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Mint
2 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Netflix earnings show that YouTube is the streamer to fear
Over the past few years, Netflix has vanquished the likes of Walt Disney, and Apple in the battle to become the top videostreamer. Yet it's slipping behind the company that has emerged as its biggest competitor: Alphabet's YouTube. This was hammered home on Thursday when Netflix reported second-quarter results. It earnings per share surged 47%. And according to Nielsen, its share of U.S. viewers remained at 8.3%—almost twice as high as all of the Disney channels combined. The problem: YouTube's share of U.S. viewers grew to 12.8% from 9.9% a year earlier. Whereas Netflix creates much of its own content and relies primarily on subscriptions, YouTube follows a different model that's built on user-generated content and advertising. Increasingly, Netflix is squaring off against YouTube while the rest of the streamers compete with one another. Analysts pushed Netflix management about its YouTube dilemma during Netflix's earnings call. Rich Greenfield of LightShed Partners asked about its 'stagnation" of market share. In his answer, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos tried to highlight the fact that his company had fairly stable market share despite the proliferation of 'TV-based streaming services," which notably excludes YouTube. These two streamers come at viewers in different ways. Netflix's income comes largely from subscription sales, and YouTube is primarily an ad-based service. But each is sliding into the other's business model. Netflix has successfully launched a less-expensive ad tier to its offerings. YouTube now gets substantial subscription revenue from streaming cable channels on YouTubeTV, the valuable NFL Sunday Ticket package, and other services. The financials tip even more in YouTube's favor. Netflix saw sales of $39 billion last year, and on Thursday it raised the midpoint of its 2025 revenue guidance to $45 billion, up 15% on the year. According to Melissa Otto, head of Visible Alpha Research at S&P Global, analysts' expectations are for ads to provide about a third of that growth. All of that pales in comparison to what is happening at YouTube. Analyst Laura Martin of Needham estimates that YouTube revenue was $58 billion in 2024, and will be $70 billion in 2025, with $30 billion of that coming from subscriptions. She projects that a stand-alone YouTube would have a market capitalization of $720 billion. Netflix has a market cap of $556 billion. YouTube became No. 1 by capturing a young demographic and holding on to those viewers as they aged. In doing so, it disrupted how people thought of 'television" and who made it. This provides a great financial advantage to YouTube. In the second quarter, 52% of Netflix's costs were content expenses. YouTube passes these expenses to its creators, keeping it relatively asset-light and increasing profit margins. That means YouTube doesn't own the content on its platform, which opens up another area for Netflix to move into its rival's territory. Netflix now is using YouTube as a source of programming—which came up in the Thursday earnings call—by selectively luring popular YouTube entertainers. 'We want to be in business with the best creatives on the planet, regardless of where they come from," said Sarandos. 'Some are creators that distribute only on social-media platforms….For those creators doing great work, we have phenomenal distribution, desirable monetization…and a hungry audience waiting to be entertained." Miss Rachel, a children's entertainer, has a very popular YouTube channel. And she now has a Netflix show that got 53 million hours of viewing in the first half of 2025. We still don't know how this movie will end. Just as YouTube disrupted TV a decade ago, it could itself be disrupted by TikTok, which has an even younger demographic and represents yet another way of watching television. If young people come to view television as simply watching short video after short video on their phones, the 'endless scroll" of TikTok could be the ultimate winner. Write to Adam Levine at
Android Authority
5 days ago
- Business
- Android Authority
YouTube TV might offer you $96 off NFL Sunday Ticket if you canceled last season
TL;DR Some former YouTube TV subscribers are getting $96 NFL Sunday Ticket discounts via email. The offer targets users who canceled after last season and is valid until August 7. Discount offers seem to vary, and reactivating YouTube TV will impact any potential savings. With streaming prices climbing across the board, sports fans are feeling the pinch more than most. However, if you're unsure about resubscribing to NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV this year because of the price, you might want to check your inbox first. A Reddit post (h/t 9to5Google) has revealed that YouTube TV is emailing former NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers who also canceled their YouTube TV plan after last season, offering up to $96 off the football streaming package. The deal appears to target this specific group of lapsed subscribers, with the offer reportedly valid through August 7. In the Reddit thread, the original poster claimed to have canceled YouTube TV after March Madness and received the discount via email. Others chimed in with mixed results. Some were offered a smaller $48 discount, and a few found the lower price when navigating to the signup page, even without an email. For YouTube TV subscribers, NFL Sunday Ticket is typically priced at $378 per season, so a $96 discount brings the total to $282. However, some users pointed out that reactivating their YouTube TV subscription just to claim the deal could negate any savings, depending on how long they'd need to stay subscribed. YouTube hasn't officially acknowledged the offer, and it's unclear how widespread the discount campaign is. However, if you were considering renewing your subscription anyway, it might be worth checking your email or account before committing to the full price. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
USA Today
30-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Saints announce open training camp dates for fans in 2025
But five California practices are closed to the public, again. Let's start with the good news. On Monday, the New Orleans Saints announced nine open training camp dates for fans to attend at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center in Metairie, with the first practice session kicking off on July 23. Here's the full schedule: Now the bad news. Like last summer, the Saints are not opening practices in Irvine, Calif. to fans leading up to their first preseason game with the Los Angeles Chargers. That's despite working out of the same facility the L.A. Rams hosted 10,000 fans per day at training camp in years before. They'll practice on five days in California and hold a walkthrough before that preseason game but all of those sessions will be closed to the public. When asked why they didn't invite fans to attend practice in Irvine last year, Saints GM Mickey Loomis essentially said he didn't think it would be worth the effort: "I think for us here, you know we're away from our home market, we're not expecting a lot of fans. We weren't expecting a lot of fans. It's just the venue, all the logistics that are involved. It's significantly more logistics that are involved when you open it up to the public as to when you don't. So all those factors came into play. I didn't really do much inquiry about what we were allowed to do with fans or not allowed to do ... Because pretty quickly we determined that, hey, it's going to be a limited amount of people at practice." That's disappointing, especially for Saints fans who live in California and the West Coast who spend a lot of money supporting their team by purchasing exclusive streaming packages like NFL Sunday Ticket and paying a premium to ship merchandise across the country. But it's the Saints' decision to make. While they will play two preseason games at the Caesars Superdome after returning to Louisiana, the Saints currently don't plan on holding any practices there or at Tulane's Yulman Stadium, as they did last year after flying home from California. That could change, but for now it's only those nine training camp practices and a couple of preseason games for fans in New Orleans.
Time of India
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
YouTube's NFL coverage winning over Gen Z viewers, claims CEO Neal Mohan
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel YouTube's NFL coverage is proving to be a hit with Gen Z viewers, according to CEO Neal Mohan . Speaking about the platform's growing role in sports streaming, Mohan said broadcasting NFL games on YouTube is helping the league connect with a younger, digital-first highlights, livestreams, and exclusive content tailored for mobile consumption, the NFL's presence on YouTube has become a key part of its outreach noted that Gen Z fans are engaging with the sport in new ways - through shorts, creator reactions, and interactive content - making YouTube an essential bridge between the league and its next generation of a recent conversation with Ankler Media founder Janice Min, Mohan said that the NFL's presence on YouTube enables games to exist alongside a wide array of creator-driven sports content - the very type of material that younger audiences actively seek out on the platform."We actually aged down the NFL's audience on our platform," claimed YouTube secured the rights to NFL Sunday Ticket , it didn't just make the service more accessible to those previously limited by DirecTV - it also created a gateway to a younger Sunday Ticket remains a premium subscription mainly appealing to die-hard fans, YouTube's broader platform reach offers the NFL a chance to engage new CEO further highlighted that the upcoming Week One matchup between the Chiefs and Chargers in Sao Paulo, Brazil, set to stream for free globally on September 5, marks a major milestone. By removing paywalls and broadcasting to a worldwide audience, the NFL hopes to draw in a fresh, younger fan base.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
YouTube TV review 2025: Is it the best live TV streaming service? No, but here's why you may want to subscribe anyway
Fed up with cable TV and looking for a no-contract, no-hassle streaming alternative? You've got choices: DirecTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Sling and today's guest of honor, YouTube TV. Unfortunately, they're not inexpensive choices, meaning the idea of "cord-cutting" to save money is pretty much out the window. Replicating cable will cost you between $80 and $90 per month, more if you tack on extra features and channels. So how do you decide which of these live-TV streaming services to choose? I've tested all of them, and I think it comes down to this: interface, channel selection and special features. YouTube TV fares well on most of these fronts, though I do have some bones to pick with its interface, and I don't think its overall value equals Hulu + Live TV's. There is, however, a big draw for football fans in the form of the NFL Sunday Ticket add-on, something you can't get elsewhere. And YouTube TV's multiview feature — another exclusive — lets you watch up to four games at once. It's soon to expand beyond sports, too. Just to be clear, this service has nothing to do with "regular" YouTube, the one with all the homegrown content (cat videos, cooking tutorials, etc.). Rather, it's a straight-up cable replacement, with over 100 live channels and unlimited DVR for recording any and all of them. So is it worth the money? Here's my YouTube TV review. Related: The best streaming services for TV, movies, sports and more in 2025, tested and reviewed The best live-TV streaming services for 2025 Hulu review: The single best value in streaming services, especially if you bundle YouTube TV's base plan costs $82.99 per month, though at this writing you can get your first two months at $59.99 — a small savings but a savings nonetheless. (That promotion is available through July 30.) The channel roster includes the aforementioned 100+ networks, among them the five major locals: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS. For sake of straight-up comparison, Hulu + Live TV also costs $82.99 — but that nets you subscriptions to "regular" Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ as well. You get nothing extra with YouTube TV — not even YouTube Premium (aka ad-free YouTube), which is disappointing. Google could — and should — bundle this to help stand out against the competition. Heck, at least offer it as a discounted add-on. Speaking of which, Google offers several dozen of them, including on-demand premium services like HBO Max, Paramount+ and Starz, and bundles like Entertainment Plus, which includes all three of those for slightly less ($29.99) than they cost individually. As for sports, the lineup here is something of a mixed bag. You get CBS Sports, NBC Sports, ESPN, ESPN 2, NFL Network and NBA TV, but there are some definite gaps in regional sports network (RSN) coverage: No Bally Sports (formerly Fox Sports), no AT&T-owned RSNs (except for SportsNet NY). Confused by all this? Join the club. Bottom line: Before subscribing to any live-TV streaming service, be sure to determine which channels broadcast your favorite teams' games and whether those channels are included. Pro-football fans can tack on NFL Sunday Ticket (which I wasn't able to test) for an additional $31.50 per month; it lets you watch every Sunday daytime game, though keep in mind this won't help you with games broadcast other days of the week — unless they're on channels included in the base plan. Meanwhile, there's NFL RedZone with Sports Plus, a completely different add-on ($10.99) that shows only football highlights, but also brings you extra channels: Fox College Sports, Fox Soccer Plus, GOLTV, MAVTV Motorsports Network, Stadium and TVG. I was interested in, but a bit mystified by, the 4K Plus add-on, which to my thinking sounds like "YouTube TV in 4K resolution." (Most content is streamed at 720p or 1080p.) While it does indeed net you a resolution bump, it's not across the board; 4K is available only for a smattering of channels and content, most of it on-demand. In other words, don't expect all live sports (or live anything) to be 4K just because you're paying for 4K Plus. Some games will be, but definitely not everything. The add-on does net you a number of other perks, however, including unlimited simultaneous streams (you get three otherwise), support for Dolby 5.1 audio (when the content provider supports it as well) and the option to download DVR content for offline viewing on your phone or tablet. And there's a deal on 4K Plus right now: At this writing, you could get it for just $4.99 for the first 12 months. That follows a free 30-day trial. The majority of modern streaming services — live-TV and otherwise — have the same basic user interface (UI): A left-side options menu that leads you to things like the channel guide, recorded shows and categorical listings (movies, sports, etc.). Not so YouTube TV. Instead, there's a centered, three-option menu near the top of the screen: Library, Home and Live. While there's something to be said for this minimalist approach, on the whole I think it makes for a confusing UI — starting with the order. Wouldn't Home be the more obvious first option, followed by Live and then Library? Library is straightforward enough; it displays your recorded shows and movies and a row of quick-access filters: New to you, Recently recorded, Scheduled, Movies and so on. But you can't reorder these nine options, which is annoying. If I want to view "All," for example, I have to scroll eight spots to the right to reach that filter. And it doesn't remember your most recent selection from one visit to the next; every time you visit Library, you land on the "New to you" view. Although YouTube TV doesn't record in the traditional sense, I can't help thinking Library should be named "Recordings," if not "DVR." I feel like both those terms would be a little easier for users to understand. The Home page is an unmitigated mess. It's topped by a row of "Top picks for you" thumbnails, a mixture of recommended live and on-demand content, followed by a row of 20... filters, I guess? These include, in seemingly random order, options like Shows, Movies, Animated Comedy, Tennis, Fantasy, Disney and... not making this up... Princess. I couldn't determine if these filters change based on your viewing history or if they're the same for everyone (I suspect the former is true), but either way they're completely disorganized. And maybe it's just me, but I dislike scrolling long horizontal rows. Scroll vertically and you next come to a Resume Watching row, which is handy, followed by more odd and seemingly random rows (which, again, may be different for you): Sports, Upcoming games, Add to membership, Add to your library and so on. Throughout all this, you'll often find content that's not actually available. For example, if you choose the Comedy filter and then scroll down to Comedy Movies (which, weirdly, appears below rows for Fantasy Movies and Family Shows), you're then once again faced with a horizontal row of randomly organized selections. Choose Deadpool and you get a menu with a "Watch now" option. Choose The Blues Brothers and that menu includes only "Add to library," meaning it'll get recorded the next time it's broadcast somewhere. Sometimes you don't even get that option; you'll just see a "more info" selection and that's it. I'm not sure I fully understand what purpose Home serves, except to provide a place to browse YouTube TV's rather scattershot library of on-demand movies and TV shows. The problem is, while you're perusing all these thumbnails, whether for comedy movies or anything else, there's nothing that indicates what's available to watch now and what's not. The way it's presented is confusing at best. Finally, there's Live, aka the channel guide. The bottom half consists of the actual grid, which is a drab dark gray but admirably easy to navigate. Whatever selection you highlight turns white (instead of just enlarging slightly or getting a bold border), and a detailed description appears in the top half along with an oversize thumbnail image. So far, so good. In the top-left corner of the guide there's a menu icon that lets you reorder the listings in any of five ways: Default, Custom, A-Z, Z-A and Most Watched. This is great, though if you choose the Custom option, you'll have to visit YouTube TV in a desktop web browser or access its account settings in the mobile app; you can't rearrange the guide via your actual TV. You would think, however, that the Live page would have its own filters, the better to find, say, comedies or reality shows that are on right now. But, nope, those filters live in the Home page. Another oddity: Whatever you're currently watching continues to play in the background (unless you pause it) while you browse any of the three menus. But what if you want to return to the live show? You might logically think to press the Back button on your remote until the menu disappears, but, nope: you have to navigate to the very top of the interface and select the show, which appears there as its own button. In fact, if you press Back one too many times, you'll actually exit out of the YouTube TV app altogether. This is perhaps one of the most maddening interface quirks I've encountered; it shouldn't be this unintuitive to simply return to whatever you're watching. The DVR aspects are a bit confusing as well; you don't select shows or movies to record, but instead use that same "Add to library" option I mentioned above. And when you do that with a TV show, you automatically get the entire series; there's no option to record just one episode. Thus, when you visit the Library page, it's not immediately obvious what's recorded, what's coming up, and what might be available on-demand. YouTube TV's UI does have some points in its favor, including the ability to skip past commercials in recorded content and a very useful, straightforward options menu that appears when you press up or down on the remote. (You can quickly turn on closed-captions, for example, and there are tons of customization options for the font, color, opacity and more.) As you might expect from a Google product, the search features works very well, making it easy to find not only movie and TV show titles but also actors, genres and more. There's also multiview, which lets you watch up to four channels at once (in a grid). This was initially limited to sports, but YouTube will soon be expanding the feature to non-sports channels. (At this writing, for example, there were a few news and weather multiviews available, and they'd actually appeared during the course of my testing.) Speaking of sports, you'll sometimes see a "key plays" option — basically a quick highlight reel — you can watch before joining a game in progress. This is great when it works, and when it's available, which in my testing wasn't often. For example, I didn't see it for French Open tennis or a tournament airing on the Golf Channel. And the key plays for a baseball game consisted solely of hits — no strikeouts, no great catches or the like. I think this is a great feature; I just want to see it available for more sports and with more, er, "key". Can you learn to live with YouTube TV's interface? Yes, and in fact I found myself skipping deftly around it after a couple days. I suspect most users are like me in that they mostly browse the channel guide and watch recordings, areas in which the UI is pretty good. But it definitely feels like it was engineered, not designed; look at DirecTV for an example of an attractive, intuitive live-TV interface. Real talk: This isn't the best live-TV streaming service. I consider DirecTV to be the top pick overall and Hulu + Live TV to be the best value. Fubo offers more in terms of regional sports networks — but YouTube TV is the only place to get NFL Sunday Ticket, which I suspect is a major attraction for many potential subscribers. Similarly, the multiview option is a big draw for those looking to watch multiple games at once, something that would normally require a trip to a sports bar. And Key Plays is amazing for those tuning in late, though it's fairly limited in its current incarnation. I wish YouTube TV's interface wasn't such a mixed bag. In some ways it's totally fine, in others it's surprisingly bad. That's why I highly recommend taking advantage of Google's free trial — currently 10 days, but usually just 7. By the end you should know whether you can live with this UI or you find it too vexing. Me, if I'm spending $83 monthly for live TV, I want an interface that's attractive, logically designed and easy to understand.
