How did MegaVideo.com become the 10th most popular video site in the U.S.? By offering users really easy access to pirated movies and TV shows. If Hollywood doesn’t want to end up like the music business, it’s going to have to move very quickly.
Back to grim news: A bad economy and bad timing mean that the DVD business, once a source of strength for Hollywood, is going to be a weakness. “Home entertainment revenue” may shrink five percent or more this year, which is particularly bad news for Viacom and Time Warner.
The paper of record provided a helpful peek into its business–and the ad business in general–during its earnings call yesterday. It’s not all bad news, and it’s all pretty interesting. Here’s the CliffsNotes version.
Here’s another company that looks to be resistant to the recession and may even be benefiting from it: Netflix beat high expectations for the final quarter of 2008, and predicts a gangbusters 2009.
Another would-be “viral video” from NBC’s show that NBC can’t show you on NBC.com or Hulu. Blame a copyright issue (of course), and look for it on YouTube instead.
No wonder Howard Stringer couldn’t promise he was “recession-proof” when the Sony CEO spoke at the Consumer Electronics Show last week: Sony is set to record a $1.1 billion loss, according to the Japanese newspaper Nikkei. That’s something the company hasn’t seen since Hollywood producers Jon Peters and Peter Gruber managed to incinerate the company’s P&L in the mid-90s.
Want to watch nerd-favorite “The Fifth Element” via Netflix’s awesome streaming service? OK, but hurry up–the movie will disappear from the service on New Year’s Day. Want to rent the excellent George Clooney corporate thriller “Michael Clayton” via iTunes? Too late! The movie was there, but now it’s not. Wait a minute: Hadn’t big media finally gotten religion and agreed to give us, the demanding consumers, everything we want, whenever we want it? Nope.
Peter Kafka has been covering media and technology since 1997, when he joined the staff of Forbes magazine. Most recently, he has been the managing editor of the tech and media Web site, Silicon Alley Insider. Read more »
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