10 Stories You Should Know: 06/21/2023

Here are the global TV stories that should be on your radar

Here are the global TV and streaming stories that should be on your radar for Wednesday, June 21st, 2023:

Amazon Wants To Create “New Sports Holiday For NFL Fans” On Black Friday, As Streaming Audiences Mushroom — Cannes Lions (Deadline)
The future of sport for fans and advertisers alike lies in streaming, according to Marie Donoghue, Vice President of Global Sports Video at Amazon, as she offered a jaw-dropping statistic to support her case at a Cannes Lions event charting the evolution of live sports viewing.

The Hidden Costs Of Hollywood's Non-Union Global TV Productions (AllYourScreens)
When Raffi R. (he asked not to be publicly identified) worked on the crew of a major streaming television project earlier this year, he was excited by the prospect of multiple weeks of guaranteed work on a major Hollywood production. But the experience turned out to be a bittersweet one for the Hungarian tradesman, who worked several weeks without a contract and when he did receive it, discovered the production company that hired him refused to pay for overtime he should have received before he was given his paperwork. "I am happy to put in the time, this is work I love. And the experience of working on a big show will hopefully mean I will get more work in the future," he told me during a Zoom call on Tuesday. "But it makes me angry to know that I didn't get the money I earned simply because they can keep it from me."

Prime Video Reveals Biggest International Audiences (Broadband TV News)
Two original movies that premiered on Prime Video in the last two weeks have become the best-performing local originals released by the Amazon streamer. Feature films My Fault (Culpa Mía, Spain) and Medellin (Medellín, France) launched two weeks ago across 240 countries and territories. Their release follows the global success of Prime Video’s Argentinian original movie Argentina 1985, which earlier this year was an Academy Award Best International Film Nominee and Golden Globe Award Best International Film Winner.

Disney Rails At “Micro-Managing” New UK Streamer Laws & Warns They Could Result In Price Hikes (Deadline)
Disney has raised serious concerns about new UK laws that will require it to send contract renewal notices to Disney+ users and allow customers to “game” the streaming service without paying.

Forecast: Malaysia SVoD penetration At 41% In 2027 (Advanced-Television)
The household penetration of SVoD services in Malaysia is expected to increase from 22 per cent in 2022 to 41 per cent in 2027, driven by the increasing consumer preference towards SVoD platforms as broadband services continue to improve in the country, forecasts GlobalData, the data and analytics company.

Canal+ Takes 26% Stake In Leading Asian Streamer Viu; Talks Growth & Content Collaboration (Deadline)
PCCW and Canal+ have announced a strategic partnership through which the French media giant will become a significant minority shareholder in PCCW's Asian streaming service Viu.  Canal+ will make a staggered investment of $300M in Viu, including an initial investment of $200M.

Streaming Declines In Poland As Netflix Cedes Top Spot To YouTube (Digital TV Europe)
Streaming usage in Poland declined in May for the first time since January this year, with a drop in Netflix usage pushing the streaming figures down, according to audience measurement outfit Nielsen. Nielsen’s The Guage Poland report found that linear TV viewing increased by 0.3% in May compared with April.

Prime Video Remakes ‘Popstars’ In France & Unveils ‘Big Brother’ Drama Amid Raft Of New Shows (TBIVision)
Amazon Prime Video is expanding its originals slate in France with a remake of veteran format Popstars, as well as a drama that tracks the rise of Big Brother and a coming-of-age story about a young man learning the art of decision-making.

SkyShowtime For MEO (Advanced-Television)
Portuguese multiplay operator MEO and SkyShowtime have agreed a wide-ranging distribution deal that will bring the streaming service to millions of additional households in Portugal. The deal represents SkyShowtime’s first Multichannel Video Programming Distributor (MVPD) relationship in the Portuguese market, with the SkyShowtime app now available on MEO’s platform.

WWE To Host First Premium Event In London In Two Decades (Digital TV Europe)
Mixed martial arts leader WWE is to host its first premium live event in London in over two decades next week. WWE Universe will host its Money in the Bank event at the O2 Arena on Saturday July 1. The event is centred around a ‘ladder match’ where WWE ‘Superstars’ compete to obtain a briefcase.