K-hits

The Meh-dalorian. It seems fans of the critically-acclaimed series may have finally hit their breaking point, citing “a massive drop in quality” as of late. User ratings for season three have plummeted on Rotten Tomatoes — dropping to just 57%. Yikes. You know it’s bad when not even cameos from Jack Black and Lizzo (who pretty much everyone loves) are able to calm the backlash.

What do you think, Future Party people? Has The Mandalorian lost its way? Let us know.

In other news… Hollywood falls back in love with movie theaters, Netflix re-embraces content licensing, and Korean entertainment dominates the global stage.

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The Future. It’s official, putting your movie in theaters before streaming is the move if you want to milk every potential dollar of revenue you can get out of it… or even just to make sure people know it exists. That’s a major vibe shift from the narrative of the streaming wars and may lead to a renaissance at cinemas, which have been hungry for more films to show so they can keep the lights on.

Communal marketingRoth Capital Partners analyst Eric Handler says studios have “come to recognize that having an exclusive theatrical window is the best way to maximize profits instead of releasing everything simultaneously on demand.” 

Here’s why:

And with the box office up 36.8% from last year (and 589.5% from 2021!), the audience is slowly returning to pre-pandemic levels.

Big tech hits the big screenConsidering all the benefits of releasing a movie in theaters, Amazon and Apple have decided to invest a billion dollars per year in theatrical films. Amazon started that experiment last week with Ben Affleck’s Air, which opened to a solid $20 million.

Neither company needs the box office revenue, but it’s proven that movies get a huge marketing bump just by being in theaters, even if they don’t make much money. The awareness is sticky enough to make people check it out when it hits streaming. That’s what each company is after.

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The Future. On the hunt for increased revenue, Netflix could opt to restart mass licensing of movies and shows to fill its library back up with proven hits that people want to watch. The move could help retain people who signed up for a splashy Original, turning a churning viewer into a long-term subscriber.

Library refillLicensing content used to be a growth generator for Netflix. Variety thinks it could be once again.

One reason licensed shows racked up so much viewership is because not only have they been massive hits for years on broadcast, but they have continued for several seasons — something that Netflix hasn’t found economically viable for most of its produced shows.

Homepage refreshA move back into licensing content at scale couldn’t come at a better time for Netflix. The streaming war’s retrenchment to making money has led Warner Bros. Discovery to start licensing to FAST platforms, and Disney’s Bob Iger has signaled that the Mouse House could find “opportunities to license to third parties."

Those developments were unheard of a couple of years ago… and may make Netflix the ideal home to offload shows no longer driving revenue for those streamers. But with Netflix possibly toying with the idea of licensing out its own Originals, no movie or show may ever be truly exclusive to any service ever again.

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That’s dog for, “Give me better food. Give me Sundays.” 

Sundays air-dried food uses human-grade ingredients like chicken, spinach, carrots, blueberries, turmeric, and USDA beef to maximize flavor and ensure your bff gets the nutrients they need. Plus, you can store it in your pantry.

Join the 10,000+ other canine lovers who know what “Woof”really means. Get 35% off your first order with code: FUTUREPARTY, or try a free sample.

The Future. South Korean entertainment has become a worldwide sensation thanks to films like Parasite and shows like Squid Game. And that popularity is not predicated on just the occasional hit — new Korean content is consistently topping Netflix’s Top 10 lists. With Korean production ramping up to meet global demand, the country’s industry may become the world’s most influential entertainment industry after Hollywood.

K-hitsThe Korean entertainment industry is dominating the global stage.

And other streamers want in on the action, too — Disney+ and Apple TV+ are looking at making deals. Meanwhile, Amazon has already started licensing content, despite Amazon Prime not being accessible in the country — that’s how popular Korean shows are around the world.

To meet demand, South Korean studios have increased content production by 50% over the past three years. The industry wants to make sure they’re not just a fad but an enduring global force in entertainment.

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Soho Desert House is back this Coachella with everything you need to refresh, rejuvenate and recharge in between day parties and DJ sets. 

Cecconi’s pizzas and Soho House’s Classic Dirty Burgers (IYKYK) aren’t the only perks – the beautiful space will also feature various bars by Ciroc and Lost Boy & Co’s Sip Sip & Tropezon. Plus, plenty of NA options will be available for those staying dry this April. 

Wellness is also winning this year. Check out a rotation of activations like Calibrate IV drips, a Remedy Place ice bath, massages from Nike, and pickleball courtesy of Ciroc. 

They’re also hosting DJs and music collectives from New York, Miami, and Latin America to keep the party going all day. 

Soho Desert House is open Friday (4/14) through Sunday (4/16) from 12pm-7pm. Both Members and Non-Members can access the oasis.

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Nearly a year after the merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery, Warner Bros. Discovery has unveiled the new combined streaming service of HBO Max and Discovery+ — it’s simply called Max. The name change signals the “broader” appeal of the streamer’s offerings (because, apparently, some people are turned off by the prestige of the HBO name). The new service, which will cost $19.99/month for its ad-free version, launches on May 23.

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While Twitter and Meta are out there asking people to pay to verify themselves, LinkedIn is giving out badges like Halloween candy. The free verification system uses CLEAR, Microsoft Entra, or just a company email to prove you’re the real deal, giving users either a green or blue check. The whole system will be available for use by the end of the month. Silicon Valley, this is the way.

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F1 is very popular right now, thanks to Netflix’s Drive to Survive docuseries. But it’s Paramount+ that’s getting in the fast lane with the organization, crossing the finish line on a deal that will make the streamer the sport’s official promotional partner for the 2023/24 season. The deal will see “Paramount+ series, movies and characters featured at Formula 1 events inside Fan Zone areas.”

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Wrangling the ever-growing information output of ChatGPT is an almost impossible task, so OpenAI announced that it would award anywhere from $200 to $20,000 to security researchers who find bugs in its software. The company is specifically looking for vulnerabilities in ChatGPT, its API, or corporate information regarding OpenAI. Hopefully, this will be a small step in breaking through AI’s penchant for “hallucinations.”

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Elon Musk may be the first person to drop $44 billion on a company because he had no other choice. In an interview with the BBC, Musk admitted that he went through with the deal because he would have most likely had to after Twitter sued him. His lawyers basically told him he had to do it. That will surely anger the roughly 6,000 workers who have lost their jobs because of the acquisition. 

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Today's email was brought to you by David Vendrell.Edited by Nick Comney. Publishing by Sara Kitnick.