In his capacity as a Columnist for California Sports Lawyer®, Founder Jeremy Evans has written a column about social media and streaming growth and collaboration.
You can read the full column below.
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The creation and delivery of content is the essential piece to the Hollywood puzzle. In most industries outside of Hollywood, good content continues to drive traffic to social media accounts, websites, and towards business development in general. Social media is indeed the preferred broadcast and distribution outlet for college and professional athletes and in increasing fashion, Hollywood actors.
There was a time when the public had to wait for the news to hear the news, usually over family conversation at the dinner table in the early evening. Prior to that, through newspapers. Prior to that, in books and stories passed down from generation to generation.
Today, it is often that the newsmakers are the ones the news is about or that news anchors and journalists would talk about anyway. This means that those who use social media can control their message, connect directly with their fans, colleagues, and business persons. It also means that the news is secondary to what content or information the athlete or actor is sharing unless the news is something the aforementioned does not want to be publicly consumed.
As much as Hollywood talent is looking towards social media to share their stories and to distribute entertainment content, it is also true that bloggers, Twitter users, and writers are getting more opportunities to be on television with the use of YouTube, SnapChat, and other video platforms that give a face to a name. In fact, esports gamers can now be seen debating exclusivity deals between YouTube and Twitch. Consider that just a decade ago it would have been ludicrous to say that college majors include esports gaming, with college esports teams, and a bustling billion dollar industry.
Social media is in many ways also the counterpart to streaming. Social media and streaming often use each other to promote, distribute, grow, and share. Often, consumers see entertainment studios, professional sports teams, colleges, and athletes (pursuing or fulfilling name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals) using social media to distribute a message or advertise. Meanwhile, social media is often a topic of choice in film and television content as it helps with scripts and storylines. Social media is Netflix for the masses—without the fees and large production budget.
Streaming, like social media, only seems to grow in investment and interest. Disney has pushed many of its people and financial resources towards streaming. Regional Sports Networks (RSNS) were once considered the unwilling change agent towards streaming, but are now embracing streaming as a future for game reach and distribution, even contemplating creating their own streaming platforms (e.g., Bally, Sinclair, etc.). Netflix is even launching an ad-based tier through tech and advertising partner, Microsoft, to reach more people.
Lastly, in somewhat of a twist, YouTube TV (e.g., live television) has obtained more subscribers than Disney-owned Hulu, specifically its live content offering. YouTube’s success is a testament to consumer interest in easily accessible platforms that they already use. Meaning, YouTube is a video social media type-platform with extended content that many people already rely on for news, commentary, historical videos, etc. Hulu does not share that same built-in audience or seemingly unlimited supply of content like YouTube.
Going forward, there is increasing likelihood to see growth and collaboration with social media and streaming, and possibly increased competition as well.
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About Jeremy M. Evans:
Jeremy M. Evans is the Chief Entrepreneur Officer, Founder & Managing Attorney at California Sports Lawyer®, representing entertainment, media, and sports clientele in contractual, intellectual property, and dealmaking matters. Evans is an award-winning attorney and industry leader based in Los Angeles. He can be reached at Jeremy@CSLlegal.com. www.CSLlegal.com.
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