Comcast beats profit estimates but streaming rivals eat into revenue April 25, 2019 US media giant Comcast has beaten Wall Street estimates to post strong first-quarter profit, but fell short on revenue. The figures Comcast posted a 17.9 per cent increase in revenues to $26.9bn (£21bn). Net profit rose 14 per cent to $3.6bn. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 18.1 per cent to $8.6bn. [...]
Netflix to sell $2bn worth of bonds amid competition with streaming rivals April 23, 2019 Netflix will issue $2bn (£1.5bn) worth of bonds, denominated in both dollars and euros, to raise money as the battle over TV and film streaming intensifies. Read more: Netflix predicts slowed subscriber growth as price hikes begin to hurt The online media giant said the interest rate, maturity date, and other terms of the bonds [...]
Netflix predicts slowed subscriber growth as price hikes begin to hurt April 17, 2019 Netflix expects its subscriber growth rate to weaken in the coming months, as upcoming US price rises for its TV streaming site dampen the attraction of new users. The firm said it had gained a record number of 9.6m paid subscribers in the three months to March, taking its total up to 148.9m and ahead of [...]
What do we know about Disney’s streaming service? April 12, 2019 Disney is set to take on the might of Netflix and Amazon with a new streaming service – Disney Plus – which it announced last night at its California headquarters in Burbank. Here are six things we know about the new offering from the mouse-branded entertainment behemoth. 1) It launches in North America in November [...]
Netflix teams up with US streaming service Sirius XM to launch new comedy radio station April 11, 2019 Netflix is teaming up with US broadcasting giant Sirius XM to launch a new a new radio channel airing clips from its stand-up comedy shows. Netflix Is A Joke Radio will feature segments from the streaming services’ stand-up library, comedy talk shows and original radio programming, and will be aired through Sirius XM, which offers [...]
AT&T denies reports it is exploring sale of Game of Thrones producer HBO Europe April 10, 2019 US telecoms giant AT&T has denied reports it is exploring the sale of HBO’s European division in a bid to slash its $170bn (£130bn) debt pile. A Financial Times report stated executives have held internal discussions over the possible sale of HBO Europe, which produces hit TV series Game of Thrones, but have not yet held meetings with potential [...]
Audioboom posts record quarterly revenues as it cashes in on podcast boom April 3, 2019 Podcast platform Audioboom has posted a surge in quarterly profits as appetite for on-demand listening continues to grow. The London-listed firm saw its revenue rise 180 per cent year-on-year to $4.6m (£3.5m) in the three months to the end of March. Read more: BBC removes podcasts from rival Google service Audioboom said it has boosted [...]
BBC takes control of UKTV channels as Discovery lines up new streaming service April 1, 2019 The BBC will take control of UKTV channels as part of a deal with Discovery that will also see the launch of a new on-demand video service for BBC nature programmes. BBC Studios – the broadcaster’s commercial arm – jointly owns UKTV with US media giant Discovery. Read more: BBC removes podcasts from rival Google [...]
Watch out high street banks – Apple has a credit card and is out to steal your supper March 29, 2019 Every day, new competitors are coming out of the woodwork and vying for a piece of the high street banks’ pie. This has forced the big banks – some kicking and screaming – to evolve, and at a pace that they’ve never before experienced. Change is not a new concept for consumers when it comes [...]
Apple’s big ecosystem play March 26, 2019 | City Talk Doubts and unanswered questions aplenty following last night’s glitzy event, but make no mistake this was another big step in the pivot towards making Apple more of a services business. You would call this an ecosystem play, with new services designed to strengthen the bonds between consumers and the brand. Services revenues have soared lately [...]