The Medium
Monday AM Briefing: Everything Old is New Again in Upfronts & Newfronts
When former AMC Networks CEO Josh Sapan stepped down last August (and into an Executive Chairman role), I wrote A Short Essay on The Dolan Family & AMC Networks CEO Josh Sapan's Resignation (NOTE: on Substack archive).
I wondered whether the resignation “was the result of the Dolan family doing the math and realizing that there will be more upside in pivoting back towards what they know best (linear) than in doubling down on what they know least (streaming) at a smaller scale.”
I suggested the departure “may reflect turning points" for both a slowing U.S. streaming marketplace and a linear marketplace flattening out at around 40MM-50MM subscribers.
As we approach next week’s Upfronts (beginning on May 16th), that dynamic of turning points seems to be increasingly at play. The three questions are:
- Is this dynamic a real market signal?
- If it is, what is it telling us?
- If it isn’t, why wouldn’t it be?
1. Is this dynamic a real market signal?
Alex Weprin of The Hollywood Reporter wrote recently that “broadcast TV is expected to play second fiddle” at the upfronts, but:
Companies like A+E, Univision, Fox and AMC Networks are betting that, even as the pay TV bundle keeps slowly and steadily ...