Marc Randolph, co-founder and former CEO of Netflix, has been watching the streaming wars play out from the sidelines, and in his view, the brawl is finally settling down to a handful of formidable contestants.
"I've often described it kind of as like a presidential primary debate, with 40 people on the stage and everyone's shouting to be heard, but I think blessedly, we're starting to see things sorting out with two frontrunners emerging," the serial entrepreneur told Cheddar.
Those frontrunners are Disney+ and Netflix, said Randolph, whose latest venture is the new podcast "That Will Never Work," offering practical advice to startup founders.
In some ways, the rise of Disney+ took Randolph by surprise. At first, he thought the company's sprawling entertainment empire would make it difficult to bring the kind of focus to streaming that he said was the secret to Netflix's success. But since its launch, the company has taken concrete steps to bolster streaming, such as forgoing dividends to invest in the platform.
"Disney has clearly demonstrated that they're going to go all-in on streaming," he said.
However, Disney+ is clearly cutting its own path in the streaming world. Rather than embrace Netflix's binge model of releasing entire seasons at once, the platform announced over the summer that it would be releasing new episodes on a weekly basis.
Randolph speculated that this might be a necessity rather than a strategic move.
"It's a lot of pressure to all of sudden say we're going to have a full slate of full seasons and have that happen all at once, especially during COVID when production cycles were all disrupted," he said.
He added that it could also be Disney+ trying to further define its niche in streaming.
As for the size of the streamer's respective catalogs, Randolph stressed that there is no ideal ratio of original content to popular licensed franchises.
"I think that's a little bit of a false metric," he said. "Right now, everyone is trying to brag about the size of their catalogs and what they have, but as Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos often say, 'the ultimate metric is customer sat, is customer glee.' It's not how much you have, it's how good it is."
With an increasing demand for mental health services, one person wanted to change the therapy game. In 2017, CEO Alex Katz founded Two Chairs, a company that uses technology to match patients with the right therapist.
Not only is April Financial Literacy Month, it’s also the kickoff of the spring homebuying season. So now is the time to make sure you have a financial plan in place – and why it might not be wise for that to include buying your first home.
While the U.S. may slowly be on the path to lowering inflation (and therefore interest rates), Europe has thoroughly trounced America, putting it on the path to lower rates by this summer.
April's release of the monthly Housing Starts and Building Permits reports by the Census Bureau provides crucial insights into the construction activity in the housing market. These reports are an economic indicator, shedding light on the current state of the housing market and its broader economic impact.
Caitlin Clark is heading to the Indiana Fever, the number one draft pick and the highest-scoring college basketball player of all time. And while she may not be getting millions from the WNBA, there's a few ways she'll net compensation for her generational talents.
Author of 'Clean Meat,' Paul Shapiro joins Cheddar to discuss how the cellular agricultural revolution helps lower rates of foodborne illness and greatly improves environmental sustainability. Plus, how his company The Better Meat Co. is bringing healthier food options to the table.
Recent headlines might make it sound like World War III is imminent, but when it comes to your finances, it's not the time to panic. The market is coming off its longest winning streak since 2011.
You may have noticed fewer new venture capital-backed startups (like Airbnb or Uber) lately. The market slowed to a crawl after 2021, but things are expected to take off again in 2025.
Corporate earnings season is underway, that time when companies share their billions in sales or double-digit profits. But the data shows even companies are struggling with high inflation and interest rates.
Boeing continues their terrifying trend of having their planes fall apart mid-flight, inflation — checks notes — is still up and the future of AI looks terrifying. Cheery!
