Should You Work at HBO or Netflix?
Over 130 million people subscribe to HBO globally. Founded in 1972 with its first launch on a cable system serving Wilkes Barre Pennsylvania with the 1971 film, sometimes a Great Notion, starring Paul Newman and Henry Fonda, HBO was the world’s first “pay” tv service. Originally primarily airing movies over time it has evolved into one of the most successful and prolific producers of original shows. From today’s Game of Thrones to the Sopranos and True Blood of the past HBO is known for some of the most watched original programming on television. In 2015 HBO entered the “OTT” video market with the launch of their direct to consumer service HBO Now. With over $2 billion dollars in annual income HBO has a strong capital base for expansion. But what about the competition from Netflix and Amazon? Netflix has been spending billions of dollars creating original programming for broadcast on their service. As of April 2017 Netflix was reporting in excess of 99 million subscribers worldwide. But while most of HBO’s distribution is through deals with cable operators, virtually all of Netflix’s subscribers are direct. Amazon is also a formidable competitor having developed a video service for their Prime members…
Why a Job at Hulu is Better than Netflix
Here is why a job at Hulu could be better than working at Netflix. Hulu is bringing on big brand names and existing audiences to grow their subscriber base. They just introduced live tv stations and the top pay tv services. While Hulu’s 32 million subscribers put them in a distant third to Netflix“s over 100 million subscribers and Amazon’s estimated 85 million keep in mind that Hulu is owned by the 3 of the largest media companies in the world; The Walt Disney Company, 21st Century Fox, Comcast, and Time Warner. Hulu is building brand names which will bring over millions of existing customers as opposed to Netflix which is spending billions on original shows and betting big that they will work. For example 62% of Hulu subscribers watch Game of Thrones. Now they can get their HBO through Hulu instead of their cable operator. If you’re considering working at Hulu they have over 100 jobs available nationally right now including jobs in marketing, analysis, finance and technology. Revenue in 2016 was over $2 billion dollars, up 33% from 2015 and is expected to rise by another 20% in 2017 to $2.4 billion dollars. In May Hulu added live…
Which Video Streaming Providers will Survive in the Next 5 Years?
There are many more OTT providers than you realize. One service offers to provide you with 600 channels. A Mashable article promises 33 Ways to Watch Free TV Online and of course there are the usual suspects; Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, CBS, Crackle and the list goes on and on. By the way the industry term for Video Streaming is OTT for over the top. But Which Video Streaming Providers will Survive and Why? In Secret Formula to Win the OTT Race Keith Zubchevich talks about the importance of quality over quantity. But how do you measure quality? In our data crazed world most surely the algorithm masters will find a way. Some would say that quality programming only comes from experienced directors and producers. Some of the most successful shows like House of Cards and Homeland are created, written and produced by seasoned professionals. It’s difficult to guarantee the creation of lots of successful shows. OTT providers will employ different strategies to accomplish this objective. Perhaps some OTT providers may opt to buy cable networks and/or a cable company. Perhaps Amazon will buy Comcast. Are YouTube Stars Professional? Would you consider Michelle Phan, one of the longest sustaining YouTube stars…
Why Amazon will Buy Comcast
The concept of world domination used to be relegated to science fiction movies however Amazon may yet become one of the first to make it a reality. Their recent addition of the Streaming Partners program could be the start of Amazon as the world’s first global OTT (over the top) programming provider. With 83.5% of Facebook users and 79% of Twitter users coming from outside the US, companies today must be globally focused to truly compete and grow. Comcast business is limited to the US. With cable systems passing about 44% of all US homes and 22 million subscribers it has a strong presence but only in the US. Amazon is a global company; According to Mark Mahaney, analyst at RBC Capital Markets, 37% of its 80 million Prime subscribers are from outside the US and is growing quickly. But Why Should Amazon buy Comcast? Amazon’s foray into OTT is the precursor to the separation of the programming platform from the wired cable. I believe that sometime in the next 3 to 5 years most cable companies will sell broadband access only and the program offerings will be spun off into separate companies which will have lots of competition…
