The media landscape is shifting, as it always does. But, what’s happening right now with the bidding war over Warner Bros. Discovery is a massive signal for those of us in the YouTube space.
The big fellas are consolidating in a way that’s going to trickle down to the creator economy faster than most people realize. If you’re managing creators, running a studio, or repping a handful of production companies here is why this matters more than the headlines might suggest:
As the krakens merge, they’re going to focus more on massive, billion-dollar franchises. That leaves a huge gap for high-quality, mid-tier storytelling, especially on YouTube. The streaming folks won’t want to air it because it won’t guarantee a payday, and those platforms have already proven they don’t trust their own audiences with a deep catalog of content. If Netflix absorbs HBO’s library, they’re going to lock users into their ecosystem.
With tech-heavy capital backing these deals, production is becoming more data-driven and everyone needs as much information as possible. That’s where the FAST and linear giants are failing all their content owners except the top-tier. At the end of the month you get a check, and if you want to pay more, you can get some limited analytics, but it’s a vacuum. They had a hand up when YouTube wasn’t native to smart TVs, but those days are over and YouTube’s viewership has dominated all screens.
The walls are getting higher in traditional media, but the doors are opening wider.
Traditional media companies need to get more savvy about YouTube and open up their back catalogs to viewers there. It’s a no-brainer. The audience and the money are already there.
Do you think this consolidation will push more traditional « Hollywood » talent onto YouTube full-time? Will we see major A-Listers launch YT channels the way they launched podcasts?