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  • Why Brenda Lee may not see much money from her No. 1 Christmas song

    Why Brenda Lee may not see much money from her No. 1 Christmas song

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    In case you missed the news, the pop-chart star of the moment is Brenda Lee, a 78-year-old Rock & Roll and Country Music Hall of Famer whose 1958 holiday hit, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” is remarkably now the nation’s No. 1 song, according to Billboard.

    It all follows a major push by Lee’s label, Universal Music Group’s UMG Nashville/UMe
    UMG,
    +0.28%    ,
    to bring the decades-old rockabilly-flavored song to the fore. That included releasing the first-ever video for the song, with cameos by country greats Tanya Tucker and Trisha Yearwood, plus a new EP.

    But here’s a related story that could come as a surprise: Lee may stand to gain relatively little financially from her chart-topping success, according to a number of entertainment-industry attorneys and experts who spoke with MarketWatch.

    David Schulhof, a veteran music-industry executive who is behind the MUSQ ETF MUSQ, an exchange-traded fund focused on the music business, said that Lee might take home $250,000 at best directly from recording royalties through her label.

    Not quite the millions of dollars you might expect, in other words. And certainly not the estimated $2.5 million to $3 million that Mariah Carey rakes in annually from her holiday hit, “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” the song that has given Carey the unofficial title of “Queen of Christmas.”

    But Lee’s case is not unique, Schulhof said. “A lot of these artists appear to be richer than they are,” he said.

    MarketWatch reached out to Lee for comment through Universal Music, but didn’t receive an immediate response.

    Lee did issue a statement through the company, however, saying, “This is amazing! I cannot believe that ‘Rockin’ has hit No. 1 65 years after it was released, this is just so special!…The song came out when I was a young teenager and now to know that it has resonated with multiple generations and continues to resonate — it is one of the best gifts I have ever received.”

    A label spokesperson didn’t have immediate comment on the recent royalties generated by the recording.

    Not that Lee’s royalty earnings this year may be anything to sneeze at — certainly, $250,000 is not a bad payday. But in general, the big money in the music business often goes to songwriters, Schulhof and others explain.

    “The richer pot of the two is definitely the composer’s side,” Barry Chase, a Miami-based entertainment attorney, told MarketWatch.

    That is, songwriters are guaranteed a solid chunk of royalties in most contractual arrangements. Indeed, the reason Carey does so well with “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is because she helped pen the hit, which is said to have earned her $60 million since its 1994 release. (That said, Carey is now facing a $20 million copyright lawsuit connected to the song.)

    In the case of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” the songwriter is the late Johnny Marks, who also penned such holiday hits as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” “Silver and Gold” and “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” Marks’ catalog is now managed by his estate, with the songwriter’s son, Michael Marks, helping guide the business.

    “Who would have thought?” Michael Marks told MarketWatch about the recent chart-topping success of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” But he didn’t want to respond to other questions, saying, “This is a busy time for us.”

    A key reason songwriters stand to benefit so much is that they receive money from radio play, whereas recording artists — and record labels — do not, explained Chase. And while radio is not as significant in the era of Spotify and other digital outlets, it still counts for something.

    Chase says the radio arrangement was set in motion decades ago and that record companies didn’t push for money tied to airplay because they were eager for the exposure, which they saw as a way to drive sales of the singles or albums.

    Other issues are also at play for recording artists that affect their earnings, experts explain. That’s especially true for older artists who signed contracts decades ago, when the industry was especially known for taking advantage of singers.

    Further complicating matters: The artist contracts back in the day didn’t anticipate the advent of everything from digital platforms like Spotify to ringtones, all sources of royalty revenue, experts note. And while there might have been clauses that allowed for the potential of such future sources, there’s no saying those arrangements were fair.

    “‘It takes a lot of streams to make money.’”


    — Entertainment attorney Lisa Alter

    Contracts can be renegotiated, of course — and often are, particularly if a label is trying to stay on good terms with an artist in anticipation of keeping them signed and making more hit records, industry professionals observe.

    But when it comes to something like Spotify, the royalties still may not amount to much — reports say they can be between $0.003 to $0.005 per stream. And even then, the artist is splitting that streaming revenue with the record label.

    “It takes a lot of streams to make money,” Lisa Alter, a partner and entertainment attorney with the New York-based firm Alter, Kendrick & Baron, told MarketWatch.

    Schulhof throws another wrinkle into the equation: Often, a contract renegotiation involves the recording artist getting an upfront payment from the label in advance of future royalties. So, in theory, an artist like Brenda Lee could be receiving nothing in 2023 from her label, with the money having been paid out years ago, Schulhof said.

    Lee can still mine her chart-topping success in other ways, however. Namely, through concert engagements, personal appearances and film, TV and advertising opportunities. Schulhof said that could easily add $100,000 to $150,000 in earnings this year, but probably not more.

    But Holly Gleason, a veteran music journalist who knows Lee personally, said Lee is both “cute-as-a-button crazy” and sharp and smart — in other words, just the formula that would make her someone in demand for a variety of opportunities and someone who would know how to mine them properly.

    And Gleason told MarketWatch that those opportunities could be endless. “Maybe she’ll be on QVC selling Christmas trees,” Gleason said.

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  • What to expect as Netflix, Disney and other big streaming names shift strategy

    What to expect as Netflix, Disney and other big streaming names shift strategy

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    Streaming customers are likely to see more familiar faces and less megabudget content in the coming year.

    Shifting consumer tastes and corporate strategies portend changes in programming, with artificial intelligence looming in the background, as major streaming services consider how to use technology and new forms of programming without escalating annual multibillion-dollar content budgets.

    “The big quandary is, how do we make [services] profitable? Things have shifted so dramatically and so quickly in how people consume,” Cole Strain, head of research and development at Samba TV, which tracks viewership of shows, said in an interview. “The streamers that find out what consumers truly want — they win.”

    Streaming services are facing some big choices, noted Jacqueline Corbelli, CEO of software company BrightLine. “The cost of the content and the length of the content war will force them to make some major decisions. They are trying to figure it out,” she said in an interview.

    “Great content has to be paid for, and investors want to see an increasingly efficient and profitable business,” she said, adding: “Right now the economics of these are at odds with one another.”

    This year’s prolonged Hollywood strikes, the prevalence of up-close-and-personal sports documentaries and the increased licensing of older cable-TV shows are the most tangible evidence so far of how content is evolving. Throw in cost-cutting, and customers of services like Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    +0.28%    ,
    Walt Disney Co.’s
    DIS,
    -1.33%
    Disney+ and Hulu, and Amazon.com Inc.’s
    AMZN,
    +1.41%
    Prime Video are looking at a vastly different content landscape.

    What’s at stake? Streaming’s big guns continue to spend lavishly in the pursuit of engagement, which is the single most important metric in media. During its third-quarter earnings calls, Netflix said it would spend $17 billion on content in 2024, while Disney pledged $25 billion, including sports rights.

    “‘I think when it comes to creativity, quality is critical, of course, and quantity in many ways can destroy quality.’”


    — Disney CEO Bob Iger

    Complicating matters and raising the urgency is the pressure, particularly at Disney, to cut costs. The very future of blockbuster movies is also in doubt in the wake of box-office misfires such as “Wish,” “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” and the latest Marvel entries, “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” and “The Marvels.”

    “One of the reasons I believe it’s fallen off a bit is that we were making too much,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said at a recent employee town hall meeting in New York City. “I think when it comes to creativity, quality is critical, of course, and quantity in many ways can destroy quality. Storytelling, obviously, is the core of what we do as a company.”

    Also read: Disney CEO Bob Iger walks back comments about asset sales

    Speaking at the New York Times DealBook Summit last week, Iger acknowledged that “the movie business is changing. Box office is about 75% of what it was pre-COVID.” Noting the $7 monthly fee for a Disney+ subscription, he said the experience of viewing content from home on large TV screens is both more convenient and less expensive than going to the movie theater.

    Iger’s task is significantly more fraught than those faced by his rivals. He is in the midst of a turnaround at Disney aimed at making streaming profitable and is simultaneously fending off yet another proxy fight from activist investor Nelson Peltz.

    Part of Iger’s plan is to slash costs. Of the $7.5 billion Disney intends to save in 2024, $4.5 billion will come out of the content budget. Previously, the company was aiming at a $3 billion content cut out of a total annual reduction of $5.5 billion. Disney plans to spend $25 billion on content in 2024, down from $27.2 billion in 2023 and a record $29.9 billion in 2022.

    Read more: Bob Iger: ‘I was not seeking to return’ as Disney CEO

    What streamers have done so far hews closely to the classic TV model of producing original movies and series, broadcasting live sporting events and throwing in licensed content, or syndication. They’ve also displayed a willingness to place ads on their services after vowing not to (in the case of Netflix) and have managed to mitigate spending on pricey sports rights with behind-the-scenes content.

    Most prominently, Netflix has licensed older shows like USA Networks’ “Suits,” reintroducing the cast, including a then-unknown Meghan Markle, to solid viewership. “As the competitive environment evolves, we may have increased opportunities to license more hit titles to complement our original programming,” Netflix said in its third-quarter earnings statement. 

    During the company’s earnings call in October, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos pointed to the historic streaming success of “Suits.” “This continues to be important for us to add a lot of breadth of storytelling,” he said. “Our consumers have a wide range of tastes, and we can’t make everything, but we can help you find just about anything. That’s really the strength.”

    The success of “Suits” and of original sports programming, among several tweaks, indicates that consumers like what they see so far. Streaming additions at Netflix and Disney were significant — 8.76 million and nearly 7 million, respectively — during the recently completed third calendar quarter.

    Read more: Netflix’s stock jumps more than 10% on huge spike in subscribers, price hikes

    “There exist a lot of popular, good shows that people hadn’t seen before. HBO Max has licensed ‘Band of Brothers.’ ‘Yellowstone’ is on the CBS network after performing well on Paramount Global
    PARA,
    -2.76%
    and Comcast Corp.’s
    CMCSA,
    -3.41%
    Peacock,” Jon Giegengack, founder and principal of Hub Entertainment Research, said in an interview. “Consumers increasingly don’t care if a show is new, if they haven’t seen it before.”

    On the sports front, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have sidestepped expensive rights to live sporting events and instead produced docuseries such as Netflix’s “Quarterback” and “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” and Amazon’s “Coach Prime” and “Redefined: J.R. Smith.” Amazon also continues to air “NFL Thursday Night Football.”

    Competition for eyeballs is tight with so many suitors — from Alphabet Inc.’s
    GOOGL,
    +1.33%

    GOOG,
    +1.35%
    YouTube to TikTok, both of which are developing long-form content — and viewers face “too many streaming options,” said Brittany Slattery, chief marketing officer at OpenAP, an advertising platform founded by the owners of most of the large TV networks.

    “There is a high churn rate, because consumers keep popping in and out of services because they can’t afford all these services,” Slattery said in an interview.

    Also see: Here’s what’s worth streaming in December 2023: Not much new, yet still a lot to watch

    Mark Vena, CEO and principal analyst at SmarTech Research, sums up the typical customer experience: “There are too many services for streaming. I will buy service for a month, watch a movie and then cancel.”

    Using technology for a new experience

    Major streamers are pinning many of their hopes on technology as a way to entice viewers and expand beyond the traditional TV model they’ve adopted. Strategies include mobile gaming (Netflix), gambling (Disney’s ESPN Bet) and shoppable media (Amazon).

    The biggest near-term change would bring ESPN exclusively to streaming, perhaps as early as 2025, although big games would probably be simulcast on network TV to retain older viewers.

    “Technology will be a major impetus for being in the winning circle,” said Hunter Terry, head of connected TV at global data company Lotame, pointing to Amazon’s shoppable-media strategy during Prime Video’s broadcast of an NFL game on Black Friday.

    The NFL game, the first ever on a Friday, featured QR codes of Amazon ads for direct purchases via mobile devices and PCs, contributing greatly to what the e-commerce giant said was its best-ever sales day — 7.5% higher than Black Friday 2022. The game drew between 9.6 million and 10.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen and Amazon, making it the highest-rated show on Black Friday for young adults (18-34) and adults (18-49).

    And what of generative AI, a major flashpoint in the writers and actors strikes that roiled Hollywood for months earlier this year? Creators feared generative AI would be used to produce low- and middle-brow entertainment without the need for writers, actors or production crew.

    The technology is as intriguing to streamers as it is vexing. Full-blown adoption would rankle creators as well as customers. There are also limitations: AI-created content is lacking in humor and original thought, said David Parekh, CEO of SRI International, a leading research and development organization serving government and industry.

    “The pressing question is, who goes first among the streamers and risks getting blowback from studios and consumers?” said Rick Munarriz, a contributing analyst at the Motley Fool who covers streaming-service stocks. “You don’t want to offend people, but there are tools to create ideas” at little cost.

    AI and machine learning are already being used to mine data to find out what resonates with viewers.

    “It is very hard to produce successful content,” said Ron Gutman, CEO of Wurl, which helps streamers and publishers monetize and distribute content, and which was recently acquired by AppLovin Corp.
    APP,
    -0.80%
    for $430 million. “The market is so fragmented. The problem is connecting people to content.”

    Straight to streaming?

    Big-budget busts present another potential source of content, by salvaging unreleased movies, according to experts.

    The so-called dust-bin option is the natural successor to straight-to-video and straight-to-pay-per-view movies. There has been some precedent, with the release of Disney’s superhero hit “Black Widow” simultaneously on streaming and in theaters in May 2021.

    Will streaming services end up as the first stop for movies abruptly canceled before release? Candidates include “Batgirl,” which cost $90 million to make and was in post-production when Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
    WBD,
    -4.57%
    pulled the plug.

    The same fate could also await two other shelved Warner Bros. movies, “Scoob! Holiday Haunt” and the completed “Coyote vs. Acme.”

    While the $90 million “Batgirl” is a tax write-off, there could be upside to “Coyote” and “Scoob!” if they went to streaming without a costly marketing campaign, said SmarTech Research’s Vena.

    Still, the long-term plans of streaming giants to meld tech to TV remains a ticklish task, said Wurl’s Gutman. “TV is a lean-back experience, not a lean-into technology medium,” he said. “People are looking at their phones while watching TV. It is a passive experience.”

    Tracy Swedlow, founder and co-producer of the TV of Tomorrow Show conference, said: “They’ve been burning a candle at both ends, investing in original content as well as licensing long-tail content such as ‘Suits’ and ‘Breaking Bad.’ Something has to give.”

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  • Spotify announces third and largest round of layoffs

    Spotify announces third and largest round of layoffs

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    Spotify Technology SA on Monday said it plans to reduce head count by 17%, which would mark the third time the audio streaming group has announced layoffs cuts this year.

    The Wall Street Journal said the cuts would equate to about 1,500 jobs.

    The move was announced by Chief Executive Officer Daniel Elk in a letter to employees that was posted on the company’s website.

    “Economic growth has slowed dramatically and capital has become more expensive. Spotify is not an exception to these realities,” he said, adding that the “painful” cuts were needed to align the company with “future goals and ensure we are right-sized for the challenges ahead.”

    Spotify
    SPOT,
    -2.39%
    previously announced 200 workers would be laid off in June and 600 workers in January.

    Elk said that he realized the new reductions seem “surprisingly large, given the recent positive earnings report and the company’s performance” — shares have soared 128% in 2023.

    Analysts have credited Spotify’s share performance this year to strong growth and improved profitability, but Citi downgraded the stock last week, saying risk-reward is no longer attractive.

    “We debated making smaller reductions throughout 2024 and 2025. Yet, considering the gap between our financial goal state and our current operational costs, I decided that a substantial action to rightsize our costs was the best option to accomplish our objectives,” he said.

    Elk explained that in 2020 and 2021, Spotify took advantage of lower costs of capital and “invested significantly,” for example in expanding the company’s team and enhancing conent.

    “These investments generally worked, contributing to Spotify’s increased output and the platform’s robust growth this past year. However, we now find ourselves in a very different environment. And despite our efforts to reduce costs this past year, our cost structure for where we need to be is still too big,” he said.

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  • Disney and other entertainment giants report after upbeat results from peers, but investors are getting harsher on companies that don’t deliver

    Disney and other entertainment giants report after upbeat results from peers, but investors are getting harsher on companies that don’t deliver

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    Last month, Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    +1.80%
    stock jumped after it reported big subscriber gains and hiked prices. Last week, results from Paramount Global
    PARA,
    +15.44%
    beat expectations, sending shares of the streaming and entertainment giant on its best percentage gain in nearly a year, and Roku Inc.
    ROKU,
    +8.58%
    also offered an upbeat outlook.

    This week — as Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. all report results — we’ll get a deeper sense of whether the entertainment industry is starting to make investors happy again, even if they make viewers less happy in the process.

    Those companies will report as the streaming industry, under pressure from investors to turn a better profit, consolidates and as platforms charge more to watch and cram more advertisements into shows and films.

    Cable TV providers and movie theaters, too, are trying to figure out a way forward as streaming becomes more prevalent. Even as Hollywood’s writers come back to work following a strike that shut down production, its actors are still striking, with issues surrounding AI usage to portray actors, streaming payments and other issues in the balance.

    Disney
    DIS,
    +2.14%    ,
    which reports results on Wednesday, faces questions about losses at Disney+, efforts to cut billions in costs and stamp out streaming-account sharing, its planned takeover of the streaming platform Hulu and speculation over which of its large media properties it might sell. BofA analysts recently estimated that ESPN, which Disney has leaned on for years, could be worth around $24 billion. Meanwhile, activist investor Nelson Peltz has been angling for seats on Disney’s board, and its fight with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continues.

    Elsewhere, Warner Bros. Discovery
    WBD,
    +6.23%
    — the parent company of the streaming service Max, Warner Bros. Pictures, Discovery Channel, CNN and other channels — reports on Wednesday, as it tries to turn its reserves of intellectual property into franchise films. Meme-stock theater chain AMC
    AMC,
    +2.19%    ,
    which also reports Wednesday, following upbeat results from rival Cinemark Holdings Inc.
    CNK,
    -2.43%    .

    Sales at the theater chains have been lifted in recent months by “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” While both were original films, analysts have said the avalanche of sequels and remakes in theaters is unlikely to stop.

    The pressure to boost profits will ultimately affect what TV shows and films get made, and what viewers actually consume. And a report from FactSet on Friday found that investors have been more unkind than usual to companies whose results come up short of Wall Street’s expectations.

    That report found that through the third-quarter earnings season, companies whose earnings miss expectations have seen an average stock-price drop of 5.2% during the two days before the publication of the results through the two days after. If that figure holds, it would be the stock market’s biggest adverse reaction to an earnings miss since the second quarter of 2011.

    This week in earnings

    Among S&P 500 companies, 55 including one from the Dow, will report quarterly results during the week ahead.

    EV startup Rivian Automotive Inc.
    RIVN,
    +0.68%
    reports amid concerns about EV demand. Following Ticketmaster parent Live Nation Entertainment Inc.’s
    LYV,
    +3.53%
    blowout quarterly results last week, results from Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
    MSGE,
    +1.03%
    will shed more light on people’s appetites for live entertainment. Results from digital marketing platform Klaviyo Inc.
    KVYO,
    +3.86%
    and fast-casual chain Cava Group Inc.
    CAVA,
    +5.49%
    — both recent IPOS — will offer a deeper look at digital ad budgets and a competitive restaurant backdrop, respectively.

    The New York Times Co.
    NYT,
    +0.91%
    also reports during the week. So do Planet Fitness Inc.
    PLNT,
    -0.09%    ,
    Gilead Sciences
    GILD,
    +0.44%    ,
    eBay Inc.
    EBAY,
    +3.98%
    and Take-Two Interactive Software
    TTWO,
    +1.03%    .

    The call to put on your calendar

    Cybersecurity drama: Cyberattacks are getting more severe, and customers are starting to feel their effects more acutely. Against that backdrop, casino and resort operator MGM Resorts International
    MGM,
    +5.27%
    will report quarterly results on Wednesday, in the wake of a cyberattack that took down some of its systems. MGM has said that attack, which the company disclosed in September, would cost them roughly $100 million.

    The company said the fallout of that attack — which disrupted hotel bookings and put hotels on manual operations, resulting in long lines — was largely contained to September. But the SEC last week accused software company SolarWinds Corp.
    SWI,
    +1.74%
    of failing to disclose its purported cybersecurity vulnerabilities, potentially leaving other companies wondering whether they’re vulnerable to similar legal action.

    The numbers to watch

    The gig economy and delivery demand: Rival ride-hailing platforms Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. report results on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Maplebear Inc.
    CART,
    +0.94%    ,
    better known as the grocery-delivery platform Instacart, also reports on Wednesday.

    Analysts have been kinder to Uber
    UBER,
    +2.73%    ,
    the larger of the two ride-hailing companies. But Lyft has tried to cut its prices and roll out new services, including one that tries to match women and non-binary riders and drivers. The financials from all three companies will land after strong results from food-delivery platform DoorDash Inc.
    DASH,
    +5.35%    ,
    which has expanded its services into retail an effort to compete with Instacart and other delivery providers. And they’ll fill in the picture of rider demand following the back-to-school season and a bigger push to get workers back into offices.

    Beyond ride-sharing, results from Uber and Instacart will narrow the lens on delivery demand, as some analysts question whether higher prices for basics and the return of student-loan payments might make food delivery more dispensable. Analysts also seem likely to zero on in those companies’ high-margin digital-ad businesses, as more e-commerce platforms try to turn their apps and websites into online billboard space.

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  • There’s a ton worth streaming in November 2023. So as prices rise, here’s how to avoid breaking the bank.

    There’s a ton worth streaming in November 2023. So as prices rise, here’s how to avoid breaking the bank.

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    November offers a false spring for streaming viewers.

    After a slow couple of months, there’s suddenly an abundance of top-tier shows on the way, but don’t be fooled — the streaming scene is going to be largely bleak in the coming months, until productions fully ramp up sometime next year following the strikes that have crippled Hollywood.

    Meanwhile, streaming costs keep rising (Netflix’s top tier is the first to cross the $20 barrier) and consumers are getting less for their money, with fewer new shows and smaller libraries, while streamers push subscribers toward ad-supported tiers that generate more revenue per user while providing a worse viewing experience. Still, all the ad-supported tiers cost less than $10 a month, meaning it may be time for budget-conscious consumers to suck it up and deal with commercials if they don’t want to break the bank.

    Read more: Netflix is raising prices to get you to watch ads, and it will probably work

    That’s why it’s even more important to examine which services you’re really willing to pay for. The days of subscribing to six streaming services — even though you might only regularly watch three — are over. But by adding and canceling services month to month, you can save money while still being able to watch your favorite shows (for example, instead of watching a 12-episode show that drops every week and paying for three months, subscribe for just one month once the show nears its end and binge it all at once).

    Such a churn strategy takes some planning, but it pays off. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month.

    Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget, rating the major services as a “play,” “pause” or “stop” — similar to investment analysts’ traditional ratings of buy, hold or sell, and picks the best shows to help you make your monthly decisions.

    Here’s a look at what’s coming to the various streaming services in November 2023, and what’s really worth the monthly subscription fee:

    Apple TV+ ($9.99 a month)

    The price of Apple TV+ has doubled in a little over a year, and in any other month, it’d be easy to argue it has priced itself out of the range of casual viewers. But Apple’s November lineup is so impressive that it’s actually somehow still a good deal.

    The alt-history space drama “For All Mankind” (Nov. 10) returns for its fourth season, with an eight-year time jump after Season 3’s shocking finale. The Mars colony is now thriving, but tensions are rising over the mining of mineral-rich asteroids. Toby Kebbell (“Servant”) joins the cast, along with Daniel Stern and Tyner Rushing, who join holdovers Joel Kinnaman, Krys Marshall, Wrenn Schmidt and Coral Pena. It’s a fantastic and frequently thrilling series, and arguably Apple’s best drama.

    And a challenger to that title is also coming back. “Slow Horses” (Nov. 29), the darkly funny thriller about a group of washed-up spies, returns for its third season. Gary Oldman stars as perpetually disgruntled spymaster Jackson Lamb, leading his team of misfits as they get dragged into an international conspiracy after one of their own is kidnapped. Based on the novels by Mick Herron, “Slow Horses” is smart and cynical, a terrific twist on traditional spy stories.

    Then there’s “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” (Nov. 17), an action-conspiracy series about a ragtag group trying to expose a secretive organization that knows the truth about Godzilla and other kaiju creatures terrorizing the planet. Kurt Russell stars with his son, Wyatt (who plays his dad in flashbacks), along with Anna Sawai, Ren Watabe and Kiersey Clemons. The series is intended to slide right into the MonsterVerse that includes “Godzilla vs. Kong,” “Kong: Skull Island” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” and for anyone who grew up watching monster movies, this could be a lot of fun.

    Apple
    AAPL,
    +1.87%
    also has “Fingernails” (Nov. 3), a sci-fi romance movie starring Jessie Buckley, Riz Ahmed, Jeremy Allen White and Luke Wilson; “The Buccaneers” (Nov. 8), a “Bridgerton”-esque period drama based on the Edith Wharton novel about a group of rich American girls who hit London in the 1870s looking for suitable husbands; the holiday musical special “Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas” (Nov. 22); and a new version of the tear-jerking children’s classic “The Velveteen Rabbit” (Nov. 22).

    Meanwhile, Martin Scorsese’s critically acclaimed “Killers of the Flower Moon” should hit Apple TV+ within the next month or two, after it completes its theatrical run, and Ridley Scott’s historical epic “Napoleon,” starring Joaquin Phoenix, his theaters Nov. 22. It, too, will stream on Apple at an as-yet-undisclosed date in the coming months.

    There are also new episodes every week of “Lessons in Chemistry” (finale Nov. 24), and “The Morning Show” (season finale Nov. 8). If that’s not enough, you could always catch up on “Foundation,” “Swagger,” “Platonic” or discover “Bad Sisters.”

    Who’s Apple TV+ for? It offers a little something for everyone, but not necessarily enough for anyone — although it’s getting there.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. Even though its price has soared, Apple is still cheaper than most, and it delivers value this month. (Remember, you can get three free months of Apple TV+ if you buy a new Apple device.)

    Hulu ($7.99 a month with ads, or $17.99 with no ads)

    After a fallow October, Hulu has a lot more to offer in November, continuing its strong year.

    FX’s “A Murder at the End of the World” (Nov. 14) was pushed back from an August release date due to the Hollywood strikes, but it should fit better in a colder season anyway. From Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, the producers of Netflix’s cult favorite sci-fi series “The OA,” the limited series is an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery set at a billionaire’s secluded, snowbound retreat in Iceland. Emma Corrin (“The Crown”) stars as an amateur detective while Clive Owen (“Children of Men”) plays the mysterious tycoon.

    A wintry setting also plays a key role in the fifth season of FX’s “Fargo” (Nov. 22), the latest installment in Noah Hawley’s noirish crime anthology. Juno Temple (“Ted Lasso”) plays a seemingly ordinary Midwestern housewife who’s not at all what she appears to be. She’s joined by an all-star cast that includes Jon Hamm, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Lamorne Morris and Dave Foley. Each season of “Fargo” is a quirky, violent delight, and this one looks no different.

    Also: Disney officially plans to buy remaining Hulu stake from Comcast

    Just to make things confusing, while both “A Murder at the End of the World” and “Fargo” are FX series, “Murder” will stream exclusively on Hulu, while “Fargo” episodes will first air on FX then stream a day later.

    In an interesting experiment, director Baz Luhrmann has recut his 2008 romantic drama “Australia,” starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, and turned it into a six-episode miniseries — renamed “Faraway Downs” (Nov. 26) — using extra footage shot during the original filming. The movie flopped in theaters, but Luhrmann says it should work better as a miniseries, saying “episodic storytelling has been reinvigorated by the streaming world.”

    For more: Here’s what’s new on Hulu in November 2023 — and what’s leaving

    Hulu also has “Black Cake” (Nov. 1), a generations-spanning family drama based on the bestselling novel by Charmaine Wilkerson; “Quiz Lady” (Nov. 3), a comedy movie about estranged sisters, starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh; and a handful of sports documentaries, including “The League” (Nov. 9), about Negro League baseball, and “Brawn: The Impossible Formula 1 Story” (Nov. 15), hosted by Keanu Reeves.

    Fresh off October’s addition of “Moonlighting,” Hulu is adding all eight seasons of another 1980s classic, “L.A. Law” (Nov. 3), along with a ton of holiday fare, including “Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights” and “Miracle on 34th Street” (both Nov. 1), and “Elf” and “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (both Nov. 23).

    And don’t forget the season finales of “Welcome to Wrexham” (Nov. 15) and “Goosebumps” (Nov. 17), as well as next-day streams of network shows such as “The Golden Bachelor” and “Bob’s Burgers.”

    Who’s Hulu for? TV lovers. There’s a deep library for those who want older TV series and next-day streaming of many current network and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. If you’re on the ad-supported plan, it’s well worth it. But for the pricey, $18 ad-free plan, you may want to wait until December and see how some of these new series pan out.

    Netflix ($6.99 a month for basic with ads, $15.49 standard with no ads, $22.99 premium with no ads)

    Netflix just raised some prices again, but for most customers, it’s still a good value.

    The critically acclaimed royal-family drama “The Crown” (Nov. 16) is back for the first half of its sixth and final season (four episodes drop this month, with the final six coming in December). Events pick up in 1997 after the marriage of Prince Charles (Dominic West) and Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki) ends, as Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton) reflects on her legacy. There’s already controversy over how it’ll handle Diana’s tragic death.

    Read more: Here’s what’s new on Netflix in November 2023 — and what’s leaving

    Netflix
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    +2.06%
     also has “The Killer” (Nov. 10) a “slick but conventional” thriller movie from director David Fincher, starring Michael Fassbender as a hit man on the run; “Squid Game: The Challenge” (Nov. 22), a reality competition show putting 456 players through challenges inspired by the hit Korean drama (minus the murders, presumably); “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off” (Nov. 17), an anime version of the graphic novels and cult-favorite movie “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” (which is also coming Nov. 1); “All the Light We Cannot See” (Nov. 2), a critically panned miniseries about a blind French girl and a German soldier in the final days of WWII, starring Aria Mia Loberti, Louis Hofmann and Mark Ruffalo; Season 5, Part 2 of the popular small-town romantic drama “Virgin River” (Nov. 30); and “The Netflix Cup: Swing to Survive” (Nov. 14), Netflix’s first livestreamed sporting event, with teams of Formula 1 drivers and PGA stars in a match-play golf tournament from Las Vegas.

    There are also fresh episodes of “The Great British Baking Show” every Friday until its season finale Dec. 1.

    Who’s Netflix for? Fans of buzz-worthy original shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. “The Crown” and “The Great British Baking Show” are the top draws, but aside from those, there’s not a lot else to move the needle this month. However, if you can live with commercials, you can find value at $7.

    Paramount+ ($5.99 a month with ads, $11.99 a month with Showtime and no ads)

    Paramount+ has some interesting stuff in November. But is it enough to justify a subscription?

    “Lawmen: Bass Reeves” (Nov. 5), joins the streaming service’s extensive slate of shows produced by Taylor Sheridan, telling the story of one of the Wild West’s most overlooked real-life heroes: Bass Reeves (played by David Oyelowo), who was the first Black U.S. marshal west of the Mississippi and overcame countless hurdles in enforcing the law in the era of Reconstruction. A marksman with something like 3,000 arrests to his name, Reeves was purportedly the inspiration for the story of the Lone Ranger. Say what you will about Sheridan’s formulaic shows, but he knows how to make a good Western. This should be worth a watch.

    There’s also “The Curse“ (Nov. 10), an intriguing new Showtime series starring Nathan Fielder (“Nathan for You”) and Oscar-winner Emma Stone that puts a dark twist to an HGTV-like home-improvement show; and “Good Burger 2” (Nov. 22), a sequel to the 1997 cult-classic fast-food comedy starring Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell.

    On the sports side, Paramount has NFL football every Sunday, Big Ten and SEC college football every Saturday, and a full slate of UEFA Champions League soccer.

    Who’s Paramount+ for? Gen X cord-cutters who miss live sports and familiar Paramount Global 
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      broadcast and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. There’s decent value with a couple of promising new shows, especially when factoring in Paramount’s live sports and vast library of movies and network shows.

    Max ($9.99 a month with ads, $15.99 with no ads, or $19.99 ‘Ultimate’ with no ads)

    It’s a very skippable month for Max.

    The Warner Bros. Discovery 
    WBD,
    +1.41%
     streaming service only has a handful of new originals to offer, including Season 2 of Issa Rae’s hip-hop comedy “Rap Sh!t” (Nov. 19), as Shawna (Aida Osman) and Mia (KaMillion) come to a crossroads on their road to fame; Season 2 of the biographical drama “Julia” (Nov. 16), starring Sarah Lancashire as iconic chef Julia Child as she and her husband return from France and face new challenges; “Bookie” (Nov. 30), a new comedy from Chuck Lorre (“Big Bang Theory”) and Nick Bakay about an L.A. bookie looking for new angles as the potential legalization of sports gambling threatens to upend his shady business; and Rob Reiner’s documentary “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life” (Nov. 11), delving into the life of the comedy legend.

    Also: Here’s everything coming to Max in November 2023 — and what’s leaving

    There are also a ton of holiday-themed shows from Food Network, HGTV and OWN; live sports on its free (for now) Bleacher Report tier that includes NBA and NHL games, college basketball and U.S. men’s soccer (Nov. 16 and 20); and new episodes of “The Gilded Age” and “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.”

    Who’s Max for? HBO fans and movie lovers. And now, unscripted TV fans too, with a slew of Discovery shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. Max still has a great library, but the new offerings fall short. Even the ad tier isn’t worth it — try again another month.

    Amazon’s Prime Video ($14.99 a month, or $8.99 without Prime membership)

    “The Boys” spinoff “Gen V” ends its first season on Nov. 3, but fans of ultra-violent superheroes will be able to slide right into Season 2 of the hit animated series “Invincible” (Nov. 3), which returns to Prime Video after a two-and-a-half-year layoff. Based on the graphic novels by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley, the very adult series picks up with Mark (Steven Yeun) still reeling from the revelations about his superhero father (J.K. Simmons) at the end of Season 1, while a new villain (voiced by Sterling K. Brown) appears on the scene. Annoyingly, Season 2 will be split in two, with four episodes in November and another four coming in early 2024.

    More: What’s new on Amazon’s Prime Video and Freevee in November 2023

    Amazon’s
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     streaming service also has “007: Road to a Million” (Nov. 10), an “Amazing Race”-like competition series hosted by Brian Cox where nine teams of two endure James Bond-inspired challenges around the globe to try to win a big cash prize, and “Twin Love” (Nov. 17), a reality dating show involving 10 sets of identical twins split into two houses.

    Who’s Prime Video for? Movie lovers, TV-series fans who value quality over quantity.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s no a compelling reason to start a relatively pricey subscription now. That even goes for “Invincible” fans, who would be better off waiting until the second half drops and bingeing when all episodes are available. Splitting up eight episodes is ridiculous.

    Disney+ ($7.99 a month with ads, $13.99 with no ads)

    Tim Allen returns for Season 2 of “The Santa Clauses” (Nov. 8), as the jolly one continues his search for a successor. Eric Stonestreet joins the cast as the exiled “Mad Santa,” along with Gabriel Iglesias as Kris Kringle and Tracey Morgan as the Easter Bunny (because, of course!).

    Meanwhile, Lil Rel Howry, Ludacris and Oscar Nunez star in the new family comedy movie “Dashing Through the Snow” (Nov. 17), and Danny Glover will play Santa in the Disney Channel original film “The Naughty Nine” (Nov. 23).

    In non-holiday fare, Disney has three upcoming Doctor Who specials celebrating the iconic sci-fi series’ 60th anniversary. The first, “Doctor Who: The Star Beast” (Nov. 25), reunites David Tennant and Catherine Tate, as the Doctor and Donna Noble battle the villainous Toymaker (Neil Patrick Harris), with the other two specials coming in December, when the 15th Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa of “Sex Education”) will be introduced.

    There’s also 2019’s “Spider-Man: Far From Home” (Nov. 3), and new episodes of “Loki” (finale Nov. 9), “Goosebumps” (finale Nov. 17) and “Dancing With the Stars.”

    Who’s Disney+ for? Families with kids, hardcore “Star Wars” and Marvel fans. For people not in those groups, Disney’s
    DIS,
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     library can be lacking.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. After a recent price hike, there’s just not enough to justify a subscription (unless your kids will absolutely melt down without it).

    Peacock ($5.99 a month with ads, or $11.99 with no ads)

    It’s a pretty bleak month for Peacock originals, with only the reality dating spinoff “Love Island Games” (Nov. 1); “Please Don’t Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain” (Nov. 17), the first movie from the “SNL” comedy trio; and Season 2 of the Paris Hilton reality series “Paris in Love” (Nov. 30).

    It’s a bit brighter on the sports side, with Big Ten college basketball starting Nov. 6, Big Ten college football every Saturday, NFL Sunday Night Football and a full slate of English Premier League soccer, golf, motorsports and winter sports.

    And on Thanksgiving (Nov. 23), Peacock will stream the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the National Dog Show and an NFL game, as the 49ers play the Seahawks.

    Who’s Peacock for? Live sports and next-day shows from Comcast’s 
    CMCSA,
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     NBCUniversal are the main draw, but there’s a good library of shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. The live-sports offerings are the only lure.

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  • How to maximize your streaming in October 2023, and why Netflix is all you really need

    How to maximize your streaming in October 2023, and why Netflix is all you really need

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    It’s time to churn, baby, churn.

    The streaming scene has changed significantly over the past year or so, and for the worse: more expensive, less new programming, smaller libraries of older shows. And it’s coming at a time when consumers are being increasingly pressed by higher costs on all fronts. Prices for Disney’s ad-free tiers are rising sharply in October, and Amazon will jack up prices early next year for those who don’t want to see commercials. So it’s time for consumers to once again reassess which services are really worth paying for.

    There are three options if you don’t want your monthly streaming bill to look like your old triple-digit cable bill: bundle (you can save significantly with a Hulu-Disney+ package, for example), move to cheaper plans with commercials (ugh) or just drop the services you watch least. Pick a maximum monthly price ceiling and stick to it — at this point, most people don’t need more than two or three services anyway.

    If you’re frustrated by paying more for less, and want to make a point, cancelling a service is the one way that companies will take notice. Streaming services hate churn (adding and dropping services month-to-month) because it lowers their subscriber base and forces them to raise their marketing costs to win you back. As a consumer, it’s really your only weapon.

    Don’t like how Max keeps removing older shows? Dump it. Finding yourself watching less and less Disney+? Ditch it. It’s satisfying, it’s economical and you can always sign up again in the future.

    One benefit of streaming services is they’re a lot easier to cancel than cable. With prices soaring, now’s the time to be brutal in winnowing your subscriptions. A churn strategy takes some planning, but it pays off. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month.

    Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget, rating the major services as a “play,” “pause” or “stop” — similar to investment analysts’ traditional ratings of buy, hold or sell, and picks the best shows to help you make your monthly decisions.

    Here’s a look at what’s coming to the various streaming services in October 2023, and what’s really worth the monthly subscription fee:

    Netflix ($6.99 a month for basic with ads, $15.49 standard with no ads, $19.99 premium with no ads)

    After a ho-hum past few months, Netflix
    NFLX,
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    is rolling out a more robust lineup in October. Which is nice, because no other streaming service is.

    After a two-year layoff, the French heist thriller series “Lupin” (Oct. 5) returns for its third season. Omar Sy stars as a master thief who’s now on the lam, and he carries the show largely on his charisma. It’s a fun one, and a welcome return for viewers.

    But the big-name show of the month is “The Fall of the House of Usher” (Oct. 12), from horror hit-maker Mike Flanagan (“The Haunting of Hill House,” “Midnight Mass”). The miniseries, based on Edgar Allan Poe’s classic story, combines Gothic horror with a modern twist, as the corrupt CEO of a family-owned and scandal-plagued pharmaceutical company is forced to face demons from his past as his family members keep dying, one by one, in increasingly gruesome ways. The sprawling cast includes Bruce Greenwood, Annabeth Gish, Carl Lumbly, Carla Gugino, Rahul Kohli, Mark Hamill, Henry Thomas and Mary McDonnell. This should be one to watch, if for nothing else than to finally see a Sackler-like family get their comeuppance.

    Also on the way: the seventh seasons of the raunchy animated adolescent comedy “Big Mouth” (Oct. 20) and the Spanish high school soap “Elite” (Oct. 20); “Pain Hustlers” (Oct. 27), a meh-looking satirical crime drama starring Emily Blunt and Chris Evans as scheming pharmaceutical reps; and the nature documentary “Life on Our Planet” (Oct. 25), narrated by Morgan Freeman.

    More: What’s new on Netflix in October 2023 — and what’s leaving

    And you may have missed it, but Netflix snuck in a new season of “The Great British Baking Show” at the end of September. New episodes stream every Tuesday, and feature new co-host Alison Hammond, replacing Matt Lucas, who always seemed out of place.

    Who’s Netflix for? Fans of buzz-worthy original shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. Between some good-looking new shows, fresh eps of the “Great British Baking Show” and recent additions such as “Sex Education” (though its final season is underwhelming) and HBO’s classic “Band of Brothers,” Netflix is once again a must-have.

    Max ($9.99 a month with ads, or $15.99 with no ads)

    After a dismal September, Max has a better October lineup, with Season 2 of the beloved pirate comedy “Our Flag Means Death” (Oct. 5), starring Rhys Darby and Taika Waititi as wildly different ship captains involved in a star-crossed romance; Season 2 of “The Gilded Age” (Oct. 29), Julian Fellowes’ “Downton Abbey”-esque costume drama set in 1880s New York high society, with a sprawling cast that includes Carrie Coon, Cynthia Nixon, Christine Baranski, Morgan Spector and Louisa Jacobson; and the fourth and final season of the DC superhero dramedy “Doom Patrol” (Oct. 12).

    Notably, Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    +1.59%
    Max is launching its live-sports tier — the unfortunately named Bleacher Report Sports — on Oct. 5, just in time for the MLB playoffs and upcoming NBA season. The add-on tier will be free for all subscribers through February, when its price will shoot up to $9.99 a month.

    Also: What’s new on Max in October 2023 — and what’s leaving

    This is also your last chance to watch a bunch of AMC shows that are getting a two-month promotional run on Max: “Fear the Walking Dead” Seasons 1-7, “Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire” Season 1, “Dark Winds” Season 1, “Gangs of London” Seasons 1-2, “Ride with Norman Reedus” Seasons 1-5, “A Discovery of Witches” Seasons 1-3, and “Killing Eve” Seasons 1-4 will all leave Oct. 31. Do yourself a favor and at least watch “Dark Winds.”

    One more hidden gem to discover: Season 3 of the British rom-com “Starstruck,” which landed Sept. 28. It’s utterly charming and unwaveringly romantic, with literal LOL moments and some of the most swoon-worthy banter in recent years. Catch up with all three seasons, it’s an easy binge that’s well worth it.

    Who’s Max for? HBO fans and movie lovers. And now, unscripted TV fans too, with a slew of Discovery shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. It’s an exceptionally weak month for streamers, but Max’s lineup — especially with the addition of live sports and its deep library — makes it one of the least weakest.

    Amazon’s Prime Video ($14.99 a month, or $8.99 without Prime membership)

    Prime Video has a fine lineup in October. Not great. Not terrible. But very OK.

    “Totally Killer” (Oct. 6) looks to be a cleverer-than-most spin on a horror trope, as Kiernan Shipka (“Mad Men”) stars as a 17-year-old who travels back in time to 1987 to stop a serial killer before he can start a slaying spree that terrorized her mother (Julie Bowen).

    Greg Daniels’ existential comedy “Upload” (Oct. 20) is back for its third season of rom-com exploits in a digital afterlife, thanks to uploaded consciousness. (Disclaimer: I liked Season 1, but can’t for the life of me remember if I ever watched Season 2, which doesn’t bode well, but perfectly fits this month’s “meh it’s OK” theme.)

    Meanwhile, Amazon’s
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    free, ad-supported channel, Freevee, has the second season of “Bosch: Legacy” (Oct. 20), the “Bosch” spinoff starring Titus Welliver as a private investigator in L.A., while his daughter Maddie (Madison Lintz) charts her own path as a police officer. As gritty detective shows go, it’s solid.

    Prime Video also has a decent lineup of NFL Thursday Night Football; “The Burial” (Oct. 13), a funeral-home drama movie starring Oscar-winners Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones; all 11 seasons of the classic sitcom “Frasier” (Oct. 1), just in time for the reboot on Paramount+; as well as new eps every week of “The Boys” spinoff “Gen V” and the season finale of “The Wheel of Time” (Oct 6).

    See more: Everything coming to Amazon’s Prime Video and Freevee in October 2023

    It’s also a good time to dig into Prime Video’s extensive library, before commercials come early next year. In an obnoxious move, rather than add an ad-supported tier at a lower price, Amazon will subject all subscribers to commercials — unless they pay an extra $3-a-month ransom. Commercials will be especially annoying on Prime’s more cinematic series, so watch great-looking shows like “I’m a Virgo,” “Dead Ringers” and “The English” interruption-free, while you still can.

    Who’s Prime Video for? Movie lovers, TV-series fans who value quality over quantity.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. There’s no a compelling reason to start a subscription now, but if you already have one, there’s probably enough to watch.

    Disney+ ($7.99 a month with ads, $13.99 with no ads, starting Oct. 12)

    After a hiatus of more than two years, Marvel’s “Loki” (Oct. 5) is finally back for its second season. The new season finds the eponymous god of mischief (played by Tom Hiddleston) bouncing across the multiverse in a battle for free will while trying to elude agents of the mysterious Time Variant Authority. Season 1 of “Loki” was one of Marvel’s better TV adaptations, and hopes are high that Season 2 can recapture that sense of chaotic fun. Owen Wilson returns as TVA agent Mobius, and Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) joins the cast, which also features Jonathan Majors as big bad Kang the Conqueror, which is… problematic. Disney is reportedly still planning for Majors to play a key role in “Loki” and the next phase of “Avengers” movies despite his arrest on assault charges earlier this year, which prompted troubling allegations of past physical and emotional abuse toward women. (“Loki” had already finished filming prior to his arrest.)

    Disney also has “Goosebumps” (Oct. 13), about a group of high school friends fighting supernatural forces as they uncover long-buried secrets about their small town in this series adaptation of R.L. Stine’s hugely popular series of spooky novels. (It’ll also stream on Hulu.)

    The “Star Wars” spinoff “Ahsoka” has its season finale Oct. 3, while ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” will stream every Tuesday.

    Who’s Disney+ for? Families with kids, hardcore “Star Wars” and Marvel fans. For people not in those groups, Disney’s
    DIS,
    +1.15%
     library can be lacking.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. The price of ad-free Disney+ jumps by $3 a month starting Oct. 12 — how much do you or your family really want to watch “Loki” and “Goosebumps”? It’ll be worth it for some, but an opportune time to cancel for others.

    Hulu ($7.99 a month with ads, or $17.99 with no ads, starting Oct. 12)

    Hulu has been on a fantastic run since the start of summer, but all good things must end. And it happens to coincide with a $3-a-month hike to its ad-free subscription.

    October’s lineup is weak, and heavily weighed toward Halloween-themed fare, such as Season 2 of FX’s spinoff anthology “American Horror Stories” (Oct. 26); the Stephen King thrillers “Rose Red” (Oct. 1) and “The Boogeyman” (Oct. 5); the Starz horror series “Ash vs. Evil Dead” (Oct. 1); the body-horror movie “Appendage” (Oct. 2); and “Goosebumps” (Oct. 13), a live-action adaptation of R.L. Stine’s bestselling kids’ book series (which will also stream on Disney+).

    Non-horror shows include new seasons of Fox’s “The Simpsons,” “Family Guy” and “Bob’s Burgers” (all Oct. 2), and Season 2 of the comedy “Shorsey” (Oct. 27), the “Letterkenny” spinoff series about minor-league hockey that has a surprising amount of heart to go with its absolutely filthy dialogue.

    For more: What’s coming to Hulu in October 2023 — and what’s leaving

    As an added bonus, all five seasons of ABC’s 1980s detective-agency rom-com “Moonlighting” (Oct. 10), starring Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd, will stream for the first time ever (legally at least). If I remember correctly, there were some really high highs but also some really low lows — but it’ll be worth checking out, for nostalgia if nothing else.

    There are also new eps every week of “The Golden Bachelor” and “Bachelor in Paradise,” the season finale of “Only Murders in the Building” (Oct. 3) and the series finale of “Archer” (Oct. 11). And if you missed it, all three seasons of “Reservation Dogs” are there and just begging to be watched, or rewatched. (It’s about as perfect as a TV series could ever be, and the recently concluded Season 3 is the best thing I’ve seen this year.)

    Who’s Hulu for? TV lovers. There’s a deep library for those who want older TV series and next-day streaming of many current network and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. If you’re on the ad tier, this month might be tolerable, but it’s certainly not worth $17.99.

    Paramount+ ($5.99 a month with ads, $11.99 a month with Showtime and no ads)

    Twenty years after ending its 11-season run (with 37 Emmy wins), the classic sitcom “Frasier” (Oct. 12) is back. Sort of. Kelsey Grammar returns in this revival as the pompous Dr. Frasier Crane, who’s moved back to Boston to be closer to his adult son (played by Jack Cutmore-Scott), who doesn’t necessarily want him there. The cast is mostly new, though Bebe Neuwirth (as Frasier’s ex-wife Lilith) and Peri Gilpin (his radio producer Roz) will reportedly guest star. David Hyde Pierce (Niles) and Jane Leeves (Daphne) will not return, however, which is a bummer since that’s where much of the original show’s laughs came from (John Mahoney, who played Frasier’s father Marty Crane, died in 2018). The jury’s out on this one — while in theory, it could be a refreshing update to a nostalgic favorite, the trailer is not encouraging.

    Paramount+ also has “Pet Sematary: Bloodlines” (Oct. 6), a creepy prequel to the 2019 horror reboot; “Fellow Travelers” (Oct. 27), a decades-spanning queer love story starring Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey; and Showtime’s courtroom drama “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial” (Oct. 6), the late director William Friedkin’s last film, starring Keifer Sutherland, the late Lance Reddick and Jake Lacy.

    That’s on top of a live-sports lineup that includes SEC and Big Ten college football on Saturdays, NFL football every Sunday and UEFA Champions League soccer matches.

    Who’s Paramount+ for? Gen X cord-cutters who miss live sports and familiar Paramount Global
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     broadcast and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s a good football lineup, at least.

    Apple TV+ ($6.99 a month)

    It’s another slow month for Apple
    AAPL,
    +0.30%    ,
    highlighted by the miniseries “Lessons in Chemistry” (Oct. 13), based on Bonnie Garmus’ bestselling novel. Brie Larson stars as a woman in the 1950s whose dreams of becoming a scientist are scuttled by male chauvinism, and instead becomes the host of a TV cooking show, where she inspires housewives and fights the patriarchy. Apple is getting a reputation for getting big-name stars for prestige-type series, only for the shows to fizzle out and quickly be forgotten (like “Mosquito Coast,” “Hello Tomorrow” and “Dear Edward,” for starters). I have yet to see any marketing for this series, and it would not be a surprise for someone to ask six months from now: “Wait, Brie Larson was in an Apple show?”

    There’s also a new documentary from Errol Morris, “The Pigeon Tunnel” (Oct. 20), about the life of spy-turned-writer David Cornwell, aka John le Carré; and “The Enfield Poltergeist” (Oct. 27), a four-part docuseries about the supposed real-life haunting that inspired “The Conjuring 2.”

    Apple’s biggest title will be on Oct. 20 in movie theaters, with the wide release of Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” the spectacular-looking historical drama about a series of mysterious killings of Osage tribal members in Oklahoma in the 1920s, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone and Robert De Niro. There’s no streaming release date yet, but expect it to land on Apple TV+ after its theatrical run, possibly in November but more likely in December.

    There are also new episodes every week of “The Morning Show,” “The Changeling” (season finale Oct. 13) and “Invasion” (season finale Oct. 25).

    Who’s Apple TV+ for? It offers a little something for everyone, but not necessarily enough for anyone — although it’s getting there.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. Apple’s had a great year, but there’s just not a lot on right now. But there’s good stuff coming in November (Season 4 of “For All Mankind”) and December (Season 3 of “Slow Horses”).

    Remember, you can get three free months of Apple TV+ if you buy a new iPhone, iPad or Mac. Strategically, if you buy an iPhone 15, and wait a bit to redeem the free trial, you’ll want it to extend into January.

    Peacock (Premium for $5.99 a month with ads, or $11.99 a month with no ads)

    It’s all about horror and sports for Peacock this October.

    On the scary side, there’s Season 2 of the werewolf rom-com “Wolf Like Me” (Oct. 19), starring Josh Gad and Isla Fisher; “Five Nights at Freddy’s” (Oct. 27), a horror movie based on the videogame about a troubled security guard who starts working the night shift at a cursed pizza parlor, starring Josh Hutcherson and Matthew Lillard; and the true-crime anthology “John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams” (Oct. 13).

    On the sports side, Peacock has the Rugby World Cup (through Oct. 28), NFL Sunday Night Football, Big Ten and Notre Dame college football, English Premier League soccer, and a full slate of golf, motorsports and horse racing.

    Meanwhile, the “John Wick” prequel miniseries “The Continental” ends Oct. 6.

    Who’s Peacock for? Live sports and next-day shows from Comcast’s
    CMCSA,
    -1.16%
     NBCUniversal are the main draw, but there’s a good library of shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. The live-sports offerings are the only lure.

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  • Netflix officially ends DVD rentals. This is the movie inside the final red envelope.

    Netflix officially ends DVD rentals. This is the movie inside the final red envelope.

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    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.33%
    has officially ended its DVD-delivery service, and will allow all DVD.com subscribers to keep their discs after Friday, Sept. 29, for free.

    The streaming company announced on Friday that the last DVD the company sent out via an iconic red envelope was the 2010 film “True Grit.” DVD.com, through which Netflix has operated its legacy by-mail service, now redirects to Netflix’s primary website.

    What’s Worth Streaming: How to maximize your streaming in October 2023, and why Netflix is all you really need

    Netflix posted the following message about the end of its DVD business:

    “In 1998, we delivered our first DVD. This morning, we shipped our last. For 25 years, we redefined how people watched films and series at home, and shared the excitement as they opened their mailboxes to our iconic red envelopes. It’s the end of an era, but the DVD business built our foundation for the years to come – giving members unprecedented choice and control, a wide variety of titles to choose from and the freedom to watch as much as they want. Today, we wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for watching.”

    Despite Netflix’s primary business as a streamer, the company has still been delivering DVDs, aka “digital video discs” or “digital versatile discs,” to consumers on DVD.com. Like its streaming model, its DVD delivery service has different plan types based on customers’ needs.

    DVD.com has multiple plan offerings just like Netflix’s streaming platform.


    Netflix

    The DVD service generated $145.7 million in revenue last year, which translated into somewhere between 1.1 million and 1.3 million subscribers, based on the average prices paid by customers, according to the Associated Press. Netflix made $31.6 billion in revenue in 2022.

    Netflix announced it was planning to shut down its DVD-by-mail rental service — the service upon which Netflix was founded prior to the rise of video streaming — back in April.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co–Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    See also: As Amazon Prime Video adds commercials, here’s how streaming services match up on pricing

    Netflix’s DVD business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013.

    After years of declining revenue, Netflix Inc. announced that it will cease renting DVDs by mail.


    Uncredited

    Netflix launched as NetFlix.com in 1998, a direct-to-consumer DVD-rental company and didn’t debut its streaming service until 2007.

    Shares of Netflix are up more than 60% in the last 12 months.

    The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which is made up of major movie studios and streaming companies including Netflix, Disney
    DIS,
    +1.15%
    and Sony Pictures
    SONY,
    -0.45%    ,
    and the Writer’s Guild of America agreed to end their months-long strike this week. Hollywood actors, represented by SAG-AFTRA, are still striking, although the union is expected to meet with the AMPTP next week.

    Netflix did not respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment.

    Read on (July 2023): Netflix criticized for posting AI jobs paying up to $900,000 while writers and actors are on strike

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  • Charter vs. Disney: Is this the end of the bundle as we know it?

    Charter vs. Disney: Is this the end of the bundle as we know it?

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    It was the night cable TV went out across most of America.

    Late Thursday, all Disney channels, including ESPN and ABC, went dark on Charter Communications Inc.’s
    CHTR,
    -3.16%
    Spectrum cable service as discussions over affiliate renewals hit an impasse — in the middle of the U.S. Open and college football season, and with the NFL regular season kicking off this Thursday night on NBC.

    The carriage dispute between Charter and Walt Disney Co.
    DIS,
    -0.55%
    threatens to upend business for both companies and dramatically reshape both the pay-TV and streaming ecosystems, and it could also spill over to affect content distributors and millions of consumers. The result will likely be far less spending on content from media and entertainment companies, including on sports and original programming.

    If Charter exits the TV business altogether, millions of homes are likely to abandon the pay-TV bundle, potentially speeding its decline as other, smaller TV providers follow suit, analysts said.

    “If Charter can drop ESPN, then any network (broadcast station or cable network) can be dropped,” analysts at LightShed Partners said in a note Tuesday. “Nobody is safe and the leverage will have permanently shifted to the distributor not because content is no longer king, but because too much content no longer requires the big video bundle and because the video bundle no longer is economically viable for distributors.”

    Indeed, the pandemic-era boom that streaming services enjoyed is unlikely to return. Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    +2.00%
    recently introduced an ad-supported tier while cracking down on password sharing. Disney also announced higher prices last month.

    “The collateral damage could be wide-ranging from sports leagues with rights coming up for renewal, local TV station affiliates seeking material step-ups and creative talent tied to the programming investments made by linear networks,” MoffettNathanson analysts Michael Nathanson and Craig Moffett said in a report Friday.

    Cable TV system needed a reset

    Billions of dollars and hours of must-see-TV time are at stake. The conflict boils down to two issues: How much the carrier will pay per channel, and what percentage of a distributor’s footprint will be required to have the channel in their package.

    The showdown was inevitable, with murmurings the cable TV model was fundamentally broken and with programmers like Disney continuing to pursue direct-to-consumer options. For example, Disney has indicated it plans to take ESPN, its most valuable property in the pay-TV bundle, direct to consumers in the coming years.

    The conflict “marks the beginning of the end of the media-carriage bundle extortion on [multichannel video programming distributor services], and does not bode well for other networks that are perceived to have far less clout than Disney,” Raymond James analyst Frank G. Louthan IV said in a note on Friday.

    Oppenheimer analysts went so far as to deem the dispute a “tipping point” for legacy TV and a defining moment for Charter, the country’s second-largest cable TV provider with 14.7 million subscribers. Media providers like Disney are transitioning to over-the-top (OTT) TV — streaming content via the internet — but are still expecting cable providers such as Charter to keep paying the same amount for legacy TV, the analysts said.

    “The linear TV business model is broken. The only thing that can save it somewhat longer term is by combining and bundling with OTT services,” the Oppenheimer analysts said.

    The impasse has Disney executives urging Charter subscribers to ditch the cable giant for Hulu with Live TV, which offers EPSN, ABC, Disney+ and other channels. Disney owns two-thirds of Hulu.

    “Disney deeply values its relationship with its viewers and is hopeful Charter is ready to have more conversations that will restore access to its content to Spectrum customers as quickly as possible,” Disney executives wrote in a blog post late Monday. “However, if you are one of these frustrated customers, it can be infuriating to not be able to access the content you want. Luckily, consumers have more choices today than ever before to immediately access the programming they want without a cable subscription.”

    Charter has remained firm that it is prepared to abandon its video business.

    “We’re on the edge of a precipice. We’re either moving forward with a new collaborative video model, or we’re moving on,” Charter CEO Chris Winfrey said on a conference call with Wall Street analysts Friday morning. “This is not a typical carriage dispute. It’s significant for Charter, and we think it’s even more significant for programmers and the broader video ecosystem.”

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  • What’s worth streaming in September 2023? Here are your best bets amid slim pickings.

    What’s worth streaming in September 2023? Here are your best bets amid slim pickings.

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    Looking to spend your entertainment dollars wisely in September? Watch Hulu and read a book or two.

    That pretty much sums up a hugely underwhelming lineup from streaming services, which burned through their best shows in the spring and have little to offer for the start of the traditional fall TV season. That’s not to say there aren’t a handful of promising shows — there are — but is one decent new show per service worth the price of multiple monthly subscriptions? Almost certainly not.

    It’s…

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  • Disney looking to crack down on password sharing, following Netflix’s lead

    Disney looking to crack down on password sharing, following Netflix’s lead

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    ““We are actively exploring ways to address account sharing and the best options for paying subscribers to share their accounts with friends and family.””


    — Disney CEO Bob Iger

    Pour another one out for streaming freeloaders.

    Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    -2.14%
    has been cracking down on account-sharing, and now Walt Disney Co.
    DIS,
    -0.73%
    is likely to follow suit.

    Bob Iger, the media giant’s chief executive, said Wednesday that the company was “actively exploring” how to tackle the fact that many streaming subscribers on Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ share passwords and accounts with loved ones.

    “Later this year, we will begin to update our subscriber agreements with additional terms on our sharing policies, and we will roll out tactics to drive monetization sometime in 2024,” he said, according to a transcript provided by AlphaSense/Sentieo.

    See also: Disney posts smaller streaming loss, will hike prices for Disney+ and Hulu

    Whereas Netflix suggested that it could be housing 100 million global account borrowers, Iger declined to put a number on Disney’s own base of password sharers, “except to say that it’s significant.”

    “What we don’t know, of course, is as we get to work on this, how much of the password-sharing, as we basically eliminate it, will convert to growth” in subscribers, he said. “Obviously, we believe there will be some, but we’re not speculating.”

    Read: The long-simmering rumor of Apple buying Disney is resurfacing as Bob Iger looks to sell assets

    The company plans to “get at this issue” next calendar year, and the initiative could have some impact on Disney’s business in that period.

    “It’s possible that we won’t be complete or the work will not be completed within the calendar year, but we certainly have established this as a real priority, and we actually think that there’s an opportunity here to help us grow our business,” Iger continued.

    Disney is making a big push to improve the financials of its streaming business, after spending the stay-home pandemic era focused on raw subscriber growth. Now the company is targeting streaming profitability by the end of fiscal 2024, and it just announced a new round of price hikes in pursuit of that goal.

    Don’t miss: Disney is raising prices on Hulu and Disney+ again. Here’s how much you’ll soon pay.

    “We grew this business really fast, really before we even understood what our pricing strategy should be or could be,” Iger commented. In the past six months, the company has started to pursue a pricing strategy “that’s really aimed at enabling us to improve the bottom line, ultimately to turn this into a growth business.”

    Netflix is farther along in its efforts, and it’s won praise from Wall Street for them. Executives at the streaming giant indicated early success with Netflix’s broad password-sharing crackdown, though it will take time for the impact to fully manifest in the company’s financials.

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  • Disney to Significantly Raise Prices of Disney+, Hulu Streaming Services

    Disney to Significantly Raise Prices of Disney+, Hulu Streaming Services

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    Disney to Significantly Raise Prices of Disney+, Hulu Streaming Services

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  • Disney posts smaller streaming loss, will hike prices for Disney+ and Hulu

    Disney posts smaller streaming loss, will hike prices for Disney+ and Hulu

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    Walt Disney Co.’s stock dipped in after-hours trading Wednesday after the company posted mixed quarterly results roughly in line with analysts’ expectations amid a cost-cutting frenzy.

    Separately, Disney said it is hiking prices on almost all of its streaming packages in an aggressive push to boost its bottom line. Commercial-free Disney+ will cost $13.99 per month, a 27% increase, beginning Oct. 12. Ad-free Hulu will increase 20% to $17.99 per month. A new Disney+ and Hulu Bundle ad-free plan launches Sept. 6 for $19.99.

    Read more: Disney is raising prices on Hulu and Disney+ again. Here’s how much you’ll soon pay.

    The media giant
    DIS,
    -0.73%
    reported a fiscal third-quarter loss of $460 million, or 25 cents a share, mostly because of restructuring and impairment charges. After adjusting for restructuring costs and other effects, Disney reported earnings of $1.03 a share. Revenue grew 4% to $22.3 billion from $21.5 billion a year ago.

    Analysts surveyed by FactSet had on average expected adjusted earnings of 96 cents a share on revenue of $22.5 billion. Disney shares declined about 3% in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the report, after dropping 0.7% to $87.52 in the regular session.

    “Our results this quarter are reflective of what we’ve accomplished through the unprecedented transformation we’re undertaking at Disney to restructure the company, improve efficiencies and restore creativity to the center of our business,” Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a statement announcing the results. Disney is in the midst of a $5.5 billion cost-cutting plan overseen by Iger, who returned to the CEO position to right the ship in late 2022.

    Direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, which includes streaming services and some international products, hauled in $5.5 billion, compared with analysts’ forecast of $5.7 billion on average and last year’s total of $5.05 billion. The division did reduce its quarterly losses to $512 million, compared with $1.06 billion a year ago. Analysts were expecting a loss of $758 million.

    Still, the company has lost more than $10 billion in its DTC segment since launching Disney+ in late 2019. Disney had told investors for three years it expects Disney+ to be profitable by September 2024. During a conference call with analysts late Thursday, Iger said Disney is “actively exploring” options to crack down on account sharing when the company updates subscriber agreements later this year and will “roll out tactics to drive monetization” in 2024.

    The company’s iconic theme parks around the world and product-sales business increased to $8.3 billion in revenue from $7.4 billion a year ago. The average analyst estimate was $8.1 billion.

    Disney’s largest business segment, media and entertainment distribution, raked in $14 billion during the quarter, down from $14.1 billion a year ago. Analysts on average predicted $14.3 billion, according to FactSet.

    Disney’s television networks generated sales of $6.7 billion, while analysts’ average estimates called for $6.74 billion. Content sales and licensing, a category that includes Disney’s film business, reported revenue of $2.1 billion, compared with analysts’ expectations of about $2.15 billion.

    In the weeks leading up to Disney’s results, there has been a whirlwind of fear and doubt over the current state of the company’s streaming services — including ESPN — as well as linear-TV ad sales, the actors’ and writers’ strikes that have shut down Hollywood, Disney’s theme parks and its legal and political battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

    Front and center is the health of Disney+ as it battles streaming rivals like Apple Inc. 
    AAPL,
    -0.90%    ,
     Netflix Inc. 
    NFLX,
    -2.14%    ,
     Amazon.com Inc. 
    AMZN,
    -1.49%    ,
     Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. 
    WBD,
    -2.15%
    and Comcast Corp.
    CMCSA,
    -0.26%    .
    Macquarie Equity Research analyst Tim Nollen believes in Disney’s streaming services over the long term but said “we see too many near-term issues to overcome to support a more constructive view.”

    Disney+ had 146.1 million subscribers globally, 7% fewer than the 157.8 million it had in the previous quarter. The decline mostly came from India, where Disney lost the rights to stream a popular cricket league last year.

    Disney and DeSantis, who is running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, have filed dueling lawsuits that stem from the company’s criticism last year of a Florida law that bans classroom discussion of sexuality and gender identity with younger children. Earlier this week, a group of mostly former Republican high-level government officials called DeSantis’s takeover of Disney World’s governing district “severely damaging to the political, social, and economic fabric” of Florida.

    The somber vibe prompted Deutsche Bank analysts on Tuesday to lower their price target on Disney shares 8% to $120, with “lower advertising revenue, underperformance at the box office, and lighter parks attendance in Orlando” chief among their concerns.

    “This is Iger’s most important earnings call since returning to Disney late last year. He came in with a punch list that was too long to realistically knock off in two years,” Rick Munarriz, an analyst at the Motley Fool, said in an email. “Now the board has given him four years, and every word he uses during Thursday afternoon’s earnings call has to carry some serious heft.”

    Disney’s call was to start at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.

    Shares of Disney have inched up 0.7% this year, while the S&P 500
    SPX
    has climbed 16%.

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  • Paramount’s stock roars higher after earnings beat and planned sale of Simon & Schuster

    Paramount’s stock roars higher after earnings beat and planned sale of Simon & Schuster

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    Paramount Global shares were popping in Monday’s after-hours action after the media giant topped expectations with its latest quarterly financials.

    The company posted a second-quarter net loss of $299 million, or 48 cents a share, whereas it posted net income of $419 million, or 62 cents a share, in the year-earlier period.

    Paramount
    PARA,
    +2.94%
    posted 10 cents in adjusted diluted earnings from continuing operations, compared with 64 cents a year before. Analysts tracked by FactSet were modeling breakeven performance on adjusted earnings.

    “In [the second quarter], we maintained our focus on scaling our streaming platforms, maximizing our traditional business, and building a sustainable business model that will return the company to significant earnings growth in 2024,” Chief Executive Bob Bakish said in a shareholder presentation.

    Don’t miss: Roku faces risk from Hollywood strikes — but Roku City might be able to help

    Shares of the media giant were rallying 5% in Monday’s extended session.

    Revenue slipped to $7.62 billion from $7.80 billion, while analysts were expecting $7.44 billion. Revenue for the Paramount+ streaming service was up 47%, while total direct-to-consumer advertising revenue grew by 21%.

    “And despite the environment, TV Media continued to contribute significant earnings,” Bakish said. “As we look forward, we will continue to be guided by our content-first approach and seek to maximize its value across platforms and revenue streams, while also operating with the utmost efficiency through this year of peak streaming investment.”

    Read: Streaming nirvana is about to become more expensive — and offer less content

    The direct-to-consumer business lost $424 million in the second quarter on the basis of adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization.

    Separately, Paramount announced on Monday that KKR will purchase its Simon & Schuster publishing business for $1.62 billion in an all-cash deal.

    “The proceeds will give Paramount additional financial flexibility and greater ability to create long-term value for shareholders, while also delevering our balance sheet,” Bakish said in a release.

    Disney earnings preview: How much magic is left in the kingdom?

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  • Netflix earnings bring big subscriber windfall, but stock gets dinged on light revenue forecast

    Netflix earnings bring big subscriber windfall, but stock gets dinged on light revenue forecast

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    Netflix Inc. wowed Wall Street with new subscribers Wednesday, but lighter-than-expected revenue and sales projections undercut the company’s stock in extended trading.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.59%
    reported that subscribers increased by a surprising 5.9 million in the second quarter of the year, blowing past analysts’ average estimate of 1.82 million. Netflix reported fiscal second-quarter net earnings of $1.49 billion, or $3.29 a share, compared with $3.20 a share in the year-ago quarter.

    Revenue improved to $8.19 billion from $7.97 billion a year ago. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average net earnings of $2.85 a share on revenue of $8.29 billion.

    For the third quarter, Netflix executives guided for earnings of $3.52 a share on $8.52 billion in revenue, while analysts on average were expecting earnings of $3.23 a share on sales of $8.66 billion.

    Free cash flow for the quarter was an eye-popping $1.3 billion, compared with about breakeven in the year-ago quarter.

    Shares dipped slid nearly 7% in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the results, after closing the regular session with a slight increase.

    Earlier Wednesday, the company ended its basic streaming plan in the U.S. ($9.99 a month) and U.K. for new and rejoining members in a move to press to add more subscribers to its ad-supported service ($6.99), which has accrued more than 5 million customers since its launch late last year. The news sent Netflix’s stock up 0.6% during the regular session.

    Read more: Netflix drops basic streaming plan in push for more users of ad-supported plan

    Netflix executives have hoped to goose their financial results with cheaper, ad-supported options and a crackdown on password sharing. In a letter to shareholders Wednesday, company executives said the success of paid shared accounts would be expanded to more countries.

    “We expect revenue growth will accelerate in the second half of 2023 as monetization grows from our most recent paid sharing launch and we expand our initiative across nearly all remaining countries plus the continued steady growth in our ad-supported plan,” Netflix executives wrote.

    In May, Netflix expanded paid sharing to more than 100 countries, which account for over 80% of its revenue. Now, it intends to “start to address account sharing between households in almost all of our remaining countries,” executives said.

    Expectations among investors heading into Netflix’s quarterly report were muted. The focus was on Netflix’s switch toward better monetization with an ad-supported service and a rolling crackdown on shared accounts. Analysts in particular were closely watching the performance of Netflix’s new “Basic with Ads” plan ($6.99 a month) and its effectiveness in stanching the defection of subscribers to competing services from Walt Disney Co.
    DIS,
    +1.27%
    and Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.71%    .

    Shares of Netflix have soared 62% so far this year, while the broader S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.24%
    has advanced 19%.

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  • Pinterest stock advances, Masimo shares slump on outlook and other stocks on the move

    Pinterest stock advances, Masimo shares slump on outlook and other stocks on the move

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    Here are some of the biggest movers of the day:

    Stock gainers:

    Shares of Pinterest Inc.
    PINS,
    +3.64%
    were gaining 4% after an Evercore ISI analyst moved to a bullish stance, cheering better advertising-market conditions and improvements made by Chief Executive Bill Ready, who is about a year into his stint.

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  • AT&T’s stock sinks toward 30-year low as it nabs another downgrade

    AT&T’s stock sinks toward 30-year low as it nabs another downgrade

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    Shares of AT&T Inc. were falling again Monday after a Citi Research analyst weighed in with a more cautious view in light of recent reporting on legacy use of lead-sheathed cables within the telecommunications industry.

    Citi’s Michael Rollins cut his rating on AT&T’s stock
    T,
    -6.69%
    to neutral from buy Monday, writing that it was among names that could see an “overhang” following The Wall Street Journal’s recent reporting on risks related to industry’s historical use of lead-sheathed cabling as Wall Street works to understand potential financial implications.

    He also downgraded shares of Frontier Communications Parent Inc.
    FYBR,
    -15.79%
    and Telephone & Data Systems Inc.
    TDS,
    -8.38%
    to neutral from buy, and he already had a neutral rating on Verizon Communications Inc.’s stock
    VZ,
    -7.50%    .

    “First, copper network deployed with possible lead sheathing could be a significant percentage of the legacy network deployed nationally with varying exposures for each firm,” Rollins wrote. He said he was “unable to specifically quantify financial risks (if anything material)” for wireline telecommunications companies stemming from these issues, though “the timing to receive more information could take at least a couple months and full resolution could take years.”

    AT&T’s stock was off 3.8% in Monday morning action, to a recent $13.95, and on track to close at its lowest level since March 24, 1993, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The stock is on pace to spend a ninth-straight session without a daily gain, factoring in one day of flat performance last week alongside a string of daily losses.

    “We still expect the company to display forward progress on cash flow generation and setting the stage to reduce net debt leverage over the next two years before considering any potential liabilities, if anything material, associated with lead sheathed cables,” Rollins wrote, though he called out “uncertainty from the industry’s use of lead-sheathed cabling” as a key reason for the downgrade.

    See also: AT&T sees ‘incredibly healthy’ wireless market, even as several factors will ding growth this quarter

    Frontier shares were down 8.2%, while TDS shares were off 5.0%. Verizon’s stock was down 1.6% and on pace for its eighth consecutive losing session.

    USTelecom, a trade association that counts AT&T and Verizon as members, said in a statement that the telecommunications industry “has a long tradition of closely following science and evidence as it relates to public health, environmental protection, and worker safety issues,” while “safe work practices within the industry have proven effective in reducing potential lead exposures to workers.”

    There are “many considerations” that go into deciding whether to remove legacy cables, “including those regarding the safety of workers who must handle the cables, potential impacts on the environment, the age and composition of the cables, their geographic location, and customer needs as well as the needs of the business and infrastructure demands,” the spokesperson continued.

    The trade group said in a prior statement that it had “not seen, nor have regulators identified, evidence that legacy lead-sheathed telecom cables are a leading cause of lead exposure or the cause of a public health issue.”

    Representatives from Frontier and TDS couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

    Rollins noted in his report that “Verizon and AT&T indicated their expectation as that the exposure should be small,” though he said that “for Verizon, we learned the term ‘small’ could be as much as 20% of its copper network infrastructure.”

    Don’t miss: Verizon CEO says the wireless market isn’t such a bad business after all

    He joined JPMorgan’s Philip Cusick, who downgraded AT&T’s stock Friday and mentioned potential lead-cable liabilities as a concern.

    SVB MoffettNathanson analyst Craig Moffett weighed in on the issue as well Monday, calling out heavy uncertainty.

    “The unsatisfying, but honest, answer is that at this point we have nothing but unknowns to work with and no real way to quantify the companies’ exposures,” he wrote. “Lead risk is clearly not a good thing, but we don’t know how bad it will ultimately be. It would be disingenuous to try putting firm numbers around it.”

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  • Netflix’s password-sharing crackdown is imminent, but the writers’ strike may be causing a delay

    Netflix’s password-sharing crackdown is imminent, but the writers’ strike may be causing a delay

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    Netflix Inc. has teased the U.S. rollout of a password-sharing crackdown, but one analyst wonders if the ongoing writers’ strike is delaying the company’s plans.

    The streaming-media company has already started to clamp down on account sharing in other markets by limiting who can use accounts and charging more for additional access. JPMorgan’s Doug Anmuth wondered if Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.78%
    was rethinking a broader rollout at the moment, given the prospect of content interruptions.

    See more: Netflix delivers cliffhanger for investors as password-sharing crackdown is delayed

    “Paid sharing is effectively a price increase, w/paid members sharing their password receiving less value for the same price, or potentially paying more to add an extra member. And for borrowers who currently do not pay, paid sharing means either activating their own subscription or being added as an extra member, or losing access to NFLX,” he wrote in a note to clients.

    For that reason, “it’s possible that NFLX may not like the optics of implementing paid sharing while 11,500 WGA writers are on strike, w/production suspended or writing paused across at least a handful of NFLX titles including Stranger Things S5 & Emily in Paris S4, among others,” Anmuth continued.

    Netflix didn’t respond to a MarketWatch request for comment asking when paid sharing will roll out in the U.S., why it hasn’t rolled out yet, and if the delay was at all due to the writers’ strike.

    Opinion: Disney shows streaming wars are destroying all that was good about streaming

    The paid-sharing rollout is a critical element of Netflix’s financial story these days. Netflix estimates that some 100 million people were freeloading off of others’ paid Netflix subscribers, and Anmuth expected that Netflix would be able to get at least 30 million of those to start paying up, whether by becoming add-on members for existing accounts or new subscribers in their own right.

    For that reason, a continuation of the writers’ strike “could further postpone revenue & subscriber acceleration,” he wrote.

    See also: Streaming nirvana is about to become more expensive — and offer less content

    The writers’ strike also threatens to impact Netflix’s other hot initiative: its advertising tier. Anmuth noted that the company’s upfront presentation to advertisers, its first-ever, was turning into a prerecorded event, presumably because the company fears “heavy picketing and protesting” and “less availability of star talent.”

    “[U]ltimately, advertising is closely tied to paid sharing, w/borrowers likely viewing a $6.99 Standard w/Ads plan as a compelling low-priced option,” Anmuth wrote. “Therefore, ramp of the ad tier is also delayed if paid sharing is delayed.”

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  • Disney to increase price of ad-free streaming again, add Hulu to Disney+ and remove some content

    Disney to increase price of ad-free streaming again, add Hulu to Disney+ and remove some content

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    Walt Disney Co. will increase the cost of ad-free Disney+ subscriptions this year while adding Hulu content to the Disney+ streaming service and removing some shows from streaming entirely, executives announced Wednesday.

    Disney
    DIS,
    -1.02%
    executives have been making changes to their streaming strategy in an attempt to lose less money from offering its content directly to consumers over the internet. The company launched an ad-supported version of Disney+ in the U.S. and other countries late last year, and increased the cost of its ad-free offering at the same time, while increasing costs of other services.

    “Pricing changes we’ve already implemented have proven successful, and we plan to set a higher price for our ad-free tier later this year to better reflect the value of our content offerings,” Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a conference call Wednesday related to Disney’s quarterly earnings. “As we look to the future, we will continue optimizing our pricing model to reward loyalty and reduce churn, to increase subscriber revenue for the premium ad-free tier, and drive growth of subscribers who offer the lower-cost ad supported option.”

    Full earnings coverage: Disney stock falls as Disney+ subscribers decline amid push to lose less money in streaming

    Iger returned as chief executive of Disney late last year, and has been overseeing the evaluation of Disney’s streaming strategy. One of the biggest question marks is Hulu, of which Disney now owns two-thirds, with the option to buy the remaining interest from Comcast Corp.
    CMCSA,
    +0.61%
    as early as January.

    Iger, though, has been rethinking the path for Hulu since returning. In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, he intimated that Disney could choose to sell the streaming service instead of buying the remaining interest. In his first big move with the service since returning, Iger said Wednesday that Hulu content would roll into Disney+ in the U.S. later this year.

    “As a significant step toward creating a growth business, I’m pleased to announce that we will soon begin offering a one-app experience domestically that incorporates our Hulu content via Disney+,” Iger said in the conference call. “While we will continue to offer Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ as stand-alone options, this is a logical progression of our [direct-to-consumer] offerings that will provide greater opportunities for advertisers while giving bundle subscribers access to more robust and streamlined content, resulting in greater audience engagement and ultimately leading to a more unified streaming experience.”

    Iger later clarified that the two apps will be combined only for those who subscribe to both.

    “On the integrated app experience that we announced today, that’s more consumers that have subscribed to both services for now,” he said. “So in other words, it’s taking what we call the dual bundle and putting it together in one experience, which is obviously good for consumers. Why have to close out one app and open another one?”

    For more: Disney is undergoing a ‘drastic evolution’ in streaming, and more changes could be afoot

    After a wave of new streaming services appeared in recent years to compete with Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    +0.99%    ,
    media companies are looking to combine some of their offerings as consumers deal with a web of potential subscriptions. Paramount Global
    PARA,
    -4.11%
    plans to combine its Paramount+ and Showtime streaming services, and Warner Bros. Discovery
    WBD,
    -2.76%
    is planning to combine HBO Max with Discovery+ while renaming the service Max.

    When an analyst on Wednesday’s call suggested that Disney’s move revealed that Iger had decided to purchase the rest of Hulu, Iger responded by saying “it’s not really been fully determined what will happen in that regard.”

    “Where we are headed is for one experience that would have general entertainment and Disney+ content together for the reasons that I just described,” Iger said. “How that ultimately unfolds is to some extent in the hands of Comcast and in the hands of basically a conversation or a negotiation that we have with them. I don’t want to be in any way predictive in terms of when or how that ends up.”

    While adding Hulu content to Disney+, Disney will also remove some content from its streaming services, which will allow the company to save money that would be paid out as residuals for airing the content. Warner Bros. Discovery made similar moves as it looked to cut costs for its HBO Max streaming service last year.

    “We will be removing certain content from our streaming platforms, and currently expect to take an impairment charge of approximately $1.5 billion to $1.8 billion,” Chief Financial Officer Christine McCarthy said in the conference call, without elaborating further.

    For more: As streaming services cut costs, TV shows — and residuals — vanish

    Iger did elaborate on his vision for streaming in his second earnings report since returning to the company, laying out his general thoughts about the path forward for Disney’s streaming portfolio — which also includes ESPN+ and a version of Disney+ in India and other parts of Asia refereed to as Disney+Hotstar.

    “First, it’s critical we rationalize the volume of content we’re creating, and what we’re spending to produce our content. Second, our legacy platforms enable us to expand our audiences and often augment our potential streaming success while at the same time, allowing us to amortize our content costs across multiple windows,” he said. “We also need to strike the right balance between our local and global programming, as well as our platform and program marketing. Finally, we must continue calibrating our investments in specific markets.”

    Disney shares declined in after-hours trading Wednesday following the release of quarterly results, which showed a sequential decline in Disney+ subscribers. The stock has gained 16.4% so far this year, as the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.45%
    has gained 7.3%.

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  • BuzzFeed stock plunges over 20% as media company shuts down BuzzFeed News, cuts jobs

    BuzzFeed stock plunges over 20% as media company shuts down BuzzFeed News, cuts jobs

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    BuzzFeed Inc. said Thursday it is shutting down BuzzFeed News and laying off about 15% of its workforce as founder and Chief Executive Jonah Peretti said it has faced “more challenges than I can count.”

    BuzzFeed stock
    BZFD,
    -19.71%
    initially fell as much as 25% after the news. HuffPost and BuzzFeed.com will open “a number of select roles for members of BuzzFeed News,” Peretti said in a memo to staff. HuffPost, which is profitable and enjoys a “loyal direct front page audience,” will be BuzzFeed’s single news brand.

    “We’ve faced more challenges than I can count in the past few years: a pandemic, a fading SPAC market that yielded less capital, a tech recession, a tough economy, a declining stock market, a decelerating digital advertising market and ongoing audience and platform shifts,” Peretti said in the memo.

    “Dealing with all of these obstacles at once is part of why we’ve needed to make the difficult decisions to eliminate more jobs and reduce spending.”

    The CEO also said he and executives could have “managed these changes better.” The integration of BuzzFeed and Complex, which BuzzFeed bought in 2021 for $300 million, “should have been executed faster and better.”

    BuzzFeed went public in December 2021 through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. The deal valued BuzzFeed at $1.5 billion.

    The acquisition of Complex, then a joint venture between Hearst and Verizon Communications Inc. that catered to millennials and Gen Zers, was a bid to open up other revenue streams and rely less on advertising.

    BuzzFeed Inc. bought HuffPost from an unit of Verizon in November 2020.

    Peretti said he decided to “overinvest” in BuzzFeed News “because I love their work and mission so much,” which made him slow “to accept that the big platforms wouldn’t provide the distribution or financial support required to support premium, free journalism purpose-built for social media.”

    Chief Revenue Officer Edgar Hernandez and Chief Operating Officer Christian Baesler are leaving as well. The focus going forward is on reducing layers in the organization, streamlining the product mix, “doubling down” on social-media creators, and bringing AI to the sales process, Peretti said in the memo.

    BuzzFeed has about 1,200 employees as of December. It had 1,368 employees across seven countries that month, and announced layoffs hitting about 12% of its workforce.

    Also Thursday, Insider, the news site formerly known as Business Insider, said it was cutting 10% of its workforce due to “economic headwinds.”

    BuzzFeed shares have lost 85% in the past 12 months, compared with losses of around 7% for the S&P 500 index.
    SPX,
    -0.60%

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  • Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

    Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

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    Netflix Inc. is ending the DVD-by-mail business that first made it a household name and took down Blockbuster Video.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.29%
    executives announced Tuesday afternoon that the company will ship its last red DVD envelopes on Sept. 29, after 25 years. The business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013 to less than $150 million last year.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    Also see: Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

    Netflix launched as a DVD-by-mail service in an era that relied on physical media such as the discs to watch television shows and movies at home. The DVD business at the time was dominated by Blockbuster, which relied on brick-and-mortar stores that rented movies for a few days and charged late fees if they were not returned on time.

    Netflix offered a different approach, allowing consumers to have a certain number of DVDs mailed to their home and return them at their leisure, which eventually led to the demise of Blockbuster. Eventually, the company began focusing on streaming media directly to consumers, and first offered that service for free to DVD subscribers.

    Co-founder and former Chief Executive Reed Hastings — who announced he was stepping down from that position three months ago — decided to pivot from the successful DVD business to focus on streaming, which wasn’t an easy transition. When he announced that Netflix would sever the DVD and streaming businesses in 2011, effectively doubling the monthly price for consumers who wanted both offerings, it became one of the biggest debacles in Netflix history as consumers raged and canceled their subscriptions.

    While the process was not easy — remember Qwikster? — Hastings’ vision for streaming services won out, with Netflix collecting roughly $31.5 billion in streaming subscription revenue last year, as the DVD business racked up $146 million. Some of the biggest names in entertainment and tech — Walt Disney Inc.
    DIS,
    +0.63%    ,
    Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.75%    ,
    Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    -1.79%
    HBO, and many more — have followed Netflix’s path, and established streaming as one of the most dominant forms of media consumption.

    For more: Netflix has changed drastically since its IPO —and is worth thousands of times more

    “Those iconic red envelopes changed the way people watched shows and movies at home — and they paved the way for the shift to streaming,” Sarandos wrote in Tuesday’s announcement.

    Netflix stock has also been a winner, despite a decline in late trading following earnings on Tuesday afternoon. Shares have increased more than 1,300% in the past decade, as the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.09%
    has grown by about 167%.

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