This is the May 31, 2022 edition of the Wide Shot Newsletter on the Entertainment Business. If this is transferred, sign up here and put it in your inbox.
Among those who make movies and TV shows, these companies, with their enormous influence and resources, make Hollywood if they want, since Apple and Amazon first set foot in the movie and TV business. There was an understanding that it could be ruled.
Do they want
With the $ 25 million acquisition of CODA, Apple became the first Academy Award-winning streaming company. Amazon bought MGM for $ 8.5 billion and added it to its existing movie and television operations. These are not small feats.
But so far, technology acquisitions in the entertainment business have been surprisingly modest.
Apple releases about 12 original movies a year, less than Lionsgate distributed in theaters before the pandemic. MGM provides Amazon with a rich movie and TV library, but relatively few for new franchises. According to the numerical data, MGM’s share of domestic box office revenue in 2019 and 2021 was about 2% and 7%, respectively.
Amazon Prime Video accounted for 2.5% of US TV viewing in April, compared to 6.6% for Netflix, a Nielsen data show. The service accounts for less than 1% of viewing, so measurement companies include Apple TV + in “Other Streaming.”
Nielsen’s gauge chart shows the share of viewership for streaming services in the United States
This does not necessarily reflect a lack of success. It may simply be the systematic nature of a high-tech company. Early success can produce high sugar levels that can accelerate a company’s growth. But Apple CEO Tim Cook and former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (successor to Andy Jassy) have resisted the siren song that previously destroyed outsiders such as AT & T and AOL. rice field.
Netflix’s recent stumbling block has shown the risk of growing as fast as possible, and there are many concerns that the budget for the entire business may be curtailed. More traditional media companies are becoming more selective, as reports show that Warner Bros. Discovery has scrutinized a $ 250 million deal with JJ Abrams’ production company Bad Robot.
If you’re hoping that the tech giant will be the writer of Hollywood’s new blank check, you’re bound to be disappointed.
Stephen Galloway, Dean of the College of Dodge Film and Media Arts at Chapman University, said: “We are always looking for infinite money from the outside, but as they know, money is not infinite.”
So why are they in the entertainment business anyway?
Apple and Amazon’s business is no more different than Netflix, which has subscriptions that are essentially one source of revenue.
Amazon generated $ 469 billion from its e-commerce and cloud computing business in the last fiscal year. In 2021, Apple’s iPhone sales were $ 192 billion, overwhelming the world’s theater box office revenue. These companies don’t have to be in the movie or television business. But here it is.
The point of Amazon Prime Video is to display Prime on the customer’s smart TV screen and loosen the transaction of the subscription delivery service. This recently raised the monthly fee from $ 12.99 to $ 14.99. The idea of Amazon’s “flywheel” is to improve traffic by providing a better experience for customers, which invigorate the rest of the business. Entertainment is part of it.
In line with its image as “all stores,” Amazon’s tastes have been drawn from the early highbrow niche stages (“transparent”, “Manchester by the Sea”) to mid-way fares like “Jack Reacher.” rice field.
Apple’s entertainment business continues to attract people to their devices, providing users with what they see on the screen of the Apple Store.
(Gene J. Puskar / Associated Press)
The Apple TV + strategy is similar, but there is no robust catalog of old licensed titles like Amazon.
Apple’s video services exist to help customers continue to use their products and better monetize the installed base of 1.8 billion iOS devices. Apple’s services division, including Apple TV +, is a growing part of Cupertino’s overall business as it diversifies. For $ 5 a month, the Apple TV + isn’t trying to compete with Netflix.
Its Apple Store location isn’t just about the powerful marketing tools of “CODA” and “Severance.” These are the ways Apple promotes its focus on quality. One of the reasons the company doesn’t make dozens of movies a year is that it’s very difficult to see if seven movies are good for a particular year. Not to mention 70. That’s why Apple has historically kept its hardware lineup almost uncluttered. People who buy an iPhone know what they’re getting.
Therefore, Apple wants a certain balance between movie and television selections. That is, premium quality and widespread appeal without pushing the limits of taste. Typical examples are “CODA,” “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” and “The Morning Show.”
They are working to reinforce their efforts
Both companies are making big bets and spending serious fabrics.
Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, said Apple TV +, led by Jamie Erricht and Zack Van Amburg, will increase its content budget to more than $ 12 billion next year, compared to current annual spending of around $ 6 billion to $ 7 billion. I’m expecting it. The content budget for Amazon Studios operated by Jennifer Salke is reported to be between $ 8 billion and $ 10 billion, which is expected to increase further.
“They decided to build it brick by brick,” Ives said. “Shareholders want technology giants like Apple and Amazon to not only spend money at all costs, but to build it wisely.”
That said, Netflix’s stumbling block gave them a start. “In the end, there was concern that Netflix’s super-growth story might reach this moment of midnight,” Ives said. “This is the time when they shine.”
“The Lord of the Rings: The Ring of Power” will debut on Amazon in September.
(Prime Video)
Apple is making a big difference with Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. The company recently signed a favorable deal with technology heir David Ellison’s Skydance Media. Amazon is gambling with The Lord of the Rings: The Ring of Power, which will debut in September. Amazon and Apple have the right to eat in the areas of live sports, cable and television broadcasts.
As always in times of turmoil, there is speculation about whether a movie executive who doesn’t work for a particular prominence could land on one of the big tech players.
Amazon needs to know who will run MGM’s film division after Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy have left. But Prime Video head Mike Hopkins isn’t in a hurry, and the rumored factory name changes weekly. Apple already has Head of the Original Film at Matt Dentler, who reports to Erlicht and Van Amsterdam.
The big question that remains is whether the streaming company will accept the cinema more completely. Hopkins states that MGM will increase the slate of theatrical films. Leaders of major cinema chains say they have talked with major streaming services to display more movies on the big screen.
Streamers have already shown big movies in theaters, but their release is very limited and no box office revenues have been reported. Going further, AMC and Regal around the world demand that tech officials agree to the cinema’s monopoly window. In other words, the movie couldn’t be shown until about 45 days after its debut on the big screen.
we will see. Theatrical release requires tens of millions of dollars in marketing and carries the risk of reputation. When the studio tries to make the movie a must-see event and the movie tries to drop a bomb with box office revenue, it looks bad. Technology companies aren’t going to dive into their business.
“These people are investing in growth businesses,” Galloway said. “They have created a growing business.”
“Top Gun: Maverick” has been successful, but it doesn’t make theatrical films a growth business. It’s a kind of opposite.
What we wrote
— — The Amber Heard-Johnny Depp trial turned this former LA prosecutor into a YouTube star. For Anousha Sakoui, former Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Emily D. Baker turned to YouTuber, whose livestreaming commentary surpassed viewers of mainstream outlets such as Fox and Entertainment Tonight on the platform.
— — Caruso vs. Katzenberg: LA giants — mayor candidate Rick Caruso and DreamWorks Animation founder Jeffrey Katzenberg — are messing up bullying with “lie” as the elections approach.
— — Disney’s Power Broker is part of the “cabal” that pulls the laces in Anaheim. FBI records show.. The FBI’s affidavit, released last week, identified employees of an influential, unnamed company as key participants in the “Cabal,” which runs the Anaheim government. According to a person familiar with the survey, Company A is Disneyland Resort and its employees are Carinosera, the Foreign Minister of Disneyland Resort.
— — Other headings: The Landmark Theaters Chain will take over Remuru’s Playhouse 7 in Pasadena. Hollywood Description: How to get a job as a production designer. After being laid off on Netflix, questions are raised about our commitment to diversity. Former White House spokesman Jen Psaki will join MSNBC this fall.
Shear Chart Attack: Netflix Churn
Netflix subscriber losses could benefit rivals, according to new data from antennas that use transactional data to measure churn for streaming services. This data gives credibility to the idea that Netflix’s slowdown is at least partly due to fierce competition.
Analysts have found that streaming video services have enjoyed an increase in subscribers who recently canceled their Netflix membership. During the first quarter, rival services increased by more than 35% from the fourth quarter for new subscribers who canceled Netflix in the last 30 days. Paramount +, HBO Max, and Peacock seemed to benefit most from the Netflix fight.
Antenna has discovered that all premium SVOD services have seen an increase in the number of recent Netflix charters subscribing to the service.
Peacock and HBO Max were one of Netflix’s churn’s biggest beneficiaries.
Number of weeks
The debut of $ 156 million in domestic box office revenue over the four-day Memorial Day weekend of Top Gun: Maverick is a victory for Paramount Pictures and cinemas.
This does not mean that the theater has returned to full health, but it does mean that there is hope that this could be a healthy business for certain types of movies.
The question is whether non-action big event films still work. He might have been right for a “pivot” podcast when Judd Apatow argued that a good movie could work in the theater, even in a struggling genre like comedy. But like the Elite Flight School, mediocrity never intends to reduce it.
You should be reading …
— — Angelaf Explain why the BuzzFeedNews Union contract includes ghost protection. (pointer)
— — Mary McNamara Why Tom Cruise isn’t really the “last movie star”. (Los Angeles Times)
— — Anthony Breznican About the future of “Star Wars”. (Vanity Fair)
— — Jack Huff Warren Buffett claims $ 2.6 billion in paramount investment. (Barron’s)
Finally … good fella
2015 actor Ray Liotta.
(Ricardo de Aratagna / Los Angeles Times)
Mark Olsen described it well when he wrote about Ray Liotta, an actor who died last week at the age of 67 and is forever known for “Goodfellas.”
“But even in some of them, the actors showed an incredible range,” my colleague writes. “As Henry Hill, from cheeky young street food to solid earners to federal witnesses, Liotta had the fundamental threat of defining his screen persona, but he also had kindness. Introduced a vulnerability-lost search quality is sympathetic in character, even though his actions are often criticized. ”
The Field of Dreams is another big Liotta role that all obituaries talk about, but it was also great on several recent projects, Netflix’s Marriage Story and HBO Max’s No Sudden Movement. is.
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