Industry News 

Danish Media Industry Receives Support

On the 1^st of April, a press release from the Danish government disclosed that Danish media affected by the Corona crisis will receive financial aid. The new compensation scheme supports the industry with an estimated 180 million DKK.

Success of Quibi Launch Uncertain

Quibi launched on Monday at prices of 95 SEK, 89 NOK and 69 DKK respectively. The lower priced, ad-supported version is so far only available in the US. Sources say the app was downloaded 300′ times; Quibi did not release own figures. The current situation with fewer people commuting etc. is assumed to impact the performance.

Swedish Government Supports the Media  

Also the Swedish government has presented a support package for local media. The government and its support parties have proposed a permanent boost to the media support of 200 million SEK. Further, regulations regarding payments of media support are adjusted.

Storytel Sees Doubling in Listeners

Audiobook streamer Storytel reports a doubling in influx of customers during the two final weeks of March. For Q1 2020, the company reported an average of 1,15 million customers, an increase of approximately 71 400 customers compared to Q4 2019.

HBO (US) Offers Free Viewing

Trying to ease compliance of the national recommendation across the US for people to practice social distancing, HBO is now offering people to stream a variety of series, documentaries and movies on HBO Now and HBO Go for free during a limited period of time.

WarnerMedia Appoints New CEO

Former Amazon SVP and Hulu CEO Jason Kilar has been appointed as new CEO of WarnerMedia. Kilar will oversee new streaming service HBO Max, set to launch on May 1^st , in addition to HBO, Warner Bros., Otter Media and Turner cable network, including TNT, TBS and CNN.

Disney+ Launched in India

The launch of Disney+ in India was originally set to March 29^th, with the start of the 2020 IPL season, but was postponed due to the corona outbreak. Instead, the service launched on April 3^rd, available to the 1.3 billion Indian people now in the middle of a 21-day lockdown.

ViacomCBS to Invest in Miramax

ViacomCBS has acquired a 49% stake in studio Miramax, following a $375 million deal with beIn Media Group that retains 51% ownership. ViacomCBS is to invest more than $200 million in the studio. Further, Paramount Pictures has signed a distribution deal for Miramax’s films.

Launch of Salto Delayed

The launch of French streaming service Salto, a joint venture between France Télévisions, TF1 and M6 Group, could be postponed to autumn 2020 due to COVID-19 delays in production and delivery of content.

Government Supports Norwegian Media

On Tuesday, the Norwegian Parliament instructed the Culture and Gender Equality Minister to bring an economic aid and relief package to Norwegian media to mitigate consequences of the corona crisis. The decision has been long awaited by actors in the industry.

Mediavision Press Releases

Swedish streaming market saturating – will new services spur growth?

Looking at year-end 2019, Mediavision concludes that 54% of all households in Sweden now subscribe to at least one online video streaming service.

Mediavision in the News

Swedish viewers turn to public broadcaster for coronavirus news

Swedish viewers are turning towards domestic public service broadcasters as their primary source for news in video form during the coronavirus crisis, said consultancy Mediavision.

Efter coronakrisen – SvD söker svar på vilken framtid som väntar

Marie Nilsson, vd för analys- och konsultbolaget Mediavision, spår att de streamingtjänster som nu tycks vara vinnare snart kan bli förlorare.