The Addition is back after a summer break! In the coming months there are going to be juicy stories in this (award-winning!) newsletter, great guests on the podcast and lots going on over on the blog. Paid subscriptions help drive all this, so please consider upgrading if you can.
But I thought for now we should analyse where we actually are. So far, 2023 has been both a fascinating and tumultuous year in the media industry, so what can expect in the coming months? I want to start by highlighting that Evan Gershkovich is still in a Russian jail for doing journalism and on we must not forget that as the weeks and months drag on.
Hollywood strikes continue to upend the entertainment industry. Hollywood experts such as Richard Rushfield of The Ankler have, from the start, outlined the likelihood of a long, drawn-out, process. We really might not see writers and actors back to work much before the end of the year. Not only will that mean ongoing disruption to things like film promos and awards ceremonies during this final quarter, it will surely mean linear TV schedules (in the US) and other releases are affected going into the new year.
The streamers continue to battle amongst themselves too. I wrote at the beginning of the year that 2023 could be a big year for Apple TV+ and so far that is playing out. The end of “Ted Lasso” was a huge event for the streaming platform, the movie “Tetris” did pretty well too and “Hijack” seems to have been generally well received. The arrival of Lionel Messi to MLS has boosted its Season Pass offering and moved the service’s live sport offering to a new level. With the next season of “The Morning Show” on the way, as well as the long, long anticipated movie “Killers of the Flower Moon,” it should be a strong finish to the year for Apple TV+. Surely AFC Richmond will return for a Christmas special?!
I’d love to predict what will happen with social media platforms, and Twitter (no, I’m not calling it X,) in particular. However, the erratic nature of Elon Musk makes that almost impossible to do. One thing is for certain, publishers of all shapes and sizes are increasingly giving up on social as a traffic driver and that will become even more important in the next few months. Not being reliant on any one platform is key. Anyone thought about starting a newsletter?
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