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Comcast is splitting in three, Fox just bought Roku for $22 billion, and the Paramount-Warner merger still hasn't closed. Welcome to Media Shark Week.This episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast is Evan Shapiro and Marion Ranchet's deep-dive into the wave of media mergers reshaping the streaming and broadcasting landscape in real time. Recorded in early July, it covers four major deals in rapid succession: the Comcast-NBCUniversal split, the Sky acquisition of ITV, the Fox-Roku deal, and the stalled Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. Without guests (or filters), Marion and Evan are comparing notes, disagreeing openly, and calling their shots on what each deal actually means for the future of streaming media, cord-cutting, digital advertising, and the balance of power between legacy media and big tech.
The throughline: vertical integration in media has repeatedly failed not because the theory is wrong, but because the execution never happens. Comcast never integrated NBCUniversal just like AT&T never integrated Warner. The companies that are winning (Fox in particular) are the ones building digital content and advertising flywheels while everyone else is digging holes and filling them back up.
Key Takeaways:
1. The Comcast Three-Way Split
Comcast is splitting into three companies: a connectivity/broadband entity, a spun-off NBCUniversal/Sky entertainment group, and the already-separated Versant. One read: this is a prelude to selling NBCUniversal, with Netflix and Apple as the most likely buyers. The combined Charter-Cox-Comcast broadband entity would control 70–75 million US homes, effectively controlling how most Americans access all streaming content.2. The Sky-ITV Deal
Sky acquired ITV's broadcast network for £1.6 billion, leaving ITV Studios as a standalone content producer through 2032 under an existing supply deal. The combined Sky-ITV package could solve Netflix's ad sales weakness in its two biggest markets (US and UK) in one move. ITV Studios could also be a potential acquisition target for Banijay or others hungry for English-language IP, including Love Island, which had its biggest year in Season 12.3. Fox Buys Roku for $22 Billion
Roku (once valued at $50 billion) sold to Fox at roughly a third off peak valuation. Evan calls Lachlan Murdoch the sharpest traditional media CEO in the US: Fox sold assets to Disney at the top of the market, invested in Tubi, Red Sea Ventures, Holywater, and Whaler, and now controls roughly 50% of US TV screens through Roku. Combined, Tubi and The Roku Channel are larger than Disney streaming. Marion's concern: Fox is too US-focused, Roku needed an international partner, and merging a tech culture with a programming culture almost never works cleanly.4. The Paramount-Warner Merger Stall
The Ellisons targeted a July close and it isn’t going to happen. The UK Culture Minister has intervened, and the attorneys general of California, New York, and other states have filed suit to block the merger of CNN and CBS News. The AGs are playing a long game, and there's no realistic path to closing before the US midterms, which was the Ellisons' primary motivation for the deal in the first place.5. Integration Is the Only Thing That Matters
Every failed deal in this episode (AT&T-Warner, Comcast-NBCUniversal, WBD) failed for the same reason: the companies never actually integrated. Comcast didn't even unify its ad sales departments across NBCUniversal. The Fox-Roku deal has real upside, but only if Fox does the hard work. The pot of gold at the end of the M&A rainbow is real, but only for the companies willing to integrate.Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Welcome and Shark Week(00:44) - Comcast Splits NBCU(03:19) - Why Integration Failed(05:44) - Who Buys NBCU(07:03) - Charter Comcast Mega Merge(12:02) - Sky Buys ITV(17:27) - ITV Studios Next Moves(20:15) - Fox Buys Roku(23:23) - Roku Risks and Upside(32:47) - Paramount Warner Deal Trouble(36:15) - Wrap Up and Live Show -
The growing vertical video landscape has potential far beyond microdramas. Two TV veterans just built the studio to take vertical premium all the way with true crime, dating reality formats, scripted drama, and a 12-step AI process to get there.
This episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast with Evan Shapiro and Marion Ranchet features Guy Hameiri and Lior Friedman, co-founders of RoseBerry, a vertical premium television studio built on the belief that mobile is the new cable. Guy comes from 25 years in traditional TV production (Survivor, X Factor, Shtisel on Netflix). Lior comes from Amagi and the commercial side of streaming media. Together they're building a start-to-end studio producing originals, repurposing legacy TV catalogs for vertical, and distributing through their own first-party app, Epis.
The episode covers RoseBerry's full model: deals already signed with Fremantle, Banijay, All3Media, and A&E to repurpose existing catalog IP into vertical short-form; a proprietary 12-step AI-assisted conversion tool called Red Snapper; originals; and EPIS as a test-and-learn platformt. The Neighbors case study (an 18-year-old Fremantle soap reformatted for vertical featuring a young Margot Robbie) is presented live on the pod as proof of concept.
Key Takeaways:
1. Beyond Microdrama
The current vertical market is dominated by melodrama tropes with high churn and low retention. RoseBerry is betting on genre expansion including true crime, dating reality, soap, and scripted, to target an underserved audience. Paywall conversion on top-performing shows is already exceeding 50%, with 70% of those converting to subscribers.2. Red Snapper
RoseBerry's proprietary 12-step AI-assisted conversion tool takes horizontal long-form TV and reformats it for vertical. It handles frame cropping, pacing, graphics, storyline focus, and music rights. The process started manually with human editors to establish craft standards, then was automated at scale. It's the core IP that makes repurposing 5,000-episode catalogs commercially viable.3. Epis as a Data Engine
Their app Epis exists primarily as a first-party data platform, not just a distribution channel. It lets RoseBerry track user-level behavior across genres, sessions, and geographies. Subscribers on EPIS are now spending over an hour per session on top-performing content.4. The Library Opportunity
Guy's "10,000 for 10,000" framework is if a rights holder monetizes 10,000 hours of catalog content at $10,000 per hour per year, that's $100 million in new annual revenue from IP that is otherwise sitting dormant. RoseBerry's pitch to Fremantle, Banijay, All3Media, and A&E is a new monetization window for libraries that traditional streaming cannot fully exploit.5. Mobile as the New Cable
Guy's biggest claim: mobile will replace what cable was with movies, series, true crime, and reality available on-demand in vertical format. Netflix, Disney, Peacock, and Paramount are all launching vertical feeds, creating a coming demand for premium vertical content that RoseBerry is positioning to supply.Thank you Lior Friedman and Guy Hameiri for joining the pod!
Thank you Lior Friedman and Guy Hameiri for joining the pod!
Lior Frieman -https://www.linkedin.com/in/lior-friedman-94958939/
Guy Hameiri - https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-hameiri-/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Heatwave and Setup(00:42) - Guests Intro and RoseBerry Origin Story(05:13) - Why Vertical Needs Premium(09:22) - EPIS Platform Explained(12:06) - Syndication and Data Flywheel(15:46) - Neighbors Vertical Clip(18:22) - How Verticalizing Works(22:31) - Originals and New Genres(24:22) - Dating Reality Trailer(24:53) - Love Or Money Twist(25:50) - Gamified Tokens Debate(28:14) - Vertical TV Goes Mainstream(31:13) - Mobile As New Cable(32:24) - Proof In The Data(35:02) - Quibi To TikTok Shift(37:36) - Repurposing At Scale(38:46) - Red Snapper Workflow(41:18) - Data Driven Windowing(43:37) - Wrap Up And Predictions -
Saknas det avsnitt?
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Two nearly century-old brands. One brand-new animated series. And a first-of-its-kind partnership that's never been done before.
This special episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast was recorded on the Croisette at Cannes Lions, hosted inside BBC Studios' headquarters, and features three guests across two breaking news announcements. Jasmine Dawson, SVP of Digital at BBC Studios, returns for what's become an annual tradition on the pod to unveil the Affinity advertising network. Affinity is a five-vertical, fandom-first ad sales operation expanding globally with a major push into the US.
Dan McGolpin, Director of iPlayer and Channels at BBC, joins to announce a new internal BBC Group partnership that will see BBC Studios' digital sales team represent public service BBC YouTube channels outside the UK for the first time.
And Anna Rafferty, SVP Digital Consumer Engagement at the LEGO Group, joins to break the news of a first-of-its-kind Bluey x LEGO co-commissioned content series dropping on YouTube the same day the episode publishes.
The throughline across all three conversations is the same: fandom, trust, and the growing conviction that reaching audiences isn't enough, you have to move them.
Key Takeaways:
1. Affinity's Five Verticals
BBC Studios has launched Affinity, a fandom-first advertising network built across five verticals: Family (anchored by Bluey), Auto (Top Gear), Travel & Food, Entertainment, and Our World (anchored by BBC Earth, built over 10 years across IP including Blue Planet and Big Cats). Each vertical is built around existing trusted BBC IP, with third-party studio IP (Magic Light Pictures' Zog, Acamar's Bing) layered in to deepen the offering.2. The BBC Group YouTube Expansion
BBC Studios and BBC Public Service are launching 50+ new YouTube channels in 2025, roughly half through BBC Studios, half through public service. Dan McGolpin describes a strategic shift from treating YouTube as a marketing tool to actively building communities, particularly for under-25s in the UK. The approach mirrors what BBC Studios has learned about channel specificity: rather than one BBC Sport account, they've spun off a dedicated BBC Football channel, with more sport-specific channels to follow.
3. The Internal BBC Partnership
The first piece of breaking news: BBC Studios' Affinity team will now sell advertising outside the UK for selected public service BBC YouTube channels. This will be the first time the two arms of BBC Group have formally unified their commercial digital strategy. Previously BBC Studios' digital ad operation focused exclusively on BBC Studios content. This expansion means the Affinity network now spans both the commercial and public service sides of the BBC, giving advertisers access to the full depth of the BBC content portfolio on YouTube worldwide.4. The Bluey x LEGO Co-Commission
The second piece of breaking news: a 10-part content series with LEGO brick recreations of fan-favourite Bluey moments, co-commissioned by BBC Studios and the LEGO Group, dropping on YouTube. Anna Rafferty describes it as an editorial co-commission, not just a product partnership: the series was built around the insight that children love to "play their stories," creating a watch-play-build loop designed to deepen engagement across both the Blueyverse and the LEGO universe simultaneously.5. The Fandom Measurement Model
BBC Studios' core KPI is average watch time. Bluey averages nearly 15 minutes of watch time per session, against a portfolio average of 13.3 minutes, both significantly above industry benchmarks. 77% of BBC Studios' viewing happens on CTV — meaning the majority of Bluey and Top Gear consumption is happening on the living room television, with high co-viewing rates that make it especially valuable to advertisers.Thank you Jasmine Dawson, Dan McGolpin, and Anna Rafferty for joining the pod!
Jasmine Dawson - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasminesdawson/
Dan McGolpin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-mcgolpin-093268123/
Anna Rafferty - https://www.linkedin.com/in/annarafferty/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Cannes Lions Kickoff(02:06) - Fandom First Results(03:24) - New KPIs Hours Watched(04:36) - Beyond Bluey Repeatable Playbook(05:58) - Affinity Network Five Verticals(11:25) - Community Led Bluey Examples(17:01) - BBC YouTube Partnership Expansion(21:20) - 50 New Channels Plan(21:51) - World Cup Banter(22:20) - Verticals and Communities(23:28) - Operating Model Explained(25:07) - US Expansion and Global Ads(26:23) - Lego Guest Joins(28:00) - Bluey Lego Series Premiere(36:44) - Release Strategy and Wrap -
Demand for high-quality kids' content has never been higher, but the supply has never been more broken. And YouTube, the most powerful kids' platform on Earth, is running it like an algorithm, not a network.This live panel episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast, recorded at the Media Universe Summit, features Evan Shapiro and Jamie Shapiro alongside Andy Donner, Head of Partnerships at Common Sense Media, and Sara DeWitt, Senior Vice President & General Manager at PBS Kids. The conversation centers on Evan and Common Sense Media's joint report on the state of the kids' content industry.
The picture it paints is stark with millennial and Gen Z parents demanding more high-quality, trusted kids' content than ever, while streaming platforms have cut series orders by 25%, public media is being defunded, and YouTube Kids remains under-monetized and under-curated despite being the most-watched kids' platform in the world. The panel covers co-viewing trends, the collapse of the independent kids' production ecosystem, the rise of AI slop in children's content feeds, and what it would actually take for a major streamer or YouTube to step up and fill the gap.
Key Takeaways:
1. Supply vs. Demand
Demand for quality kids' content has doubled among parents (70% of whom are now millennials or Gen Z) while the number of series orders from streamers has dropped 25% from its 2022 peak. Streamers figured out kids' content reduces churn but doesn't drive new subscribers, and largely stopped commissioning it. Public broadcasters like PBS, BBC, and ABC Australia now produce 54% of kids' content worldwide.2. The YouTube Kids Problem
88% of parents of kids under seven say their children prefer YouTube over any other platform, yet kids' content represents 15% of total YouTube usage and just 2% of its monetization. YouTube Kids has the lowest co-viewing rate of any major platform and AI-generated slop is regularly making it through content filters. The American Academy of Pediatrics warns YouTube is actively harming children's development.3. The Algorithm Gap
COPPA enforcement removed an estimated $2 billion from the kids' content marketplace, primarily from YouTube. Streamers that stopped commissioning original kids' content are now inadvertently driving young viewers to YouTube. PBS Kids saw 40% YouTube growth simply by launching content globally and allowing international ads, because global distribution signals demand to the algorithm and lifts domestic reach.4. Co-Viewing Is Back and Underserved
Co-viewing has surged since COVID, with the desire to watch content together as a family now ranking as the top thing parents say they don't want to lose from the pandemic period. Research shows kids learn significantly more when a parent or sibling is present. But fragmented subscriptions, too few family-friendly titles, and algorithm-driven autoplay leave a commercial gap for any platform willing to program for the whole family.5. YouTube Needs to Run Kids Like a Network
The panel's clearest call to action: YouTube should treat YouTube Kids as a curated network, not an algorithm. That means human curation, better revenue sharing for kids' content creators, global distribution partnerships, and taking its developmental responsibility seriously. YouTube would make more money doing it, and the goodwill from parents and educators would be commercially valuable in its own right.Thank you Andy Donner and Sara DeWitt for joining the pod!
Andy Donner - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andydonner/
Sara DeWitt - https://www.linkedin.com/in/saradewitt/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Introduction to Kids' Content Landscape(02:50) - The Supply and Demand Crisis in Kids' Media(09:45) - The Co-Viewing Phenomenon and Its Impact(14:04) - Legacy Brands vs. New Creators in Kids' Content(20:50) - The Role of YouTube and Content Curation(24:01) - Monetization Challenges and Opportunities in Kids' Media -
59% of people now watch video on their phone first. If your content strategy doesn't account for that, Evan Shapiro has a message for you: you're already losing.
This keynote episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast features Evan Shapiro's live Stream TV Europe presentation. It is a fast, data-driven breakdown of where streaming media, social media, YouTube, and TikTok are headed next. Built on original research from MX8 Labs and Evan's new Cross-Screen Attention Index, the talk argues the media industry is now entirely consumer-driven, and most legacy companies haven't caught up.
Through real-world case studies (Duolingo, Kit Kat, PBS, RuPaul's Drag Race, Toonstar) Evan makes the case for what he calls the "affinity economy": brands and creators win by building loyalty and fandom, not chasing scale.
Key Takeaways:
1. Phone-First Is the Default
59% of consumers age 13+ say their phone is their primary video device — nearly 2x television. For Gen Z, the bathroom ranks third among top video-watching locations.2. YouTube Leads, But Faces Pressure
YouTube ranks #1 in total attention per Evan's new Cross-Screen Index, but Meta overtakes it when Instagram and Facebook are combined. TikTok ranks #2 among under-55s and is bigger than Netflix, Paramount, NBCU, and Warner Bros. Discovery combined.3. Retention Reveals a Loyalty Gap
The average premium streamer has 11% retention, gaining 175 million subscribers last year while losing 156 million. WOW Presents Plus, home to RuPaul's Drag Race has a smaller subscription base, but maintains just 4% churn.4. Fan Engagement Drives Real ROI
Coach's UGC campaign drove a 142% rise in company value. Duolingo's mascot stunt drove its first billion-dollar year. PBS's Frontline now averages tens of millions of YouTube views, with donations up 61%.5. Vertical Video Is a White Space
Disney, Netflix, and Paramount are all launching vertical feeds. Evan argues most vertical content is low-quality leaving room for premium creators willing to treat it as real programming, not marketing.Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Scaling Business Without Overhead(03:00) - Understanding the Consumer-Driven Media Landscape(05:45) - The Shift in Video Consumption Trends(08:51) - The Importance of Mobile and Vertical Content(12:03) - Measuring Attention Across Platforms(15:07) - The Rise of the Affinity Economy(18:03) - Empowering Employees as Creators(20:59) - The Future of Content Creation and Distribution -
Valerie Bertinelli has been a content creator since she was 12 years old. She just stopped asking permission to make the shows she wants.
This episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast features special guest co-host Valerie Bertinelli — television icon, actress, author, and Food Network — alongside Billy Cooper, CEO and co-founder of Visible Things, the direct-to-consumer platform infrastructure company behind Valerie's brand new streaming destination, Valerie's Place.
The episode is equal parts media business case study and candid personal conversation. Billy walks through how Visible Things works as a white-label platform technology that gives legacy talent and creators their own streaming home that Patreon, Substack, and YouTube simply can't replicate. Valerie brings the human side of it: why she got tired of being held hostage by the algorithm on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, what it actually feels like to have a real social relationship with fans versus a parasocial one, and how Valerie's Place has already produced moments of genuine connection that no brand deal or Food Network season ever could.
The conversation closes with a broader and surprisingly frank debate on why the economics of legacy television and streaming media are broken — and why Valerie thinks algorithmic fragmentation isn't the real culprit: it's wealth concentration at the very top of the entertainment industry.
Key Takeaways:
1. Own Your Audience
YouTube and social media platforms are top-of-funnel marketing tools, not businesses. Billy's core thesis: when you post on YouTube, the platform's job is to get your audience to watch something else next. Visible Things is built on the opposite logic with a branded destination where the talent owns the subscriber relationship, the email list, and the content IP outright, with no algorithm standing between them and their audience.2. The 1% Math
Valerie has 5 million combined social followers. The Visible Things model targets 1% of that, the 50,000 super fans, paying an average of $7 a month. That's $350,000 a month, or roughly $4 million a year, generated entirely through direct subscription with zero ad revenue, zero network dependency, and zero creative compromise. The platform launched March 1st and built 300,000 followers across social and 50,000 email subscribers within its first six weeks, all organically.3. Legacy IP as a Launch Asset
One of the first moves Visible Things made was licensing back all 172 episodes of Valerie's Home Cooking from Warner Bros. Discovery, content that had effectively disappeared from public availability after the merger. Bringing a beloved, canceled show back to a direct platform isn't just a fan service move; it's an immediate, concrete value proposition.4. Real Social vs. Parasocial
Valerie draws a sharp distinction between parasocial relationships and real social ones where the wall comes down and the connection becomes genuinely mutual. Valerie's Place book club is the clearest example: live Zoom-style sessions where members talk about their own lives, not just Valerie's, and where a fan sending a feather necklace after hearing Valerie mention losing one on a podcast becomes a meaningful moment of human connection.5. The Economics Are Broken at the Top, Not the Bottom
Valerie notes she hasn't matched her per-episode earnings from the last two seasons of One Day at a Time (which ended in 1983) in any project since, including a 14-season Food Network run. Her diagnosis: the problem isn't fragmentation of channels, it's concentration of money at the very top of the industry, with too few people controlling too much of the revenue that content creators actually generate. The direct-to-consumer model isn't just a creative choice, it's the first time creatives have a genuine shot at keeping what they earn.Thank you Valerie Bertinelli and Billy Cooper for joining the pod!
Valerie’s Place - https://valeriesplace.com/
https://www.instagram.com/itsvaleriesplace/
Billy Cooper - https://www.linkedin.com/in/wbcoop/
Visible Things - https://visible-things.com/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Valerie Joins the Pod(01:43) - Why Valerie's Place(03:01) - Authenticity vs Algorithm(03:46) - Meet Billy Cooper(04:34) - Visible Things Origin Story(07:56) - Creators and Legacy Talent(10:15) - Platform Pitch Explained(11:59) - Book Club Community(15:49) - Parasocial to Real Social(27:20) - Membership Value Breakdown(27:52) - Three New Cooking Shows(28:16) - Reheated Behind The Scenes(29:08) - Meals For One Vision(30:04) - Book Club And Naked Podcast(30:37) - Still Hot In Cleveland Reveal(32:52) - Lean Production And Fan Economics(35:58) - Organic Funnel And Engagement(42:41) - Final Questions And Farewell -
1.7 million subscribers. A Global deal. Live Bundesliga rights. And a studio in Brooklyn for the World Cup. The Overlap built it all without owning a single match.
This episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast features Scott Melvin, CEO of The Overlap, the multi-award winning sports channel, for the beginning of the 2026 World Cup. What started as a side hustle for a Sky Sports pundit itching to do long-form conversation has grown into one of the most-watched football content businesses in the UK, now backed by media company Global and expanding its creator network on YouTube and social media.
Scott walks through how The Overlap was built from the cold-open, unscripted format of Stick to Football, to the decision to own the conversation around football rather than chase expensive live rights. He breaks down the platform's growth strategy including the acquisition of Mark Goldbridge's Man United channel (2.2 million subscribers) and That's Football (1.3 million) to shortcut years of audience-building, and the Bundesliga deal that proved social clips outperform live streams by roughly 20x in reach.
The conversation also zooms out into the bigger structural questions around the World Cup and sports media more broadly: is permanently eating into live viewing, whether rights fragmentation is pushing fans toward highlights, and if the 2026 tournament can permanently shift America's relationship with the sport the rest of the world calls football.
Key Takeaways
1. Own the Conversation
Live rights for F1 cost Sky $200 million a year while Netflix paid $10–20 million for Drive to Survive and became the defining F1 content brand for a generation. The Overlap applied the same logic to football: if you can't own the rights, own the conversation around them. For any creator or media company priced out of live sports rights, shoulder content is the viable entry point.
2. Clips Beat Live
During The Overlap's Bundesliga partnership, social clips of live games outperformed the streams themselves by approximately 20x in total reach. Live attendance figures remain strong, but viewing full matches is declining as fragmented rights force fans across multiple paid subscriptions. The World Cup's expanded format will test that tipping point at unprecedented scale.
3. Acquire Audiences, Don't Build From Scratch
It took The Overlap 4.5 years to reach 1.7 million YouTube subscribers. Mark Goldbridge spent 10 years building his channel to 2.2 million. Rather than launch a Man United channel from zero, The Overlap partnered with Goldbridge and acquired his existing audience — effectively skipping 5–7 years of organic growth.
4. Platform Age Beats Talent Age
The Overlap's core panel averages 50 years old, yet its biggest demographic is 18–34. Scott's explanation: YouTube is a young platform, and the platform itself attracts younger audiences — the talent keeps them there.
5. The Post-World Cup Moment
The 1994 US World Cup triggered a brief soccer boom that faded within months. Scott and Evan both see 2026 as structurally different because the internet has made the world smaller, Gen Z and Gen A are more globally oriented, and the Women's World Cup in Brazil follows a year later. Whether the tournament converts casual viewers into long-term fans of MLS and the Premier League will be a closely watched audience metric in sports media over the next 18 months.
Thank you Scott Melvin for joining the pod!
Scott Melvin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-melvin-331071a7/
The Overlap - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-overlap/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - World Cup Fever in NYC(01:14) - Meet Scott Melvin and The Overlap(02:49) - Stick to Football Breakout(05:03) - Owning the Conversation(07:50) - Bundesliga Rights Experiment(10:49) - Clip Culture and Sports(13:25) - World Cup Highlights vs Live(18:42) - Growing a YouTube Network(23:24) - Why Partner with Global(25:52) - Who Watches The Overlap(26:25) - Platform Over Talent(27:48) - No Rules Playbook(29:01) - Late Launch Competition(30:00) - Club Shirt Banter(32:01) - World Cup Without Rights(34:17) - Brooklyn Studio Setup(34:59) - Why Not Daily Live(39:40) - US Soccer After World Cup(42:13) - Predictions And Wrap -
Full Disclosure meets Media Odyssey in this crossover episode of The Media Odyssey podcast with Roben Farzad, host of Full Disclosure on NPR and former Wall Street reporter for BusinessWeek and Bloomberg.
The episode covers a wide sweep of interconnected stories: the proposed Paramount-Warner merger, the editorial independence implications of foreign money in US media, the GameStop-eBay bid as a case study in social media-driven market manipulation, and the state of M&A activity across the Atlantic.
From Roben's firsthand perspective on the lack of US media coverage of Iran and the effect of Gulf sovereign wealth funds acquiring stakes in major news organizations to a forensic breakdown of the Skydance-Paramount deal, Evan Shapiro, Marion Ranchet, and Roben Farzad discuss the 60 Minutes settlement, the Colbert cancellation, the Bari Weiss hiring, and the White House's reported role in pushing the merger through before a potential political shift in the fall. They close with a frank debate on the future of professional journalism and whether public media, billionaire backstops, or direct-to-consumer Substacks can fill the gap left by a collapsing legacy news industry.
Key Takeaways
1. Foreign Money in US News
Roughly 50% of the Skydance-Paramount acquisition is being funded by foreign interests, including Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds. Roben notes that editorial independence becomes structurally compromised the moment a controlling financier has geopolitical interests that conflict with the newsroom's reporting mandate.
2. The M&A Math Doesn't Add Up
Global M&A deal volume in media dropped 30% year over year, while total deal value rose 10%. This means fewer but larger bets. Warner Brothers Discovery was valued at roughly $60 billion at merger and shed close to 70% of that value before recovering, driven almost entirely by the Zaslav-engineered auction rather than operational performance.
3. Social Media as Market Manipulation
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen publicly floated a bid for eBay, a company worth roughly 5x GameStop's market cap, with no serious financing behind it. The move drove GameStop's stock up and forced eBay to respond publicly. Roben frames this as a direct extension of the meme stock playbook: social media reach, combined with extreme wealth, can now move markets in ways that previously required regulated financial instruments.
4. The Merger Approval Odds
Roben puts the probability of the Paramount-Warner merger getting approved at approximately 65%, driven primarily by White House pressure to push it through before a potential political shift after the fall election. Marion is skeptical that EU regulators will independently block it if the US approves, noting that European authorities are increasingly prioritizing survival of local media players over strict competition concerns.
5. The Journalism Funding Problem
The New York Times has reached a $12 billion market cap by building a subscription-driven lifestyle and news bundle. NPR, by contrast, has failed to become a digital native, still relies heavily on pledge drives targeting Boomers and late Gen Xers, and has lost significant talent to for-profit outlets. There is a small but growing tier of independent journalists going direct to consumer as the most promising emerging model, though it leaves out readers who can't afford paid subscriptions.
Thank you Roben Farzad for joining the pod!
Roben Farzad - https://www.linkedin.com/in/robenfarzad/
Full Disclosure Podcast - https://www.npr.org/podcasts/1062190100/full-disclosure
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Crossover Introductions(04:30) - Journalism and Iran Coverage(06:38) - Foreign Money and Newsrooms(09:37) - Iran Parallels and US Politics(14:24) - GameStop Bids for eBay(18:10) - M&A Trends and Data Centers(20:24) - Europe Consolidation and MFE(23:44) - US Mega Merger Skepticism(27:47) - Wealth As Power Moat(28:54) - Ellison Paramount Quid Pro Quo(31:42) - Why Media Won't Cover It and Colbert Profitability(34:37) - European View On Mergers(37:48) - Will Regulators Approve(39:45) - Barry Weiss Incompetence(42:08) - Odds, Predictions, and the Future of Journalism Models(48:59) - Wrap Up And Farewell -
Eight episodes, $25,000, 2 million views. One indie creator just proved you don't need a studio, a streamer, or a greenlight to break into the fastest-growing format in streaming media.
This bonus episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast features Eli Shell, founder of Sidewise Studios and creator of In-House, a vertical comedy series he wrote, funded, and launched entirely on his own. The vertical video market is almost entirely dominated by high-melodrama romantic drama and Eli saw that as a gap, not a template. In-House is a workplace comedy shot in vertical format, built on a minimum viable product mindset borrowed from his years in the Bay Area tech world: shoot a pilot season, put it in front of an audience on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts, read the signals, and scale from there.
The episode also zooms out into the broader state of the independent vertical production market from TikTok's emerging role as a serious funder to Peacock's first microdrama slate announcement, and the question of whether Netflix, Disney, and the major streamers will start acquiring independent vertical IP. Eli's answer: we're at the very beginning, the economics are still being figured out, and the creators willing to bet on themselves right now are the ones who'll be best positioned when the market matures.
Key Takeaways:
1. Expand the Genre
The vertical video market today is almost entirely romantic drama which means every other genre is a wide-open opportunity. Eli's workplace comedy In-House attracted talent willing to work at reduced rates specifically because it wasn't another melodrama. For creators and producers looking to enter the vertical space, the least crowded lane is everything that isn't a romance.
2. Minimum Viable Season
Eli spent $25,000 across eight episodes, roughly $3,000 per episode, and treated it explicitly as a minimum viable product, not a finished show. The goal was audience signals, not perfection.
3. Bet on Distribution Diversification
In-House launched simultaneously on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts and its 2 million views are an aggregate across all three. In a format this early, no single platform has won, and the audiences don't fully overlap. Multi-platform distribution is the only way to build meaningful reach without a marketing budget.
4. Watch TikTok
TikTok is the sleeping giant in the vertical video and microdrama space. If they decide to fund and distribute vertical series at scale — as the early investment in Issa Rae's Screen Time (80 million views) suggests they might — the existing microdrama apps like ReelShort and DramaBox face a serious existential threat.
5. The Acquisition Window Is Opening
Peacock, Netflix, Disney, and Paramount are all starting to test vertical content, mostly as a discovery tool for now, but the direction of travel is clear. Independent producers who have built proven IP with real audience data are going to be the most attractive acquisition targets when the major streamers decide they want original vertical content at scale.
Thank you Eli Shell for joining the pod!
Eli Shell - https://www.linkedin.com/in/elishell/
Sidewise Studios - https://www.linkedin.com/company/sidewise-studios/
In-House Show - https://elishell.com/projects/in-house/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Meeting in the DMs(01:11) - Eli’s Career Origin Story(02:59) - Discovering Vertical Microdramas(05:09) - In House Pitch and Format(06:20) - Views Platforms and Self Funding(08:20) - Why Make It and Budget Breakdown(11:13) - Monetization and MVP Season Two(12:17) - Vertical Drama Market Lessons(16:00) - Streamers Going Vertical(18:51) - TikTok Funding and Genre Expansion(20:13) - Wrap Up and Where to Watch -
10 billion views. 200+ episodes. A Random House deal and a streamer announcement incoming. Toonstar built it all without asking anyone's permission.
Welcome to this episode of The Media Odyssey Podcast with hosts Marion Ranchet and Evan Shapiro featuring John Attanasio and Luisa Huang, co-founders of Toonstar, a next-generation animation studio built from the ground up to produce kids' and family content at the speed of the internet. Veterans of the Warner Bros. who got an early front-row seat to the rise of YouTube and the creator economy, John and Luisa are tacking a simple but radical question: building an animation studio designed for digital-first streaming media distribution.
The episode walks through how Toonstar works from their proprietary AI animation tech Ink and Pixel to their audience intelligence platform Spot, which translates real-time viewing data into storytelling decisions. Together, the two tools form what they call an "agile production loop" that lets them move from greenlight to first episode in 90 days. The centerpiece case study is Steven and Parker, a show born from a creator with a Snapchat filter and 9 million TikTok followers, now sitting at 10 billion lifetime views across five languages, with a Random House graphic novel deal and a streamer announcement imminent.
Key Takeaways:
1. Greenlight Yourself
The traditional development cycle doesn't just cost money, it holds your time hostage. Toonstar's model eliminates the waiting game: pilot on existing creator audiences, read the signals, and go. Find the smallest viable version of your idea, put it in front of an audience, and start there.
2. Production Meets Performance
Most animation studios can't iterate because production and performance data live in separate worlds. Toonstar's agile production loop directly tethers the two with real-time audience signals that inform weekly creative decisions about episode length, character arcs, and cadence.
3. Creator IP as the New Development Pipeline
The franchise IP of tomorrow isn't sitting in a writer's room — it's already in front of an audience on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. Parker James had 9 million followers and a character that existed only as a Snapchat filter before Toonstar turned it into a 10-billion-view animated franchise.
4. AI as Throughput, Not Replacement
Toonstar's AI system accelerates every production function without replacing the human creative voice. Writers, visual direction, and character vision remain entirely human. The lesson: build AI tooling around your creative people, not around your budget.
5. The Content Flywheel
YouTube ad revenue and brand sponsorships are the starting point, not the business model. Toonstar's real play is using digital-first distribution to build proven IP that extends into books, merchandise, and streaming deals. YouTube channels should be treated as an IP incubator, not just a distribution platform.
Thank you John Attanasio and Luisa Huang for joining the pod!
John Attanasio - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnattanasio/
Luisa Huang - https://www.linkedin.com/in/luisahuang/
Toonstar - https://www.linkedin.com/company/toonstarhq/posts/?feedView=all
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Fail Fast Mindset(00:29) - Welcome And Guests(01:25) - ToonStar Origin Story(04:02) - Tech Driven Production(06:33) - Steven And Parker Hit(09:38) - Humans Plus AI Workflow(12:50) - Data Driven Cadence(16:59) - Building Spot Analytics(21:08) - HarperCollins Speed Run(25:17) - Monetization Flywheel(26:59) - Advice To Creators(31:59) - Wrap Up And Takeaways -
Pure play digital is now capturing 75% of every US ad dollar and 60% of that goes to just three companies. What's left for everyone else?
This episode of the Media Odyssey Podcast brings in Mike Shields, founder of the Next in Media newsletter and podcast and one of the sharpest voices in streaming media and advertising analysis working today. Recorded during Upfront week, this snapshot of the advertising ecosystem addresses who's winning, who's losing, and whether traditional media advertising still has a viable path forward in the era of accelerating cord-cutting and big tech dominance.
Evan, Marion, and Mike use the Upfront to dig into the broader power shift underway in TV advertising that saw Amazon open the week, YouTube and Netflix close it, and the legacy broadcast and cable networks stuck somewhere in the middle trying to stay relevant in an increasingly creator-driven, platform-first world. They cover the major trends shaping the rest of the year: the ad industry's obsession with performance advertising and outcome measurement, the rise of shoppable TV, AI-driven dynamic ad insertion, the verticalization of streaming content, and the escalating sports rights arms race that traditional media may not be able to afford much longer.Key Takeaways:
1. The Sports Trap
Sports rights are growing at 4–5x the rate of television revenue, with big tech projected to account for $30 billion of the $34 billion increase in rights costs over the next five years. Traditional media companies are overpaying for rights they can't fully monetize through advertising alone. Trad media will have to question whether their sports strategy is a growth play or a slow bleed. Big tech can hide the ROI inside a flywheel, but trad media cannot.
2. Performance or Perish
The ad industry has become addicted to outcome-based, performance-driven buying modeled on Amazon's retail media business, where an ad impression and a purchase can be directly connected. TV is structurally a brand-building medium, which puts it at a disadvantage with CFOs who want spreadsheet-provable results. Networks that haven't built credible outcome measurement platforms are increasingly losing SME budgets to Meta and Google by default. The OpenAP partnership between major networks is a step in the right direction, but cross-competitor joint ventures are notoriously hard to execute.
3. The Measurement Gap
Every major streaming platform (Disney's Compass, NBCU's Performance platform, etc.) is building proprietary measurement and identity infrastructure. The problem is brands don't live in one network's universe. Until there's a neutral, cross-platform layer that lets advertisers buy and optimize across the entire TV ecosystem, trad media will continue to lose ground to walled gardens that can at least show results within their own ecosystem. There's a real business opportunity here for whoever can build that neutral layer credibly.
4. Eventize Everything
Traditional TV's most defensible advantage is not its library or its streaming, rather its ability to aggregate massive audiences around a single moment. NBC's Super Bowl + Olympics + NBA All-Star February generated $2 billion in incremental ad revenue. The lesson: stop competing on daily ratings and double down on cultural events, appointment television, and live moments that brands are willing to pay a premium to be part of.
5. Stop Fighting the Flywheel
Trad media must stop resenting big tech and start building partnerships with it. Google owns the most popular TV OS on the planet. Amazon has identity and attribution data no broadcaster can replicate. YouTube is the most-watched channel in the US. The companies that are quietly winning — Fox with Tubi, French broadcasters partnering with Netflix and Amazon — are the ones that accepted their place in the ecosystem and found ways to draft off the platforms rather than fight them. The era of unexpected partnerships isn't a sign of weakness, it is the only viable strategy left.
Thank you Mike Shields for joining the pod!
Mike Shields - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-shields-78150b5/
Next in Media - https://mikeshields.substack.com/Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Cold Open and Banter(01:26) - Meet Mike Shields(03:15) - Why Upfronts Persist(06:06) - Big Tech Takes Over(09:29) - Ad Market Numbers and Outlook(11:40) - Sports Arms Race(15:27) - Regulation and Consumer Impact(19:11) - AI and Shoppable TV(24:49) - TV Measurement Fragmentation(26:47) - Neutral Layer Opportunity(27:54) - Walled Gardens Reality Check(29:09) - Amazon Backbone Dilemma(34:05) - Trad Media Sweet Spot(36:40) - YouTube Events And Scale(39:50) - Why Everyone Wants TV(45:21) - Path Forward And Wrap -
What if fans could own a piece of the films they love and get paid when they hit? One company is making it happen, and Hollywood gatekeepers are not invited.
Welcome to The Media Odyssey podcast featuring Marc Iserlis, Head of Film at Republic, a platform built one simple but radical idea: fans should be able to invest in the films and studios they care about. Evan and Marion have spent the season exploring what they call the "affinity economy," and in a streaming media landscape where independent voices are increasingly squeezed out, Marc's model sits squarely at the center of where the industry is heading.
Marc explains the legal and structural architecture making Republic Film possible, specifically the 2016 JOBS Act that created exemptions to century-old securities laws blocking non-millionaires from investing in private ventures. Republic has 3 million members and $2.6 billion deployed across industries, built the licensing infrastructure to take advantage of those exemptions and applied them to film. The result is a platform where independent filmmakers, studios, and creators can raise development or production capital from fans with real equity, real revenue sharing, and even a secondary market for trading shares.
The conversation moves through concrete case studies: Pressman Film raised $2 million from roughly 380 investors, Robert Rodriguez built a community of "Brass Knuckle Warriors" who sold out a raise in days, Eli Roth raised $6 million from 2,500 fans for his new horror studio, and Skybound (The Walking Dead, Invincible) pulling in $18 million from over 5,000 retail investors. Plus a look at Republic's partnership with XPRIZE, Google, and Range Media Partners on a $3.5 million sci-fi filmmaking competition designed to inspire the next Star Trek.
Key Takeaways:
1. The Audience Equity Model
Republic Film's approach gives fans actual equity and revenue sharing in the projects they back, transforming them from passive donors into active stakeholders with financial incentive to promote the film. Republic was built specifically to serve everyday people with a net worth under $1 million who were previously barred from participating in private market opportunities. For producers and studios, that's not just capital, it's a built-in marketing army.
2. Fan Base Democratized
The 2016 JOBS Act cracked open private market investing to everyone, but the industry hasn't caught up to what that means. If you're an independent filmmaker, studio, or even a creator-led brand, you now have legal pathways to raise meaningful capital. Skybound raised $18 million from 5,000+ investors, making it the largest raise on the platform to date. Republic has sold out every single film raise it has ever run.
3. The Key is Actual Equity and Revenue Sharing
The distinction between crowd investing and crowdfunding is equity and revenue sharing, not just perks and donations. Investors receive real ownership stake, revenue distributions when films sell or stream, and secondary market trading rights. Republic uses blockchain infrastructure to pay out thousands of investors in real time across theatrical, streaming, and merchandise revenue without expensive bank fees.
4. The Payout is More Than a Passion Project
Republic’s first-ever investor payout happened within six months of launch. The Pressman Film raise, focused on a slate that included new IP from the producers of American Psycho and Wall Street, paid out investors following the sale of Bad Lieutenant Tokyo to Neon, making it the first investable development slate in film history to return capital to retail investors at this scale.
5. $3.5 Million For the Next Star Trek
The XPRIZE partnership, with Google, a16z, and the Roddenberry Foundation to crowdsource the "next Star Trek," is a playbook for how studios and platforms can use open competition to surface new IP, build community ownership before a single frame is shot, and attract institutional backing. For content companies thinking about franchise development, this model is worth studying.
Thank you Marc Iserlis for joining the pod!
Marc Iserlis - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-iserlis-02848a13/
Republic - https://www.linkedin.com/company/republic.co/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Trading Film Shares(00:54) - Podcast Intro and Guest(01:45) - Why Republic Exists(04:48) - The JOBS Act (07:32) - Crowdinvesting Not Crowdfunding(10:16) - Platform Compliance and Blockchain(13:47) - Case Studies Pressman and Rodriguez(18:53) - Skybound and Horror Section(25:35) - What Makes Raises Work(30:17) - Cannes and Distribution Leverage(33:07) - First Investor Payouts(34:21) - Future Vision XPRIZE(36:32) - Wrap Up -
Five companies just committed $725 billion to AI in a single year. Meanwhile, kids content is in freefall and the people who can least afford it are paying the price.
Welcome to the Media Odyssey Podcast! Evan, fresh off a surprise Webby Award win for Best Creator Thought Leadership, breaks down Q1 earnings from the five biggest tech companies (Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Apple) and the AI Loop. Big tech’s collective $725 billion AI spending commitment is less a sign of innovation than a circular, self-reinforcing economy with dot-com bubble written all over it. Marion brings the European lens, walking through the political assault on France Télévisions and the France Télévisions-YouTube partnership that followed.
And then a deep dive on Evan's newly released Kids Content Landscape Report, co-produced with Common Sense Media, which draws on over a dozen data sources to paint a sobering picture of an industry in retreat with fewer commissions, broken YouTube economics, gutted public media funding, and a generation of producers caught in the middle.
Key Takeaways:
1. Big Tech Companies Committed $725 Billion in the “AI Loop”
Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Apple collectively pledged $725 billion, more than the Apollo program, the Marshall Plan, and the Manhattan Project combined. This “AI Loop” is a deeply circular economy, with companies essentially contracting with and investing in each other, raising serious dot-com bubble parallels.
2. Kids Content Has No Way to Monetize
Kids content commissioning is down 25% from its 2022 peak and public broadcasters are now funding more than 50% of kids content worldwide. The big streamers have pulled back dramatically, shifting from treating kids content as an acquisition tool to a retention tool and largely stopping wholly-owned commissions. At the same time, YouTube ad CPMs for kids content have bottomed out, leaving independent producers stranded between two broken revenue models.
3. Public Funding for Kids Media is At Risk
The US spends just $3 per capita on public media, compared to roughly $60 per capita in France, and a significant portion of that was just cut. The current US administration removed roughly $1 billion in public media funding, hitting local PBS affiliates hardest and most adversely affecting lower-income families who rely on free kids programming. Marion draws a direct parallel to right-wing efforts in France to cut €1 billion from France Télévisions.
4. Kids Prefer YouTube, But Producers Don’t
88% of US parents say kids under five prefer YouTube over any other platform, but YouTube Kids remains under-monetized and poorly curated. Despite YouTube's dominance as a kids platform, the economics for producers are broken: low CPMs, poor fill rates, and a curation system that has not been meaningfully updated in years. YouTube needs to rethink how it curates and shares revenue within YouTube Kids before the next generation of Cocomelons and Blueys never gets made.
5. Co-Viewing in Generational
Co-viewing is rising sharply, and Millennial and Gen Z parents are substantially more engaged in what their kids watch. Data from multiple sources, including Common Sense Media, Ampere Analysis, and Precisify, show a notable uptick in family co-viewing, particularly on YouTube watched via the TV set. Evan and Marion both see this as one of the few genuinely bright spots in an otherwise bleak kids content landscape, and a real commercial opportunity that platforms are currently underserving.
Read the full Kids Content: Landscape Analysis https://eshap.substack.com/p/kids-content-landscapeInterested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Webby Win in Portugal(01:42) - Five Word Speech Prep(03:45) - Q1 Earnings and Big Tech(07:07) - AI Bubble and Anthropic Hype(09:50) - Altman Profile and Defense Ties(12:53) - France Public Media Under Fire(15:36) - YouTube Deal and Kids Content(23:34) - Inside the Kids Report(24:23) - Demand Up, Funding Down(25:46) - Why the Ecosystem Broke(27:48) - Co-Viewing and Parenting Shift(30:02) - Public Broadcasters Step Up(35:40) - Fixing YouTube Kids Monetization(41:11) - Who Takes the Risk Next -
What if the future of entertainment fits in your pocket and a six-year-old startup from Ukraine is already building it?
Welcome to the Media Odyssey Podcast, recorded live at StreamTV Europe, featuring Bogdan Nesvit, founder of HOLYWATER TECH and the microdrama platform My Drama. What started six years ago as an interactive fiction app has quietly evolved into one of the most data-sophisticated entertainment companies operating today. One that is now partnering with Fox Entertainment and eyeing a full theatrical release.
If you've ever wondered how a media startup goes from zero to 7 million monthly active users without a single piece of traditional distribution, Bogdan doesn't just tell you what HOLYWATER TECH built, he gives raw data and operational transparency you almost never get from a founder.
Beyond content strategy, Bogdan pulls back the curtain on the business model to detail the full transition from microtransactions to subscription, how the platform runs over 1,000 A/B tests per year, and why he believes proprietary user data (not product or AI) will be the defining competitive advantage of the AI era. He also touches on the Fox partnership, the road to ad monetization, and his personal philosophy around meditation, focus, and leadership.
Key Takeaways:
1. Scale is Accelerating Fast
My Drama currently has close to 300 titles on the platform, targeting 500 by the end of 2026 and 1,000 by the end of 2027. Each title contains around 90 one-minute episodes, effectively repackaging a full 90–120 minute film into bite-sized vertical content.
2. The Subscription Model Dominates
The platform fully shifted away from microtransactions with more than 90% of customers subscribing. Subscription users retain at 2x the rate of in-app purchase users and consume 3x more content. Users on an ad-supported tier consume an average of 1.5 hours of content per day, a striking engagement metric.
3. AI Slashes Production Costs and Timelines
Live-action microdrama costs $120K–$250K per title and takes roughly four months to produce. Netflix takes 100 weeks. AI-generated content on the MyMuse platform costs only a few thousand dollars and can be produced and tested in two weeks. Scripts, however, remain 100% human-written.
4. Paid and Organic Impressions Are Needed Together
My Drama generates two billion monthly impressions across Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube using a cliffhanger-driven content preview strategy for a 70/30 paid-to-organic acquisition split. At any given month, the team runs 30,000 unique video ad creatives across Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok. Despite heavy paid spend, the company is currently profitable and growing more than 2x year-over-year.
5. It’s a Growing Market
The global microdrama market is $11–12B today, projected to reach $25B by 2030. China dominates the current market (the format originated there around 6 years ago). Outside China, the market is much smaller today but is projected to hit ~$10B, mostly driven by the US, by 2030. Holywater is betting that expanding beyond the current five core content tropes into genres like thriller, fantasy, and detective stories is essential to moving microdrama from niche to mainstream.
Thank you to Bogdan Nesvit for joining the pod!
Bogdan Nesvit - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bogdannesvit/
HOLYWATER TECH - https://www.linkedin.com/company/holywatertech/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Live Podcast Kickoff(00:47) - Meet the Micro Drama Guest(01:47) - HOLYWATER TECH Origin Story(02:43) - From Books to Vertical Video(04:04) - My Drama Scale and Audience(05:19) - Micro Episodes and Library Growth(06:23) - Monetization Evolution(08:56) - Subscription Data and Retention(10:10) - Customer Acquisition Playbook(13:24) - Organic Social Cliffhangers(15:26) - Data Moat and AB Testing(16:31) - Market Size and New Genres(18:58) - AI Production and Costs(26:45) - Fox Partnership and Mindfulness Finale -
Europe’s media industry leaders gathered in Lisbon this past week for the inaugural Stream TV Europe, and the prognosis is—to everyone’s surprise—refreshingly optimistic. Welcome to The Media Odyssey podcast!
In this episode, Evan and Marion break down the biggest moments from Stream TV including: the "renaissance" of the living room and the shift in digital strategy by global players. They are later joined by Denis Oštir to discuss V’s ambitious new V Index, a unified measurement tool designed to bridge the gap between traditional broadcast and digital streaming.
1. The Power of the Living Room Sofa
Marion shares insights from her workshop including a survey of 15,000 people across Europe, the US, and China, conducted in partnership with RTL AdAlliance. The findings highlight the continued dominance of the big screen, with 83% of Europeans prioritizing video content in the living room. The research reveals an ecosystem where different platforms serve distinct social needs: Netflix primarily caters to couples, VOD brings together larger family groups of five or more, and YouTube remains a hub for solo viewing.
2. The Optimistic Outlook
The duo discusses how the digital evolution of legacy media is fueling a surprisingly positive outlook across the sector. Evan highlights his panel featuring TF1, France’s largest broadcaster, and news creator Gaspard G to illustrate this shift. This collaboration serves as a strategic blueprint for how legacy brands can think and act like creators to maintain relevance in a fragmented market.
3. Deep Dive: The V Index & CTV Strategy
Denis Oštir joins the conversation to explain V’s role as a top-three smart TV platform in Europe with a global footprint of 50 million connected TVs. Given their reach, V aims to solve a major measurement discrepancy where the same "eyeballs" are valued differently based on signal delivery (CPMs for digital vs. GRPs for broadcast). Oštir is inviting other OEMs and industry players to join an open standard to ensure content creators are fairly compensated as money shifts toward digital. Additionally, as Editor-in-Chief, he oversaw a "quality over quantity" shift that reduced their channel count from 100 to 80, which paradoxically led to a 20% increase in viewing time and engagement.
4. Vertical Video: Couch vs. Toilet
The group debates the viability of vertical video on the big screen. Denis’ take: Vertical content is highly personalized, making it a poor fit for the social, shared environment of the living room. Evan's take: Premium vertical video has a future, but it’s for "the between times"—the bus, the doctor’s office, or the bathroom—not for the couch.
Thank you to Denis Oštir for joining the pod!
Denis Oštir - http://linkedin.com/in/denisostir/
V - https://v-home.com/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast00:00 StreamTV Europe Vibes
02:04 Living Room Viewing Data with RTL AdAlliance
04:25 Fragmentation and Partnerships
05:29 Marion’s Favorite Panel: Super Aggregation or Super Fragmentation?
06:38 Evan’s Favorite Panel: TF1 & Gaspard G Transforming Journalism on YouTube with a Creator Mindset
08:19 Live Sports Becoming a Creator
10:39 Industry Mood Shift
14:58 Meet Denis Oštir, Editor-in-Chief of V
17:03 V Index Measurement Fix
22:57 Fixing FAST Data
24:58 Trends in Viewing
28:15 Editor in Chief Role
29:23 Platform Monetization Model
31:28 Vertical Video Debate
34:58 Closing Thoughts
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You have six subscriptions, can't remember what's on any of them, and still can't find something to watch. Welcome to the subscription economy in 2026.
Get the full Subscription Signals 2026 report here: https://bango.com/reports/reserve-report/?utm_campaign=2026_Campaigns_SubscriberReport_ReserveReportMO
In this episode, Evan and Marion dig into Bango's Subscription Signals 2026 report: an annual study of subscription attitudes and behaviors across the US and UK. Then they are joined by Giles Tongue, VP of Marketing at Bango, to break down the findings.
Bango is a white-label subscription bundling platform that powers the backend infrastructure behind multi-service bundles, allowing mobile operators, retailers, and pay TV providers to offer multiple subscriptions under one bill. The report paints a picture of a subscription economy under real strain: consumers feel they're overspending, they can't remember what they subscribe to or which platform holds what content, and discovery is broken. At the same time, the shift toward third-party bundling is accelerating, and a new generation of "savvy subscribers" is rethinking the entire relationship between cost, ads, and access.
Key Takeaways:
1. UK Subscribers Spend More Despite Fewer Bundling Traditions
UK consumers average 5.7 subscriptions, spending roughly £68 ($90) a month, compared to 5.2 subscriptions and $69 a month in the US. The gap is partly because US pay TV providers like Comcast and Charter bundle broadband, mobile, and TV into a single household bill, making it appear as one subscription rather than several. The UK is catching up, with Sky recently launching a master bundle including Disney, HBO, and Netflix for around £24 a month.
2. Consumers Feel Overcharged and Gen Z Is Reaching a Breaking Point
Almost 25% of US consumers and nearly a third of UK consumers say they spend more on subscriptions than they can afford. Among Gen Z in the US, that number jumps to 41%. At the same time, attitudes toward ads have shifted dramatically: in 2024, 78% of subscribers strongly opposed ads on paid tiers, but now 36% of Americans say they'd accept double the ad load in exchange for a lower price. Among Gen Z and Millennials, that figure climbs to roughly half. The era of the ad-free subscriber is ending.
3. Viewers Are Loyal to Shows and Talent, Not Platforms
Nearly 60% of consumers in both the US and UK say they are more loyal to an individual show than to the platform delivering it. The data reinforces this: only 13% of people who watch Severance know it's on Apple TV+, and only 18% correctly identified Game of Thrones as an HBO show. Instead, most attributed it to Netflix. This makes a free tier essential for every streamer: if consumers are going to serial churn, a free ad-supported front porch keeps them in the ecosystem.
4. Content Discovery Is Broken and the Industry Is Profiting From the Problem
In the US, 30% of subscribers spend 30 minutes or more searching for something to watch. In the UK it's 41%, and among Gen Z it rises to 48% in the US and 56% in the UK. Platforms are actively monetizing this search friction through home screen advertising rather than fixing it. And that will cost them in acquisition, retention, and time spent over the long run. Giles points to AI-powered discovery tools like Liberty Group's Super Search as a glimpse of what the solution could look like.
5. Bundling Is the Future
Over a third of US subscribers and 39% of UK subscribers now get their subscriptions through third-party bundles via banks, mobile operators, or retailers rather than subscribing directly. That number is only growing year on year. Consumers say they trust mobile operators most to deliver their bundles ahead of pay TV providers. Giles' headline warning for the industry: telcos that don't keep delivering excellent bundled experiences risk having their own customers bundled inside someone else's platform. As he puts it, "bundle or be bundled."
Thank you to Giles Tongue for joining the pod!
Giles Tongue - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gilestongue/
Bango - https://www.linkedin.com/company/bango/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
00:00 Gen Z Streaming Struggle00:37 Report Drop and StreamTV Buzz
01:10 What Bango Actually Does
02:50 UK vs US Subscription Math
06:23 Bundles and Price Pressure
08:30 What People Subscribe To Now
15:41 Churn, Ads, and Show Loyalty
23:15 Netflix Over Attribution
24:17 Talent Follows Platforms
24:57 Discovery Friction Crisis
26:17 Ads Invade Home Screens
27:42 Bundles Shift To Telcos
31:32 Meet Bango And Giles
36:40 AI Agents And Takeaways
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He helped create the most listened-to podcasts in history and then walked away from the New York Times to start over from scratch. Welcome to The Media Odyssey Podcast!
In this episode, Evan and Marion sit down with Brian Reed, documentary podcaster and co-founder of Placement Theory, whose career spans documentary podcasts This American Life, S-Town, and now Question Everything.
The conversation traces the origin story of Serial, which was expected to get a few hundred thousand downloads and ended up with hundreds of millions, all the way through to Brian's decision to leave the New York Times and build something new: Placement Theory, a audio production company built to support journalists and creators.
Along the way, the episode digs into a question that runs underneath everything Brian makes: can quality, independent journalism survive? As local newsrooms collapse, public media gets defunded, and audiences feel overwhelmed and burned out, Brian makes the case that the desire for truth is still very much there as a market problem waiting for the right solution.
Key Takeaways:
1. Serial Was Expected to Get "a Few Hundred Thousand Downloads” Before It Got Hundreds of Millions
When Sarah Koenig pitched Serial at This American Life, the team budgeted for a few hundred thousand downloads. It became the most listened-to podcast in the history of the format, redefining audio documentary as a medium, with hundreds of millions of downloads for the first season alone. Brian attributes much of this to the fact that they were reporting the Adnan Syed story in real time, week by week so it was breaking news every episode. It is clear the podcast played a direct role in Adnan's eventual release from prison.
2. S-Town Was Designed as an Audio Novel and Released All at Once
Brian started reporting S-Town before Serial even existed, after receiving a listener email with the subject line "John B. Macklemore lives in Shit Town, Alabama." When the subject died by suicide in 2015, the story transformed. Brian and editor Julie Snyder used novels as their creative model, labeling the installments chapters instead of episodes and releasing all seven at once. It was one of the first times that had ever happened in podcasting. S-Town now has hundreds of millions of downloads and is in development as a TV show at Apple TV+.
3. The Economics of Serious Independent Journalism Are Hard, but People Want Truth
Brian is direct about the financial reality of running an independent audio production company: they're still figuring out how to make the show profitable. Their current model blends bespoke sponsorships, listener support through KCRW's public radio fundraising, and eventual subscription offerings. The broader state of journalism is rough with thousands of local newspapers diappearing, public trust in journalists is at historic lows, and signs of media capture happening in the US.
But there’s an optimistic conclusion from Brian’s on-the-ground reporting across the country: people do want reliable information. The problem isn't demand, it's discoverability and trust. This as a classic market problem that a journalism business should be positioned to solve.
4. Audio Is More Intimate Than Video and That's a Strategic Advantage Worth Protecting
Brian's company Placement Theory is an audio-first production company, and that’s deliberate. Creating video versions of their work would essentially require making a documentary — a completely different and far more expensive enterprise. They experimented with video, found that they weren't posting frequently enough to build a YouTube audience, and redirected their energy to where their audience actually was: Apple Podcasts and NPR. He still sees potential in short-form video as a discovery tool, but doesn't want to sacrifice the intimacy that makes audio narrative work.
Thank you to Brian Reed for joining the pod!
Brian Reed - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-reed-887411166/
Placement Theory - https://www.placementtheory.com/
Question Everything - https://www.kcrw.com/shows/question-everything/all-episodes
S-Town - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s-town/id1212558767
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Cancel Culture Cold Open(00:39) - Meet Brian Reed(01:32) - Why Documentary Podcasts Win(03:43) - Podcasting Origins and TV Adaptations(05:54) - Defining Documentary Audio(07:17) - This American Life Apprenticeship(11:12) - How Serial Was Born(17:50) - S-Town and the NYT Era(27:55) - Birmingham Letter Mystery(29:23) - Leaving the Times(29:49) - Building Placement Theory(31:52) - Question Everything Mission(34:04) - Making Podcast Economics Work(37:14) - Journalism in Crisis(44:08) - Creators, Audio, and Video(51:56) - Social Media Trials and Wrap -
AI can't replace your editors, but it can do 80% of their most tedious, repetitive work in a fraction of the time. Welcome to The Media Odyssey Podcast!
In this episode, Evan and Marion open with the news that OpenAI is shutting down Sora's B2C offering, unpacking what it signals for the AI and media landscape. They welcome Olivier Reynaud, Co-founder and CEO at Aive, a platform Aive built around the central challenge facing every creator and media company today: how do you produce enough high-quality, platform-tailored video content to keep pace with the demands of social video without burning out your team or blowing your budget? Olivier draws on his background co-founding Teads, where the team broadcast billions of videos daily, to explain how the bottleneck was never video creation itself, but large-scale personalization. The conversation explores how Aive is solving that problem through proprietary meta-learning technology, and what that means for the future of creative work.
Key Takeaways:
1. OpenAI Shutting Down Sora Signals a B2C Dead End
OpenAI announced it is closing down Sora and stepping back from its deal with Disney to refocus on enterprise. The hosts argue that selling AI tools directly to consumers was never a sound business model. As Evan puts it, AI is best understood as "an arrow in your quiver, not the bow."
2. The Real Problem Isn't Making Video, It's Personalizing It at Scale
Olivier, who co-founded Teads and has spent 20 years in video, argues the hard problem isn't producing video content; it's tailoring that content for every platform and audience at meaningful scale. Aive is built specifically to solve this: taking a long-form master and generating hundreds of format-adapted clips in days rather than months.
Aive Eliminates ~80% of Repetitive Production Tasks
3. Using Match Group's Meetic as a case study
Olivier explains that Aive helped produce nearly 300 campaign variants across a full quarter, cutting production costs by roughly 80%, reducing time-to-market from two months to days, and delivering a 50% performance uplift on paid Facebook and Instagram campaigns. The savings were reinvested into more content, bigger media buys, and team training.
4. The Technology Is Proprietary and Built for Enterprise Security
Aive runs on in-house meta-learning and is not trained on OpenAI, Google, or Amazon models. For clients sending unreleased films or large campaign assets, data stays within the platform and never trains outside systems. The platform is SOC 2 certified and currently designed for enterprise and mid-size agencies, not individual creators at a consumer price point.
5. Netflix's 1.5 Million Trailer Versions Prove Human Editors Can't Keep Up Alone
Evan opens with a striking data point: for the final season of Stranger Things, Netflix created 1.5 million different versions of their trailer for YouTube and social — a volume impossible to achieve through human editing alone. This frames the episode's central question: how do media companies and creators scale social video output to the level the market now demands, without AI doing the heavy lifting?
Book a meeting with Aive: https://0icjqan647l.typeform.com/AivexTMOpodcast
Use Aive’s exclusive code (NS015504) for a FREE Show Floor Pass and join them at NAB, the event redefining the future of media and entertainment: https://invt.io/1exbuo45cd4
Thank you to Olivier Reynaud for joining the pod!
Olivier Reynaud - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olivierreynaud/
Aive - https://www.linkedin.com/company/aive/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Netflix Trailer Explosion(01:35) - OpenAI Shuts Down Sora(02:44) - Why Consumer AI Video Fails(06:44) - Scaling Social Video Challenge(07:50) - Meet Olivier and Aive Mission(16:54) - Aive Platform Demo Reframing and Localization(21:37) - Perfect Platform Formats(22:55) - Creative Score Demo(23:51) - Voice Translation Magic(26:14) - Secret Sauce Video Data(29:03) - Personalization Without Fatigue(33:25) - Security and Who It’s For(39:28) - Industry Moves and Wrap -
244 million followers and a six-month content calendar: Jordan Schwarzenberger explains why showing up daily is the only strategy that matters. Welcome to The Media Odyssey Podcast!
In this episode, Evan Shapiro and Marion Ranchet break down the Nielsen/MRC measurement crisis that rocked the US advertising industry, then sit down with Jordan Schwarzenberger, CEO and co-founder of Arcade Media and manager of the Sidemen. The conversation reveals how the entire US advertising market transacted on flawed data for a year, while simultaneously showing how creator-led media companies are building sustainable businesses by thinking like traditional media. Rather than defending old systems, Jordan makes the case for why daily content and ritualistic consistency combined with treating YouTube channels as distinct brands is the only path forward.
The episode is a reality check on how broken measurement has become in traditional media, while creator-led companies are professionalizing their operations, building real media plans, and capturing budgets that were previously reserved for legacy broadcasters.
Key Takeaways:
1. Nielsen and MRC Hid Flawed Measurement Data for Nearly a Year
The Media Rating Council discovered problems in Nielsen's methodology almost a year ago but said nothing to the industry. The entire US advertising industry transacted in the Upfront on data they knew was not properly vetted. Sean Cunningham from VAB stated this cost the industry hundreds of millions of dollars.2. BBC Hired Matt Brittin, Ex-President of Google Europe
The BBC hired Matt Brittin, former president of Google in Europe, as their new CEO. This represents a shift toward hiring digital natives to lead public service media organizations. Brittin previously worked in traditional broadcasting before a successful career at Google, making him someone who understands both the BBC culture and big tech.3. The Sidemen Have 244M Followers and a 55-Person Team
The Sidemen have 244 million followers across all platforms and employ 55 people in their entertainment team. They plan content six months in advance, which allows them to sell to brand planners who set budgets quarters ahead. Their goal is to be bought like LabBible and Vice were—on media plans with CPMs and economies of scale. Most creators can't access major advertiser budgets because they lack the planning, consistency, and inventory that media planners require.4. Daily Content and Ritualistic Consistency Are Essential for Success
Weekly podcasts are no longer enough. Audiences now expect daily content to build ritualistic habits. The Daily Wire built 900,000 paid subscribers at their peak by showing up every day with 20-40 minute shows since 2013-2014. Streamers on Twitch and Kick are "winning the most out of anyone." Getting into people's daily habits is the key to building connection in a decentralized, saturated world.5. YouTube Is Underserved and Users Run Out of Quality Content
YouTube production is hard, time-intensive, and resource-heavy compared to podcasts, so creators default to lower-effort formats. There's a massive lack of consistent, regular, high-quality programming that becomes part of users' daily rituals.6. Netflix and YouTube Combined Create the Strongest Media Strategy
Jordan states that the combination of Netflix and YouTube together represents the best media strategy. Netflix provides the premium, appointment-viewing content while YouTube delivers daily touchpoints and ritualistic engagement.7. Individual YouTube Channels Should Be Content-Specific
Channel 4's 4.0 made the mistake of aggregating all content on one channel instead of spinning out individual format channels. YouTube wants to find specific audiences over time, so when a viewer watches one video and doesn't watch the next 10 on an aggregated channel, it signals disinterest to YouTube and hurts the entire channel's performance.Thank you to Jordan Schwarzenberger for joining the pod!
Jordan Schwarzenberger - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanschwarzenberger/
Arcade - https://www.linkedin.com/company/wearearcade/
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Dropping Out for Vice(00:33) - Podcast Intro and Headlines(00:57) - Nielsen MRC Measurement Scandal(02:41) - Dash Panel Shakes the Gauge(07:33) - Why Panels Fail Today(09:25) - UK Media Leadership Shift(10:09) - BBC Picks Ex Google Boss(13:59) - Meet Jordan Schwarzenberger(15:57) - From Vice to LadBible Rise(26:18) - Building Sidemen Into a Company(32:17) - YouTube Audience Ceiling(32:44) - Netflix Editorial Boost(34:04) - Sidemen Netflix Blueprint(34:41) - Funding Risk and New IP(36:39) - Who Really Gets the Lift(38:01) - Monoculture Is Dead(43:04) - Creator Access Explained(46:33) - Selling YouTube Like TV(52:33) - Broadcasters YouTube Mistakes(57:27) - Rituals Daily Content Wins -
Get The Stream by Tubi!
US: https://tubitv.com/thestream?utm_campaign=262713069-The%20Stream%202026&utm_source=influencer&utm_medium=thought%20leader&utm_content=evan%20shapiro
International: https://app.box.com/shared/static/h0cfoaqw4paub3hoi65pv0qxwdmhexf9.pdfParamount's $110B acquisition projects impossible growth, while Tubi data shows 80% canceling paid services. Welcome to The Media Odyssey Podcast presented by The Stream by Tubi!
In this episode, Evan Shapiro and Marion Ranchet dissect two reports: the Paramount investor deck projecting their Warner Brothers Discovery acquisition, and Tubi's "The Stream" report on consumer streaming behavior. The conversation reveals how Paramount's financial projections defy their own recent performance trends, while simultaneously showing why consumers are abandoning paid streaming for free ad-supported options. Rather than finding synergies that make business sense, the hosts expose a deal driven by ego and questionable foreign investment sources, even as consumer data proves the market is moving away from premium paid services.
The episode is a reality check on how corporate consolidation in media is disconnected from actual consumer behavior, with streaming fatigue driving audiences toward free platforms at the exact moment media companies are doubling down on expensive acquisitions and debt-heavy strategies.
Key Takeaways:
1. Paramount's Investor Deck Projects Revenue Growth Despite Years of Decline
The investor deck projects combined revenue growing from $66 billion in 2025 to $84 billion by 2030. However, from 2023-2025, combined company revenue actually declined from $71 billion to $66 billion.
EBITDA has been flat or down over the last three years, but the deck projects growth starting immediately. The deal includes $8 billion in tech cuts, $6 billion in business services cuts, $4 billion in real estate sales, and $3 billion in enterprise resource planning optimization over five years—yet claims no massive layoffs.
Bank of America downgraded Paramount stock from buy at $13 to sell at $11, stating integration will take years and projected synergies won't materialize quickly.
2. The Deal Will Create $80+ Billion in Debt With Questionable Funding Sources
The $110 billion acquisition will saddle the combined company with over $80 billion in debt. David Ellison claims they'll double motion picture output to 30 films per year, which the hosts note is not logistically possible given film development timelines. For comparison, Disney and Fox combined produced only 19 movies last year (down from Fox's 25 pre-acquisition and Disney's ~15).
3. Consumer Data Shows Massive Shift From Paid to Free Streaming
According to Tubi's "The Stream" report with Harris Poll: 77% prefer on-demand over scheduled linear streaming (3-to-1 preference). 84% of all audiences and 90% of Gen Z would watch ads for free streaming services. 80% are canceling paid services and signing up for free services to fight rising costs. 76% would rather watch a free platform with ads than pay for a premium platform with an ad tier.
4. European Box Office Is 70% Dependent on US Films, Creating Vulnerability
Close to 70% of European box office revenue comes from US movies (in 2024 it was 63% US, 33% European, the rest global). European ticket sales are down 5.5% but revenue is stable due to ticket price increases. The European box office is estimated to generate $10 billion in 2026, a 7% increase.
Interested in sponsorship? https://forms.gle/2LCWfX2HBNT8mtpx8
Connect with us on Linkedin:
Evan Shapiro - https://www.linkedin.com/in/eshap-media-cartographer/
Marion Ranchet - https://www.linkedin.com/in/marionranchet/
The Media Odyssey Podcast - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-media-odyssey-podcast
(00:00) - Welcome and Episode Setup(01:05) - Tubi Stream Report Highlights(01:24) - Streaming as Social Life(02:41) - Free Streaming and Ad Tolerance(04:37) - Creator Content Meets TV(05:34) - Back to Paramount Deal Deck(06:53) - Deck Assumptions and Synergy Cuts(16:26) - Europe Overlap and Sky Showtime(19:32) - Europe Strategy Doubts(20:54) - Tech Stack Nightmare(22:05) - Branding and Gravitas(22:54) - Pluto FAST Opportunity(24:39) - Discovery Content vs Linear(26:04) - Europe Sports Rights Edge(33:01) - Cinema Reliance and Fears(36:48) - Pushback and Wrap Up - Visa fler
