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Legal Issues > News

Whether it’s regulatory compliance, patent lawsuits, or copyright challenges, the online video industry sees its share of legal and government issues. We’ll keep you up to date here with the latest news.

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Netflix Urged to Reinstate Deleted Palestinian Films

On October 13 and 14, Netflix deleted nearly its entire library of Palestinian films and films about Palestinians. Thousands of people on social media have criticized Netflix for removing these films. Netflix claims there was no agenda behind the move and that the collection of films was licensed in 2021 for three years, and the licenses have expired. Meanwhile, over 30 organizations are calling on Netflix to reinstate the content and for a boycott of the streaming giant.

IAS Fights YouTube Misinformation With Expanded Detection Offering

During this tumultuous election year, as concerns mount over online misinformation, Integral Ad Science (IAS), a leading global media measurement and optimization platform, has expanded its industry-aligned misinformation suitability and brand safety reporting for advertisers running campaigns across YouTube ad inventory.

IBC 2024 Streaming Media Digest – AI, 5G, Live Sports, Monetization, Content Curation, and More

ICYMI: here is a complete collection of Streaming Media's IBC 2024 coverage. With exhibitors, speakers, and visitors from more than 170 nations, this year's event was an in-depth cornucopia of all the latest streaming, broadcasting, media, and entertainment hot topics, including AI, 5G, live sports, content creation, and much more.

DirecTV Fights to End the 'One Size Fits All' Streaming Bundle

Even the prospect of shedding customers ahead of Monday Night Football's season-opening NFL game isn't deterring DirecTV from doubling down versus Disney in the latest battle to convulse Pay TV. Its contract dispute with Walt Disney Company extends the blackout of channels like ESPN, ABC, FX, and Disney Channel into a fourth day for more than 11 million subscribers.

The Economics of Music: Streaming vs. CD Sales—A Deeper Look

In recent years, a narrative has emerged pitting streaming services against traditional music sales, particularly CDs and vinyl. Social media posts often circulate claiming that a single CD sale is worth hundreds of hours of streaming for an artist. While these comparisons can be eye-catching, they often oversimplify a complex ecosystem and misdirect artists' frustrations. This article aims to unpack the intricacies of music royalties, challenging common misconceptions and highlighting the real issues at play.

To AI or Not to AI? Industry Thought Leaders Make Their Cases in a Lively Debate at Streaming Media Connect 2024

On Thursday, August 22, 2024, at Streaming Media Connect, key industry thought leaders and stakeholders engaged in a lively debate on "The Real Value of Artificial Intelligence" in today's streaming ecosystem. Panelists included media cartographer Evan Shapiro, Chris Giliberti of Avail, H Schuster of HUSSLUP, and Peter Csathy of Creative Media.

CTV Ad Strategists and Adtech Pros Talk Making Streaming Ads Perform at Streaming Media Connect 2024

On Tuesday, August 20, 2024, at Streaming Media Connect, Alan Wolk, one of the industry's most influential thought leaders, moderated a panel that confronted the current challenges (or, some would say, failures) to reliably deliver the right ads to viewers and measurable results to brands and discussed innovative technologies and strategies to make streaming ads perform. Panelists included Christina Chung of Estrella MediaCo, Julie Triolo of Vevo, C.J. Leonard of Mad Leo Consulting, and Erin Firneno of Advertiser Perceptions.

Fubo Wins Preliminary Injunction Against the Walt Disney Company, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery’s Venu Sports Joint Venture

FuboTV Inc. (d/b/a Fubo) (NYSE: FUBO), the leading sports-first live TV streaming platform, has been successful in stopping the launch of The Walt Disney Company, FOX Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery's Venu Sports joint venture (JV) after its request for a preliminary injunction was approved by the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York today.

Streaming Media Connect Sneak Preview: Subscription Management and the Great Re-Bundling

On Wednesday, August 21, media and entertainment technology and consumer electronics analyst Paul Erickson will moderate the panel "Subscription Management and the Great Rebundling." With the constant push and pull of market fragmentation and consolidation, streaming services that rely entirely or partly on sustained subscription revenue need more than plentiful content to fight churn and keep subscribers engaged. As consumer budgets tighten, free and ad-supported options multiply and emerge as new norms. More and more, that means bundling and streamlining offerings. This panel of industry experts from Hub Entertainment Research, Fubo, Antenna, Ampere, and Plex will discuss the art and science of making subscriptions smoother, simpler, and churn-proof.

SMNYC Debates: TO AI, OR NOT TO AI?

On Monday, May 20, at Streaming Media NYC, two lively debates on the topic of AI in Media and Entertainment showcased leading industry figures. The first, "AI: Boon Or Bubble?" examined the ways that AI has entered every sector of the media, business, and technology worlds, and it explored how much of AI's insurgency is a fad, and how much of it is the actual future of streaming. The second, "The Real Value Of Artificial Intelligence," explored the fearmongering around the idea that "AI is coming for our jobs," and focused on how AI/ML might make workflows more efficient and effective, grow or refine reach, and help to boost bottom lines.

UK Broadcasters Plot Managed Transition to Universal Access Streamed TV

UK broadcasters, including the BBC, have said that delivering TV over the air is no longer economically viable and envisage an increased reliance on broadband networks for video streaming in the future. In a comprehensive report submitted to the UK government regarding the future of TV distribution, regulator Ofcom found widespread support across the sector for TV services continuing to be available to all but no shared view about how to achieve this. Adrian Pennington lists the three broad strategies Ofcom outlined instead and the challenges for achieving them.

Interview: IP Attorney Robert J.L. Moore Discusses Video Codec IP and Patent Monetization Issues

In this wide-ranging interview, Streaming Media's Jan Ozer and intellectual property attorney Robert Moore of Moore IP solutions delve into a number of topics related to video codec intellectual property issues and patent monetization, two constantly moving targets.

Q&A: AI in Advertising With Rembrand’s Cory Treffiletti

Cory Treffiletti, CMO of Rembrand, discusses the company's innovative use of programmatic generative AI for virtual product placements, along with how speedily AI is developing within the advertising industry and the ways it is upending the traditional media buying process.

Streaming Media Sneak Preview: Computing While Cooling With Netflix, Adeia, the Greening of Streaming, and Help Me Stream Research Foundation

On Wednesday, May 22 at Streaming Media NYC, Dom Robinson, Founder, Greening of Streaming and Director id3as/Norsk, will moderate an all-star panel of leading streaming technology providers and innovators to discuss how to make media's tech stack more cost and energy efficient and implement sound and sustainable best practices throughout the media supply chain, with insights from Sujana Sooreddy, Senior Lead Software Engineer at Netflix, Serhad Doken, CTO of Adeia, and Tim Fore-Siglin, founding executive director of Help Me Stream Research Foundation.

Evan Shapiro Unveils the Q4 Truths for Sony, Nintendo, Disney, Meta, and More

Read Part Three of our recap of Evan Shapiro's Q4 keynote earnings analysis from Streaming Media Connect 2024, where he unveils the Q4 truths for big M&E industry players like Sony, Nintendo, Disney, Meta, and More.

Evan Shapiro Reveals the Q4 Realities for Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and More

With 4Q earnings calls putting a bow on 2023, M&E industry cartographer Evan Shapiro pulls no punches in this real-time response, digging deep into the data to hold the spin doctors accountable, giving Streaming Media Connect attendees an unvarnished view of the industry that they won't get anywhere else. Read Part Two of our recap of Shapiro's Q4 keynote earnings analysis from Streaming Media Connect 2024.

Instant Replay: Streaming Media Connect 2024

Streaming Media presented its 13th Connect virtual conference February 19 - 22, 2024, with media industry cartographer Evan Shapiro as host and MC. Shapiro kicked off the event with a dynamic keynote, digging deep into the Q4 earnings call data to hold the spin doctors accountable and giving an unvarnished view of the industry. Other highlights included a keynote by Dana McGraw of Disney, titled Disney Advertising, Understanding Audiences: How Disney Advertising Leverages Data Science and Insights to Empower Advertisers, plus several panels covering topics such as app streaming UX design, scaling CTV advertising, measuring FAST success, and AI.

Fubo Sues The Walt Disney Company, Fox Corp., Warner Bros. Discovery, and Affiliates for Antitrust Practices

Fubo filed an antitrust lawsuit against The Walt Disney Company, FOX Corp., Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. and their affiliates today, alleging that the vertically-integrated media companies have engaged in a years-long campaign to block Fubo's innovative sports-first streaming business resulting in significant harm to both Fubo and consumers. The complaint alleges that the forthcoming launch of a sports-streaming joint venture steals Fubo's playbook and is the latest example of this campaign.

Creators Prepare to Fight for and Flee TikTok as Bans Take Effect   

Although governments around the world have restricted or outlawed the use of TikTok, the state of Montana last week became one of the first jurisdictions to extend the ban to consumer users as well. Other states may well follow and while there are challenges to the proposed law creators reliant on the platform would do well not seek out other options should the noose tighten in the run up to the 2024 presidential election. 

Premier Media Thought Leader Evan Shapiro to Present Closing Keynote Address at Streaming Media East 2023

At this year's Streaming Media East, well-regarded entertainment industry "media cartographer" Evan Shapiro will present the closing keynote address, "The Mind Of The Modern Media Consumer," where he will discuss the latest data and context from the media ecosystem and offer a good sense of where the industry is likely headed next.