Metcomusic: streaming

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Warner Bros: How a $82B Industry Titan Collapsed

This video discusses the decline and eventual collapse of Warner Bros., a century-old Hollywood studio. It attributes the downfall to a series of disastrous mergers, massive debt, and a shift in focus from artistic creation to financial engineering (0:00-0:34).

Key points of the video include:

Early History and Vision (0:39-1:25): The Warner Brothers (Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack) were described as hustlers and visionaries who pioneered the studio system and took risks, such as betting on sound in movies.
Mergers and Debt Accumulation (1:27-2:20): The company's troubles began with mergers, including the Time Warner-AOL merger in 2000, which wiped out billions. Later, AT&T acquired Warner Media in 2018, loading it with significant debt and attempting to run it like a utility, leading to disaster.
David Zaslav's Leadership (2:23-3:08): In 2022, AT&T spun off Warner and merged it with Discovery, putting David Zaslav in charge. Zaslav, known for transforming Discovery into a reality TV mill, inherited massive debt and began a brutal cost-cutting strategy.
Content Impairment and Loss of Trust (3:11-6:11): Zaslav's most controversial move was "content impairment," where finished films like "Batgirl" and "Coyote vs. Acme" were canceled for tax write-offs, sending a chill through the industry. This damaged the studio's relationship with creators and talent, leading to the departure of loyal names like Christopher Nolan.
Rebranding and Internal Issues (5:15-7:31): The rebranding of HBO Max to "Max" further diluted the brand's premium image. The culture inside the company turned toxic, with creative executives being replaced by data analysts, leading to a damaged and "actively hostile" brand.
Takeover Bids and Future (7:36-13:31): By 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery stock hit a low, leading to a company split and a "for sale" sign being put up. Netflix emerged as the frontrunner in a bidding war against Paramount, with a proposed $82.7 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. The video concludes with the fate of Warner Bros. intellectual property (DC Comics, Harry Potter, The Sopranos, Friends) potentially migrating to Netflix's servers.
Cultural Implications (13:36-16:44): The video emphasizes that the loss of Warner Bros. as an independent entity represents a shift in Hollywood. Netflix, being a tech company focused on "time spent" and "content as data," may treat movies as mere inventory to be optimized for retention or even as training data for generative AI. This could lead to the dissolution of Warner Brothers' unique identity and the end of movies as cinematic events.
The video explains that trust eroded at Warner Brothers due to cost-cutting measures and specific decisions made under David Zaslav's leadership (5:59).Specifically:
Content Impairment/Deletion of Finished Films: The decision to cancel and vault finished movies like "Batgirl" for tax write-offs made creators realize "the safety net was gone" (6:05-6:10). This sent a "chill through the industry," with creators wondering if it was worth making content for Warner Brothers if it might not even exist (4:16-4:28).
- Simultaneous Theatrical and Online Release: The decision to release movies in theaters and online at the same time caused "big once loyal names like Christopher Nolan [to walk], calling the move a real bait and switch that treats the hard work of massive stars as a loss leader for the streaming service" (6:13-6:29).
- Shift in Ethical Framework: The speaker states that the company's actions showed that "Art was no longer culture. It was just inventory" (4:35-4:38), which fundamentally changed the ethical framework of Hollywood and how talent perceived value was placed on creative work.

Modern TV Has a Massive Problem

This video explores the evolution of television production models and argues that the shift to shorter seasons, particularly in the streaming era, has created significant problems for the industry and audiences.

Here's a breakdown of the key points:

Traditional TV Model (0:38-1:47): For about 50 years, TV shows were produced under an advertiser model, with 22-episode seasons and commercial breaks. This system supported creatives through unions and residuals.
The Rise of Premium Cable (1:48-2:42): With the introduction of basic cable, channels like HBO offered premium content with fewer ads. This led to shows like The Sopranos adopting shorter, 13-episode seasons due to budget constraints, a model later followed by other acclaimed shows like Mad Men and Breaking Bad.
Streaming and the "Netflix Problem" (2:49-4:17): Netflix embraced this shorter season model, releasing all episodes at once to cater to "binge-watch culture." While initially successful, this led to the "Netflix problem," where many shows, like Marvel's Netflix collaborations, suffered from pacing issues with strong beginnings and ends but weak, filler-filled middles.
Negative Impacts of Shorter Seasons (4:18-6:01): The video argues that shorter seasons are detrimental to:
- Actors (4:56): They struggle to afford to live in expensive cities.
- Writers (4:58): They face financial instability and are often held in "holding deals."
- Studios (5:09): Production timelines remain long, but shows yield fewer viewers.
- Audiences (5:17): There's less of the shows they love, and creators have less time to develop ideas.
The Need for Time to Develop (5:31-7:08): The video emphasizes that shows, like Star Trek: The Next Generation (5:49), often need a season or two to find their footing. It highlights that even expensive productions like Rings of Power can be weak if creators don't have the time to organically develop the story, citing Vince Gilligan's approach to Breaking Bad (6:57) as an example of ideas evolving during production.
The "Drug" of Streaming (7:38-8:12): Comedy legend Michael Sher (7:09) refers to shorter seasons as the "single biggest issue facing the future of television production," noting that streaming services treat shows like a "drug" to hook viewers, which hinders the development of long-lasting character arcs and narratives, as exemplified by The Office (7:30). The video questions if "peak TV" is still a reality or if the industry has moved past its golden age.
Shorter seasons are problematic for various reasons (4:56-5:24):
- Financial Strain on Creatives: Actors and writers face difficulties affording to live in expensive cities like Los Angeles (4:56). Writers, in particular, struggle with income stability and often can't work on other projects due to holding deals (4:58).
- Reduced Viewership for Studios: While production timelines remain long, shorter seasons result in fewer episodes, leading to a significant drop in overall viewership (5:09).
- Less Content and Creative Development Time for Audiences: Viewers get less of the shows they love, and creators have insufficient time to fully develop their ideas, leading to rushed or underdeveloped narratives (5:17).
- Pacing Issues and "The Netflix Problem": Many shows suffer from uneven pacing, with strong beginnings and ends but weak or filler-heavy middles, a phenomenon dubbed "the Netflix problem" (4:12).
- Lack of Character and Story Evolution: Shows need time to "figure out what it is" (5:31). Shorter seasons limit the natural evolution of characters and storylines, preventing the organic development seen in long-running series like The Office, where significant character moments, like Jim and Pam's first kiss, occurred many episodes into the series (7:23).
- Streaming fundamentally altered TV by:
  - Adopting the Shorter Season Model (2:49): Netflix copied the playbook of premium cable channels like HBO, which introduced 13-episode seasons due to budget constraints. This became the new standard for streaming originals, aiming for more "bespoke efforts" rather than the traditional 22-episode seasons.
  - Pioneering Binge-Watching Culture (3:05): Netflix made all episodes of a season available at once, recognizing that viewers wanted to watch shows straight through. This "binge-watch culture" redefined how shows were consumed and subsequently how they were made.
  - Introducing the "Netflix Problem" (4:12): While initially successful, the pivot to this production model across almost every show led to a decline in pacing and quality. Many shows suffered from strong beginnings and ends but sagged in the middle due to filler content.
  - Shifting from Advertiser-Supported to Subscription Models (1:48): Streaming services, like premium cable before them, allowed viewers to pay for content, circumventing the traditional ad-supported model that had dominated television for decades.