Amazon Channels is capturing a growing share of Specialty SVOD signups. Charter just added millions of Cox households to a distribution business already bundling major streaming services. Amazon is making Alexa+ free on Fire TV, while MS NOW is moving in the opposite direction by building its own direct membership product.
These moves all point to the same shift in streaming economics: audience reach is only part of the equation. The more valuable position may be controlling the account, the payment method, and the path from discovery to purchase.
Major SVODs Widen Price Gap Between Ad-Supported, Ad-Free Plans
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Meta Agrees to Set Time Limits for Kids Using Instagram, Facebook in Major Legal Settlement
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FAST Sports Programming Swells, Outpaces Sports Channel Growth
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Roku Inks Live Streaming Deal With National Women’s Soccer League
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ThinkLA Video Brunch - September 3 - 10% Off for OTT.X Members
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Nielsen: Ad-supported TV viewing slips during Q2
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The Customer Belongs to Whoever Takes the Payment
Amazon Channels is capturing a growing share of Specialty SVOD signups. Charter just added millions of Cox households to a distribution business already bundling major streaming services. Amazon is making Alexa+ free on Fire TV, while MS NOW is moving in the opposite direction by building its own direct membership product.
These moves all point to the same shift in streaming economics: audience reach is only part of the equation. The more valuable position may be controlling the account, the payment method, and the path from discovery to purchase.
The Take
Streaming has no shortage of audience. The harder problem is turning that audience into revenue efficiently.
Companies that already control the account, payment method, or interface can spread acquisition, billing, support, and merchandising costs across millions of customers. That can make giving up part of the retail economics worthwhile for services facing high churn or expensive direct acquisition.
The same logic now extends beyond subscriptions. Alexa+ gives Amazon more opportunities to influence what viewers watch or buy. Jackbox is reducing the steps between interest and play. MS NOW is moving in the other direction by taking direct responsibility for conversion, billing, retention, and churn.
The next phase of streaming competition will increasingly center on who controls the transaction. Reach creates demand. Owning the path to payment determines how efficiently that demand becomes revenue.
Read the Full Analysis: The Streaming Wars
Major SVODs Widen Price Gap Between Ad-Supported, Ad-Free Plans
The price gap between ad-supported and ad-free subscription tiers for the largest global streamers has widened over time, as advertising and ad tiers become more vital to SVOD growth and consumers may be reaching a ceiling on what they’re willing to pay for streaming services.
The fresh findings come from Ampere Analysis, which also determined Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video have reined in the size of their respective price increases in recent years, potentially signaling consumer limits on streaming TV spending.
Per Ampere, average price increases across Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon have fallen from 24% bumps of the previous subscription price in 2023-2024 to 14% increase in 2025-2026.
In dollar terms, average price increase across plan tiers for the three providers have declined from $1.67 to $1.54 over the same period. Across the three-year period, the average individual price increase was $1.60 or equivalent to 17% of the previous price.
While all have decreased, price hikes across the three major streamers over the time period have varied.
Netflix’s price bumps remaining broadly stable over the past three years, per Ampere, while Disney+ has had the clearest shift towards more modest price increased. Amazon’s Prime Video has made the fewest price increases over the three-year period, which the firm believes likely reflects the broader role of a Prime subscription within the e-commerce giant’s retail business.
Read the Full Story: StreamTV Insider
Meta Agrees to Set Time Limits for Kids Using Instagram, Facebook in Major Legal Settlement
In a major legal settlement, Meta Platforms Inc. has agreed to pay as much as $18 billion and set strict time limits for Instagram and Facebook for users under the age of 18.
The settlement covers claims made by 47 states, with California attorney general Rob Bonta among the AG’s leading the case. The penalty will be paid over 10 years, and will be earmarked by each state to help address mental health and social media addiction for kids and teens.
But it also includes an agreement by Meta to institute new limits for users under 18, include a strict two hour time limit that can only be turned off with a parent’s permission; A default night mode which makes the apps inaccessible between midnight and 6 a.m.; School mode, which will block notifications during typical school hours; As well as other functions and features meant to give parents more control and to limit overuse by kids and teens.
The company agreed to institute the time limit and night mode features for five years, however Meta is also calling on TikTok and YouTube to adopt the same policies, and if they do it will extend it to at least 10 years.
“I’m pleased to announce that Meta has reached an agreement with a bipartisan group of state attorneys general from around the country on a new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media,” eta chief legal affairs officer C.J. Mahoney said in a statement. “The framework we’ve negotiated will empower parents to easily manage how their children access our platforms. Our new Time Limit commitments, Night Mode features and usage limits during school hours set the right path forward for our whole industry, but this framework will only work if all our peers join us. Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution. We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away. As a parent, I’m proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically, and of this new groundbreaking agreement. But its success depends on all other social media platforms following Meta’s lead.
Read the Full Story: The Hollywood Reporter
FAST Sports Programming Swells, Outpaces Sports Channel Growth
Sports programming has expanded on free ad-supported streaming and goes beyond just new channel launches, as FAST in general becomes a distribution vehicle for a broader array of content.
The fact that sports content is making its way to free streaming isn’t entirely new (see our prior coverage here and here on earlier the growth of sports channels and more). But findings from fresh content data via Gracenote’s Q3 Data Hub show that sports has grown across multiple fronts on FAST, including additional channels within the sports category, more sports program titles, as well as growth in individual games and events.
And the increase in program titles, as well as matchups and events, outpaces that of the sports category channel growth.
Per Gracenote, 264 FAST channels were classified as sports in July 2026, up 13.8% year-over-year. Unique sports program titles (which can encompass many games or competitions, as well as non-event titles) grew 31.2% yoy. But the highest growth was seen in individual sports games and events (up 37.5% yoy), which helps give a fuller picture of the volume of sports on FAST. That means sports program-title growth was more than twice that of the sports-channel growth rate, while game and event-led growth was nearly three times the channel rate.
Sports programming also grew faster than FAST overall. Globally, FAST channel count increased 17.5% year over year to 2,172, compared with 18.6% gains in total video distribution and 19.4% in TV program titles.
In July, sports programming appeared on 20 FAST channels outside of the sports category, including on channel genres such as documentary, entertainment, lifestyle, news and commentary and reality.
Read the Full Story: StreamTV Insider
Roku Inks Live Streaming Deal With National Women’s Soccer League
The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) will begin live streaming select matches on the Roku Sports Channel, starting Aug. 30.
Roku, which is being acquired by Fox, will be the exclusive streaming home for eight Sunday night matches during the remainder of the 2026 campaign, followed by an expanded package of 25 Sunday night matches in 2027.
“As we continue to grow the NWSL’s audience, we’re focused on making it as easy as possible for fans to find and watch our matches wherever they are,” added NWSL chief marketing officer Rachel Epstein. “Roku’s tremendous scale and accessibility make them an exciting partner as we bring more NWSL matches to more viewers and continue building consistent destinations for fans to engage with our league.”
The Roku Sports Channel will launch the first match on Aug. 30 with the Seattle Reign FC vs. the Houston Dash. The schedule will stream through Oct. 25, culminating with a match between the San Diego Wave FC and the Boston Legacy FC.
In 2025, Roku launched the NWSL Zone in their sports experience that showcases live and upcoming matches from the professional women’s soccer league, together with clips and highlights from every league match.
This expanded partnership reflects a shared focus on making women’s soccer more accessible and discoverable for fans while complementing Roku’s broader investment in women’s sports storytelling, including the “Gamechangers” documentary series, according to the company.
Read the Full Story: Media Play News
ThinkLA Video Brunch - September 3 - 10% Off for OTT.X Members
After much demand, the ThinkLA Video Brunch is back, bringing together leaders from across media, advertising, and entertainment to explore the evolving role of video in today’s media landscape.
Video has become a primary way audiences discover, research, learn, and make decisions. As consumer attention continues to shift and AI introduces new possibilities across creation, distribution, and advertising, the industry is being challenged to rethink what video can do and where it delivers the most value.
This year’s conversation will examine how changing consumer behavior, AI-driven innovation, and an evolving media ecosystem are redefining video’s role and ask the big question: Can video still do it all?
As a supporter of the event, OTT.X is pleased to offer our community 10% off registration with code OTTVID26.
More Information: ThinkLA Video Brunch
Nielsen: Ad-supported TV viewing slips during Q2
Ad-supported television accounted for 71.5 percent of total viewing in the second quarter of 2026, down 1.3 share points from the prior quarter, according to the latest edition of Nielsen’s “The Ad Supported Gauge.”
The decline is typical for the period, with Nielsen citing seasonal patterns like lower broadcast TV viewing following the end of the traditional TV season and the wind-down of some premium sports programming carried on networks like ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC.
Broadcast viewing declined from the first quarter to the second quarter, but Nielsen said the drop was softer than the same period last year. Sports programming helped offset some of the seasonal weakness, with the NBA playoffs and early World Cup coverage contributing to a year-over-year gain for broadcast.
Broadcast accounted for 26.6 percent of ad-supported television viewing in Q2, up from 26 percent in the same period last year.
Streaming continued to expand its lead within ad-supported TV. Nielsen said streaming gained 1.6 share points during the quarter, reaching 48.2 percent of ad-supported viewing. Cable held steady at 25.2 percent, unchanged from the first quarter.
The viewing mix shifts when Nielsen narrows the measurement from overall viewers to those over the age of 18: Among adults, streaming’s share fell 3.8 points to 44.4 percent, while broadcast increased to 28.6 percent and cable rose to 27 percent.
Nielsen said the published version of “The Ad Supported Gauge” has not yet migrated to ARF DASH-based media-related universe estimates. That change is expected in the fall and could produce different results from the current published methodology.
Read the Full Story: TheDesk.net
In Case You Missed It
- TikTok Boxing and the Death of Media Categories. The Streaming Wars
- Netflix Wanted to Become HBO. Now It Has to Consider Becoming Amazon. The Streaming Wars
- ESPN’s Price Hike Turns Standalone Sports Into a Bundle Anchor. The Streaming Wars
- Netflix Made YouTube Pay for Loyalty It Used to Get Free. The Streaming Wars
- Streamers Are Widening the Price Gap to Monetize Viewers Differently. The Streaming Wars
- Disney+ Is Adding Creator-Speed Economics to Its Programming Mix. The Streaming Wars
- Netflix Is Turning Premium CTV Access Into a DSP Advantage. The Streaming Wars
- Amazon Is Spending $2 Billion to Own Latin America’s Streaming Checkout. The Streaming Wars
- Jackbox Is Turning the Smart TV Into the Party Console. The Streaming Wars
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