Together with
Sunshine state of mind. Hey, FutureParty people. We’re celebrating the final weeks of summer by giving away a refreshing, three-night stay for two at Costa d’Este Beach Resort & Spa in Vero Beach, Florida. Yep, that’s right. If you enjoy long walks on the beach and sipping rosé under the stars, this trip is definitely for you. Enter now for your chance to win.
In other news… Hulu’s stake sale is on the move, Story Protocol gets creative on the blockchain, and Shorts cannibalizes YouTube’s audience.
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ENTERTAINMENT
Going once, going twice… // Illustration by Kate Walker
Disney and Comcast go head-to-head on Hulu this month
The Future. Disney and Comcast have moved up their negotiations to hash out a final price for Comcast’s 33% stake in Hulu. The deal has been on the docket since Disney’s 2019 takeover of Fox (which included its Hulu stake), with both parties trying to control the narrative of how much the streamer really costs. But with Disney likely to pay whatever it needs to for the platform to solidify its general entertainment strategy, we can expect Disney+ and Hulu to eventually merge into what would arguably be the first true Netflix competitor.
Let’s get this over with
At yesterday’s Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts announced the negotiations for Hulu have been moved from January to September 30th.
On that date, Disney can “put,” and Comcast can “call” to get the ball rolling (because apparently, high-profile M&A deals play by Vegas rules).
To determine the final price (which has a minimum value of $27.5 billion per a 2019 deal), each company will have its own appraiser (there’ll also be a third-party appraiser to keep everyone honest).
Whatever the final price is, Roberts said the proceeds would be returned to shareholders (gotta boost that stock).
While Disney would love to spend as little as possible, Roberts says this “scarce, kingmaker asset” should fetch much higher than the “hypothetical” minimum. He argues the stand-alone streamer has “two to three times” the engagement of every platform but Netflix, and the benefits of reducing churn and increasing synergy for Disney make it worth $30 billion… before accounting for content.
And with Disney’s ongoing battle with Charter Communications driving 60% more signups for Hulu’s “Hulu + Live TV” tier than the Mouse House expected, Disney may have no choice but to acknowledge Hulu’s rich value to the company.
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TECHNOLOGY
The founders // Courtesy of Story Protocol
Story Protocol manages online IP ownership and collaboration with the blockchain
The Future. Technology startup Story Protocol is betting in the world of generative AI, the blockchain may provide a foundation for creators to keep track of their work and get paid for it. If widely adopted (and understood), Story Protocol could usher in a new era of online creativity that assures creators even when their works take on lives of their own, they’ll still be compensated and retain ownership.
Generative stamp
Story Protocol, an “intellectual property platform,” has built a system that allows people to collaborate on works online and pay anyone who contributes to them.
With Story Protocol, IP owners can manage “provenance tracking, licensing, and revenue sharing.”
That allows artists and writers to post their work online to be contributed to or remixed and still get paid.
The company plans to team with third parties on everything from crowdfunding to authentication for AI content — becoming a one-stop shop for collaboration on the internet.
Founded by Seung Yoon “SY” Lee, Jason Levy, and Jason Zhao, Story Protocol has already raised over $54 million for the venture from investors like a16z, Endeavor, and Samsung Ventures.
And to solidify it wants to be an asset for the entertainment industry (which, in case you weren’t aware, has some strong feelings about IP ownership and AI), the company has brought on renowned filmmaker David S. Goyer (The Dark Knight, the Blade trilogy) as an advisor.
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FINANCE
Together with Danelfin
Pick a stock, any stock (with AI)
What better use of AI than helping you pick stocks? Danelfin brings the tech once reserved for hedge funds and elite investors to everyone. Way cool, Danelfin.
Danelfin rates stocks and ETFs by analyzing 10,000 features based on 900+ technical, fundamental, and sentiment indicators. And the AI Score it gives (between 1-10) rates the probability of beating the market over the next three months. And guess what? It has a 94% win rate. 🏆
Strong Buy even says stocks picked by Danelfin AI have outperformed the market yearly by an impressive +20.08% on average since 2017.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Short videos, big impact // Illustration by Kate Walker
YouTube’s long decline
The Future. YouTube’s push to compete with TikTok has made Shorts the new reigning champ of the Google-owned platform. But that push toward short-form glory has potentially put long-form video, the bread and butter of YouTube, on the back burner. While some inside the company would love to see a turnaround, Pandora’s Box may already be open — our modern penchant for bite-sized, mobile-first content that can be used across rival platforms may just be too culturally viral to pass up.
Snacks over meals
YouTube’s Shorts may be “cannibalizing” its classic long-form videos, say the company’s execs.
YouTube viewership is way up overall, thanks to Shorts surpassing 50 billion daily views.
But two-thirds of the most-watched channels mostly work in that format and aren’t really dabbling in longer videos.
Additionally, if those creators do make long-form videos, users aren’t checking them out anyway.
Long-form video uploads and viewership are so bad that “senior staff at YouTube” have held meetings about it, fearful the format is “dying out.”
While long-form videos have historically provided more advertising opportunities, creators have noted the tide has shifted towards Shorts. Brands are going where the viewership is — that just means creators need to upload a lot more videos to recoup the same revenue they did with longer content.
But maybe that shift doesn’t really bother top YouTube brass. According to YouTube VP of America Tara Walpert Levy, Shorts has allowed more people to become creators (long videos are a lot of work). The more, the merrier… but only if enough people can make a living from it.
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ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Together with YouAi
Did someone say content?
If you did, let us introduce YouAi.
YouAi is a creator suite that helps you bring content ideas to life on all social platforms. How? With these legit AI tools:
The CleverContent AI that generates optimized posts tailored to your brand and platforms.
The Social Media Strategist that analyzes your current social presence and offers strategic recommendations.
The Video Script Generator that effortlessly creates a script for any of your videos in seconds.
These are just a few. Trust us when we say YouAi has something for everyone.
Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Media, Music, & Entertainment
Ghostwriter’s “Heart On My Sleeve,” which features the deepfaked vocals of Drake and The Weeknd, has been submitted for Grammy consideration… and the Recording Academy says that’s totally okay. Read more → variety
Warner Bros. Discovery hopes to lure more people to Max by offering sports content for free later this year… but just for a limited time. Read more → bloomberg
Universal Music Group and top French music streaming service Deezer have crafted a new “artist-centric” royalty model that may act as a blueprint for giving “professional artists” a lot more pennies for plays. Read more → variety
Fashion & E-Commerce
Vanessa Bryant has debuted the first cohort of universities that’ll be part of the inaugural “Mamba Program,” honoring the legacy of her husband, the late Kobe Bryant. Read more → complex
Designer Heron Preston is collabing with H&M on a fashion line and an entirely closed-loop system to make fashion more sustainable. Read more → highsnobiety
Menswear has really become about dudes impressing other dudes online in the modern age. Read more → bof
Tech, Web3, & AI
The US Justice Department’s three-years-in-the-making antitrust case against Google’s search business is finally going to trial. Read more → nyt
Microchip designer Arm is filing to go public at a whopping $50 billion valuation. Read more → theinformation
NYC’s new regulations on short-term rentals are already taking Airbnbs off the market. Read more → engadget
Creator Economy
TikTok creator Mike Kruzich somehow amassed a million followers in six months and is now opening a content marketing agency that sells itself on assured virality. Read more → tubefilter
Clubhouse is evolving into an audio-first messaging app. Read more → theinformation
Popular TikTok creator Khaby Lame is getting the Fortnite-avatar treatment. Read more → tubefilter
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Today’s email was written by David Vendrell.
Edited by Nick Comney. Copy edited by Kait Cunniff.
Published by Darline Salazar.