“They haven't been able to find like another line of major revenue," said Ross Benes, senior analyst at eMarketer, in response to Netflix 6% RIF.
It’s Monday. It’s Fall and there are cobwebs on bushes and maybe in your vision for what the heck is going on in the market right now. No worries, that’s what TVREV and Hot List are for: catching up and seeing the market with more clarity.
And, if reading the latest analysis and skimming the headlines of consequence from the last ten days doesn’t quench your hunger for going deep— no worries, that’s what Alan Wolk’s new book is for. Welcome To The Age Of Feudal Media: What Happens Once The Monoculture Collapses
“I didn’t just read it. I devoured it. In just about 2 hours. Across flights to and from Advertising Week New York.” — Mediaocean’s Aaron Goldman on Alan’s new book
Netflix Takes A Little Off The Sides, Men Watch Microdramas - Alan Wolk
Charlie Ergen’s Latest Act Looks Awfully Familiar - Tim Hanlon
Streaming Reaches New High, But Traditional TV Still Has a Role - Eleanor Semeraro
VIDEO: The Future Of Research With MX8 Lab’s Tom Weiss
Toluna Names Amy Fenton CEO - Jessika Walsten
At Jupiter, Some Rays Of Light In The Darkness Of Feudal Media - Alan Wolk
What's Vinted? The Secondhand Clothing Market Is One Of TV's Biggest Brands - John Cassillo
NEW PODCAST: Why Is Selling Local Media Still So Hard?
SAGE Says: Sonic’s "Greatest Seven" Campaign Scores With NFL Fans - Eleanor Semeraro
datafuelX Building DFX Marketplace for Data-Driven Video Campaigns - Jon Lafayette
OUT NOW: Alan Wolk’s New Book “Welcome to the Age of Feudal Media”
SPECIAL REPORT: The TV OS Wars: The Battle For The Living Room
VIZIO ramps up creator-led programming in bid for CTV ad dollars [Marketing Dive]
- TL;DR: VIZIO has a slate of new entertainment offerings that provide advertisers additional opportunities to reach consumers. Among the new additions are more than 40 creator-led channels on WatchFree+.
Fox's $22 Billion Roku Acquisition Secures Shareholder Approval [The Wrap]
- TL;DR: Shareholders of both Fox and Roku signed off on Fox’s $22B acquisition of Roku, which is still expected to close in the first half of 2027 pending regulatory approval.
Comcast owes $213 million in video-streaming patent dispute, US jury says [Reuters]
- TL;DR: A Tampa federal jury found Comcast’s X1 set-top boxes infringed a WhereverTV patent for integrating cable channels with streaming services, awarding the company $213 million in damages.
LG Ad Solutions, Magnite Expand CTV Buying Partnership [TV News Check]
- TL;DR: LG Ad Solutions and Magnite have expanded their partnership with a three-year extension that keeps Magnite’s SpringServe as LG Ad Solutions’ exclusive CTV video ad server and makes Magnite a preferred programmatic partner across North America, APAC and EMEA.
YouTube, NBCUniversal See Partnership as Key to Streaming Growth [Media Play News]
- TL;DR: YouTube and NBCUniversal execs described a shift in NBCU’s strategy, using YouTube’s creator ecosystem and live-streamed highlights to build interest in sports and entertainment and ultimately drive Peacock subscriptions.
Netflix And Disney+ Boost Libraries With Licensed TV Shows As Originals Decline [Forbes]
- TL;DR: Research from Glance, presented at MIPCOM, finds new TV series volume is shrinking across both broadcast and streaming, pushing streamers to collaborate more with traditional TV networks.
Fox Expands Agentic Push With Eyes Set On TV Upfront Future [Adweek]
- TL;DR: Fox is entering the next phase of its agentic ad rollout, adding agency partners and expanding from digital into end-to-end linear transactions.
DIRECTV takes on Fubo, YouTube TV with custom multiview perk [The Desk]
- TL;DR: DIRECTV launched a custom multiview feature that lets subscribers build two-, three- or four-channel layouts from eligible sports networks, rather than relying only on preset combos.
Netflix Lays Off 6% of Employees, Eliminating About 1,000 Jobs in Biggest Cutbacks to Date [Variety]
- TL;DR: Netflix is laying off around 1,000 employees, representing 6% of its workforce, in what is its biggest layoff to date.
Wurl launches new CTV ads solution with demand-side platforms [The Desk]
- TL;DR: Wurl has launched a new advertising technology platform that allows marketers to target commercials across connected television (CTV) services based on the programming viewers are watching.
Can you sue over targeted ads? 'Blockbuster' Supreme Court case to decide [USA Today]
- TL;DR: The Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday in a case exploring the extent to which companies from an array of sectors are obligated to protect the privacy of customers’ video-viewing data.
Hot Links
- 5 reasons Netflix is struggling as it cuts about 1,000 staffers [Alan quoted in Business Insider!]
- It's a Feudal Media world and we're all just living in it [Mediaocean’s Aaron Goldman reviews Alan’s new book!]
- Ampere: Streamers Targeting Ad-Driven Subs With Live Events, Catalog, Reality Content [Media Play News]
- Scoop: Hopin's founder is building a TV OS [Lowpass]
- From 'Thursday Night Football' to NASCAR, Amazon rethinks the sports ad break [eMarketer]
- Television News Daily: Skydance: Ad Revenue Will Reach $21B By 2027 [MediaPost]
- Netflix Scores Exclusive 2030 FIFA World Cup Rights in Spain and Andorra in Landmark Deal [Variety]
- DataFuelX Launches Video Ad Marketplace That Taps 13 Different Publishers [Variety]
- CAA, WME and UTA Lead Coalition Pushing for Law to Force Streamers to Spend Half Their Content Budgets on Indie Productions [Variety]
- Fandango And Plex Team To Integrate Movie Ticket Sales Into Streaming [Deadline]
- TV Cooking Shows Get Spicy With Food Influencers in the Mix: ‘It Has to Hook You In’ [Variety]
- Are Microdrama Viewers Watching Shows... Like TV? [MediaPost]
Hanlon’s Local Links
- From Bad To Worse: 2026 Is Shaping Up To Be “A Super El Niño Year For Local News” - Sophie Culpepper [NiemanLab]
- The State of Local News - Zach Metzger and John Volk [Northwestern Medill Local News Initiative]
- Local Newspaper Closures Have Surged To More Than Three A Week - Angela Fu [Poynter]
- Whither McClatchy, A Once Great Newspaper Company - Brier Dudley [Seattle Times]
- ABC Alleges FCC’s Attempts To Curb Its Free Speech Were Designed To Evade Judicial Review - Todd Spangler [Variety]
- Trump Commercial Railing Against His Enemies Kept Airing After Court Blocked It - Jon Brodkin [Ars Technica]
- NAB Opposes MVPDs Attempt To Freeze TV Cap Melt - Adam Jacobson [Radio+Television Business Report]
- With Radio Waiting Its Turn, NAB Defends TV Cap Repeal - Cameron Coats [RadioInk]
- A Costly Political Blunder Sent A Senate Ad To The Completely Wrong Portland - Isabel Funk [The Oregonian/OregonLive]
