LONDON—Global connected TV (CTV) advertising revenue will surge from $44 billion in 2025 to $81 billion by 2030, with CTV ad revenues expected to surpass traditional linear TV advertising during the 2030s, according to new research by Omdia.

The researchers also reported that Google, Amazon and Netflix will dominate the TV landscape in the upcoming years. As the fight to “own the living room” enters a new phase, Google, Amazon and Netflix are projected to capture 50% of the global connected TV advertising market by 2030.

“The battle for the living room is no longer only about streaming content,” said Maria Rua Aguete, head of media and entertainment at Omdia. “It is increasingly about controlling the platform, the advertising layer, the operating system, the data and ultimately the consumer relationship.”

Aguete noted that television is becoming one of the most strategic gateways for digital advertising, retail media and commerce integration, with tech companies increasingly competing to control the TV interface itself.

The findings also highlight how the center of power in television is rapidly shifting away from traditional broadcasting toward streaming platforms, TV operating systems and advertising ecosystems. By the end of the decade Omdia reports that:

• Google is forecast to command 26% of global CTV advertising revenue.
• Amazon is expected to account for 13%.
• Netflix is projected to represent 9%.
• Combined, Google, Amazon, and Netflix will account for half of the entire global CTV advertising market by 2030.

The shift comes as media companies, streamers, retailers and technology giants race to secure premium positioning in connected households. Amazon is leveraging Prime Video and retail media integration to expand its TV advertising footprint, while Netflix continues to scale its advertising business globally through its ad-supported tier. Google remains dominant through YouTube’s massive connected TV reach and broader advertising infrastructure.

Omdia expects several trends to accelerate the transformation of television advertising over the next five years:

• Expansion of ad-supported streaming services
• Convergence of retail media and television advertising
• Growth in programmatic and targeted TV advertising
• Increasing importance of TV operating systems and smart TV ecosystems
• Greater competition for consumer attention and platform ownership

Omdia also revealed that the European TV operating system landscape is shifting rapidly. According to the research firm, VIDAA is becoming Europe’s third-largest TV operating system this year after Android TV and Tizen, overtaking several established competitors as manufacturers seek greater ownership of the smart TV experience.

“CTV companies are at risk of losing incredibly valued ground to these tech giants and many cannot afford to do so as the hardware business becomes increasingly unprofitable,” added David Tett, principal analyst at Omdia. “Strategies are needed to fight for their own advertising revenues in the new-look landscape and avoid ceding too much ground to players such as Google and Amazon.”

BURLINGTON, Mass. and SUNNYVALE, Calif.—Avid and Google Cloud have announced a multi-year strategic partnership to integrate generative and agentic AI into creative tools from Avid.

By embedding Google’s Gemini models and Vertex AI directly into Avid’s solutions, the two companies reported that they aim to transform video editing from a mostly manual process into an intelligent, AI-assisted experience, significantly reducing the time required for media discovery and production.

The integration will be on display during the 2026 NAB Show between April 18 and 22.

“Customers are asking for intelligent tools that plug into existing workflows and scale with their creativity,” said Wellford Dillard, chief executive officer, Avid. “This partnership with Google Cloud strengthens our ability to deliver secure, AI-driven innovation–while keeping Avid interoperable and adaptable across the broader production landscape. Through our collaboration with Google Cloud, Avid is redefining what’s possible in modern media production by expanding intelligent capabilities across our products.”

"By embedding agentic AI directly into the tools video editors live in, we’re moving beyond simple automation," added Anil Jain, global managing director, Strategic Industries, Google Cloud. "With Avid Media Composer and Google Cloud, an editor can now collaborate with an intelligent agent to create assets on the fly and handle the heavy lifting of matching styles and filling timelines, enabling them to focus on storytelling instead of infrastructure."

In announcing the integration, the two companies noted that as global demand for content increases, production teams face growing pressure to manage massive volumes of high-resolution media, while overcoming the limitations of legacy on-premises hardware.

To address these challenges, Avid is integrating Google Cloud’s AI and data analytics capabilities into two key areas of its technology stack: Media Composer, the industry-standard nonlinear editing system for professional film and TV; and Avid Content Core, a new cloud-native SaaS platform that serves as a unified, intelligent data layer for global media assets.

By leveraging Gemini and Vertex AI, these platforms can now analyze and understand media context automatically, allowing production teams to query content using natural language. It also enables agentic AI workflows – digital assistants capable of autonomously managing complex tasks, such as matching visual styles, identifying emotional cues in raw footage, and streamlining metadata logging.

Other key highlights include:

• Avid Content Core general availability: Now commercially available, this cloud-native platform acts as a unified data layer for global media. By leveraging Google Cloud’s BigQuery, Vision Warehouse, and Vertex AI Search, it transforms passive storage into an active library, allowing global creative teams to access and manage video files from anywhere.
• Gemini integration in Media Composer: Avid’s industry-standard editing system now features a multimodal extension powered by Gemini. This integration allows editors to streamline post-production – from intelligent metadata enhancement and automated logging to generating B-Roll –reducing the manual burden on creative teams.
• Agentic search and discovery: With Vertex AI and multimodal Gemini models on both platforms, the systems can understand the context of every file. Searching becomes a natural conversation where users describe what they need – based on visual actions, dialogue, or emotional cues – turning weeks of manual archive discovery into seconds of automated insight.

Avid and Google Cloud will demonstrate these new workflows at the NAB Show in Las Vegas (April 18-22, 2026). Visit the Google Cloud Booth (West Hall, #W2731) and the Avid Booth (North Hall #N2226) to see advanced media search and metadata management in action.

NEW YORK—Omnichannel outcomes platform Teads has partnered with Google TV to expand its connected TV (CTV) HomeScreen ad inventory.

The strategic partnership gives brands access to high-attention placements on connected television, appearing as the first visual impression on Google TV devices across major global markets, including the U.S. and U.K.

With Google TV Masthead, advertisers get access to a large, engaged audience in a premium viewing environment. Google TV brings together more than 400,000 movies and shows from across over 10,000 apps, so they’re in one place. With personalized profiles and recommendations, everyone’s experience is customized for them. These innovations make content discovery intuitive and conversational, creating a more valuable moment for HomeScreen placements.

"Our partnership with Google TV is designed first and foremost to drive impact for our clients,” said Simon Klein, senior vice president of Commercial Strategy CTV at Teads. “Google TV offers exceptional reach and premium supply, and by pairing that with Teads’ creative and omnichannel capabilities, we’re able to bring brands a unique entry point that doesn’t just reach viewers. It commands attention and delivers premium quality."

To help brands get the most value from premium placements, Teads pairs its media with the creative innovation of Teads Studio, its in-house team focused on optimizing storytelling across screens.

Since its launch in 2023, Teads has had more than 4,000 CTV HomeScreen campaigns successfully activated. HomeScreen inventory reaches more than 500 million unique devices, and campaigns have been run by premium brands globally, including Cartier, Nestlé and Air France.

More information is available on the company’s website.

Apple has announced a major upgrade to the Apple TV app for device owners outside the Apple ecosystem with news that the Apple TV app for Android now supports Google Cast.

The support means that subscribers to the streaming service can now stream their favorite entertainment from an Android phone directly to their TV.

The new feature allows Android phone owners to easily cast global hit Apple TV series like "Pluribus", award-winning comedies and dramas such as "Severance", "The Studio", "The Morning Show", and "Slow Horses".

User can also cast Apple Original Films’ summer blockbuster "F1 The Movie" and a wide range of live sports, including "Friday Night Baseball" doubleheaders, every Major League Soccer match, and Formula 1 races in the U.S.

To cast the content, user simply need to press play on a phone and tap the Cast icon.

WASHINGTON—The National Association of Broadcasters took aim at YouTube TV and its owner Google in a blog post for its “heavy hand in deciding what viewers can and cannot watch.”

Specifically, the Nov. 3 post by Michelle Lehman, NAB’s chief of staff and executive vice president of public affairs, objected to Google’s unwillingness “to fairly compensate ABC stations” for programming and to Big Tech’s market power, which gives it “enormous control” over what viewers can access.

Negotiations for a new carriage deal between YouTube TV and ABC parent Disney proved to be fruitless by the midnight Oct. 30 deadline for renewal. ABC, ESPN and other Disney-owned networks were dropped from the virtual multichannel video programming distributor’s lineup on Oct. 31. Google also is resisting Disney’s demand for price increases on other non-broadcast channels, such as ESPN, because it says increasing what it pays for the right to carry those channels will raise consumer prices.

As a result of the drop, Lehman said, YouTube TV subscribers who rely on local ABC stations for “important news, emergency information, entertainment and live sports” have been “in the lurch” and “at the mercy” of Google, which the blog said annually generates revenue totaling “hundreds of BILLIONs [blog’s all caps].”

The situation, she wrote, is reminiscent of last month’s retrans dispute with NBCUniversal, which nearly left YouTube TV subscribers without access to NBC stations and has shut them off from Univision stations.

The NAB executive vice president urged readers to act “before it’s too late” by reaching out to Washington to modernize broadcast ownership rules.

“[W]hen local broadcasters are sidelined, it is not just sports fans who lose. It is every community” that relies on broadcasters for emergency notifications, “fact-based news,” and a connection with others who reside there, she wrote.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. and LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK—LA28, Team USA and NBCUniversal have announced a wide-ranging sponsorship deal with Google that will make the tech giant a “founding partner” who will deliver consumer and enterprise solutions to enhance the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics experience for fans and athletes.

“This partnership is a testament to our commitment to innovation and delivering a technologically advanced, engaging and digitally accessible Games when we welcome the world in 2028,” said LA28 chairperson and president Casey Wasserman. “Google’s suite of products and tools will support our vision for uplifting the athlete, fan and workforce experience, and ultimately make it easier for attendees to navigate venues, share their experiences, and stay informed in real time.”

As part of the agreement, Google will be named as the Official Cloud Provider of the 2028 Summer Olympic Games. In addition, a wide range of Google technologies, including Google Search, Google Cloud and advanced AI tools like Gemini will be used by LA28, Team USA and NBCU to improve the fan experience for the games.

Using AI, NBCU and Google reported they will be providing fans with new ways to search for information during NBCUniversal’s coverage of the first Olympic and Paralympic Games in the U.S. in 26 years.

NBCUniversal will also partner with YouTube to provide fans with select content around the Games, serving as an extension of NBCUniversal’s coverage of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, they reported.

"With tools like Gemini and new Google Search features like AI Mode, it's easier than ever for people to find the information they’re looking for, no matter how simple or complex,” said Marvin Chow, vice president of marketing, Google. “Our partnership with LA28, Team USA, and NBCUniversal builds on our successful collaboration from last summer, making the Olympic and Paralympic Games more personal and interactive for fans with the help of AI.”

“For decades, Google has been a leading force in innovation and technology and now they are bringing that pioneering spirit to the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” added Mark Marshall, chairman, global advertising and partnerships, NBCUniversal. “Through this exciting new partnership, we will combine their cutting-edge technology with NBCU’s premium content and passionate community to deliver a world-class viewing experience for fans of all ages on all of our platforms.”

NEW YORK—After announcing a short-term deal earlier this week that kept NBC stations on YouTube TV, last night the two sides announced a new long-term distribution agreement that includes the revival of NBC Sports Network.

NBC Sports Network was a pay-TV television channel that originally started as the Outdoor Live Network in 1995 and was rebranded in 2012 after Comcast acquired NBC. It shut down at the end of 2021 after NBC announced that it would be moving much of its sports programming to the USA Network and its (then fledgling) Peacock streaming service.

NBCUniversal had hinted that it was considering launching a new sports network last July, according to a report in the Wall St. Journal.

The new network will be available on YouTube TV as part of NBCUniversal’s agreement with Google and will feature a “broad range” of NBCUniversal’s sports programming. NBCSN will complement the prominent sports properties presented year-round on the NBC broadcast network, NBCUniversal said. The agreement did not indicate which sports would be covered or where else the sports network would be carried.

“Our new agreement with Google is a clear win for both our business and our viewers – underscoring the enduring value of our must-see shows, films, sports, and live events while expanding our reach to even more audiences,” said Matt Schnaars, President of Platform Distribution & Partnerships at NBCUniversal. “We’ve secured long-term access to our full portfolio of broadcast and cable networks on YouTube TV, and we’re advancing our Peacock strategy with an upcoming launch on YouTube Primetime Channels and ongoing presence on Google TV. This agreement positions us for continued growth and reflects our commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment to fans across platforms.”

“This deal builds on our long-standing partnership with NBCU while addressing the evolving media landscape and recognizing the importance of making content available where and how viewers want to watch it,” said Justin Connolly, Vice President, Global Head of Media & Sports at YouTube. “We are pleased to have reached this agreement and look forward to continuing our partnership to serve billions of viewers around the world.”

Neither NBCUniversal or Google revealed how long the agreement was for. Other elements of this agreement include:

• A multi-year, long-term commitment for carriage of NBCUniversal’s full portfolio of networks on YouTube TV, including NBC, Telemundo, Bravo, CNBC, Golf Channel, E!, Oxygen True Crime, MSNBC, USA, Syfy and Universo;
• Peacock will be available in the coming months as a subscription through YouTube Primetime Channels;
• A long-term agreement for short-form clips, highlights and shows from NBCUniversal’s premium programming on YouTube;
• Films and TV shows from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment will continue to be available to buy or rent on Google TV, YouTube TV and YouTube, as well as iconic library films from NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution being available to stream via SVOD on YouTube Premium and AVOD through YouTube Free Primetime Content; and
• A multi-year extension of Peacock’s availability across Google's Android platforms, including Google Play and Google TV.

In a ruling that could have a major impact on the digital advertising market, a federal judge has ruled that Google has monopolized some types of advertising technologies in violation of U.S. antitrust laws and used that market power to illegally dominate the online ad market.

The U.S. Department of Justice and eight states filed the case against Google in January 2023. Eventually, nine more states, for a total of 17, joined the Justice Department in filing an amended complaint. They accused Google of illegally leveraging its control over various ad tech tools to unfairly favor its own products and harm competition. The ruling was made after a three-week bench trial.

“Plaintiffs have proven that Google has willfully engaged in a series of anticompetitive acts to acquire and maintain monopoly power in the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets for open-web display advertising,” Judge Leonie Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled in an April 17 opinion. “For over a decade, Google has tied its publisher ad server and ad exchange together through contractual policies and technological integration, which enabled the company to establish and protect its monopoly power in these two markets. Google further entrenched its monopoly power by imposing anticompetitive policies on its customers and eliminating desirable product features. In addition to depriving rivals of the ability to compete, this exclusionary conduct substantially harmed Google's publisher customers, the competitive process, and, ultimately, consumers of information on the open web. Accordingly, Google is liable under Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act.”

After the three-week bench trial and extensive post-trial filings, the Court did, however, reject one of the claims in the case, ruling that “Plaintiffs have failed to prove that there is a relevant market for open-web display advertiser ad networks.”

The ruling adds to the legal woes facing Google, which has dominated digital advertising in recent decades. Last August, Judge Amit P. Mehta of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that Google had abused a monopoly over the search business.

The rulings in those cases could lead to a breakup of Google, which is worth more than $1.8 trillion, and could lead to major changes in the online and digital advertising markets, which continue to grow at the expense of traditional media.

It is also part of increased regulatory pressure on “big tech” companies that includes a separate case against Facebook brought by the Federal Trade Commission that alleges Facebook operates an illegal monopoly. That antitrust case is currently being tried.

National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt applauded the ruling and expressed the organization’s hope that it might prompt action by the Federal Communications Commission to reduce regulations faced by broadcasters and create a more level playing field.

“Today’s decision affirms what local broadcasters and other publishers have long known: Google has used its dominance in the online advertising marketplace to disadvantage content creators and tilt the playing field,” LeGeyt said.

“We commend the Department of Justice for taking on this critical case," he continued. "As policymakers and regulators consider the implications of this ruling, we urge them to recognize that the same Big Tech dominance harming digital publishers is also undermining the advertising revenue local broadcasters rely on to serve their communities. We are encouraged that the FCC, under Chairman [Brendan] Carr’s leadership, is taking steps to modernize its rules and look forward to swift action that begins to level the competitive playing field.”

OTTAWA, Ontario, and GATINEAU, Quebec—In an important development in the ongoing battle to get tech giants to compensate news organizations for lost advertising, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) issued a decision that will pave the way for Google to contribute $C100 million ($71.85 million) annually to news organizations in that country.

Canada’s government in June of 2023 passed the Online News Act, a law intended to ensure that online platforms that make Canadian news content available fairly compensate Canadian news organizations. The CRTC, Canada’s national telecom regulator, was tasked with implementing the act, which came into force last Dec. 19.

The CRTC’s rule allows online platforms such as Google to request an exemption from a requirement to bargain with individual news outlets if they can reach terms with a group representing a broad range of Canadian news organizations. The CRTC must then hold a public consultation on any exemption request received.

In June 2024, Google applied for a five-year exemption from the act, which the CRTC said it has now approved. That arrangement requires Google to pay $71.85 million to the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC) within 60 days of this decision. The CJC will then distribute the funds equitably to eligible Canadian news organizations.

As part of the agreement, the CJC will report back to the CRTC each year.

Similar efforts to get tech giants like Google and Facebook to compensate news organizations for the content that produces billions of dollars in ad revenue for search engines and social media platforms have also been underway in Australia and the United States, with mixed results.

For several years, the National Association of Broadcasters has unsuccessfully urged Congress to pass the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA), a bipartisan bill that would give TV stations and other news publishers the power to collectively negotiate terms with Big Tech companies over how their content is used online.

California, where legislators were close to passing legislation modeled after the Canadian bill, negotiated a deal that would direct around $250 million over five years to local media in exchange for dropping the proposed law.

The agreement was widely attacked by the NAB, journalists and media industry experts for benefiting Google.

In September, NAB Senior Vice President of Communications Alex Siciliano said the “last-minute, closed-door deal between Google and the state of California has succeeded in shelving popular bipartisan state legislation that would have fairly compensated local newsrooms for their valuable journalism. This sets a dangerous precedent that could cripple trusted news outlets, and lets Big Tech off the hook as they continue to siphon advertising dollars away from local broadcast stations and other news publishers while not offering fair compensation for our content.”

In sharp contrast, reaction to the CRTC-Google agreement was mostly positive. News Media Canada, which represents hundreds of publishers, said in a statement that it is “very pleased,” the Financial Post reported.

The NAB is attacking a major deal between big tech companies and the state of California that it says “hurts local journalism” and “has succeeded in shelving popular bipartisan state legislation that would have fairly compensated local newsrooms for their valuable journalism.”

The deal will direct around $250 million over five years to local media, according to the Associated Press. But the first-in-the-nation deal has been called disappointing by journalists and media industry experts in that “it mostly benefits the tech giant,” Google, the AP reported.

“Not a single organization representing journalists and news workers agreed to this undemocratic and secretive deal with one of the businesses destroying our industry," The News Guilds unions said.  

Broadcasters and local media organizations have been pushing for legislation that would require tech giants like Google and Facebook to compensate them for their content, arguing that these tech giants have decimated the economics of local news media by siphoning off billions in search and social media ads.  

The NAB noted that a study by BIA estimates that broadcasters lose nearly $2 billion annually due to the use of their content by tech platforms like Google and Meta. Such problems could be further exacerbated in the future with the rise of AI tools that summarize news content, which would further reduce advertising and audiences for companies that produce news. 

In a blog post, Alex Siciliano, senior vice president, communications, NAB said the "last-minute closed door deal between Google and the state of California has succeeded in shelving popular bipartisan state legislation that would have fairly compensated local newsrooms for their valuable journalism. This sets a dangerous precedent that could cripple trusted news outlets, and lets Big Tech off the hook as they continue to siphon advertising dollars away from local broadcast stations and other news publishers while not offering fair compensation for our content.”

“Rather than right this wrong, California’s new deal continues to undercompensate journalists while sidestepping some of the biggest offenders like Meta,” the post noted. “It’s ironic that while this deal offers AI accelerator funds, it ignores the fact that Big Tech-backed AI platforms continue to ingest and profit from local news content without proper compensation or permission.”

The agreement also highlighted the importance of federal legislation on the issue. “The need for federal action is now more urgent than ever,” the blog post stressed. “It is past time for Congress to pass the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA), a bipartisan bill that would give broadcasters and other news publishers the power to come together and negotiate fair terms with Big Tech for how their content is used online.”

“The size of tech platforms like Amazon, Facebook and Google dwarfs local TV and radio stations,” the post said. “These tech giants act as gatekeepers of online content, controlling how consumers access news, and how news publishers are compensated for the use of our content. At the same time, they also siphon away advertising revenue that would otherwise be reinvested into local journalism. The platforms exploit their dominant market position, making it harder for broadcasters to sustain their operations while benefiting from the valuable content created by local stations.”

“The bipartisan JCPA will level the playing field, allowing TV and radio stations to continue their vital work in producing trusted, fact-based journalism,” the NAB concluded. “Local newsrooms need a level playing field to work with Big Tech. Congress needs to pass the JCPA – our democracy depends on it.”

NEW YORK—Google, Team USA and NBCUniversal have announced a sponsorship agreement naming Google as the Official Search AI Partner of Team USA. 

The agreement, which marks the first time the technology company has entered into a partnership with Team USA, means that Google search and other AI-powered features will be used to highlight athlete stories and enhance NBCU’s Olympic Games coverage

"We are thrilled to announce Team USA's partnership with Google," said Sarah Hirshland, CEO, U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. “This collaboration is more than just a sponsorship; it’s a powerful alliance that brings together the best of technology and sports. By working with Google and NBCUniversal, we are ensuring that our athletes' stories are told in the most dynamic and engaging ways possible. This partnership will inspire millions and amplify the incredible efforts of Team USA as they compete on the world stage."

Along with its partnership with Team USA, Google said it will be working with NBCUniversal to bring athlete stories and the competitions of the Paris Games to life by seamlessly integrating sponsored content formats – including ways to search and explore the Olympic & Paralympic Games with Google Search and related AI features – within NBCUniversal’s extensive coverage. NBCUniversal’s content will leverage Google’s suite of consumer apps products, including Search, Maps and Gemini, and other features. These include: 

• Explain the Games with Google: NBCUniversal has created “Explain the Games,” which will showcase Google Search’s AI Overviews and be used by NBCUniversal’s award-winning production team and commentators during daytime and primetime coverage across all of NBCUniversal’s Olympic linear networks and Peacock. NBCUniversal commentators will demonstrate how AI Overviews in Google Search can help viewers explore and understand their questions about the Olympic and Paralympic Games in a single search, like the importance of lane assignments in swimming. Explain the Games will extend to NBCUniversal’s social media accounts, further amplifying its reach while anticipating Olympic and Paralympic enthusiasts’ most pressing questions. 
• Try it with Google Gemini: During NBCUniversal’s coverage of the Paris Games, viewers will be able to follow Leslie Jones, Chief Superfan Commentator, as she follows the Olympic Games with the help of Gemini, Google’s creative collaborator and AI Assistant. Jones will use Gemini to come up with custom moves or learn a new sport, while entertaining and sharing knowledge with fans across NBCU’s networks and Peacock.
• One Day in Paris: Paris sets the stage for this year's Olympic and Paralympic Games, with iconic landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Stade Roland Garros serving as breathtaking venues for competitions. Through this partnership, five Olympians and Paralympians will be featured in social videos and late-night promos as they explore the host city based on their individual interests, aided by Google Lens, Circle to Search, Immersive View in Google Maps and Gemini, highlighting their AI-powered features. 
• Enhanced 3D Broadcasts: NBCUniversal’s Paris 2024 audience will see immersive views of iconic Olympic venues in Paris, like Versailles, Stade Roland Garros and the Aquatics Centre provided by Google Maps Platform’s Photorealistic 3D Tiles, which enables viewers to see locations around the world in 3D.

“We are very excited to be partnering with Google to deliver innovative, highly engaging elements that will enhance the coverage of the Paris Games for our audiences and make every viewer feel as though they are on the ground in Paris,” said Dan Lovinger, president of Olympic & Paralympic Partnerships, NBCUniversal. “This one-of-a-kind partnership demonstrates the endless possibilities when you combine innovative technology with premium content to enhance the viewing experience for fans of all ages.”

Our partnership with Team USA and NBCUniversal during the Olympic & Paralympic Games provides an incredible stage to showcase how Google’s helpful everyday products like Google Search and Google Maps, and newer innovations like Gemini, are using AI to help fans explore, learn and connect with the Games,” said Marvin Chow, vice president of marketing, Google.

Missed any of our product coverage during your busy week? The TV Tech weekly product and services news wrap-up provides links to all of our coverage from May 13 to May 17, with the most recent news listed first, day by day from Friday back to Monday. 

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In a notable development in the industry-wide effort to address privacy concerns while improving efficacy of marketing efforts in a cookieless ad landscape, IAB Tech Lab has launched IAB Tech Lab PAIR.

The solution is based on Google's PAIR protocol and the IAB Tech Lab Privacy Enhancing Technology Working Group initiatives.

This protocol leverages first-party audience data, allowing advertisers and publishers to maintain full control of their data while achieving personalized and accurate targeting. By using data clean rooms and encryption, PAIR enables privacy-safe data matching, supporting secure programmatic transactions.

For the new solution Google contributed its PAIR protocol to IAB Tech Lab for further development as part of an effort to promote a unified standard for the industry and to enhance the confidence of advertisers and publishers in utilizing their first-party data. 

The PAIR protocol will be overseen by the Privacy and Addressability working group, aligning with OPJA to create a standardized and scalable approach for the industry.

More information on the launch and IAB Tech Lab PAIR is available here.

CINCINNATI—As part of an effort by E.W. Scripps and Google to retrain print journalists for work in video-driven media, the E.W. Scripps Company has announced that it has placed 13 veteran print journalists across its local and national newsrooms at its local TV stations and national news network Scripps News. 

The journalists are the second cohort of Scripps' Google-backed Journalism Journey Initiative, which aims to recruit mid-career journalists and managers in the industry and redeploy their reporting skills for video-driven reporting platforms.

Scripps launched the Journalism Journey Initiative – for which Google has made a multiyear financial commitment to Scripps to underwrite – with the first cohort of six journalists in 2023. After a successful first year of the program, Scripps is expanding the program by funding an additional seven journalists for 2024.

“Year one of the Journalism Journey Initiative at Scripps saw the first group of journalists producing essential coverage, including reporting that led to changes in laws, exposed wrongdoing and went in depth on important local and national issues,” said Jim Iovino, program director for the Scripps Journalism Journey Initiative. “Their success is a testament to the incredible amount of expertise in local print newsrooms around the country and what can happen when video-driven newsrooms harness that talent to help tell stories that need to be told. 

“It’s why Scripps has made the investment to expand the number of journalists we can help transition from print-to-video reporting, he continued. “These 13 journalists have the fundamentals, and we’ll be giving them the tools they need to connect with their audiences and communities on visual-based platforms.”

The JJI program will provide extensive training and support, including mentoring, skill development and individual talent coaching. Journalists will be based out of Scripps’ local television stations across the country and national news network Scripps News.

Scripps’ Journalism Journey Initiative second journalist cohort (2024-2025) includes: 

• Jasmin Barmore is a neighborhood and community journalist whose work has made national headlines and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Barmore most recently reported for The Detroit Free Press and holds bylines with The Detroit News, BET and The New York Times. She will be working for Scripps’ Detroit ABC affiliate, WXYZ.
• Manuelita Beck has 18 years of experience in digital transformation and content strategy. Beck was most recently the politics editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer. Previously, she spent seven years at Gannett in several editing and digital roles at the Arizona Republic, USA Today and IndyStar.com. A New Mexico native and Latina, Beck is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and is Tábąąhá (Water’s Edge Clan). Beck will work at KNXV, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Phoenix.
• Maki Becker was born in Japan, grew up in California and has lived around the country, but Buffalo, New York, has become her hometown. Becker has been on The Buffalo News staff since 2005. She previously worked at the New York Daily News and The Charlotte Observer. She was also a stringer at the Los Angeles Times. Becker will work at WKBW, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Buffalo.
• Keith BieryGolick has spent a decade reporting in Cincinnati. In 2018, he was part of a team of reporters that won a Pulitzer Prize for their examination of the region’s opioid epidemic. BieryGolick will work at WCPO, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Cincinnati.
• Edward Celaya worked previously at the Arizona Daily Star. He started his career as an opinion and editorial writer, covered breaking news and helped develop the first full-time cannabis beat at a major newspaper in Arizona. Celaya will be joining the team at KGUN9, the Scripps ABC affiliate in Tucson, Arizona.
• Jennifer Glenfield previously worked for the Tampa Bay Times. As the senior video producer, Glenfield earned a Suncoast Regional Emmy for a digital video series focused on history and culture and was part of the multimedia teams on two Pulitzer Prize-winning investigations. She previously covered social justice issues with Univision’s Fusion Media Group. Glenfield will be joining Scripps News.
• Craig Harris will begin his 33rd year in journalism in 2024. He most recently was editor of the startup The Coronado News, which won two national awards for its investigation of the Tijuana sewage crisis. Harris has worked at seven daily newspapers, including USA TODAY and The Arizona Republic, where he was a two-time Polk Award winner and was among the lead writers when The Republic was twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in breaking news. Harris will work at KGTV, Scripps’ ABC station in San Diego.
• Michelle Jarboe has written extensively about real estate and economic development. She previously worked as an enterprise reporter for Crain’s Cleveland Business. Before joining Crain’s, she covered real estate for The Plain Dealer newspaper in Cleveland for more than a decade. She will work at WEWS, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Cleveland.
• Maria Morales comes from Baltimore Sun Media, where she was a senior content editor. She previously reported on race, culture and social justice issues for The Crisis Magazine and The Afro-American Newspaper. Her work has been published in The New York Times, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Los Angeles Business Journal, The Press-Enterprise and a host of magazines. Morales will work at WMAR, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Baltimore.
• Steve Sebelius was most recently the politics and government editor for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, where he also wrote a weekly political column. He’s also been editor of Las Vegas CityLife, at the time the oldest alternative newsweekly in Las Vegas. Sebelius will work at KTNV, the Scripps ABC affiliate in Las Vegas.
• Taylor Stevens’ career has taken her from homeless camps in Phoenix, Arizona, to the banks of the Great Salt Lake and into southern Mexico to report on the immigration crisis. She recently spent a year and a half working as a freelancer with The Associated Press’ Global Investigations Team on a national project focused on policing practices. She will work as an investigative reporter at KSTU, Scripps’ FOX affiliate in her hometown of Salt Lake City.
• Kadia Tubman is the former managing editor for diversity, equity and inclusion for Insider’s global newsroom. Prior to joining Insider’s editorial leadership team, Tubman was a senior news editor guiding Insider’s breaking news coverage between New York, London and Los Angeles on weekends. Before Insider, she was a national politics reporter at Yahoo News and a Reuters journalist fellow at the University of Oxford. Tubman will join Scripps News.
• Harm Venhuizen most recently worked at The Associated Press, where he was a Report for America corps member covering Wisconsin state government with an emphasis on elections and voting rights. He previously reported on the U.S. military for Military Times. Venhuizen will continue covering Wisconsin politics for TMJ4 and WGBA, Scripps’ NBC affiliates in Milwaukee and Green Bay.

NEW YORK—A panel of the National Advertising Review Board (NARB), the appellate advertising body of BBB National Programs for industry self regulation, recommended that Google, LLC discontinue the claim that its YouTube TV service is “$600 less than cable.”

The advertising had been challenged by Charter Communications, Inc. in a National Advertising Division’s (NAD) Fast-Track SWIFT challenge. Following NAD’s decision (Case No. 7233), Google appealed NAD’s recommendation to discontinue the challenged advertising claim.

In explaining its ruling the NARB noted that the challenged “$600 less than cable” claim, was accompanied by a disclosure identifying “comparable standalone cable” as the basis of comparison. The price calculation underlying the challenged claim included the cost of two set-top boxes per household for “standalone cable” services.

The NARB panel determined that the commercial disclosures were not clear and conspicuous.

Further, in agreement with NAD, the NARB panel concluded that at least one reasonable interpretation of the challenged claim is that YouTube TV is $600 less than any comparable service available from companies traditionally associated with cable services. 

The NARB ruled that this comparison does not align with the challenged claim because many households can subscribe to basic Spectrum service without renting cable boxes. Also, in certain markets, cable providers offer regional sports networks (RSNs) but YouTube does not, therefore Google did not have a valid reason for adding the cost of Spectrum’s Sports View option to the price comparison.

For these reasons, the NARB panel adopted NAD’s recommendation that Google discontinue the claim that its YouTube TV service is “$600 less than cable.”

Google stated that it “disagrees with NARB’s determination that people watching the challenged commercials will somehow understand ‘cable’ to mean something other than traditional cable television,” however it “intends to modify or cease the disputed advertising claim.” Google further stated that, at a later date it “may reconsider the claim based on updated information.”

The National Advertising Review Board (NARB) is the appellate body for BBB National Programs’ advertising self-regulatory programs. NARB’s panel members include 85 volunteer professionals from the national advertising industry, agencies, and public members, such as academics and former members of the public sector.

DENVER—Imagine Communications has partnered with Google Ad Manager to empower broadcasters and TV operators with the ability to offer seamless cross-platform campaigns while ensuring consistent ad placement across all delivery platforms, including linear, over the air or internet-streamed CTV.

Imagine Communications will offer IBC2023 attendees a firsthand glimpse of the fruits of the partnership, Sept. 15-18, at RAI Amsterdam.

The partnership also introduces programmatic capabilities that complement direct ad sales to optimize yield and enhance ad sales efficiency, Imagine said.

The synergy of the two companies will help bridge the gap between traditional linear TV direct sales and the programmatic sales world of streaming CTV, it said.

Imagine’s SureFire video ad server brings ad routing to Google Ad Manager, which allows media companies to tap into Ad Manager’s streaming demand management capabilities to enable direct and programmatic ads across all deal types, including direct sold/programmatic, private marketplace deals and RTB, it said.

This integration makes it possible for broadcasters and TV operators to fill unsold inventory and dynamically allocate portions of the ad inventory to maximize fill while maintaining a quality viewing experience, it said.

SureFire offers APIs and integration points to enable implementation regardless of the sales, order management and traffic solutions preferred by TV operators, it said.

"Imagine Communications is expanding cross-platform ad management solutions to help broadcasters and media companies unify TV ad sales and deliver all the attributes advertisers love about traditional Linear TV onto CTV platforms,” said Rob Malcolm, general manager of ad tech at Imagine Communications. "Our partnership with Google Ad Manager underscores this commitment, as we revolutionize not only direct sold placement, but add programmatic capabilities to meet the evolving media landscape."

See Imagine Communications at IBC2023 Stand 2.A15.

More information is available on the company’s website. 

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Following a decision by Meta to block Canadian news on its Facebook and Instagram platforms, the National Association of Broadcasters and the Canadian Association of Broadcasters have joined with other critics to condemn the blackout as an example of Meta’s “monopolistic” power.

The dispute revolves around the recent passage of passage of Canada’s Online News Act which requires tech giants like Meta and Google to negotiate with producers of news content and potential pay for that content. In response to the law Meta announced on Monday July 31 that it would be removing Canadian news from its popular Facebook and Instagram sites. 

The decision drew immediate condemnation by Canada’s public broadcaster, the CBC, who issued a statement saying “Meta’s move to deny Canadians access to domestic sources of trusted news and verified information…is irresponsible and an abuse of their market power.”

In a joint statement on August 4, NAB president and CEO Curtis LeGeyt and CAB president Kevin Desjardins also blasted the blackout. 

“As national associations representing broadcasters in the U.S. and Canada, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) strongly urge lawmakers to support legislation that enables news providers to negotiate with dominant digital platforms for fair terms and conditions when our content appears on their platforms,” they said. 

“Meta – a nearly trillion-dollar company – repeatedly chooses to restrict news content for its users to avoid compensating news producers for the value it gains on their vital journalism,” they said. “These retaliatory tactics demonstrate Meta’s monopolistic dominance over the advertising marketplace and its ability to dictate how radio and TV broadcasters, newspapers and others can reach audiences online. Rather than working to ensure its users have access to trusted news and information, Meta is holding news content on its platform hostage.”

“Policymakers should not reward Meta’s coercive behavior,” they concluded. “At a time when misinformation, disinformation and AI-generated content proliferate online, the future of democracy relies on the accessibility of fact-based, trustworthy journalism.”

Tech giants who have been able to use news content for free in their search engines and social media platforms to help build businesses valued at hundreds of billions of dollars have furiously attacked the Canadian law and threatened to remove news content rather than pay for it. 

Both Meta and Google have threatened to remove the content, though only Meta has started the process of removing it. 

Prior to the passage of the Canadian law this summer, Australia passed legislation in 2021 forcing Facebook and Google to pay for the content on their platforms. 

In the U.S., legislation has been introduced in Congress and in California to force large tech companies like Google and Meta to pay for news content but these proposals have not been passed into law.

Canada’s public broadcaster, CBC/Radio-Canada, has issued a public statement blasting Meta for its decision to block Canadian news content on its Facebook and Instagram social media platforms in Canada, calling the decision “unjust” and “an abuse of their market power.”

In June, the Canadian parliament passed the Online News Act, which requires tech giants like Meta and Google to negotiate deals for news content.

Tech giants who have been able to use news content for free in their search engines and social media platforms to help build businesses valued at hundreds of billions of dollars have furiously attacked the law and threatened to remove news content rather than pay for it. Both Google and Meta have said they will remove the content.  

On August 1, Meta announced that it would begin a process to block Canadian news content from their Facebook and Instagram platforms in Canada. The changes are expected to roll out over the new few weeks. 

“Today we've begun the process of ending news availability in Canada. Changes will roll out over a few weeks,” a Meta spokesperson posted on the X (formerly Twitter) platform. “As we've always said, the law is based on a fundamentally flawed premise. And, regrettably, the only way we can reasonably comply is to end news availability in Canada.”

In response, the CBC said “this means that people in Canada who have come to rely on these platforms to find and access news and information about their country are now left with only unverified sources in their feeds. This problem is particularly acute in Canada’s North, for Francophones in minority language communities, and for people in rural communities who depend more on Facebook for news.” 

“Meta’s move to deny Canadians access to domestic sources of trusted news and verified information — especially at a time when Canadians are depending on it to stay safe from the harmful effects of unprecedented weather events across much of the country — is irresponsible and an abuse of their market power,” the CBC continued. “CBC/Radio-Canada joins all Canadian media organizations who are calling on Meta to act responsibly by restoring Canadians’ access to news — all news, from all outlets, both public and private — and by negotiating with Canadian media organizations to compensate them for their news content.”

In the U.S., legislation has been introduced in Congress and in California to force large tech companies like Google and Meta to pay for news content but have not been passed into law. 

For users who want to avoid lots of ads on YouTube, Google has hiked the price of its ad-free YouTube Premium subscription service by $2 a month to $13.99 for new and existing customers. 

That’s a 16.7% increase but it is the first price increase for the ad-free option since 2018. 

At the same time, Google is also increasing the price of YouTube Premium Music by $1 to $10.99. 

“We’re updating the price for YouTube Premium and YouTube Music Premium subscribers in the US to continue delivering great service and features,” Google said in a statement to 9to5Google. “We believe this new price reflects the value of YouTube Premium which allows subscribers to enjoy ad-free YouTube with background and offline play and uninterrupted access to over 100M songs with the YouTube Music app.”

Ten years after it launched its Chromecast streaming stick, Google has announced that it will no longer support the first generation dongle that retailed for $35. 

According to a notice posted on the Google website at the end of April, "support for Chromecast (1st gen) has ended, which means these devices no longer receive software or security updates, and Google does not provide technical support for them. Users may notice a degradation in performance." 

Chromecast, which unlike its competitors Apple TV and Amazon’s Fire TV Stick TV, simply streamcasted from PCs or laptops to a TV’s HDMI port and did not house streaming apps like Netflix or YouTube. Three generations of Chromecast—the original from 2013 and updates in 2015 (its first 4K version) and 2018—were released and Google reportedly shipped 55 million by 2017.

A new version “Chomecast with Google TV” was launched in 2020 and—like a Fire TV stick, sports its own UI offering the usual lineup of apps and a remote control. That device, which is still supported, runs on the Android TV OS.

BELLEVUE, Wash.—As part of an agreement with Google to better measure the incremental reach of ad campaigns on YouTube and YouTube TV, iSpot has announced that it has completed a critical phase of its integration with Google’s Ads Data Hub for Measurement Partners. 

During the integration, iSpot worked with 11 advertisers across dozens of campaigns in a pilot program that allowed iSpot and YouTube’s customers to quantify the unique reach and value YouTube properties deliver in the context of their overall media investments.

Starting July 5th, iSpot customers will have the ability to enable the new cross-platform features directly within the iSpot Unified Measurement platform. The enhancements will give customers the ability to evaluate the total ad impressions and deduplicated audience for YouTube and YouTube TV across connected TV and linear TV, including co-viewing, as well as ad exposures on computer and mobile devices, iSpot reported. 

The integration builds on Google’s October 2022 announcement naming iSpot as a partner for its Ads Data Hub for Measurement Partners. That announcement also unveiled plans for future integration into iSpot’s Unified Measurement platform, which brings together second-by-second advertising measurement, ad-level reach, frequency and the ability to show incrementality for ad campaigns across 900 streaming publishers and TV. 

“YouTube and YouTube TV are a significant part of the ad-supported landscape and provide advertisers substantial audience reach, ranging from people who are unreachable on linear TV to those with much overlap with other platforms and publishers,” said iSpot CEO Sean Muller. “Unified Measurement integration will give brands the power to know the difference and invest with confidence across the TV and streaming landscape.”

iSpot also reported that it will continue to develop more granular audience demographic breakdowns for YouTube and YouTube TV viewership for linear TV, connected TV, computer and mobile ahead the next cycle of upfront discussions.

NEW YORK—The advanced TV ad platform Cadent has announced a new clean room integration with Google Cloud that will improve workflows for clients while ensuring privacy, with controls in place for data storage and movement. 

“Given our partnership and shared clients, it’s fitting that Google is our first partner to join our clean room integration marketplace for advertisers,” said Mari Tangredi, senior vice president, audience solutions, at Cadent. “As an independent platform, Cadent integrates with best-in-class partners to provide our clients with the interoperability they need for a seamless experience.”

The partnership will expand Cadent's integrations across the advanced TV ecosystem, creating new opportunities for advertisers at a time when anti-tracking changes and channel fragmentation are making it harder to execute comprehensive, targeted TV ad strategies.

Being a Google Cloud Build Partner will allow the Cadent Aperture Platform to provide the access and interoperability that clients need to onboard, build and deploy audiences for activation anywhere, at scale, in a fully secure environment, the companies said. 

In addition, Cadent’s Aperture Audience Studio and Viewer Graph combined with Google Cloud and Clean Room infrastructure allows shared major broadcast media and national programmer clients to onboard, build and deploy audiences to Google Ad Manager or other platforms in a privacy-preserving manner. 

More information about the Cadent Aperture Platform is available here.   

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Department of Justice and the Attorneys Generals of California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia, have filed a civil antitrust suit against Google accusing the tech giant of monopolizing multiple digital advertising technology products in violation of Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the complaint alleges that Google monopolizes key digital advertising technologies that website publishers depend on to sell ads and that advertisers rely on to buy ads and reach potential customers. 

If successful, the complaint could have an important impact on the rapidly growing digital advertising business local broadcasters and media companies are trying to build. 

“For years, broadcasters have been sounding the alarm over the anti-competitive practices of the Big Tech platforms, including Google," an NAB spokesperson said in response to the suit. "Their dominant role in the marketplace has come at a steep price for local news broadcasters, who lose an estimated $2 billion annually by providing their content to these platforms under ‘take it or leave it’ terms. We continue to work with our congressional allies to address these inequities and urge Congress to move swiftly to level the playing field.”

As a result of its illegal monopoly, the Department of Justice (DoJ) claims that Google pockets on average more than 30% of the advertising dollars that flow through its digital advertising technology products; for some transactions and for certain publishers and advertisers, it takes far more.

The complaint alleges that over the past 15 years, Google has engaged in a course of anticompetitive and exclusionary conduct that consisted of neutralizing or eliminating ad tech competitors through acquisitions; wielding its dominance across digital advertising markets to force more publishers and advertisers to use its products; and thwarting the ability to use competing products. In doing so, Google cemented its dominance in tools relied on by website publishers and online advertisers, as well as the digital advertising exchange that runs ad auctions, the DoJ said. 

“Today’s complaint alleges that Google has used anticompetitive, exclusionary, and unlawful conduct to eliminate or severely diminish any threat to its dominance over digital advertising technologies,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “No matter the industry and no matter the company, the Justice Department will vigorously enforce our antitrust laws to protect consumers, safeguard competition, and ensure economic fairness and opportunity for all.”

As a result of the alleged anti-trust violations, the DoJ noted that Google now controls the digital tool that nearly every major website publisher uses to sell ads on their websites (publisher ad server); it controls the dominant advertiser tool that helps millions of large and small advertisers buy ad inventory (advertiser ad network); and it controls the largest advertising exchange (ad exchange), a technology that runs real-time auctions to match buyers and sellers of online advertising.

In response to the lawsuit, Google told CNN said the DOJ suit “attempts to pick winners and losers in the highly competitive advertising technology sector.”

“DOJ is doubling down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow,” a Google spokesperson told CNN. 

CNN also reported that a federal judge last year knocked down a claim that Google colluded with Facebook in a separate antitrust suit led by the state of Texas. That judge also ruled, however, that a number of monopolization claims in the Texas case could move forward.

More specifically the new anti-trust lawsuit accused Google of these anticompetitive activities: 

• Acquiring Competitors: Engaging in a pattern of acquisitions to obtain control over key digital advertising tools used by website publishers to sell advertising space;
• Forcing Adoption of Google’s Tools: Locking in website publishers to its newly-acquired tools by restricting its unique, must-have advertiser demand to its ad exchange, and in turn, conditioning effective real-time access to its ad exchange on the use of its publisher ad server;
• Distorting Auction Competition: Limiting real-time bidding on publisher inventory to its ad exchange, and impeding rival ad exchanges’ ability to compete on the same terms as Google’s ad exchange; and
• Auction Manipulation: Manipulating auction mechanics across several of its products to insulate Google from competition, deprive rivals of scale, and halt the rise of rival technologies.
• As a result of its illegal monopoly, and by its own estimates, Google pockets on average more than 30% of the advertising dollars that flow through its digital advertising technology products; for some transactions and for certain publishers and advertisers, it takes far more. Google’s anticompetitive conduct has suppressed alternative technologies, hindering their adoption by publishers, advertisers, and rivals, the DoJ said. 

To redress Google’s anticompetitive conduct, the Department seeks both equitable relief on behalf of the American public as well as treble damages for losses sustained by federal government agencies that overpaid for web display advertising. This enforcement action marks the first monopolization case in approximately half a century in which the Department has sought damages for a civil antitrust violation, the DoJ said. 

In 2020, the Justice Department filed a civil antitrust suit against Google for monopolizing search and search advertising, which are different markets from the digital advertising technology markets at issue in the lawsuit filed today. The Google search litigation is scheduled for trial in September 2023.

CINCINNATI—As part of an effort to improve local journalism and retrain print journalists for work on video-driven platforms, The E.W. Scripps Company has announced that six veteran print journalists across its local and national media newsrooms will join the Google-backed Journalism Journey Initiative in its inaugural class. 

The Journalism Journey Initiatives aims to retain accomplished journalists in the industry by redeploying their reporting skills for video-driven reporting platforms.

Google has made a financial commitment to Scripps to underwrite the newly created program.

These journalists will combine their existing reporting skills with new video-driven storytelling techniques provided by the Journalism Journey Initiative while working in Scripps’ local and national newsrooms across the country. The two-year JJI program will provide extensive training and support, including mentoring, skill development and individual talent coaching.

“These six journalists have decades of experience in the fundamentals of journalism – from identifying stories and responsibly sourcing them to the rigorous fact checking and editing process this profession demands,” said Jim Iovino, program director for the Scripps Journalism Journey Initiative. “They will work alongside peers within Scripps’ newsrooms during their two years in our JJI cohort and beyond in order to bring their essential reporting skills to the growing and diverse audiences using video-based platforms as their primary source of news and information.”

The inaugural class of Journalism Journey Initiative journalists are: 

• Angelika Albaladejo is an award-winning investigative journalist whose work has been published by outlets including USA Today, the Guardian, Univision, CNN, the Miami Herald and Mother Jones. She previously reported on immigration and criminal justice for the nonprofit newsroom Capital & Main and has also served as an independent foreign correspondent in Latin America. Albaladejo has been a fellow with the Fund for Investigative Journalism and the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism. Albaladejo will work at KMGH, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Denver.
• Mary Chao most recently covered Asian-American issues and real estate for The Bergen (New Jersey) Record (NorthJersey.com). An award-winning print and multimedia journalist of 25 years, Chao is a longtime business reporter who has served as an opinion columnist, editorial board member, enterprise and investigative reporter, community connector and diversity leader. She is a first-generation college graduate – of New York University – and English language learner immigrant from Taipei, Taiwan. Chao will work at Scripps News out of New York and New Jersey.
• Jessica De Leon has worked for the Bradenton Herald for nearly a decade covering law enforcement, crime, court cases and breaking news – from hurricanes and protests to the COVID-19 pandemic. De Leon’s work has won numerous awards from the Florida Press Club, Florida Society of Journalists and the Florida Society of News Editors. De Leon also helped lead the effort to unionize the Bradenton Herald newsroom and successfully negotiated a collective bargaining agreement for the Bradenton Herald NewsGuild. Born in Houston, Texas, to Cuban parents and raised in South Florida, she is a proud first-generation Cuban-American. De Leon will be based at WFTS, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Tampa.
• Bryan Horwath is a newspaper reporter and editor with 15 years of experience at media outlets across the U.S. He was most recently a business editor at the Las Vegas Sun. Horwath is active in the Society of Professional Journalists and serves as a board member for its Las Vegas chapter. Horwath will work at KTNV, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Las Vegas.
• Daniel Lathrop is an experienced investigative reporter whose writing and data journalism has been published in the New York Times, USA Today and news outlets across the country. He has reported for The Dallas Morning News, Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Center for Public Integrity. Prior to joining Scripps, he was an investigative projects reporter at the Des Moines Register. He is an author of two books and a former professor of media informatics. Lathrop will work at Scripps News out of Iowa.
• Anne Ryman has reported for Arizona newspapers for 30 years with a track record of prompting significant policy changes through her investigations. She has been part of several award-winning reporting teams at The Arizona Republic, including its 2018 Pulitzer Prize for “The Wall: Unknown stories, Unintended consequences” about the planned 2,000-mile wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and its 2018 George Polk Award for revealing how Arizona allows charter-school operators to make huge profits off public education dollars. She will be based at KNXV, Scripps’ ABC affiliate in Phoenix.

The Journalism Journey Initiative will be recruiting a second cohort later this year. Interested journalists can request more information here.

NEW YORK—After a heated bidding war for NFL Sunday Ticket between major streaming players, the NFL and Google have inked a multiyear deal reportedly valued at $2 billion a year for NFL Sunday Ticket to be offered on YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels.

The deal marks a major shift in sports rights from TV networks and pay TV operations to streaming. The much delayed announcement came after a long bidding war between Amazon, Apple and Google. 

Last summer, the NFL had indicated the rights would likely go to a streaming service.  Apple had originally been seen as the leading contender but dropped out last week. 

As a result of the deal, the rights to all out of market Sunday afternoon NFL games available in the NFL Sunday Ticket package, which had long been monopolized by satellite provider DirecTV, will now be streamed on YouTube TV & YouTube Primetime Channels.

DirecTV had been paying about $1.5 billion a year for rights to the package. Its contract is ending this season.

"We’re excited to bring NFL Sunday Ticket to YouTube TV and YouTube Primetime Channels and usher in a new era of how fans across the United States watch and follow the NFL," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. "For a number of years we have been focused on increased digital distribution of our games and this partnership is yet another example of us looking towards the future and building the next generation of NFL fans."

“YouTube has long been a home for football fans, whether they’re streaming live games, keeping up with their home team, or watching the best plays in highlights,” said Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube. “Through this expanded partnership with the NFL, viewers will now also be able to experience the game they love in compelling and innovative ways through YouTube TV or YouTube Primetime Channels. We’re excited to continue our work with the NFL to make YouTube a great place for sports lovers everywhere.”

Starting next season, NFL Sunday Ticket will be available on two of YouTube’s businesses as an add-on package on YouTube TV and standalone a-la-carte on YouTube Primetime Channels, the league reported. 

No details on pricing are yet available. Updated NFL Sunday Ticket product features and functionality will be announced ahead of the 2023 NFL season, YouTube said. 

The NFL Sunday Ticket offers all out-of-market Sunday regular-season NFL games (based on viewer's location) broadcast on Fox and CBS and allows U.S. fans to follow all their favorite teams and players no matter where they live. 

NFL Sunday Ticket launched in 1994 and has been distributed on DirecTV’s satellite service since its inception. 

The deal builds on a relationship between the NFL and Google since the League first launched its official NFL channel on YouTube in 2015. Since then, the NFL YouTube channel has grown to more than 10 million subscribers who enjoy clips, highlights, game-day compilations and exclusive original content series like NFL Follies and NFL Film’s two-time Emmy winning flagship series Gameday All-Access, a mic’d up players show bringing fans inside the huddle and on the sidelines for exclusive access during the game.

Since 2015, the NFL’s presence on YouTube has increased to include channels for all 32 NFL clubs, as well as ten official League channels including NFL Films, NFL Network and the NFL’s Hispanic channel, Mundo NFL. Since the start of the NFL/YouTube partnership, NFL content on YouTube has generated billions of views.

In 2020, the NFL expanded its partnership with a carriage agreement to bring NFL Network and NFL RedZone to YouTube TV subscribers. Under the expanded relationship, the carriage agreement has been extended.

The companies also noted that this new agreement will also see them work more closely together in international markets. This will include increased content on the NFL channel, the creation of a bespoke NFL International show available on the YouTube platform and the creation of a creator content program for select top YouTube creators globally.

Additionally, as part of the agreement, YouTube and the NFL will facilitate exclusive access to official content and attendance opportunities for select YouTube Creators at key NFL tentpole events. 

YouTube is now also the presenting sponsor of both Back Together Saturday as well as NFL Kickoff Weekend. Back Together Saturday is the League’s official start to training camp when all 32 NFL clubs hold practices with club-led fan events. YouTube’s presenting sponsorship of NFL Kickoff Weekend marks the first time a League partner will have a presence from the kickoff of the season on Thursday night through the weekend games and Monday night.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Amid longstanding worries that the elimination of third-party cookies could have a major impact on the digital ad industry, the NAB and Borrell Associates have released a new study that estimates the broadcast television and radio industry would lose $2.1 billion in digital advertising revenue annually, representing 6.3% of the industry’s total advertising revenue, if third-party cookies were eliminated today with no privacy-preserving alternatives. 

Google has said that it will begin phasing out third-party cookies that have traditionally been used to track online behavior in its web browser Chrome in the second half of 2024. 

Borrell Associates president Jim Brown presented the study, commissioned by the National Association of Broadcasters' (NAB) innovation wing PILOT, at NAB Show New York.

The study, "State of the Industry Report: What The Loss Of Third-Party Cookies Means For Broadcasters," examined the phase-out of third-party tracking cookies used in digital advertising to estimate the financial impact on broadcasting. 

The research used interviews with broadcast executives and an online survey of 54 broadcasters to gauge the industry's level of preparedness and identify best practices among those most prepared for the phase-out, which will be completed by the end of 2024.

In its research, Borrell Associates estimated the immediate elimination of third-party data would result in an annual loss of $1.1 million for the average TV station and over $730,000 for the average multi-station radio market cluster, with these losses possibly 40% larger by the end of 2024. The study found programmatic display and audience extension ads, which are the largest single sources of digital revenue for many broadcasters, would be negatively impacted by the phase-out of cookies, though previous research has found publishers are overestimating their value and profitability, the NAB said. 

Yet, the study stressed that the phase-out of third-party cookies offers an opportunity for broadcasters to increase their digital advertising revenue by spurring the development of initiatives focused on first-party data, or data that is set and accessible only by a website owner.

"When it occurs, the phase-out of 3rd-party cookies is likely to deliver more benefit than loss to broadcasters," said the study. "The main benefit may be that it motivates broadcasters to take control of their own audiences by establishing a 1st party relationship with viewers and listeners who've remained anonymous for decades. A secondary benefit could be that broadcasters begin reaching beyond their traditional audiences, developing relationships with new audiences altogether — some of whom may reside outside their traditional broadcast geographies. And that could have broad, positive effects that extend well beyond any revenue generated by digital ad sales."

The study also highlights a number of proactive measures that broadcasters can take to mitigate the impact of the third-party cookie phase-out and opportunities for more direct-to-consumer audience engagement. 

These measures include educating internal stakeholders and securing team buy-in, accurately gauging the urgency and setting a timeline for response, beginning work on a comprehensive plan, starting to prep site visitors and app users, and focusing on the needs of ad buyers, the researchers said. 

"The findings should prompt broadcasters to audit and overhaul their revenue strategies,” said Gordon Borrell, founder and CEO of Borrell Associates. “There is an opportunity to get way ahead of the curve to begin direct relationships with listeners and viewers, which in turn will unlock new, stronger revenue streams," 

In addition to this study by Borrell Associates, PILOT commissioned Omdia to document the impact of GDPR on European Broadcasters. That report, also released today, includes case studies about various strategies which will assist the industry in navigating changes in the digital ecosystem.

"This study provides valuable insight into opportunities for broadcasters to capitalize on first-party data to better engage with local audiences and generate significant revenue," said John Clark, NAB senior vice president of Emerging Technology and executive director of PILOT. "PILOT looks forward to continuing the work with our partners to ensure that the broadcast industry ready to excel in the next generation of digital advertising."

This research is part of a six-month program conducted by PILOT, with the support of the Google News Initiative, to help broadcasters with the phase-out of third-party cookies through the implementation of first-party data and direct-to-consumer business models. The initiative, which kicked off in July with 10 NAB member companies, featured a mid-program check-in meeting at Google's New York offices earlier this week for participating broadcasters to hear from industry experts, share their own experiences and continue working to develop strategies that improve audience engagement, the NAB said. 

The full study is available here. 

LAUSANNE, Switzerland—iWedia, a major provider of software components and solutions for connected TV devices, has announced that it is working with Google to develop and deliver a Live TV application for Google TV and other Android TV OS devices. 

Premium licensed app is being developed to improve the user experience and enable TV manufacturers to add more value and increase revenue streams, the companies said. 

 “We are honored that Google has partnered with iWedia to deliver this ambitious project, which involves the design, development and integration of complex broadcast TV functionality, as well as multi-country certification,” Hans-Jürgen Desor, CEO, iWedia, said,  “With a modern, user-friendly UI and options for brands to add value as well as increase revenues, we know that this app – which has already won the confidence of both Google and Skyworth - will meet and even exceed the needs of both TV manufacturers and end users.” 

The Live TV app, which is set to begin roll-out in Europe in the coming months, has already been licensed by Shenzhen Chuangwei-RGB Electronics Co.,Ltd., one of the largest TV manufacturers in the world. 

Live TV is one of the most used applications on Android TV OS devices. Following feedback from end users, Google wanted to update and improve the user experience and give more value to TV brands, the companies said. 

As well as basic features such as an EPG guide, channel list and parental controls, the Live TV app will deliver major new features upon launch, including:

• Branding options for TV brands, with customizable look and feel
• User friendly design and navigation
• Rich metadata (optional add-on)
• Voice Control with Google Assistant 
• Deep linking with streaming services (in roadmap)
• Seamless integration with Google TV’s Live TV tab

The Live TV App will be enabled in different territories in stages, with the first deployment planned in Europe in Q4 2022. The App will also be made available as part of efforts to scale Android TV OS for STB suppliers that target specific retail markets in Europe. 

TORONTO, Ontario—Firstlight Media has announced that its collaboration with Google Cloud to create the next generation of cloud-native OTT capabilities has already produced several key advances. 

Firstlight announced that it would be working with Google Cloud at NAB 2022 and plans to showcase the advances they've made at IBC2022. 

“As we’ve plunged more deeply into our R&D collaboration with Google Cloud, two things have stood out,” said Juan Martin, CTO and co-founder of Firstlight Media. “First, our innovation velocity has dramatically increased with Google Cloud, which will be transformational for the media industry. Second, a tight integration with leading CTV focused services like Google Ad Manager and Google Cloud Media CDN will have a direct impact on the bottom lines of OTT providers.”

“At Google Cloud, we continue to explore new ways for our customers to build better businesses with cloud technologies,” said Anil Jain, managing director, media & entertainment industry solutions for Google Cloud. “By working closely with partners such as Firstlight Media, we can accelerate the streaming industry’s transition to a new generation of solutions by advancing capabilities and products that can drive business success and consumer satisfaction.”

The improved capabilities for offering cloud-based OTT services Firstlight will be showing at IBC2022 include: 

• Personalized FAST (Free Ad-Supported Television) channels running on Google Cloud and ready for scalable CTV monetization via pre-integration with Google Ad Manager across client, and server side environments.
• Analytics dashboards built on a proprietary, unified data model, bringing together user engagement, content performance, and quality of experience metrics to help drive the business. Leveraging the Firstlight Media analytics platform, built on top of Google BigQuery and Looker, media companies can identify and target users at risk of churn to improve retention and identify new revenue opportunities.
• Linear streaming through HLS and DASH on Google Cloud Media CDN, with an early version of low latency streaming using the LL-DASH protocol.

As the Google Cloud Industry Solution Media & Entertainment Partner of the Year for 2021, Firstlight Media is working across its partner ecosystem to preview at IBC 2022 tools that can help accelerate OTT’s shift to cloud-native platforms.

Firstlight Media’s OTT platform is designed to build and run scalable applications in the cloud using cloud-native technologies, including containers, microservices, a service mesh, APIs, and immutable infrastructure, the company said. 

The OTT technology stack provides significantly better performance, a modular approach for feature expansion, continuous delivery for rapid iteration, and built-in scalability, observability and security. 

Firstlight also reported that such OTT providers as aha 2.0 in India, PLDT’s Smart in the Philippines and others are using the Firstlight Media platform to deliver services with the flexibility and the agility of the cloud, while equaling or exceeding the reliability and high performance of broadcast.

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J.—Smart TV manufacturers continue to push into the gaming sector with LG Electronics USA  partnering with Google Stadia to offer three months of access to Stadia Pro for both new and existing LG Smart TV owners. 

The announcement came on the same day that Samsung, which has launched a Gaming Hub on its TVs, made Amazon Luna cloud gaming service available on its smart TVs. 

Netflix meanwhile has been pushing aggressively into gaming and merger and acquisitions of gaming companies has hit record levels this year. 

Smart TVs have become an increasingly popular approach for gamers because they don’t require expensive consoles or PCs. 

The LG/Google promotion applies to LG TVs2 operating webOS 5.0 or higher in the 22 countries where Stadia, Google's cloud gaming platform, is now available.

Stradia offers more than 50 titles to play, with new titles added every month, unique discounts on games and add-on content regularly offered. 

Stadia Pro enables up to 4K HDR graphics, 60 FPS gameplay and immersive 5.1 surround sound,

The Stadia store also features over 250 popular games available to buy, including Cyberpunk 2077, Resident Evil Village, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, Hitman 3 and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as access to a growing list of free games and demos, all playable with just a compatible controller and no game downloads or installs required.

Google has reportedly joined a short list of companies who have met with Netflix to discuss ways that their advertising acumen can help the streaming giant quickly ramp up an ad-supported tier. 

According to CNBC, the Google discussions follow separate and similarly scoped sit-downs with Roku and Comcast. 

Netflix pledged to develop a lower-priced, partially ad-supported plan after revenue growth slipped below double digits in the first quarter. 

Netflix responded with the same statement it used last week, when the Roku and Comcast meetings were reported: “We are still in the early days of deciding how to launch a lower priced, ad-supported option and no decisions have been made. So this is all just speculation at this point." 

Separately, there's anticipation building for a Thursday panel-discussion appearance by Ted Sarandos at the Cannes Lions Festival in France. The appearance was scheduled before Netflix delivered its bombshell Q1 earnings report on April 19, and there's hope among investors and other Netflix watchers that Sarandos will offer updates on his company's recovery efforts. 

TORONTO—Firstlight Media has received the 2021 Google Cloud Industry Solution Partner of the Year Award for Media & Entertainment, the company said this week.

The company was honored for its achievements in the Google Cloud ecosystem, including driving the success of joint customers in new markets and with new business models; spurring cloud-based workflow and platform adoption; and doing foundational work to advance the technical and product capabilities of OTT and Google Cloud.

Working with Google Cloud, Firstlight Media assisted India’s aha move from a regional, Telugu-language service to a “glocal” enterprise delivering distinctive storefronts in local languages using regional currency, it said.

Within 10 months of the initial agreement, aha 2.0 migrated its service to the enhanced Firstlight Media platform running on Google Cloud and launched an entirely new Tamil service. Both used the same backend, it said. 

“We’re proud to recognize Firstlight Media as our Industry Partner of the Year for Media & Entertainment based on their deep knowledge and evident experience in helping customers across the media and entertainment industry succeed,” said Bronwyn Hastings, vice president of global ISV partnerships and channels at Google Cloud. 

“Firstlight Media has demonstrated strong technical and service capabilities over this past year, and we look forward to expanding our work together to help media and entertainment organizations digitally transform their businesses.”

The Firstlight Media platform is designed to build and run scalable applications in the cloud using cloud-native technologies, including containers, microservices, a service mesh, APIs and immutable infrastructure. Its OTT stack offers a modular approach for feature expansion as well as other benefits, such as rapid iteration, built-in scalability, observability and security, it said.

“Google Cloud’s robust, feature-rich ecosystem and its eagerness to push the boundaries of cloud-native OTT are directly aligned with Firstlight Media’s objectives,” said Paul Pastor, chief business officer and co-founder of Firstlight Media. “We’re honored to be a Google Cloud Partner of the Year and look forward to continuing to work closely with Google Cloud to take transformative new OTT capabilities from vision to reality.”

More information is available on the company’s website.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company and Google have announced that they will be working together on a multi-year initiative to help experienced journalists with primarily print news backgrounds transition their careers into broadcast news careers. 

As part of the effort, Google has made a financial commitment to Scripps to underwrite the newly created Scripps Journalism Journey Initiative.

The partnership comes at a time when many print newsrooms have laid off staff and broadcasters are having difficulty filling some positions with qualified video journalists. 

Journalists selected for participation in the Initiative will be hired into full-time career positions in Scripps local and national media newsrooms. The program provides mid-career transitions into video-driven storytelling through extensive training and support, including mentoring, job shadowing, hands-on work and individual coaching. Additional learning opportunities may include professional conferences, programs through the Google News Initiative, Poynter, journalism school programs, National Association of Broadcasters or Society of Professional Journalists, the companies said. 

Positions may include beat/specialty reporter, specialty executive producer, photojournalist, editor/manager, documentary producer and copy editor

“Scripps and Google are making an investment in maintaining a high-quality journalism ecosystem,” said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO. “As a result of Google’s financial support, this program will help us retain talented print journalists in the industry by redeploying their skills and experiences into television and video news, benefitting Scripps audiences and communities across the nation.”

“This is a great opportunity to support mid-career journalists looking for new challenges or a new direction to reignite the passion that drove them into journalism in the first place,” said David Brooks, director of Global News Partnerships at Google. “Alongside Scripps, we value the importance of quality, credible content being available to news consumers.”

Scripps is currently hiring a director, a senior talent acquisition partner and a learning and development specialist for the program, which is expected to launch in Q4 2022.

Applications for the Scripps Journalism Journey Initiative are expected to be available in early summer. Those who are interested in the program can click here and request to be notified when applications are live.

SUNNYVALE & CULVER CITY, Calif.—Google and Crunchyroll have announced a new, multi-year strategic partnership to help Crunchyroll carry out its plans to expand its global Anime offerings. 

The announcement builds on Google's existing partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment that includes collaboration across Android, Google TV and Android TV OS, YouTube, Google advertising solutions, and Google Cloud. 

Crunchyroll is an independently operated joint venture between US-based Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Japan's Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., both subsidiaries of Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation.

As a result of the new multi-tiered partnership, Crunchyroll will work with Google as it looks to strengthen its direct-to-consumer business for scale, flexibility, and audience experiences that are truly next level, the company said. 

"Crunchyroll is committed to aligning with technology partners who understand the DNA of our fans  – how they engage, how they enjoy and how they live and breathe anime,” said Travis Page, Crunchyroll's CFO. “Having a partner like Google, who expertly knows how  to use technology to enhance user interaction, will be critical in giving our fans the purpose-built experience they want. Google brings expertise to the table that immediately helps us achieve those ambitions" 

With Google as one of its strategic technology partners, Crunchyroll announced that it will be working to: 

• Improve Viewer Experience with Content Personalization: Google Cloud will enhance Crunchyroll's ability to engage and retain audiences, building on its established technology and privacy-first content personalization powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies.
• Inform Product and Content Innovation: Utilizing Google Cloud's expertise in data management and analytics, AI and ML, Crunchyroll will be able to better use customer and user insights to inform the development of new fan experiences and future development.
• Reach Audiences Around the World: Crunchyroll will be able to achieve broad distribution of its content and subscription services with Google Play across Android, Google TV and other Android TV OS devices.
• Connect Fans to Content and Fuel Growth: Through Google advertising solutions, Crunchyroll will continue to be able to offer a unique ad-supported video on demand (AVOD) experience for fans, offering more than 1,000 episodes for fans to sample. This will drive a broader reach, bring together key audiences, and grow its platform with a seamless ad experience, the companies said.

LAS VEGAS—Firstlight Media has announced that it is using a suite of Google Cloud products to offer new, cloud-native monetization, personalization, and content delivery capabilities – most notably Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) – for OTT platforms.

“There are tremendous opportunities for the OTT industry within the massive library of Google Cloud tools,” said Juan Martin, CTO and co-founder of Firstlight Media. “Working in concert with Google Cloud and other cloud-native partners, we’re consolidating the best media tools that Google Cloud has to offer to drive user engagement and monetization in OTT streaming”

As part of its expanding relationship with Google Cloud, Firstlight Media’s research and development team in three major areas: making it easier to bring FAST services to Google Cloud; use Google Cloud data and business intelligence tools to drive real-time OTT data and recommendations; and use Google Cloud’s Media CDN to support the high-quality, low latency video delivery demanded by consumers.

Designed to accelerate the industry’s shift to cloud-native platforms, the collaboration with Google Cloud tools encompasses multiple areas of work that directly align with Firstlight Media’s Video Pipeline, Video CMS, and User Experience core product areas. 

These include: 

• Enabling video stitching for virtual, ad-supported channels, using manifest manipulation for server side ad insertion and Google Ad Manager; 
• Using BigQuery, Looker, Spanner and other Google Cloud data tools to support a real-time data pipeline and working with Google AI to pilot a media-specific recommendation engine that drives personalization and engagement; and
• Using select technical access to Google Cloud’s high performance Media CDN to perform in-market tests to improve VOD performance and develop new live capabilities, including low latency streaming.

“Google Cloud is committed to collaborating with customers and partners to help them build cloud solutions that advance their efficiency, performance, and scalability practices,” said Anil Jain, managing director, media & entertainment industry solutions. “We’re pleased to work alongside partners such as Firstlight Media to develop these solutions and help customers across the entire OTT industry move forward in their cloud journeys.”

Firstlight Media’s OTT platform is designed to build and run scalable applications in the cloud using cloud-native technologies, including containers, microservices, a service mesh, APIs, and immutable infrastructure. 

Arha Media & Broadcasting Private Limited’s aha 2.0 in India, PLDT’s Smart in the Philippines and others are using the Firstlight Media platform to deliver services with the flexibility and the agility of the cloud. 

Firstlight Media has a suite at the Encore Las Vegas during 2022 NAB Show through April 27. 

RESTON, Va.—At a time when cloud providers are facing heightened security risks, the cybersecurity firm Mandiant, Inc. has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Google LLC for approximately $5.4 billion. 

Upon the close of the acquisition, Mandiant will join Google Cloud.

Mandiant has more than 600 consultants who currently respond to thousands of security breaches each year and more than 300 intelligence analysts. Those consultants and analysts provide insights for its cyber defense solutions delivered through the managed multi-vendor XDR platform, Mandiant Advantage.

The acquisition will complement Google Cloud’s existing strengths in security, which Google has said are a cornerstone of its cloud-based offerings. Together with Mandiant, Google Cloud will deliver an end-to-end security operations suite with even greater capabilities as well as advisory services helping customers address critical security challenges and stay protected at every stage of the security lifecycle, the companies said. 

“Cyber security is a mission, and we believe it’s one of the most important of our generation. Google Cloud shares our mission-driven culture to bring security to every organization,” said Kevin Mandia, CEO, Mandiant. “Together, we will deliver our expertise and intelligence at scale via the Mandiant Advantage SaaS platform, as part of the Google Cloud security portfolio. These efforts will help organizations to effectively, efficiently and continuously manage and configure their complex mix of security products.”

“The Mandiant brand is synonymous with unmatched insights for organizations seeking to keep themselves secure in a constantly changing environment,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud. “This is an opportunity to deliver an end-to-end security operations suite and extend one of the best consulting organizations in the world. Together we can make a profound impact in securing the cloud, accelerating the adoption of cloud computing, and ultimately make the world safer.”

The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of Mandiant stockholder and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close later this year, the companies said.  

NEW YORK & MEXICO CITY—Grupo Televisa, S.A.B and Univision Holdings II, Inc. have announced they’ve completed their $4.8 billion merger, creating a new company, TelevisaUnivision, Inc., that will reach over 100 million Spanish-language speakers every day on TV, digital and audio. 

Completing the merger comes as TelevisaUnivision is gearing up to launch a major streaming service for the Spanish speaking audiences in 2022, with free and premium tiers, and large offering of original Spanish-language entertainment, sports and news. 

The Company’s new investors include SoftBank Latin America Fund, Google and The Raine Group.

“The close of our transaction marks a historic moment for our company and our industry,” said TelevisaUnivision CEO Wade Davis. “We are combining two iconic and market-leading companies that have a rich, shared history and an incredible portfolio of assets. This combination will create a business without comparison in the global media landscape. Over the past year both companies have transformed themselves, reaching levels of financial performance and audience resonance that has not been seen for years. The power and momentum of the transformed core business is truly unique and will be a springboard for the upcoming launch of the preeminent Spanish-language streaming service. The new trajectory of our company is supported by our new ownership group, which is well positioned to amplify the efforts of one of the best leadership teams in the world.”

“The combination of content assets from Televisa and Univision, the two leading media companies from the two largest Spanish-speaking markets in the world, has created a company with tremendous potential,” said Alfonso de Angoitia, executive chairman of the TelevisaUnivision Board of Directors. “With our attractive financial profile and history of innovation, TelevisaUnivision is ready to revolutionize the industry by delivering the most comprehensive Spanish-language content offering to audiences around the world.”

The new company will combine Televisa’s four broadcast channels, 27 pay-TV channels, Videocine movie studio, Blim TV subscription video-on-demand service, and the Televisa trademark, with Univision’s assets in the U.S., which include the Univision and UniMás broadcast networks, nine Spanish-language cable networks, 59 television stations and 57 radio stations in major U.S. Hispanic markets, and the PrendeTV AVOD platform.

It also has the largest Spanish-language content library in the world, with 300,000 hours of content, an extensive portfolio of IP and sports rights, and a large infrastructure for producing new content. 

As a result of the combination, TelevisaUnivision reaches over 60% of the respective TV audiences in both the U.S. and Mexico, the company said, putting them well positioned supply entertainment and services to the global Spanish-speaking population of nearly 600 million, which represents an aggregate GDP of approximately $7 trillion.

The company also noted that they remain on track to launch its previously announced unified global streaming service in 2022, which will include both a free and a premium subscription tier. 

Reuters is reporting that the launch will occur in the first half of the year. 

The service will have the largest offering of original Spanish-language content in the U.S. and Latin America, including dramas, comedies, docuseries, game shows, reality shows, variety programs, movies, musical and cultural events, children’s and educational programs, sports and special events, as well as news programming.

Wade Davis will lead TelevisaUnivision as CEO. Alfonso de Angoitia will serve as executive chairman of the TelevisaUnivision Board and Marcelo Claure will become vice chairman of the Board.

The TelevisaUnivision Board will also be comprised of Emilio Azcárraga, Bernardo Gómez, Michel Combes, Gisel Ruiz, Oscar Muñoz, Maria Cristina “MC” Gonzalez Noguera, Eric Zinterhofer and Jeff Sine. In addition, Televisa retains the right to appoint two additional directors.

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Google and Roku have reached a deal in a dispute between two of the largest players in the streaming industry that had threatened to remove the popular YouTube and YouTube TV apps from the Roku streaming platform.  

Worries that the apps might drop off the Roku platform on December 9 had helped push Roku’s stock down in recent weeks. 

Roku's stock rebounded sharply after the news broke on December 8 and was up by 16.3% at 12:40 ET.

In a blog post on October 21 about the dispute Roku claimed that “we have seen a disturbing trend that threatens the vibrant and competitive TV streaming ecosystem. Rather than embracing a mutually beneficial partnership approach, some Big Tech enterprises are using their market power to extend control over independent businesses, like Roku, to benefit their broader business objectives at the expense of the consumer, putting a fair and open competitive streaming marketplace at risk.”

Google had responded by saying it would remove the apps from all new Roku devices if a deal was not reached. 

The dispute came at a time when tech giants like Google are facing increasing regulatory and political scrutiny and could have had a major impact on the streaming industry, given that Roku is the largest streaming platform and Nielsen reported that YouTube accounted for 6% of all TV viewing in October. 

LOS GATOS, Calif.—The dispute between Roku and Google is getting more heated, with Roku criticizing Google for abusing its market power and Google saying it will remove its popular YouTube app from new Roku devices if the dispute isn’t resolved in early December. 

The conflict highlights growing tension between streaming devices and content providers that has led to protracted disputes over carriage of services like Peacock and HBO Max on platforms like Roku and Amazon. 

It also comes at a time when big tech companies like Google are under increased scrutiny for potential abuses of their market power, a fact that Roku references in its complaints about Google. 

In a blog post on October 21 Roku claimed that “Recently we have seen a disturbing trend that threatens the vibrant and competitive TV streaming ecosystem. Rather than embracing a mutually beneficial partnership approach, some Big Tech enterprises are using their market power to extend control over independent businesses, like Roku, to benefit their broader business objectives at the expense of the consumer, putting a fair and open competitive streaming marketplace at risk.”

The post, which is attributed to “Roku Staff” stated that “our concerns with Google are not about money. We have not asked for a single change in the financial terms of our existing agreement. In fact, Roku does not earn a single dollar from YouTube’s ad supported video sharing service today, whereas Google makes hundreds of millions of dollars from the YouTube app on Roku.”  ​

Noting that “Google...is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and more than 30 State Attorneys General for violating competition laws,” and that “doing business with an enterprise as powerful as Google creates complex challenges,” the Roku post claimed that it faces two major problems in resolving the dispute. 

“Google continues to interfere with Roku’s independent search results, requiring that we preference YouTube over other content providers,” Roku said. “This is a concern shared by many companies who believe that customers deserve neutral and relevant results to their search queries. Second, Google discriminates against Roku by demanding search, voice, and data features that they do not insist on from other streaming platforms.”

According to Next TV Google has responded in a statement stating: "since we haven’t been able to continue our conversations in good faith, our partnership for all new Roku devices will unfortunately end on December 9. We are, however, giving Roku the ability to continue distributing both YouTube and YouTube TV apps to all existing users to make sure they are not impacted.”

MONTREAL—Google Cloud has joined the SRT Alliance, boosting the number of alliance members supporting the adoption of Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) open-source video streaming protocol to more than 500, the alliance has announced.

SRT support in Google Cloud helps media companies better contribute secure, reliable video streams to Google native cloud services for collaboration, production and distribution worldwide, it said.

"Google Cloud is committed to helping media organizations around the world transform their audience experiences," said Anil Jain, managing director of media and entertainment industry solutions at Google Cloud. "We are delivering on that commitment by innovating alongside partners like Haivision and the SRT Alliance and helping drive the adoption of new technologies, such as the SRT protocol [which] supports our continuously expanding portfolio of solutions for the media and entertainment industry."

Haivision originally developed SRT, which enables delivery of high-quality, secure, low-latency video across the public internet. Four years ago, the company made the SRT protocol and supporting technology stack open source and formed the alliance.

“Google Cloud joining the SRT Alliance and supporting SRT is an important milestone in our open-source initiative, now with every major cloud platform endorsing the standard,” said Mirko Wicha, president, CEO and chairman of the board of Haivision.

“Haivision’s team of SRT developers collaborates with engineers from the most progressive organizations, both within the open-source community and within standards organizations, to better the technology stack and expand its application areas. Together, with Google Cloud, we’re thrilled to advance our commitment to helping overcome the challenges of mission-critical, low latency video streaming,” said Wicha.

More information is available on the SRT Alliance website.

STUTTGART, Germany, SEONGNAM, Korea and OSLO, Norway—3 Screen Solutions (3SS) and Kaon Media have announced that they’ve completed their hybrid STB (set-top box) integration for Nordic pay-TV giant Allente. 

The integration makes Allente one of the world’s first operators to complete Google Common Broadcast Stack integration for an Android TV Operator Tier STB. The project was completed in just six months thanks to close collaboration between Allente, Kaon Media, Nagra, Broadcom, 3SS and Google.

Google created its standardized Common Broadcast Stack (CBS) to accelerate the reach of Android TV OS worldwide. Announced in October 2020, CBS will help more TV viewers to get the next-generation app-rich services. 

Adopting CBS will allow for easier and faster integration for hybrid Android TV OS devices, accelerated time-to-market, simplified upgrades and reduced overall total cost of ownership, the companies said. 

The partnership of 3SS and Kaon to deliver Allente’s new service was announced in October 2020. Powerful hybrid Kaon BCM72180 PVR STBs will be available to Allente’s over 1 million subscribers, with Nagra Media CAS, Broadcom 72180 SoC and based on 3SS UX technology, in Q3 2021.

“We congratulate Allente for becoming one of the first operators in the world to leverage the Common Broadcast Stack, and in working closely with world-class technology partners, elevating the digital entertainment user experience for consumers,” commented Matthias Puschmann, strategic Android TV partner development manager at Google.

Allente was formed from the merger of Viasat Consumer and Canal Digital in May 2020, and offers TV via satellite, streaming and other services including IPTV and fibre broadband via open networks to customers in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland.

Jon Espen Nergård, Allente CTO, said, “Completion of our STB integration so rapidly is a clear testament to the technology, engineering skill and dedication to customer satisfaction from our partners KAON and 3SS, and indeed those of our wider partnership of collaborators which includes Nagra, Broadcom and of course Google.”

Kaon STB middleware is fully integrated with the Android TV software stack to enable new pre-certified Android TV capabilities such as Custom Over-The-Air Update, among others, further accelerating the introduction of new appealing features.

“We are extremely proud to be the first OEM to complete STB integration on a Broadcom SoC with Nagra CAS seamlessly integrated with UX delivered by 3SS,” commented Tom Buhl, Kaon Media executive vice president. 

“The rapid pace of integration with our highly esteemed partners could hardly be more powerful evidence of the many benefits made possible by the Google Common Broadcast Stack,” he added.

“Our ongoing partnership of trust with Allente is a source of tremendous pride for the entire team at 3SS,” commented Kai-Christian Borchers, managing director of 3SS. “In becoming one of the world’s first service providers to embrace Google’s Common Broadcast Stack, Allente is blazing a new trail in innovation and customer focus; we eagerly anticipate helping Allente to deliver leading-edge viewing to consumers in the Nordic region,”

WASHINGTON—Broadcasters are being short changed for their local news content from two of the biggest technology companies, Google and Facebook, according to a new study from BIA Advisory Services. The amount of money that broadcasters lose under these current conditions approaches $2 billion annually.

BIA’s study, “The Economic Impact of Big Tech Platforms on the Viability of Local Broadcast News,” which was commissioned by NAB, found that because large technology platforms exercise their substantial market power, broadcasters are not receiving fair compensation for their content. BIA said that these tech platforms use their market power to advance their own growth at the detriment of local broadcasters, which can put a strain on the viability of local news.

The study focused on Google Search and Facebook News Feed. Through interviews with broadcast group executives and modeling of high economic impact practices, the study found that local broadcasters lose $1.873 billion annually by supplying their content to these platforms.

In addition, the study concluded that no technology platform allows broadcasters to earn equitable revenue based on current practices. It said that algorithms do not properly weigh local broadcast news, “which intentionally and unfairly undervalues the broadcast content in search queries.” The study also noted that broadcast content and local news are often included in search returns and news feeds alongside questionable sources and disinformation, which could potentially confuse users and instill distrust.

“Even though we focused our quantitative analysis on Google and Facebook, the market power of other platforms and services, such as Amazon and Apple, were cited as increasingly undermining the viability of local news media,” said Rick Ducey, managing director at BIA Advisory Services. “The growth of these platforms present the potential for substantial future harm to the industry if not constrained by government action.”

NAB has been pushing for such government action against major tech platforms, saying it puts them at a disadvantage. Last fall, Congress concluded an investigation that big tech can in fact harm the news industry and some legislation is reportedly in the works to help support smaller broadcasters against the likes of major tech companies.

“Radio and television broadcasters play a vital role in providing Americans with valuable news and information, shining a light on the events shaping their communities,” said NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith. “Unfortunately, this study makes clear that the competitive advantage of a handful of big tech platforms prevents broadcasters from recouping their substantial investment in local news, putting local journalism at risk. Preserving quality, trusted journalism in communities will require policies that ensure broadcasters are fairly and justly compensated for their valuable content.”

Local broadcasters are expected to be on Capitol Hill this week as part of NAB’s annual State Leadership Conference to advocate for issues affecting the broadcast industry. For more information, visit NAB’s website. 

SAN JOSE, Calif.—As of Friday morning, April 30, YouTube TV is no longer available in Roku’s channel store for new subscribers, however the vMVPD service will remain for existing subscribers, at least for now. This is the culmination of a warning Roku sent out earlier in the week regarding its negotiations with YouTube TV’s parent company, Google.

On April 26, Roku warned its customers that it may pull YouTube TV from its service because of what it called “unfair and anticompetitive requirements” to manipulate search results, impact the usage of data and raise the cost for consumers. Google said these claims were baseless.

It took less than a week for Roku to put that warning into action, sending an email out to its customers at 8 a.m. on April 30. In the email, Roku said that Google let the contract for YouTube TV expire, but that existing customers will still be able to use the service while they negotiate, though they recommend not deleting the app since it is now not available in the Roku channel store. It is also not clear if that will change should a deal not be reached in a particular time frame.

This action does not remove the YouTube app from Roku, just YouTube TV.

“We remain committed to reaching a good-faith agreement with Google that preserves your access to YouTube TV, honors your desired search preferences and protects your data,” the email reads.

A Roku spokesperson provided more detail in a statement, claiming that Roku has not sought additional financial compensation as part of a YouTube TV renewal.

In addition to the manipulation of search results and data access, Roku says that Google has attempted to force hardware requirements that would increase user costs. It also accuses Google of acting in “a discriminatory and anti-competitive manner against Roku.”

“It is well past time for Google to embrace the principles that have made streaming so popular for millions of users by giving consumers control of their streaming experience, by embracing fair competition and by ceasing anti-competitive practices,” reads the statement. “We believe consumers stand to benefit from Google and Roku reaching a fair agreement that preserves these principles and we remain committed to trying to achieve that goal.”

In their own blog post, YouTube claimed that Roku terminated the deal "in bad faith," and cited other incidents Roku has had with other streaming providers.

YouTube provided details to its negotiations with Roku. It claims that it initially just wanted to renew its deal with Roku under the previous terms, but Roku wanted to renegotiate a separate deal that encompasses the YouTube main app, which YouTube says does not expire until December. It then says that Roku requested exceptions to technical requirements that would impact the quality of the YouTube experience, as well as impede its ability to make updates.

"We can't give Roku special treatment at the expense of users," the blog post reads. "To be clear, we have never, as they have alleged, made any requests to access user data or interfere with search results. This claim is baseless and false."

YouTube said that it will continue to work that YouTube TV users have access to the platform.

SUNNYVALE, Calif. & MIAMI—Google and Univision have announced a multi-year strategic partnership with the goal of accelerating growth across Univision’s media and content properties.

The deal will see Univision work with Google Cloud to drive its digital transformation. The Spanish-language network will also work with other Google product areas like Android, Android TV OS, YouTube, Google Play, Google Ad Manager and Google Search to enhance its capabilities and overall viewer experience, the official announcement details.

Part of the strategic partnership will have Google assist Univision with consolidating its digital distribution platforms, modernizing its production systems, creating a new customer data warehouse and migrating enterprise applications to Google Cloud. With this, Univision will be able to apply AI and machine learning across its content library to improve customer recommendations, as well as gather data insight to create stronger advertising relationships with audiences.

Univision will also work with Google on expanding its streaming offerings, including the recently launched PrendeTV. This will include expanding Univision’s global YouTube partnership and integrating with entertainment features on Google Search that help with content discovery. Google Ad Manager and Google’s Dynamic Ad Insertion are also expected to be utilized.

Univision content and services will become available on Google Play across Android phone and tablets, as well as Google TV and other Android TV OS devices.

“At Univision, we've set out to be the most important global Spanish-language media company, and our partnership with Google is a critical piece of our transformation," said Wade Davis, CEO of Univision Communications Inc. "By leveraging Google's technology platform and expertise, we will transform our infrastructure to bring our customers an enhanced media experience.”

LOS ANGELES—Google, Roku and Paramount+ are now among the companies and services providing HDR10+ technology to their customers. They join more than 100 companies that now support HDR10+ and are helping to raise HDR awareness.

Paramount+ is now delivering shows like “The Stand” to certified HDMI devices. Amazon Prime Video, Google PLay and YouTube are among some of the other services that support HDR10+ for TV shows and movies.

Google and Roku have certified HDR10+ products and are expected to offer compatible devices. Google expects to us HDR10+ with Chromecast for Google TV as well as other platforms in the future. Roku, meanwhile, has enabled HDR10+ on its new Roku Express 4K+, the Roku Express 4K and Roku Ultra products.

In addition, HDR10+ has published a new white paper, “Understanding the HDR10 Ecosystem.” To receive a copy of the white paper, visit HDR10+’s website. 

SAN JOSE, Calif.—One of the most popular virtual MVPD platforms could soon be gone from one of the most popular streaming platforms, as Roku has officially warned customers that YouTube TV may be removed from the platform as a result of unsuccessful negotiations with its parent company, Google.

In an email to its customers sent out on April 26, Roku says that recent negotiations have broken down with Google because it “cannot accept Google’s unfair terms as we believe they could harm our users.”

Roku cited what it called “unfair and anticompetitive requirements to manipulate” search results, impact the usage of data and raise the cost for consumers as key factors in its negotiations with Google.

“While we are deeply disappointed in Google’s decision to use their monopoly power to try and force terms that will directly harm streamers, we remain committed to reaching an agreement with Google that preserves your access to YouTube TV, protects your data and ensures a level playing field for companies to compete,” the email reads.

A YouTube TV spokesperson provided the following statement to TV Tech regarding the news:

“We have been working with Roku in good faith to reach an agreement that benefits our viewers and their customers. Unfortunately, Roku often engages in these types of tactics in their negotiations. We're disappointed that they chose to make baseless claims while we continue our ongoing negotiations. All of our work with them has been focused on ensuring a high quality and consistent experience for our viewers. We have made no requests to access user data or interfere in search results. We hope we can resolve this for the sake of our mutual users.”

Roku TV is among the most popular streaming devices on the market. Roku had the best selling smart TV OS in 2020, and it was the largest source of streams for this year’s Super Bowl.

It has played hardball with major companies before. Roku was among the final streaming platforms that agreed to terms to offer HBO Max, which likely helped contribute—along with launching on Amazon Fire TV and the release of major movies on the platform—to HBO Max’s growth in subscribers.

YouTube TV, meanwhile, is among the most used vMVPD services, offering much of traditional pay-TV channel access. In December 2020, it reported that 120 million people used YouTube TV to stream content on their TV. YouTube has been rising in price, however.

No details were provided as to when YouTube TV may be pulled from Roku if negotiations ultimately fail.

WASHINGTON—Facebook and Google's market power, especially over digital advertising, has translated to a potential "extinction level event" for local news operations, broadcast, online and print.

That was the underlying message of House Antitrust Subcommittee chairman David Cicilline (D-R.I.) at a hearing Friday (March 12) on “Saving a Free and Diverse Press.”

Cicilline said his bill to give news content producers an antitrust exemption to negotiate collectively with the largest platforms (the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, or JCPA) was not a substitute for structural remedies to address the market power of a Google or Facebook, but was a short term solution to save trustworthy journalism before is it gone forever.

A Senate version of the bill has been introduced by Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).

Cicilline painted a dark portrait of local news, saying it was in free fall, in part because of the gatekeeper power of tech platforms. He called that a crisis in journalism that was also a crisis in democracy, and in a time of pandemic when local news is more important than ever.

Of Big Tech, Cicilline said that those gatekeepers can distort the flow of information with the a single change to an algorithm or ad option. With that power, he said Google and Facebook have captured nearly all the digital ad growth in recent years. 

He said local journalism is on life support, and to do nothing was not an option.

Ranking Subcommittee Member Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), who co-sponsored the bill, said he was concerned about Big Tech's role in "cancel culture" suppression of conservative speech.

Buck said Congress sat idly by as Big Tech platforms became monopolies but it can't let them become arbiters of truth. He called them "digital kings' that need dethroning and have precisely the kind of power that antitrust laws were meant to address.

Emily Barr, National Association of Broadcasters TV Board chair and Broadcasting & Cable's 2020 Broadcaster of the year, testified at the hearing on the impact of Big Tech on her industry. 

She said their market power undercuts the online ad model for local broadcast news in two ways: 1) Their gatekeeper role prevents stations from generating traffic "independent of their services" and their "take it or leave it" terms of service "leave local broadcasters with a below-market sliver of the advertising revenues that are derived through their products."

She said quality journalism has to compete with "click bait" that is often favored by platform algorithms, that siphon off ad dollars from that quality news product.

In his testimony, David Chavern, president of the News Media Alliance, said Google and Facebook regulate the news media through their dominance. He said hope for a better journalism future is not a strategy, and the current path will lead to the ultimate destruction of quality news. He said publishers need the collective action that Cicciline's bill will provide, but added that may not be enough.

Google did not have a witness at the hearing, but did send a statement that included a line that sounded pretty "take it or leave it." It said: "Every news organization can choose whether they want to be in Google Search and Google News," adding that "most do because it results in valuable free traffic."

But it also said for those who do choose to be in Google search, they have created Google News Showcase, "powered by a $1 billion investment in news organizations." It said that more than 500 publications are part of the showcase, with more being added. It said the company was "committed to finding new ways to continue supporting the news industry."

"Over the past 20 years, we’ve collaborated closely with the news industry and provided billions of dollars to support the creation of quality journalism in the digital age," the tech giant said. "Through both our services and our direct funding of news organizations, Google is one of the world’s biggest financial supporters of journalism."

WASHINGTON—A bipartisan group of House and Senate members introduced the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act on March 10, which would enable small news outlets to collectively negotiate with online platforms, like Google and Facebook, for use of their stories.

The bill was brought forth by House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (D-R.I.), House Antitrust Subcommittee Ranking Member Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.) and Chairwoman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust and Consumer Rights Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).

The legislation follows a bipartisan investigation into the online marketplace, which found that big tech companies use practices that ultimately harm local news providers, including broadcasters.

According to Pew Research Center, 90% of Americans get news while using a smartphone, computer or tablet, with Facebook and Google accounting for a majority of online referrals for news sources and a majority of the online advertising market. This “digital ad duoply” has contributed to layoffs and consolidation in the news industry, especially for local new outlets, the announcement noted. 

The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act will establish a temporary, 48-month safe harbor that allows small news publishers to negotiate collectively with online platforms to protect Americans’ access to sources of online news. Coordination is only allowed if 1) it directly relates to the quality, accuracy, attribution or branding, or interoperability of news; 2) benefits the entire industry, rather than just a few publishers, and is non-discriminatory to other news publishers; and 3) is directly related to and reasonably necessary for these negotiations, instead of being used for other purposes.

“A strong, diverse, free press is critical for any successful democracy. Access to trustworthy local journalism helps inform the public, hold powerful people accountable, and root out corruption,” said Cicilline, who has introduced the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act in each of the last two Congresses. “This bill will give hardworking local reporters and publishers the helping hand they need right now, so they can continue to do their important work.”

NAB, who has argued that large online companies are putting broadcasters at a disadvantage for ads, welcomed the proposed legislation.

“NAB commends Reps. David Cicilline and Ken Buck, Sens. Amy Klobuchar and John Kennedy and their bipartisan cosponsors for reintroducing legislation allowing news publishers such as local broadcasters to collectively negotiate the terms on which their content may be distributed online,” said NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith in a statement. “For too long, a handful of dominant tech platforms have unilaterally set policies impeding media outlets’ ability to reach audiences, attract advertisers and monetize their news content. The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act would afford news producers the ability to negotiate a fair return for their local journalism that serves America's communities. We look forward to working with stakeholders and members of Congress on passing this legislation into law.”

The House Antitrust Subcommittee will hold a hearing, “Reviving Competition, Part 2: Saving the Free and Diverse Press,” on Friday, March 12. Emily Barr, president and CEO of Graham Media Group, is scheduled to testify on behalf of local TV and radio broadcasters.

WASHINGTON—A bipartisan bill is expected to be introduced to Congress in the next few weeks that is designed to make it easier for smaller news organizations to negotiate with Big Tech platforms, i.e. Facebook and Google, according to a report from Reuters.

Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee’s antitrust panel, said that this is the first in a series of antitrust bills expected to be introduced to Congress.

NAB and other news organizations have been calling for help to deal with big tech companies, who often use news content to draw users but, according to the news organizations, are not sharing enough of the revenue from advertising.

Google announced earlier this week that it had struck a deal with News Corp. to pay to use its content. Meanwhile, Facebook went the other way, pulling the ability to share news content on its platforms in Australia after a proposed law that would require it to pay news outlets whose content drives traffic to their site.

This bill, according to Reuters, would only cover “small publishers.”

For more information, read Reuters’ report. 

ATLANTA—Gray Television has been selected for Google’s GNI Innovation Challenge for 2021. Gray TV will receive $200,000 in funding for a multiplatform journalism project that will focus on the health disparities in the Mississippi Delta and Appalachia regions of the U.S.

Journalists from more than 25 Gray TV stations, the D.C. News Bureau and Gray’s National Investigative unit will work on “Bridging the Great Health Divide—Mississippi Delta and Appalachia” starting in early 2021.

“We’re proud to launch this initiative and give a voice to these underrepresented populations that have long lagged in basic health care,” said Hilton H. Howell Jr., Gray TV chairman and CEO. “We also aim to provide resources to help people make better informed decisions on health-related issues.”

Gray TV’s project is one of 30 that GNI is funding in 2021, including three projects from TV broadcasters.

The goal of the GNI Innovation Challenge is to help support quality local journalism in a digital age. For more information, visit the GNI Innovation Challenge webpage. 

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.—Google announced the launch of its Transcoder API, the first in a series of new video-focused APIs to assist developers using Google Cloud. 

The new API enables developers to create several consumer streaming formats, including MPEG-4, MPEG-DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP) and HTTP Live Streaming (HLS), the company said.

Writing in a blog post, John Pallet, product manager at Google Cloud, said the Transcoder API supports the H.264, VP9 and HEVC codecs as well as full partitioning to enable quick encoding of large video files. 

Google is calling the product release a “preview availability” of the Transcoder API. 

Documentation and pricing are available online, the company said.