Digital Stream: Television News

[Dogg Thang]

Right now, we have Netlfix, Prime and Disney+. Prime we have only as a by-product of some products that we needed Prime to buy. Disney+ is already most likely to be dropped, having got it only so the wife could watch Hamilton. The Simpsons is getting some watch from it and I plan to watch The Mandalorian but only because I now have it. After that, there is nothing we want on it. Or at least, nothing we could justify given we already have two other services. As an all-rounder, Netflix is still our preferred service and, if we had to cut it down to that, I would be fine.

But I think things will become trickier as more shows become exclusive to different platforms. There is a subscription threshold though, where we just couldn’t justify another subscription and, if anything, will likely cut at least one out.

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.darkhorizons.com/ren-stimpy-reboot-ordered-to-series/

Comedy Central have commissioned a reboot series of Ren & Stimpy

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.darkhorizons.com/antebellum-skips-theatrical-for-pvod/

Horror film Antebellum is next to abandon cinema and go VOD on 18 September.

[wakka]

I’ve cancelled Disney+ now. After a period of curiosity about it, it quickly became something I realised I had no use for. It’s 99% kids films, Star Wars, and Marvel, none of which I have a lot of use for.

I loved having access to The Simpsons though, and I’ll likely pick it up for a month here and there when I want a fix.

I’m not surprised it’s been such a barnstormer out of the gate, but it’ll be interesting to see where they go from here. It’s back catalogue stuff like Marvel and Pixar that’s gotten people signing up, but that stuff won’t be coming frequently enough to sustain the service.

[Neon Ignition]

I' kind of assuming that with COVID going nowhere fast they'll be able to continue building their numbers as once they start rolling in 2021 they'll begin to finally get the original content out the door like Mandalorian Season 2, the several other SW spin-offs and the numerous MCU series.

[Dogg Thang]

The problem is that they are like the Switch without third party support. Netflix and other services get stuff in through deals while making their own content, Disney threw everything they own on there. Their own new content will feel like a very slow drip and I suspect they risk losing people in every gap. Why keep a service for several months when you can watch a couple of shows in one and the dump the service?

[Neon Ignition]

There's definitely that risk but I guess it's down to how well they can balance it against the evergreen nature of a lot of their content. Netflix has that 'third party' advantage but it's one that is disappearing fast on them thanks to how many other networks have/are launching their own services so Netflix will be facing losing many of those popular shows and films permanently and having to triple down on original content at an economic time that is very harsh when they were already burying themselves in billions of debt, that and not having a pre-existing catalogue to depend on in the meantime. Over the next few years I think Netflix is set to lose near complete access to the libraries of Disney, Fox, Warner Bros, HBO and Paramount at the least - and most of them will also be competing for the licenses of the remaining company productions.

Seems like it'll be easy for Disney to hit a roof (much higher than the current 60m I suspect), Netflix to lose a ton of subscribers and a more even balanced audience across mutliple services to emerge - though by that point that threat of debt may rupture Netflix.

[Dogg Thang]

I guess I feel that most of the evergreen Disney content is comparable to most of the games on a mini retro console. We get that nostalgia hit looking at a thumbnail but we’re not really going to play the game. That realisation that we’re only holding onto it for some new show that isn’t coming for months will kick in. But you’re right about the challenges Netflix face, especially when losing content and needing to pump more money into their own. Disney will have some mammoth expenses too though. It’s not a cheap service for them.

[wakka]

Netflix have a much more balanced library of content than Disney+ though. The Nintendo comparison is apt. It's like the WiiU of subscription services - yeah, there's some good stuff on it, but the range of it is incredibly narrow.

I'm not the biggest Netflix lover in the world, but they keep the hopper very full in terms of 'Originals' content. And there's real variety in there (even if they do seem to have a slightly ridiculous number of true crime documentaries).

[Neon Ignition]

It's a shame the Disney branding skews the content as in theory Disney is sitting on a lot of Fox, Buena Vista etc TV content that they won't use because it's deemed not right for the branding

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.darkhorizons.com/hulu-sets-animaniacs-renews-victor/

Hulu will launch the revived season of Animaniacs on 20 November 2020

[cutmymilk]

It's a shame the Disney branding skews the content as in theory Disney is sitting on a lot of Fox, Buena Vista etc TV content that they won't use because it's deemed not right for the branding

Disney definitely needs an adult section! Even some of the films have been cut. There is a discalimer at the start of adventures in babysitting for example.

Has anyone tried watching a series of shorts? There's a few like duck tails and marvel superheroes. After every single 2 minute short there is over a minute of credits for foreign voice actors. Why did they do this?

[Cassius_Smoke]

My daughter watches quite a bit of Disney+ so it's great for kids. I just wish they had a 'grown up' section with Fox movies and stuff on. Where is the Aliens franchise for one?

[Dogg Thang]

Disney definitely needs an adult section!

Disney Red, where the happiest place on earth is in your pants.

[Neon Ignition]

https://www.darkhorizons.com/tv-news-invincible-succession-fargo-shield/

Fargo: Season 04 will begin on 27 September 2020

https://www.darkhorizons.com/petersen-fox-in-talks-for-csi-sequel-series/

William Peterson and Jorja Fox are in talks to star in CSI: Vegas, the show will be a direct sequel to the original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

https://www.darkhorizons.com/macgruber-series-ordered-by-peacock/

Peacock have greenlit an eight episode season run of MacGruber

https://www.darkhorizons.com/peacock-teases-bell-a-p-bio-revivals/

They've also released a trailer for the new season revival of Saved By the Bell which seems to be part sequel with a dash of sattire of the original

https://www.darkhorizons.com/blazing-saddles-remade-as-cartoon-samurai/

So, for this one Mel Brooks is helping to make a remake of Blazing Saddles but this time it's an animated series called Blazing Samurai which is about a cat.

https://www.darkhorizons.com/disney-television-ditches-fox-branding/

Disney is cutting back on the 20th Century Fox branding, it's TV studio will forward be called just 20th Television, whilst the Fox 21 arm will be called Touchstone Television

https://www.darkhorizons.com/nick-sets-spongebob-spin-off-patrick-star/

Nickelodeon is moving forward with the spin-off of Spongebob Squarepants called The Patrick Star Show

https://www.darkhorizons.com/disney-has-no-plans-for-4k-catalog-titles/

And Disney have reportedly ceased work on 4K versions of it's catalog titles including the 20th Century Fox films in its library.