5 predictions for the future of media

American Funds Capital Group ^ | 25 August 2021 | Nathan Meyer

[Vigilanteman]

With remarkable speed, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated select investment themes across a number of industries. Nowhere is that truer than the media and entertainment sectors where technological advances and work-from-home trends are rapidly changing the landscape.

Structural shifts in media consumption are disrupting the business models of traditional media giants as momentum builds for cord cutting, streaming video services and more interactive forms of entertainment. The resulting shift in viewership habits, especially among young people, could profoundly alter the outlook for media companies in the years ahead.

With that in mind, here are five powerful themes that I believe will play a major role in the evolution of media and entertainment over the next decade.

1. Video games will surpass pay TV as the largest in-home entertainment market.

Video games should enjoy at least another decade of demographic tailwinds generated by young people playing and spending more, and older people continuing to stay in the game, so to speak. Dramatic advancements in graphics quality, increased access to cloud-based gaming platforms, and the further adoption of in-game monetization efforts should allow video games to continue taking time and wallet share from traditional pay TV companies.

[Vigilanteman]

The other four (for those who don't wish to read the whole article) are:

1. The number of U.S. pay TV bundle subscribers will fall dramatically.

2. Video streaming will grow to become the primary form of movie and TV consumption.

3. Professional football viewership could be in structural decline.

4. Autonomous vehicles may provide an extra hour a day for media consumption.

[Blurb2350]

And, as always, pornographers will be arrayed along the leading edge.

[Dilbert San Diego]

I have the impression that with video streaming, You Tube channels, etc. that technology is bypassing traditional TV broadcasting. It’s bypassing cable and satellite TV. We have heard for years now about people cutting the cord for cable TV. Technology advances and is changing things.

Someone told me that even as movie theaters have reopened after covid, that many movies are being video streamed at the same time they are in theaters. Movie theaters as we know them may well be bypassed by the technology as well.

[Alberta's Child]

My prediction is that many forms of video streaming will decline in popularity once two things happen to it that contributed heavily to the decline of cable TV:

1. The costs go up.

2. Advertising becomes more prevalent, intrusive and tiresome.

[1Old Pro]

The issue is local channels. Many people like myself still want local news and w/o a good over the air signal the only way to get local is a cable bundle. at least currently. Once that occurs, cable bundles will be history and it will be full ala carte streaming.

[Vigilanteman]

Yeah, it is big business and will get bigger as feminism degrades more American women and makes them unmarriable and more American men turn to seeing rather than doing.

Just sad, because I happen to think sex is a wonderful thing that adds a lot to stable and happy marriage. Besides making you feel tingly, excited and extraordinarily pleasured, it also makes you feel emotionally and spiritually connected.

The porn substitute is, at best, highly unrealistic and at worst just plain sick, gross and degrading.

[Vigilanteman]

We have both for now. But the local channels are seeing the writing on the wall and adding streaming apps. I don’t like to stay up for the 11 pm news, so often turn to the local streaming app at bedtime.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Local TV news is available on multiple apps on ROKU and several stations have their own apps for their news programs on several platforms.

There is zero need to have the bundle for a 6PM newscast or breaking news.

[1Old Pro]

yep, time to try hulu plus live to see the quality.

[LRoggy]

One way the cable providers are fighting back on this is to go to property associations and force the bundling of cable and internet service and many of them won’t allow a second provider to build out the building for competition. They subsidize the cable channels by charging more for the internet so they can advertise to buyers a competitive cable rate. Then over time they gradually raise the cable rate at a pace that you don’t question!

[LouAvul]

And, many video streaming services are going to go down the tubes if they do not update and expand their offerings.

They keep pretty much the same line up of movies for months at a time.

[Fester Chugabrew]

I would think VR technology would be booming, along with its media content. Don a VR helmet and explore new sensations like never before. Not saying its healthy. “Amusing Ourselves to Death.”

[xp38]

Interesting but this is just a modes of transmission issue. I have basically come to reject outright most of the content that is being sent. I used to watch way too much tv and movies and I suppose concerts, sports and stuff and now it is next to nothing. It has been in decline since I joined FR 20 years ago. It’s a different world now.

[backwoods-engineer]

#1 is for sure correct. I think the other four are also right.