☀️WBD layoffs hit - 26% of positions cut at WBTV
SONY triples-down on Sydney Sweeney / TIKTOK moves to challenge AMAZON / Blake leaving THE VOICE
Mornin! This is Sean McNulty and here’s the Hollywood + Media news to know on WEDNESDAY October 12, 2022.
Where between watching “Bedknobs & Broomsticks” more times than I realized as a kid now that I think about it… and “Jessica Fletcher” playing a key role in my development of a healthy level of skepticism of the world as a 10 year-old that serves me well to this day - Angela Lansbury really played a key role in my life. Rest in peace Angela.
AND: Millennial nostalgia is starting to really tingle as the 20-year-rule still holds strong - Las Vegas’s When We Were Young festival has already set its 2023 festival headliners full of names that were all over Radio (and probably still MTV) in 2003. (this year’s fest happens in a couple weeks):
GREEN DAY and a just-reunited BLINK 182 will lead the way, with 30 SECONDS TO MARS (fronted by Karl Lagerfeld #dontask), GOOD CHARLOTTE, OFFSPRING, SUM 41 and many others now set for the Oct 21, 2023 date.
This year’s show added 2 extra dates when the first one sold out supa fast, and Tix for 2023 go on sale this Fri.
ALSO: Speaking of nostalgia, for anyone who grew up in the NYC area in the 1990s - the former home of Howard Stern & Alternative Rock mecca 92.3 KROCK is going… all talk. In fact, it’s now just going to be an FM simulcast of 1010WINS. Welcome to #Radio2022.
CONGRATS! Kaley Cuoco and boyfriend Tom Pelphrey are expecting their first child.
PLUS: Just a reminder - HULU now costs $8 a month Ad-supported, and $15 a month Ad-free.
#FunFact: At the APOS conference, Kevin Mayer said HULU was making $8.50 a subscriber in Ad-revenue alone per month (Ad #ARPU) when he was there.
Assuming that’s only increased in the 2 years since he left… HULU will now make even more money off their Ad-Supported customers than the Ad-free ones (maybe $17+ ish? vs. $15).
So that Q4 HULU ARPU should go in a nice direction, assuming this price hike doesn’t trigger a sizable churn event among HULU-only subs (DISNEY bundle prices remain the same, so it’s possible more will convert to that instead).
WHILE WE’RE AT IT: Bob II also raised prices at DISNEYLAND once again, with the top tier one-day DISNEYLAND ticket now $169, an increase of 36% in 5 years, and prices are being raised across the board in Anaheim. Look - these STAR WARS series don’t pay for themselves folks…
IN TODAY’S EDITION:
WBD pivots the layoff axe to WBTV division, cutting a quarter of positions including current & open heads
BE REAL is not popular on Android devices
Latest NETFLIX “weekend box office” streaming analysis (not looking good for “Blonde”, Mila Kunis off to a hot start)
SONY triples down on Sydney Sweeney
“Blade”, “Dune Part 2”, “Deadpool 3” shift dates
TIKTOK looks to build AMAZON-like “fulfillment centers” to support new shopping features
NETFLIX reveals UK users, revenue
The battle to control your SmartTV operating system heats up, and more
📽 THE SILVER SCREEN
