Jeffrey Wisenbaugh

In prep for tomorrow's OTT Question Time (where we'll be talking about the types of relationships we have with streaming services e.g. emotional, functional, transactional), I've been reading Whip Media's Streaming Satisfaction study. Based on a survey of 2,000 US viewers conducted in each of the last three years since 2021, HBO MAX TV leads the way in terms of overall satisfaction (88%) followed by Hulu and Disney+. Apple TV + has the best quality of original content (86%) but Hulu, Paramount and Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios perform strongly too (~70% scores for each). Apple TV+ is also on top in terms of variety of originals (78%). Netflix still has the best UX (84%) and content recommendations (71%), however, according to the survey respondents. It's a fascinating paper which Mike Sid from Whip will be telling us more about tomorrow. Join me, Mike, Julie Mitchelmore and Emma Keith from 4pm UK / 5pm CET! https://lnkd.in/enqsnhJ5

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Could not be more proud of the work our team did at Amazon Upfronts this week in New York. Was honored to help Creative Direct / Produce the creative for the Amazon MGM Studios section, and I think it turned out fantastically. It was Amazon MGM Studios’ first time doing an Upfronts presentation, and we insisted upon the highest standards. Here are some of my favorite press quotes about it: “So far Amazon is winning the Upfront presentation game. I am not trying to blow smoke, there is energy at Amazon Upfront that wasn’t at yesterday’s gathering. Great stage presentation, star-power and a clear message.”– Joe Flint, Wall Street Journal “Amazon breaks news, dazzles advertisers star-studded first upfront presentation.” – Joe Otterson, Variety   “Amazon’s inaugural upfront presentation established the streamer among the ranks of its competitors as Prime Video brought formidable star power and lucrative new TV and film orders on Tuesday morning.” – Lucas Manfredi, The Wrap “Inside the Amazon Upfront: An A-list gauntlet is thrown. Could Reese Witherspoon in character as Legally Blond’s Elle Woods possibly be topped?” – Mikey O’Connell , The Hollywood Reporter “Amazon right now is running circles around NBCU and Fox’s Upfronts from yesterday. It’s a throwback to how these used to be in the best way.”  Tim Baysinger, Axios   “🔥first Amazon Upfront. You can feel the rush of ad dollars leaving TV.” - Rich Greenfield, Lightshed Huge kudos to the many many talented folks across teams that came together and made this happen.

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On behalf of ADWEEK, I stopped by Formula E's Hankook Tire Portland E-Prix at Portland International Raceway this weekend to talk to the circuit and representatives from Roku about their partnership. Right now, it's powered by a lot of potential. With Formula E's controlling stake recently switching hands from Warner Bros. Discovery to Formula 1 owner Liberty Global and former F1 CMO Ellie Norman taking that position at Formula E later this year, the circuit's evolving quickly. In little more than one year partnering with Formula E, Roku's noticed the changes. “One of the interesting things about this whole era, and working with Formula E in particular, is how fast they seem to be absorbing data both in terms of the coverage of the sport and the performance of the athletes in the vehicles and then applying that,” said Roku's David Eilenberg. “It’s not on a seasonal basis, on a weekly basis … in interfacing with other sports, you start to look for the same attitude and see who is making the most of what they’re learning.” That’s led the circuit to view its partnership with Roku as a blueprint for what’s possible in other territories—building an easy-to-discover streaming hub for all its content—but also approach advertisement opportunities within its broadcasts with an open mind. “If Roku comes to us saying, ‘We need to create this spot like a squeezeback,’ we as a championship are very flexible because we know that advertising revenue is important to tell a better story,” said Formula E's Aarti Dabas. “As long as it does not interfere with the fan experience and the storytelling, I think brands and advertisers are so critical to helping the sport grow, and we should accommodate them.” Roku has already worked with Formula E to build a hub surrounding races with the circuit's Unplugged docuseries and Recharge post-race show. It work with the circuit has made it easier for the platform to create hubs for the National Football League (NFL) and National Basketball Association (NBA) and a live sports partnership with Major League Baseball (MLB). By that measure alone, the racing partnership's been a success. “The most obvious way to see it on the screen is the fact that we’re building these dedicated destinations for specific partners, and we generally have a sense of what works within those experiences, and we’re applying that across multiple partners,” Roku's Joe Franzetta said. “And each time we do one, five more calls come inbound, seeking similar experiences for their sports.”

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Peter Yang knows a thing or two about the creator economy with his career at Roblox I find myself repeating this mantra constantly to friends and colleagues in the media space. Do the work. Don’t wait for someone to give you a job and title to make stuff. Two key points he makes here: you stop following your own curiosity and you don’t develop real skills. I think it can also make you a crappy employee - how many times have you worked with someone who fails to see the bigger picture? I’ve been reading a Japanese self-help book called “courage to be disliked” - and one point that resonated with me is the illusion of making plans. Paraphrasing here, but author makes the point that you don’t become a lawyer by saying you will go to law school (at least not a good one). You succeed because you regularly engage with the study and practise of law, eventually being asked to pass the bar. Think like your boss. Act like the person you want to be and engage in that practise. Over time you become that person. https://lnkd.in/gmb_2zCx

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In an otherwise slow news day here at Paramount 😂, our incredible Paramount Streaming team delivered stellar Q1 results: - Quarterly revenue grew 24% y/y to ~$1.9B - Earnings (OIBDA) were 44% better than last year - Paramount+ revenue grew 51% y/y due to adding 3.7M subscribers q/q to 71M+ total and expanding ARPU 26% - Pluto TV delivered record viewing hours...again - Streaming ad revenue was up 31% y/y We're executing very well on our path-to-profitability: - Paramount+ (which launched just 3 years ago!) is expected to be domestically PROFITABLE next year. - Pluto TV became globally PROFITABLE way back in 2021! Despite all the noise, it's focus and execution that matters. And our world-class, entrepreneurial Paramount Streaming team has that in spades. #paramountplus #plutotv #streaming #growth #execution

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For folks looking to brush up on the DOJ's antitrust case against Google's ad tech business, Ronan Shields and I break down the basics in this latest video for Digiday Full series of in-depth explainers on the DOJ's allegations here: https://lnkd.in/gr-RRZav

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Should streaming services release episodes weekly or rely on the binge model? A new Fandom study wants to better understand how binge, weekly, and two-part releases impact viewer visitation and engagement by analyzing fan engagement across its platform. The answer? It isn't simple and there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach to figuring out which strategy works best for each platform. I spoke with Stephanie Fried, chief marketing officer at Fandom, to make sense of the data and chat about the widely debated topic. My latest for ADWEEK:

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My prediction: Netflix is going to ignite the live content market and continue to invest in livestreaming experiences that bring people to the platform AND drive sponsorship revenue. The Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight will feature sponsors CELSIUS Holdings, Inc., DraftKings Inc., Experian, Meta Quest and Spaten. By presenting livestreams brands will have access to Netflix’s 278M subscribers and per Netflix President of Advertising Amy Reinhard if brands are “looking for specific genres or specific targeting on demographics, we can offer that” adding that the NFL Christmas games are close to sold out. Netflix has likely seen eye popping watch time results for experiences like ‘the Roast Tom Brady’ which reportedly viewed 22M times. As a result competitors like @Apple TV+, Amazon Prime, Meta, YouTube, The Walt Disney Company +, Hulu, HBO Max, Peacock, Paramount+ etc will likely start to curate bespoke and licensed livestreams and grow their live programming to tap into both the tune in factor and sponsorship revenue. #livestreaming #brands #netflix

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Max Weiss, Chief Strategy Officer, OpenWeb, highlights why community engagement is the path forward for publishers. Building loyal audiences who stick around, click around, and keep coming back isn't just a trend, it's the blueprint for thriving in a world where AI is shaking up search and referral traffic is no longer guaranteed. In the latest AdMonsters Publisher Pulse Report, I pointed out community development and engagement as a major missed opportunity for publishers. I reflected on how publishers of the past monetized thriving communities and how today’s publishers can tap into that same potential to drive revenue. Community isn’t just a nostalgic concept—it’s a powerful, untapped opportunity for revenue growth. Max’s insights and our report highlight a critical takeaway: If you want to increase your revenue, increase your community engagement. Check out Andrew Byrd’s full interview with Max Weiss about how OpenWeb is helping publishers build these essential community-driven revenue streams. The future of publishing is community-driven—are you ready?

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Getting to hear more creative insight about Prime Video & Amazon Studios' FALLOUT is always a pleasure and I couldn't help but get the Todd Howard reference in! Check it out down below! https://lnkd.in/empqKFJT

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Today I talk with Maximillian Naza about building relationships, AI, Automation and more. Check out AGL 384: Maximillian Naza | A Geek Leader Podcast https://lnkd.in/e2f5uRBs

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While many creators are struggling to score brand deals, others are building sustainable businesses on six-figure incomes. That's just one sign that the creator economy is now at an inflection point. What better place to talk about it than at #SXSW2025? But I need your help to get there! Click on the links below to vote for my two sessions. It only takes a minute. Voting ends August 18. “How Ambitious Creators Are Becoming 6-Figure+ CEOs.” https://lnkd.in/dANYwcPw Featuring: Ahad Khan, CEO of Kajabi Jim Louderback, Editor and CEO of "Inside the Creator Economy" Newsletter Natalie Elizabeth Ellis, CEO of bossbabe "Brand Deals in 2025: The Era of Influencer Efficiency." https://lnkd.in/dRxfeqvu Featuring: New and exclusive EMARKETER data and analysis on influencer marketing spending and the creator economy

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I spoke to Reddit COO Jen L. Wong this afternoon to discuss the social media platform's second quarterly results as a public company. Reddit is "executing well" against both consumer and ad-platform roadmaps, according to Wong. Reddit, which recently clinched deals with the NFL, NBA, MLB, PGA Tour and NASCAR, could also extend its partnership program to more sports globally. Here's my story for MarketWatch #Reddit $RDDT

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During a conference this week, Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Tony Vinciquerra stated that the business is trying to create more profitable, genre-specific streaming projects that are equivalent to Crunchyroll. Tony stated, "We would love to launch more genre-based targeted, passionate fan centered streaming services. We're really positive on that front. And that's what we're now working on. However, it will take some time for the market to stabilize." He added that Sony is not beset by legacy TV networks, in contrast to Disney and other broadcasters. When he began working for Sony, the business had 110 cable networks worldwide. However, all of those networks have since been sold, with the exception of three markets—Spain, Latin America, and India—where cable networks are continuously expanding. For licensing of content, Sony has "proposed structures where we'd get the show back after 4 years or 5 years as opposed to the much longer terms that are currently in place, but thus far, there hasn't been much development in that area." Tony said that when it comes to consolidation in the market, Sony plans to "sit back and watch what comes available to us because we're in a very stable, very comfortable position. And we think that there will be lots of businesses that pop out of these companies...we would be interested in taking on mainly in the IP area, and that's really where we'll be focused." #streamingmedia #sony #SVOD #AVOD #paytv #cordcutting

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Live sports on CTV are shaking up the ad game! NBCUniversal's decision to make its Olympics inventory biddable on Peacock paid off with 4.5 billion minutes streamed during the opening weekend and with Prime Video set to exclusively stream 66 NBA games in 2025, this trend is only growing. As CTV ad spend is projected to grow nearly 40% by 2027, brands investing in CTV now are in the perfect position to benefit through reaching audiences with relevant, engaging ads and taking advantage of the digital targeting power. It’s time to embrace programmatic CTV. The opportunity for growth is here! #CTVAdvertising #LiveSports #DigitalMarketing

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🎉 Disney’s Streaming Win – Leading the Charge into the Future of Entertainment! 🎉 Disney just reported that Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ have collectively turned a profit, pushing earnings up and proving that streaming magic is alive and well! Disney’s commitment to direct-to-consumer platforms is clearly paying off, and I see this as a big step toward a more dynamic, audience-driven media world. Here’s why I’m excited: Disney is leveraging its unmatched content powerhouse to create a streaming ecosystem where quality, creativity, and accessibility meet. Instead of sticking to the old ways, they’re embracing change and leading the charge into a more agile media landscape. This isn’t just about “another subscription”—it’s about reshaping how we experience storytelling (all while wearing the new Disney X lululemon apparel). 📺✨ And let’s be real: with Disney at the helm, I think we’re in for some serious innovation. By continuously investing in fresh, engaging content, Disney has the potential to keep their services at the top of the streaming game—while making sure we as viewers feel the magic every time we hit “play.” 🎬💫 What do you think—is Disney showing us what the future of entertainment looks like? I, for one, am here for it!

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