Over 100 Million People Watched League Of Legends Championship, Making It Top Dog In E-Sport

On December 19, 2019 By khelt0In Nielsen, Sports, Streaming, Video GameLeave a comment

https://apple.news/AB_Obdp8QQPaNSYM_Q_7lqw

There were over 100 million people watching the championship with a peak of 44 million concurrent viewers during the final round of the tournament. There were teams from 13 different regions around the world, and the matches were broadcasted in 16 different languages. That just shows the global impact that the game has as well as the developers catering to those different markets. They could of easily just appealed to their biggest markets, but from a revenue stand point as well as just brand inclusion they wanted everyone to be belt o experience the championship. The game is 10 years old, but it is still one of the most played video game titles in the world. At peak hours, more than 8 million people are logged on, and playing the game on a daily basis.

The game is at the top of its class and the next closet title would be Fortnite. League of Legends has been able to grow due to the constant community engagement and partnerships that expand the franchises recognizable characters beyond the gaming industry. The tournaments do not offer as much prize money as other games like Fortnite, but it provides stability for professional players. Players in the most successful regional leagues earn annual salaries as well as other benefits from their teams.

TikTok Launches New Music Streaming Service

On December 16, 2019 By grosso611In MusicLeave a comment

TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is trialing a new music streaming app called Resso to rival Apple Music and Spotify. This new app is being trialed in India and Indonesia, two markets that are potentially untapped by the American companies. While this app has been trialed for 6 months, it was only recently revealed that it was TikTok’s parent company was actually the owner.

ByteDance has had a lot of success with their app TikTok accumulating 500 million users since its launch in 2016. Resso has 27,000 users which is clearly a huge difference. Despite this difference, ByteDance is finding new ways to integrate TikTok mechanics into this new app. One feature included is swiping to skip a song, a feature very familiar on TikTok as users scroll through videos. The app is also a lot more communal, making it easier to share, comment, and create gifs using certain songs on the platform. The company has been rumored to be talking with the major music labels like Sony Music, Warner Music, and NBCUniversal to bring as many songs as possible when it drops in the US.

This article is interesting because the company is looking into untapped markets internationally. In addition to that, I wonder how this will affect music streaming. TikTok is a very fast paced platform where people consume 15 seconds of content until the video is over, which makes me wonder if music will be the same way. I find that apps like TikTok lower attention spans for consuming content, and I wonder of this will make music more interesting in the beginning to ensure people listen to the entire song. Either way, the effects of this new competitor will be interesting.

Article: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/tiktok-resso-music-stream-app-bytedance-spotify-a9248831.html

Rewound: The App That Can Turn Your I-Phone into an I-Pod Classic

On December 14, 2019 By tuj52701templeeduIn Music, Spotify, Streaming, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Rewound is a basic music player app that can be found in the App Store of Apple. This app incorporates customization skins that can visually convert an I-Phone into an I-Pod classic.

Part of what makes the app so great is that it synchronizes with an Apple Music library, and includes haptic feedback, which allows it to not only look like an iPod, but sound like one too. Rewound’s developer, Louis Anslow of Rethought agency, took a year to create the app, of which he claims to have made it with the intent of insinuating some I-Pod nostalgia. Rewound only suports Apple music most, but Anslow claims that it should be able to support Spotify in the future.

“It is an experimental project exploring the blurring lines between the digital and physical world, Edgeless displays with haptic feedback can become any device you wish. Rewound lets users morph their iPhone into a retro 2000s era MP3 player — whatever brand or model they preferred.”

I think apps like this one are great as they can be used to educate and inform of older technology products. For instance, younger individuals who have never used an I-Pod classic, could use this to experience the interface of an apple product which came before their I-Phones.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/11/21010953/apple-iphone-ipod-app-rewound-app-store-features-music-player-apple-music

Hulu Rewards Binge Watching

On December 13, 2019 By grosso611In Streaming, Television1 Comment

Hulu announced recently that they will be introducing a new system of advertising that will reward people for binge watching episodes in one sitting. They packaged it as a reward by offering a special deal through Hulu or allowing the episode to be ad free because of a specific sponsor. Because the Hulu revenue model relies on ads, Hulu is giving an incentive to make the ads more palatable while maintaining support from the advertisers. Hulu announced they will be partnering with advertisers like Kellogg’s, Maker’s March, and Georgia-Specific for this new system.

Hulu will use data on viewers to predict which shows are about to be binge watched and will serve, “contextually relevant messaging from our brand partners that acknowledges a binge-watching session has begun.” For example, Cheez-It Snap’d will show an ad that corresponds with the binge watch session by saying, “Another episode? Snack it to me!”

In 2007, all the major media companies owned a share of Hulu, but now Disney owns a majority of the company. Comcast handed over operational control to Disney and plans to sell 33% of their stock to Disney by 2024.

I find this interesting because I totally agree with this method of advertising. The biggest annoyance when binge watching shows is the constant interruption from advertisements. Personally, I like the idea of getting the longer ad out of the way and experiencing the whole episode uninterrupted instead of short periods that occur every 15 minutes. I think this is a really smart thing and will be very beneficial to the platform. I wonder how the platform will change now that Disney will own Hulu in the future as networks pull the shows, but the new advertisement system is interesting nonetheless.

Article: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/12/hulu-new-ad-type-will-reward-binge-watchers.html

Baby Yoda Goes Viral

On December 7, 2019 By aalesanIn Streaming1 Comment

Baby Yoda is exactly what you’re imagining it to be…Baby Yoda has become viral on all social media platforms and that’s not the only thing that has a lot of attention.

Star Wars: The Mandalorian Episode 2 Confirms New ...

Not only has Baby Yoda taken over Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Twitter, he is also a passage to the newest streaming service called Disney+.

The Mandalorian is a show on Disney+ which features this wholesome, adorable and cozy version of Yoda, Baby Yoda. Disney+ knows exactly what they’re doing by marketing Baby Yoda as their own meme! Disney+ is gaining a lot of attention due to how many memes are being made that are including Baby Yoda. Here are some prime examples of what I mean:

18 Hilarious Baby Yoda Memes Guaranteed To Improve Your ... — We love a happy meal once in a while!

20 Baby Yoda Memes Because It's The Real Star Of 'The ... — For all of the future gamers out there.

I think Disney is one of the smartest companies to exist. They have been so clever with their marketing tactics and it is amazing to see the rise in various streaming services. Disney is being strategic with using Baby Yoda in order to gain more subscriptions, an massive audience, and a way to lure more popularity towards a show on their service. Disney+ plans to do more of the Baby Yoda luring, except not using Baby Yoda.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/6/20997564/baby-yoda-disney-plus-star-wars-mandalorian-merchandise-stranger-things-game-of-thrones-streaming

Game of Streams – ViacomCBS

On December 6, 2019 By Chris ColeIn Distribution, Movie, Political, Sports, Streaming, Technology, TelevisionLeave a comment

Viacom and CBS Corp. are officially joining forces after 14 years since their split. Viacom and CBS first merged in 1999 and split in 2005. Since the two merged, ViacomCBS is now a massive media empire with a collection of cable channels, broadcast networks, and film and publishing divisions. The company celebrated its partnership with a ceremonial ringing of the opening bell at the Nasdaq Market Site in New York’s Times Square. The company’s Nasdaq ticker symbol is VIAC.

The two companies bring a lot of content to each other. Viacom has the right to BET, Comedy Central, MTV, and Paramount movie studios. CBS properties include the CBS Television Network, CBS News and 15 CBS-owned TV stations, as well as the cable network Showtime and the publisher Simon & Schuster. ViacomCBS is valued at an estimate of $30 billion when the merger was announced in August. The company has a lot of competition. Between recent streaming platforms like AppleTV, Disney+ and Netflix, there is a lot of pressure to not only come with good content but how will ViacomCBS make streaming distinct for them.

According to CBSNews, Both CBS Corp. and Viacom have long been controlled by Sumner Redstone and his daughter, Shari through their family’s privately owned company, National Amusements. This company operates in movie theaters in the U.S., U.K. and Latin America. Shari Redstone is the president of National Amusements and has served as vice-chairwoman of CBS and Viacom before their merger. Shari has recently become chair of the combined ViacomCBS board.

The two companies have a history of trying to merge; they have tried several times in recent years but their management teams could never see eye to eye. Last year, CBS’s board went through a lot go change following the departure of longtime CEO Leslie Moonves over misconduct allegations. This helped make room for the merger. Hopefully, Viacom’s content can help create a bigger name within the streaming platform. It will be interesting to see what content they will make specifically for their platform.

Is a Disclaimer Enough?

On December 5, 2019 By grosso611In StreamingLeave a comment

Image result for disney disclaimer — “This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions”

Disney has decided to put disclaimers before classic movies that portray racial stereotypes on their new streaming service Disney+. These movies include Dumbo, Peter Pan, and The Jungle Book, along with other movies that contain any racial undertones. While some people see the disclaimer as a great tool to address these issues and warm consumers about the offensive characters, some people argue this step isn’t enough. A chairwoman of American studies at the University of Maryland named Psyche Williams-Forson argues that the company “needs to follow through in making more robust statements that this is wrong, and these depictions were wrong.”

“This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions,” is the current disclaimer that appears before each viewing. On a mobile device or tablet, the disclaimer appears in the description of the program rather than displaying it before the movie starts.

In addition, Disney has decided to completely remove “Song of the South”, a 1946 hit that actually won an Oscar for the song “Zip-A-Dee-Do-Dah”. This movie features a character named Uncle Remus who strolls through a plantation and clearly contains racist depictions. Interestingly enough though, movies like Pocahontas and Aladdin do not feature the disclaimer, really blurring the lines of what exactly is socially acceptable.

I find this article interesting because it brings up a lot of questions about classic movies and if they are acceptable to play in a modern setting. I agree with what Disney has down because they are at least acknowledging what they did was wrong without completely removing the movies altogether. With that being said, I feel like more movies should feature this disclaimer because it seems like they only care about the movies with explicit racism, but the ones with subconscious undertones are fine. I guess everyone needs to ask what is the line, and when does Disney cross it?

Article: https://time.com/5730892/disney-plus-content-warnings-racist-movies/

SPOTIFY REVEALS THE MOST-STREAMED ARTISTS AND MUSIC OF 2019—AND THE DECADE

On December 5, 2019 By Alexa SouthardIn Algorithms, Data, Music, StreamingLeave a comment

https://adage.com/article/digital/spotify-reveals-most-streamed-artists-and-music-2019-and-decade/222021

Spotify’s metadata allows the platform to draw conclusions about the music of the year, and the decade as 2020 approaches. Called the “Wrapped List”, the data driven summary reveals the artists and music that has defined 2019, and from there, the most streamed music from 2010 to now.

Post Malone has taken the cake for the most-streamed artist of the year, upon the release of his latest album and contribution to the song “Sunflower,” which was released for the Into the Spiderverse movie. Billie Eilish is the second-most-streamed artist of the year, upon her release of her Grammy-nominated album titled “When We Fall Asleep Where Do We Go?”, which was streamed over 6 billion times.

Other noteworthy artists include Drake, who was the top-streamed artist of the decade, and Ariana Grande is the top-streamed female artist of the decade. Camila Cabello and Sean Mendes’s “Senorita” was the top streamed song of the year, and Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” was the most streamed song of the decade.

This derived data shows media companies and the music industry trends over time, as well as the artists that are up and coming. It is also thanks to the data algorithm you are able to review your personal statistics of your own profile, allowing you to learn about your own listening patterns as the decade went on, and what you enjoyed most this year.

Star Wars TV Series ‘The Mandalorian’ Drives Higher Demand For Disney+

On December 4, 2019March 23, 2020 By Alexa SouthardIn Streaming, UncategorizedLeave a comment

https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/344073/star-wars-tv-series-the-mandalorian-drives-highe.html

With the release of Disney+, fans are taking to review the streaming services’ creative content. Of these options, the Star Wars series called “The Mandalorian” has distinguished itself, and has driven consumer demand higher for the streaming service.

Metrics and analytics point to the demand being at least over three times its initial release, and this data regards “The Mandalorian” as the driving force behind this demand. The television show ranks itself with 39.9 million demand expressions, which is placed 3rd among all digital television series.

The metric, however, should not be confused with subscriber numbers however. Another factor is that Verizon is promoting a deal that allows its users to have a free year of Disney+, making it hard for derived data of tell much about the streaming service’s subscribers. The release and success of the series further proves the point of the demand for creative self content by services, and the demand for it among users of other services.

Amazon Steps Up The Game: Free Music Streaming Service With Ads Now Available

On November 20, 2019 By William HauserIn Amazon, Music, Streaming1 Comment

Image Source: Amazon

The music streaming industry has long been dominated by the three companies Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music. Since its creation, Amazon Prime Music was only available for use by the companies Prime members. In a move that many media researchers believe is to step up the game against Spotify and Apple, Amazon is now offering its music streaming service for free to anyone (none-prime members) who download the application on IOS/Android devices, Fire TV, and online.

Of course like its competitors, the free download and use of the music streaming service comes with advertisements in order to continue to listen to music. The service will be available to anyone in the U.S., U.K. and Germany and offers the same 2-million song catalog as Prime Music, with the exception of Prime Music being ad-free for users that are subscription members to the companies services.

Interestingly enough, Spotify’s stock price dropped almost 5% following Amazon’s announcement of their free music streaming service intended to take in more users to compete against Spotify’s astonishing 140 million users a month.

“Expansion of the free-with-ads Amazon service will expose more consumers to Amazon’s music, who can then be promoted to join Prime to get the ad-free Amazon Music free — or to upgrade to Amazon’s more premium music services” (Lukovitz).

With the addition of the add-supported Amazon Music service to its lineup, the company now offers four different versions of music streaming with Prime Music, Amazon Music Unlimited (50 million song catalog) and Amazon Music HD which features its largest catalog and quality music streaming.

Many believe this expansion of the free-with-ads service will expose more people to Amazon, which in turn will lead to the promotion of these consumers to become a prime member for ad-free music or maybe even taking it a step further to the Unlimited or HD service.

I believe that the music streaming service is only becoming more popular with many of these media giants targeting their members with subscription based services in order to gain revenue and customer loyalty which is essential in today’s digital world. All three of these leading music streaming services constantly are looking for an upper hand to their competitors, and Amazon appears to have just moved towards leveling the playing field.

Sources:

https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/343552/amazon-opens-up-availability-of-free-music-streami.html

https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/19/amazon-makes-its-music-streaming-service-free-with-ads/

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