictures if your app supports it, or look in the metadata if it hasn't been stripped, or...

www.theregister.com/2023/10/15/microsoft_adobe_ai_watermark

Announcing Microsoft Copilot, your everyday AI companion - The Official Microsoft Blog

We are entering a new era of AI, one that is fundamentally changing how we relate to and benefit from technology. With the convergence of chat interfaces and large language models you can now ask for what you want in natural language and the technology is smart enough to answer, create it or take action....

blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2023/09/21/announcing-microsoft-copilot-your-everyday-ai-companion

Customers & Partners

MediaKind eyes new biz in D2C sports and contextual ad targeting - Rethink

MediaKind is knuckling down on D2C sports in the US, where the recent chaos surrounding regional sports networks (RSNs) has revealed a lucrative new client base. Speaking to Faultline at IBC 2023, the company’s Head of Portfolio Development, Carl Fergusson, says that RSNs are big potential clients, with a few already up and running. The whirlwind collapse of RSNs meant that MediaKind had to be ready to launch new services with little-to-no notice. The record time was six weeks from the first product order to the commercial launch, MediaKind claims, boasting a complete platform that ran the entire AV pipe to the consumer. “Previously they were running on cable, now they are a D2C streaming service, offering SVoD with…

rethinkresearch.biz/articles/mediakind-eyes-new-biz-in-d2c-sports-and-contextual-ad-targeting

How Artificial Intelligence is Transforming the Video Streaming Industry

Explore how artificial intelligence is changing the video streaming landscape and increasing video workflow efficiencies.

www.harmonicinc.com/insights/blog/ai-video-streaming

Netflix Names Eunice Kim as Chief Product Officer, Elizabeth Stone as Chief Technology Officer

Netflix has named Eunice Kim chief product officer, and elevated Elizabeth Stone to chief technology officer.

variety.com/2023/digital/news/netflix-eunice-kim-chief-product-elizabeth-stone-tech-1235743397/#recipient_hashed=c9048845b2ce9da6e099f8c8979c5fce3e462841d125b708968b6fac5781202d&recipient_salt=412fe87168efe898145dcc855c3faca5673165ea0ab9898a9e5ce8319fa86a16

Darren Aronofsky Describes His Journey to Creating the First Movie for the Las Vegas Sphere

Not everything that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas! Darren Aronofsky's Postcards from Earth debuted at the Las Vegas Sphere, cut by Oppenheimer editor Jennifer Lame on Avid Media Composer….

www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/sphere-las-vegas-darren-aronofsky-postcard-from-earth-1235610029

Ease Live launch enables sports fans to interact on all devices – including connected TVs

Top sports leagues and their streaming partners powering interactive coverage in basketball, hockey, baseball and soccer through Ease Live can now drive interactivity directly via the TV in addition to mobile devices.

www.easelive.tv/blog/posts/ease-live-enables-sports-fans-to-interact-on-all-devices-including-connected-tvs

Industry News

Why the End of the Prestige TV Era Could Benefit Everyone

VIP+ Analysis: With a content contraction coming, here’s why streamers and writers can both profit from an updated network TV-esque model.

variety.com/vip/why-end-of-prestige-tv-era-could-benefit-everyone-1235749746

Streaming Services Should Beware Becoming Like Cable Companies

About a month ago, I finally reached my breaking point with YouTube TV, the streaming service I had subscribed to years earlier as a replacement for cable TV. I didn’t think twice about paying $40 a month for it in 2018, but after years of price increases—YouTube TV now costs $73 a month—I ...

www.theinformation.com/articles/streaming-services-should-beware-becoming-like-cable-companies?rc=jtsdxo

Demand Dynamics: How Major Streamers Distribute Their Bets

Peak TV may have already peaked, as the recent Hollywood strikes have impacted the delivery of fresh scripted content over recent months. Which is why no one is arguing that the entertainment industry is still in the unfettered Wild West phase that drove its prolific expansion from 2018-2022.

Demand Dynamics: How Major Streamers Distribute Their Bets (ampproject.org)

Why Shoppable Media Is The Next Evolution Of Retail Media — TVREV

AiBUY’s shoppable overlay is on display in these two videos featuring Evan Shapiro and Alan Wolk talking with the AiBUY team about the future of shoppable media.

www.tvrev.com/news/why-shoppable-media-is-the-next-evolution-of-retail-media

MediaRadar: Writer’s Strike Cost TV $1.6 Billion

Primetime and late night TV lost an estimated $1B alone

www.tvtechnology.com/news/mediaradar-writers-strike-cost-film-and-tv-nearly-dollar2b

Events

Avid on LinkedIn: #broadcastnow #ai #artificialintelligence #avidada #creativity #media…

Join Avid’s Shailendra Mathur at Broadcast’s AI Creative Summit and learn how you can foster creativity with the power of Avid Ada ▶️…

www.linkedin.com/posts/avid-technology_broadcastnow-ai-artificialintelligence-activity-7117448694097920001-DK6m?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Resources

Introducing Microsoft Clipchamp

Microsoft Clipchamp has been a natural fit for Microsoft 365 consumers, adding video creation to the suite of productivity tools people use to unlock their creativity. With powerful features in a user-friendly interface accessed through a web browser, Clipchamp makes it easy for anyone to confidently create professional-looking videos with no prior experience.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2023/07/31/introducing-microsoft-clipchamp-unlock-the-power-of-video-at-work

How to Research and Write Using Generative AI Tools Video Tutorial | LinkedIn Learning

After watching this video, you will be able to get helpful summaries of articles and concepts in everyday language. When you have easy-to-read summaries, you can consider far more information and see what's worth investigating further.

www.linkedin.com/learning/how-to-research-and-write-using-generative-ai-tools/using-ai-to-summarize-complex-information?u=3322

Build an OpenAI Powered Home Assistant

Welcome to the OpenAI Home Assistant project. The goal of the home assistant project is to explore the power of OpenAI Whisper and OpenAI…

medium.com/microsoftazure/build-an-openai-powered-home-assistant-a210c5ec5cde

Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals: Get started with artificial intelligence - Training

Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals: Get started with artificial intelligence

learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/get-started-with-artificial-intelligence-on-azure