THE LATEST ARTICLES
ESPN Meets Gen A.D.D.
As it prepares to launch its long-awaited streamer, ESPN is looking to combine every facet of the fan experience—live games, news, fantasy, and sports betting—all in one app, the first step toward rebuilding its influence in an always-on, attention-shattered era.
Julia Alexander
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August 13, 2025
Peacock’s Ruffled Feathers
Peacock isn’t just unprofitable—it’s the only major U.S. streamer without a vision for a future beyond sports. Alas, a platform can’t live on the NBA and Love Island alone, and the Philadelphia brain trust will have to get creative (and raise prices) if they want to compete.
Ellison, Ari & The Power of CBS
Paramount’s seven-year, $7.7 billion UFC deal gave David Ellison a more compelling pitch for Par+ users, while Ari Emanuel’s UFC now has exposure far beyond the ESPN+ app and pay-per-view’s walled garden. But who got a better deal?
Julia Alexander
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August 6, 2025
Is Disney+ Ready to Become a Super App?
If Disney can successfully combine Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN into one app while leaning into bundling, the company’s future may begin to resemble its rich pay TV past.
McAfee & Portnoy Walk Into a Studio…
The looming college football face-off between Pat McAfee and Dave Portnoy is the latest, hugely expensive attempt by aging networks to build brand loyalty among young audiences raised on a diet of clips, viral moments, and highlight reels. It’s a good idea in theory, but will it work in practice?
Julia Alexander
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July 31, 2025
Can an Ad Tier Solve Apple TV+?
As Tim Cook touts “double-digit” streaming growth, whatever that means, Hollywood’s most price-insensitive player is facing growing pressure to actually make money from its unprofitable service. Turning on the ad revenue spigot is probably inevitable.
Comcast’s Back to the Future Sports Play
Brian Roberts and Matt Strauss’s plan to simulcast Peacock games on a new cable channel is a smart bet on a hybrid, skinny bundle strategy to monetize the stubbornly unconverted and squeeze more life from a dying platform. It may just work, at least for a while.
Netflix’s Sports Scorecard
With two full years of Netflix audience data, we now have a clear sense of how its series perform. So what’s still working, and what absolutely isn’t? And when it comes to sports, is it better to be “adjacent” or in on the action?
YouTube’s Full Swing
From viewership to participation, golf is having one of its best seasons in recent memory. And as it becomes cool(er) again among young people, YouTube is at the center of how it’s connecting with top players.
Julia Alexander
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July 14, 2025
HBO Max Needs More HBO
After a two-year identity crisis at the newly re-rechristened service, how can David Zaslav and Casey Bloys make the streamer successful, and not just the butt of every joke?
