Category: Streaming

ViacomCBS announces partnership with Wattpad and Webtoon to adapt several original series

On By alanapotIn Comics, Media Covergence, Partnerships & Copyright, StreamingLeave a comment

image via Wattpad WEBTOON studios https://company.wattpad.com/blog/wattpad-and-webtoon-merge-studio-divisions-to-create-wattpad-webtoon-studios-a-fully-funded-fan-driven-global-entertainment-powerhouse

Following successes like The Kissing Booth or After franchise, ViacomCBS is partnering with Wattpad WEBTOON studios to adapt original online content for the screen.

Webtoon is a virtual publishing website where users can write and publish their written work. Many authors get their start on the site and gain popularity from online readers, eventually landing them a publishing deal. This was the case for the authors of The Kissing Booth and After. There are millions of stories published on the site along with sister site, Webtoon, that published comics and illustrated stories rather than just text. Wattpad and Webtoon became Wattpad Webtoon studios when Wattpad was purchased by Naver, Webtoon’s parent company, for over $600 million USD in June 2021.

With the studio, ViacomCBS plans to develop original content for several of its networks and properties, one of which being Paramount+. This partnership and plan show that ViacomCBS is working on rolling out more content specifically catered to a millennial and Gen Z audience.

“Wattpad WEBTOON Studios is home to some of the most exciting new voices in comics and literature,” “Between our massive global IP catalogue with built-in fandoms, and a roster of superstar comic artists and indie authors, we’re fueling a new era of data-backed entertainment. We’re thrilled to work with ViacomCBS International Studios,  a company that shares our vision to transform entertainment by elevating the creativity and fandoms of a new generation of storytellers. Working together with ViacomCBS International Studios, we’ll bring more diverse, original voices to screens all over the world.” 

Aron Levitz, President of Wattpad WEBTOON Studios

As media professionals, this partnership is meaningful because it shows a liaison between big, traditional media and new media. Like “youtube creator” or “tiktok creator” becoming new and relevant jobs in the field, a digital author is one as well. Anyone can get their start on Wattpad or Webtoon if they make an account. Now, hopping on your laptop and writing fanfiction for fun might land you a steaming series deal with media giant ViacomCBS.

Keck, Katie. “ViacomCBS announces partnership with Wattpad to adapt originals” 8, December 2021. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/8/22825153/wattpad-webtoon-originals-paramount-plus-viacomcbs

https://company.wattpad.com/blog/viacomcbs-international-studios-partners-with-wattpad-webtoon-studiosto-discover-diverse-talent-and-develop-series-from-webtoon-and-wattpad-hits

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ESPN Losing Cable Viewers

On By johnwilson21In Cable, Sports, Streaming, TelevisionLeave a comment
Mike Windle/Getty Images

ESPN is known as “the worldwide leader in sports.” Some bad news for them is that they were in 8 million fewer homes in 2020, although there is some context to it that explains this statistic and lessens the blow. ESPN’s cable subscriptions dropped a substantial amount in 2020, but subscriptions to their exclusive access program, ESPN+, increased by almost 7 million subscribers. The ESPN+ subscription increase likely alludes to people getting rid of their cable packages and heading towards strictly streaming services. While ESPN is maintaining much of its audience, Disney, who owns ESPN, is not satisfied with the drop in cable subscribers, as there have been rumors that they may try and divert from ESPN.            

This interests me because I am a huge sports fan, but over the last few years, I have favored other sports networks, such as Fox Sports or NBC Sports, rather than ESPN. ESPN’s quality of content and authenticity seems to be getting worse and many of the channel’s shows have become less entertaining than they used to be. The drop in cable subscriptions makes sense to me, as people are moving towards streaming services, or they are also observing the same things as I have. I will continue to watch ESPN when they show a product that interests me, but at this time, I do not envision myself purchasing a cable package with the network being part of it.

Spotify Acquires Audiobook Platform Findaway

On By emmaspaethIn Music, Spotify, StreamingLeave a comment
Image Credits: Bryce Durbin

Spotify has been working to expand its streaming reach beyond music, investing millions into the growing podcast market and recently partnering with Shopify, to feature artists’ merchandise directly on their profiles. Now Spotify is moving onto audiobooks.

Spotify has shared its plans to acquire the audiobook distributor, Findaway. Founded in 2004, Findaway is an audiobook distribution platform that connects audiobook creators with selling partners including Apple, Google, Scribd, Audible, Nook, and many more. The company also operates Findaway Voice, a platform that pairs authors with professional narrators for companies like Audioworks and Playaway. 

Spotify has yet to share the financial terms of the deal but plans to bring in Findaway’s full team of about 150 employees.  Spotify’s Chief Research & Development Officer, Gustav Söderström announced, “We’re excited to combine Findaway’s team, best-in-class technology platform, and robust audiobook catalog with Spotify’s expertise to revolutionize the audiobook space as we did with music and podcasts.”

This expansion into the audiobook industry would make Spotify a commercial bookseller and an audiobook publisher, a first for the music streaming platform. 

Nir Zicherman, Spotify’s head of Audiobooks explained, “With this acquisition, the plan is to accelerate into the audiobooks space by expanding our platform.”  Zicherman added, “As an industry, we think there’s massive potential and growth ahead for audiobooks. Combining Spotify and Findaway and their amazing team and their amazing tech, the idea is to realize that future faster than we ever could as separate companies.”

This is a strategic move by Spotify, as the audiobook industry is predicted to grow from $3.3 billion to $15 billion over the next five years. 

Netflix’s YuYu Hakusho Live-Action Adaptation Gets A Release Date

On By Noah Furcht-HeafitzIn Comics, Netflix, Streaming, UncategorizedLeave a comment
https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-11-09/netflix-schedules-live-action-yu-yu-hakusho-series-for-december-2023/.179396, Adriana Hazra

Last Tuesday Netflix announced that it will be releasing its live-action adaptation of Yoshihiro Togashi’s YuYu Hakusho manga worldwide in December of 2023. Akira Morii and Kazutaka Sakamoto, Netflix’s content acquisition directors, are executive producing and producing this project respectively. Sakamoto recounted his own fond experiences with the intellectual property in question and insisted that Netflix is doing its best to do right by the fans he knows the series has all around the world. The series follows a 14-year-old delinquent named Yusuke Urameshi who dies after throwing himself in front of a car to save a child. Because of his selfless act, Yusuke is allowed to come back to the world of the living as a “spirit detective” tasked with defeating demons. For this project, Netflix and TOHO Studios signed a several-year contract to lease two of TOHO’s stage facilities; stage 7 and stage 10. In addition, ten sound stages, two acting centres, and a production centre of TOHO’s will also be used to create Netflix’s original programming. This deal goes into effect as of April first of 2022. 

The popularity of YuYu Hakusho’s 19 volume manga (1992-1995) has led to the creation of an anime adaptation, two live-action films, two animated films, and a stage play that ran from August to September of 2019. Said films and anime have all been dubbed and distributed in various languages and territories by Funimation, Media Blasters and Central Park Media respectively. The series notably acquired fans domestically by way of its airing on Adult Swim’s Toonami block. Further emphasizing the popularity of this property is the fact that new animated material for it has been released as recently as 2018 to celebrate the series’s 25th anniversary.

This article interests me for two main reasons. For one, I’m generally happy to hear that an older property like YuYu Hakusho is getting a Netflix live-action adaptation. For another, I think Netflix’s partnering with TOHO Studios speaks well of the potential for more live-action anime adaptations going forward. This especially in the event that the soon to be released Cowboy Bebop and One Piece adaptations do well.

Erskine, Donovan. “YouTube to Make Dislike Counts Private on All Videos.” Shacknews, Shacknews, 10 Nov. 2021, https://www.shacknews.com/article/127617/youtube-to-make-dislike-counts-private-on-all-videos.

Dozens of Crowd Members Injured and 8 Dead at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival

On By alanapotIn Music, UncategorizedLeave a comment
Erika Goldring / WireImage via https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/travis-scott-performs-during-2021-astroworld-festival-at-news-photo/1351663202?adppopup=true

On November 5th, 2021 at NRG Park in Houston, Texas the Astroworld Music Festival was held with Travis Scott as the headlining act. Extremely aggressive pushing, shoving and crowding in this sold-out crowd of roughly 50,000 attendees resulted in 8 dead and dozens injured.

Earlier that day, around 2:00pm, concert-goers entered the festival and hundreds stampeded the safety checkpoints, trampling other attendees.

As hours passed to Scott’s headlining performance, the crowd got larger and more dangerous. One attendee described her experience “like watching a Jenga tower topple. Person after person were sucked down…. You were at the mercy of the wave.” You can read her detailed account of her experience below:

8 victims, ages ranging from 14 to 27, died from the fatal conditions of pushing, shoving, trampling, and lack of air. So far, three concert-goers have filed lawsuits against Astroworld organizers, LiveNation and Travis Scott for negligence and encouraging violence at the event.

According to the Houston Chronicle, this event was one of the deadliest concerts in U.S. history. While covered by major news outlets, much of the information learned about the event is from social media posts. Scott took to Instagram with a video discussing the tragic situation and apologizing to the families of those who lost their lives, anyone injured, and everyone who attended the event. There are also several new reports coming out each day on Scott reimbursing ticket holders, covering funeral costs and other repercussions after the tragic events of November 5th.

After almost two years of social distancing and canceled live events, it is shocking to see this amount of injury and loss in a sea of 50,000 people.

Durney, Ellen. “Travis Scott And Drake Are Being Sued For Negligence And “Encouragement Of Violence” At The Astroworld Festival That Killed At Least 8 People” 8, November 2021. Buzzfeed News, https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ellendurney/travis-scott-and-drake-astroworld-negligence-lawsuits

Guerra, Joey & Barned-Smith, St. John. “At least 8 Dead at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival”, 7, November 2021. Houston Chronicle. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/At-least-8-deaths-Travis-Scott-Astroworld-Festival-16597376.php?fbclid=IwAR0-UTPjXW-Zdl8g8TBVNTz3ign7IYTUUssANXBuFOzw3_GScSaOY1zr5GM

Did A Chinese Streaming Company Make A Knock Off Squid Game?

On By Noah Furcht-HeafitzIn Brand, China, coverage, Distribution, Netflix, Streaming, UncategorizedLeave a comment
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-58991127, BCC NEWS

The Chinese streaming company Youku Has recently begun pushing promotional material for its new series “Squid Victory”. The promotional material in question is a poster that looks remarkably similar to the poster for Squid Game. Squid Victory is a variety show In which contestants compete in large-scale childrens’ games. Netizens were quick to chastise the “shameless” Youku for the obvious thievery of intellectual property at play. In response, Youku has issued an apology and alluded to the idea they will change the poster at the heart of this issue stating it is, in their words, just a “draft” poster. Regarding this issue The company also stated:

“Due to a work error, the first draft of the new Game’s Victory show – which was shot down before – was mistakenly used in promotional activities at a trade fair,”

This statement which was written on the Chinese Twitter equivalent “Weibo” was posted alongside a notably distinct poster design for their newly re-titled program “Game’s Victory”. These steps however have done little to quell online outrage.

“It sounds like such a lame cover-up. Obviously, they had tried to rip off Squid Game because of how popular it is,” another Weibo user posted.

 This debacle has brought up the fact that many Asian citizens are “fed up” with how often Chinese producers plagiarize Korean content. Netizens cite the similarities between the South Korean program “Show me the money” and the similar Chinese program “The Rap Of China” as being a particularly egregious example of this trend as well.

“Why can’t our producers come up with our own ideas? This is so embarrassing,” another poster on Weibo commented.

 This all comes as a result of Squid Game’s becoming a nationwide phenomenon in China despite its not officially being released there. As Netflix is not available in China the show has gained a following exclusively through illegal means such as torrenting sites. Youku being one of China’s most popular streaming platforms with between 90 and 100 million active users decided capitalizing on Squid Game’s situation was potentially very profitable. This controversy comes on the heels of a multitude of similar culturally-based arguments that China and Korea have taken part in in recent years. Last year for instance Korea accused China of “stealing culture” when the country stated it “led the kimchi industry”. This controversy was born of The language barrier between the two countries. In China, kimchi is called “pao cai” – this being the same name as a Chinese pickled dish. China was also criticised for stating that the Korean national dress handbook originated there.

To answer the question posed by the title of this article “no”. I’m writing this article because I firmly hold that opinion. I don’t think taking surface-level elements from a popular television program and incorporating them into a show of a completely different genre is as bad as it’s being made out to be. To be clear, I’m glad that the name “Squid Victory” and the poster that represents the centre of the controversy were changed because they were deliberately misleading. I would however like to call into question why the Chinese and Korean governments are bickering like children about cultural stuff?  Lastly, I beg the question, who cares if some Chinese body makes a rip off of a game show or of a drama that can’t legally be accessed in China? If said shows aren’t good enough to stand on their own merits won’t they just be cancelled anyway? Is mimicry not the greatest form of flattery?

NEWS, BBC. “Squid’s Victory? China Streaming Site Accused of Copying Squid Game.” BBC News, BBC, 21 Oct. 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-58991127.

Netflix’s ‘Squid Game’ has taken the world by storm and makes other streaming platforms eager to explore international business

On By Marlene TurreyIn Disney, Netflix, StreamingLeave a comment
Image via CNBC

Netflix’s ‘Squid Game’ took the world by storm since its release and is now considered Netflix’s biggest launch ever, by reaching more than 111 million viewers worldwide. With this incredible success, the South Korean series further opens the doors to non-U.S. productions, which might save a lot of money for giant streaming platforms in the future.

In the past, U.S. productions often used international locations to bypass American taxes and avoid their strict union regulations. Moreover, many countries that are looking for bumps in tourism and recognition “will give you free marketing through government channels or support at festivals. They may even give you free local co-producers.”  (Ajaj Mago, corporate and technology lawyer)

While earlier U.S. productions used international locations as stand-ins American sets, they are now starting to realize the potential of foreign language films and series, which have typically been viewed as niche content only.

“They’d come around to Canada or some place that offered tax incentives, and they’d drop in some American mailboxes and street signs, change the license plates on cars, and voila. What’s happening now is there is local content from these regions. Studios are no longer masquerading.”

Domenic Romano, entertainment attorney and managing partner of Romano Law

All nine episodes of ‘Squid Game’ only cost §21.4 million (in comparison just one episode of Disney’s ‘Wanda Vision’ cost $25 million), partially because of South Korea’s 52-hours workweek rule. With ‘Squid Game’s worldwide success, other video streaming giants are investing in local international productions too:This week, Disney announced its plans for 27 productions in the Asia Pacific region for their streaming platforms.

CNBC noted that these changes in movie and series production “may also be a boon for creators that have felt stuck in an industry that has relied on superhero movies and reboots of old TV shows for reliable revenue. Tapping the world for new stars and ideas allows for new avenues of growth that can mutually benefit artists and studio executives.”

It will be interesting to see, whether the streaming platforms’ content will really become more diverse and ‘creative’ in the next years.

‘Why Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson Is Accused of Being a Culture Vulture’

On By troypittman13In Consumer behavior, Journalism, Music, Music, Social Issue(s), Social Media, Streaming, Twitter, YouTubeLeave a comment
Let’s dive right into this topic of “culture vultures” and why certain celebrities are getting called out for being one. Today’s person of focus is Jesy Nelson, a member of the British girl group Little Mix. Jesy and her group members ( Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Ann Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall) were discovered on the popular competition show The X Factor in 2011. Their music style is primarily pop, R&B, mainstream dance-pop, with occasional influences of Latin and electronic music. Little Mix’s rise to fame is due to their musical theme of female empowerment, body positivity, and LGBTQ+ rights. And because the members of the group represent different ethnicities, their audience can identify with and appreciate them this way.

In December 2020, Jesy left the group in pursuit of her solo career. Since then she’s been pushing her career as a solo artist. Unfortunately, people are paying much more attention to recent allegations rather than her music. The discussion of her “culture vulture” behavior has been a continuous one as ‘Little Mix’s style evolved. Jesy’s white British identity gives insight to why people were upset at her use of “artistic expression”.

On occasion Jesy is seen wearing grills on her teeth, oversized clothing, colorful wigs, etc. Not to mention, there is a clear difference in skin tone compared to when Nelson first joined ‘Little Mix’ to now.

Recently, rapper Nicki Minaj collaborated on a song with Jesy called ‘Boyz’.  In this music video Jesy is seen wearing oversized jewelry, hair accessories, hair scarves, oversized clothes and timberland boots. Which is typically associated with Black culture. Black artists and black people created this style of fashion and are almost never credited for it.

‘Boyz’ ft. Nicki Minaj is an adaptation of P. Diddy’s ‘Bad Boy For Life’ single in 2001.

– Jesy Nelson Ft Nicki Minaj

But what doesn’t sit right with a few Little Mix members and fans is the slow changing of skin color, to seem more “exotic” looking. These aspects about the music industry are problematic because artist of color who identify and showcase their identity aren’t embraced the same way. They are dismissed as “over the top”, “ghetto”, or ignored as a whole. While artist like Jesy are embraced and celebrated for it.

Hoop earrings, exotic looking nails, Timberland boots, and colorful wigs go deeper than video shoots. There’s a historical pattern of Black people and people of color being robbed of their culture, while other races are able to capitalize from it. Nicki Minaj openly defended Jesy against ‘Little Mix’ member Leigh-Anne Pinnock for accusing Jesy of “Blackfishing”. Which surprised many fans as this is a tactic white artists use to appeal to the “urban” audience. Leigh-Anne Pinnock, who identifies as African-Caribbean, expressed her frustration over her experience with Jesy in the group. She witnessed different variations of her culture appropriating behavior and in opposition of this, she spoke out publicly.

Twitch Sues Users Over Allegations of Harassment

On By emmaspaethIn Censorship, Ethical Issue(s), Gaming, LGBTQ+, Streaming, Video GameLeave a comment

Twitch files lawsuit against two users responsible for targeting and harassing Black and LGBTQIA+ streamers 

Photo Via MIKKELWILLIAM/GETTY IMAGES on Wired.com

On Thursday, September 9th, Twitch filed a lawsuit in US District Court for the Northern District of California against two users for violations of terms of services. The users CruzzControl and Creatine Overdose are accused of spamming the chats and comments of black and LGBTQIA+ streamers with racist and homophobic hate speech. Thousands of streamers have been targeting in these ‘hate raids’.

The two accounts are believed to have used bot software to spam channels with hundreds of hate comments within minutes, forcing some users to suspend streaming. Twitch alleges the account CruzzControl operated nearly 3,000 bots in recent hate raids. The two accounts were initially suspended after complaints filed against them before permanently banning their accounts.

The lawsuit follows one week after Twitch users initiated a boycott on the streaming platform over hate speech, using the hashtags #ADayOffTwitch and #DoBetterTwitch. Thousands of users banded together for a one day boycott of Twitch to pressure the streaming platform to take action against recent hate raids. In response, Twitch banned thousands of accounts using hate speech and created new chat filters to block slurs and racist, homophobic and bigoted language from entering chats and comments.

HBO Max is coming to Europe!

On By Marlene TurreyIn StreamingLeave a comment
Image Via Apple Insider

Warner Media confirmed on Wednesday that HBO Max will launch in Europe on October 26. The first six launch markets are going to be Andorra, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. 14 more European countries will receive the streaming service in 2022, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia. More details on pricing and content offering will be announced in a virtual launch event in October.

The streaming service will include content from Warmer Bros. HBO, DC, Max Originals, and Cartoon Networks. HBO Max’s European arm is focusing on television shows and plans to broaden the scope of its content beyond programming typically offered in the U.S. Christina Sulebakk, general manager for HBO Max EMEA, explains that the brand is trying to create an unique identity in the highly competitive market, where Netflix and Amazon Prime Video are increasingly dominant rivals.

“Our brand with HBO Max is much broader than our legacy HBO brand. It’s much more energetic and diverse in terms of content and scope. There’s a lot of love in the brand, and energy and inclusion and playfulness.”

Christina Sulebakk, general manager for HBO Max EMEA

While HBO Max announced plans to continue launching in European countries outside of the 20 countries listed above, streaming fans in Germany and the U.K. have to wait a little longer. Because of existing deals with other companies in these countries, HBO Max wouldn’t be lucrative at this time. Sulebakk stated: “We are evaluating market by market in terms of commercial strength in programming, [and whether] it’s the right portfolio that we can bring to market — not only the HBO slate but WarnerMedia in general.”

For me, as a European, that is very interesting because so far HBO Max hasn’t played a role in streaming in Europe. I am curious how this will change streaming habits and if HBO Max will be able to compete with Netflix and Amazon as they are already well established. I think in the first months it is most important for HBO Max to have a unique and outstanding advertisement strategy to draw attention to their streaming service. 

https://variety.com/2021/streaming/global/hbo-max-europe-launch-date-1235057976/