Woke Streamers Posting Their L’s: Netflix, Disney, CNN+ Having a Bad Week

Less than a month after the streaming service launched, parent company Warner Bros. Discovery suspended all external marketing for CNN+, according to a report from Axios. The moves come just weeks after WarnerMedia and Discovery completed the merger into Warner Bros. Discovery, with the plan to eventually build one streaming offering centered around HBO Max.

Sara Fischer writes:

“Discovery executives are frustrated that the service launched. If CNN held off launching CNN+ until after the merger, it would have been easier to pivot the company’s efforts towards something better aligned with Discovery’s goals.”

The streaming service currently has around 150,000 subscribers, and CNN’s original plan was for the service to become profitable in four years with $1 billion invested. Around $300 million has already been spent on CNN+, which includes roughly $100 million on marketing. Profitability is nowhere on their horizon.

The subscription-based streamer, which charges $5.99 a month or $59.99 annually, launched earlier this month on Roku, North America’s most-used connected TV platform. However, Fischer reports that with marketing suspended, any expected growth will be short-lived.

So as Ace at the Ace of Spades blog said, “Chris Wallace will soon have more time to spend with his hair dye.”

Even the big streamers are struggling this year, with behemoth Netflix’s stock tumbling by 20% after it reported a loss of 200,000h paid subscribers in the first quarter of 2022 — its first subscriber loss in over a decade.  Following the news, Netflix’s stock crashed to a four-year low. Elon Musk summed it up pretty well with his Twitter response on Tuesday when the news broke.

JosiahRises (for Geeks & Gamers) observed the sudden impact Musk’s tweet did to obliterate Netflix’s stock prices last night.