Super Bowl streaming, NFL dreams, and TV picks from us and listeners. (Downstream+ subscribers also get: Seeking "Paradise" on broadcast TV, Netflix taunts Apple TV users, and a SNL50 triumph.)

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Factor: Healthy, full-prepared food delivered to your door. Use code FACTORPODCAST for 50% off plus free shipping on your first box.

Guest Starring:

Josef Adalian

Links and Show Notes:

Listener picks: The Recruit, Boiling Point, Last Tango in Halifax, Happy Valley

Joe's pick: Paradise (Hulu)

Jason's pick: "Flow" on Max

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Super Bowl LIX on FOX and Tubi Generates More Than $800 Million in Gross Advertising Revenue - foxcorporation

Live Blogging of FOX's Super Bowl Stream on Tubi and vMVPDs, Across Multiple Devices - Dan Rayburn - StreamingMediaBlog.com

Will Carroll returns on Super Bowl week, and we discuss Super Bowl 4K, Tubi, and the enduring power of communal live events. Also: ESPN Flagship and Fox's streaming play, a new RSN is heard from, Apple and MLS make tweaks, your letters, and TV picks!

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Memberful: Best-in-class membership software for independent creators, publishers, educators, podcasters, and more. Get started now, no credit card required.

Guest Starring:

Will Carroll

Links and Show Notes:

TV Picks:

Will: Ludwig (coming to Britbox, Elsbeth (Paramount+)

Jason: Detectorists (Acorn, Pluto TV, Roku, Hoopla)

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Fox does streaming (Apple News/WSJ)

2025 Super Bowl Will Stream for Free on Tubi, Fox Streaming Service

Fox’s 1080p to 4K Upscaling Workflow for Super Bowl 2025: An Engaging Debate - Streaming Learning Center

Comcast Sales, Profit Beat as ‘Wicked’ Lifts Film Studio - Bloomberg

Altitude Sports, Comcast end long-running dispute to televise Nuggets and Avalanche games | AP News

Apple adds Xfinity, DirecTV as MLS Season Pass distributors – Six Colors

Rangers Sports Network Boss Explains Why Team Managing Own TV Business

Texas Rangers: ‘We’re in better hands managing our own risk’

Comcast Sales, Profit Beat as ‘Wicked’ Lifts Film Studio - Bloomberg

(3) Under The Knife | Will Carroll | Substack

Joe Adalian joins Jason to discuss Netflix's big moves, price hikes, and what drove Jason to cancel it. Also we answer your letters and make some TV picks! (Downstream+ members also get: the return of CNN+, death of Venu, and Tubi spikes the football.)

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.

Guest Starring:

Josef Adalian

Links and Show Notes:

TV Picks:

Joe: New Hollywood Squares (CBS/P+); The Pitt (Max)

Jason: Severance (Apple TV+), SNL50 (Peacock), St. Denis Medical (Peacock)

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Netflix Q4 2024 Earnings: Subscriber Tally Passes 301M, Smashing Estimates

Netflix Q4 2024 Earnings: NFL and Jake Paul Help Drive Subscribers

Netflix Raises Prices in First Major Hike Since 2023

Will Carroll joins for a mega Sports Corner: Fubo meets Hulu to enable Venu, Netflix goes full force into live sports, how football dominates American TV, NFL announcers, and our TV picks!

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Memberful: Best-in-class membership software for independent creators, publishers, educators, podcasters, and more. Get started now, no credit card required.
• Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.

Guest Starring:

Will Carroll

Links and Show Notes:

TV Picks:

Will: Traitors (US and UK, Peacock), Landman (JERRY JONES!, Paramount+)

Jason: Ludwig (UK, coming to Britbox), All Creatures Great and Small (UK, PBS)

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Jeopardy: Behind the Scenes With Ken Jennings

Disney Deal Will Combine Hulu + Live TV With Fubo, Ending Venu Lawsuit

NFL Owns 72 of Top 100 Broadcasts as Pols Undermine Sports' TV Might

Arctos co-founder on the future of private equity in sports

Takeaways from Netflix’s NFL Christmas ratings door-buster: The streaming giant could be here to stay - The Athletic

Netflix Spent $5B on WWE Monday Night Raw, Convinced Me to Watch

Netflix secures U.S. broadcast rights for 2027, 2031 Women’s World Cups - The Athletic

Netflix Scores FIFA Women's World Cup Exclusive Rights for 2027, 2031

Netflix’s FIFA Women’s World Cup deal feels like a page out of the pay-to-play book: Rueter - The Athletic

‘Why walk away?’ Al Michaels wants a 39th season calling NFL prime-time games - The Athletic

John Gruber: "2024 NFL broadcast teams and telecast quality, ranked"

Under The Knife | Will Carroll | Substack

Down the chimney comes Tim Goodman, reuniting with Jason to discuss his super-secret insider TV reviews, streaming's influence in the rise of international TV here in the U.S., and Jason's top TV shows of the year.

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.

Guest Starring:

Tim Goodman

Links and Show Notes:

Jason mentioned: Shogun (Hulu), Dark Matter (Apple TV+), Bad Monkey (Apple TV+), Hacks (Max), Slow Horses (Apple TV+), Silo (Apple TV+), Shoresy (Hulu), Masters of the Air (Apple TV+), The Diplomat (Netflix), and A Man on the Inside (Netflix).

Tim Mentioned: Black Doves (Netflix), Giri/Haji (Netflix), Moving (Hulu), House of Ninjas (Netflix), A Shop For Killers (Hulu), The Frog (Netflix), Kleo (Netflix), and Black Twitter: A Peoplpe's History (Hulu).

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Tim Goodman / Bastard Machine | Substack

TV Talk Machine - a podcast from The Incomparable

Our Silent Nights are Getting Loud (Apple Music)

Merry Christmas, Baby. (Apple Music)

Our Silent Nights are Getting Loud (Spotify)

Merry Christmas, Baby. (Spotify)

How Disney's strategy has led to ESPN inside the Disney+ app, Disney and Netflix content strategies, Warner Bros. Discovery and Comcast make a deal, the ramifications of Comcast's "SpinCo," crafting a theatrical hit out of a Disney+ TV show, and TV picks!

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.
• Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.

Guest Starring:

Josef Adalian

Links and Show Notes:

Show picks:

• Jason: Somebody Somewhere (HBO)
• Joe: Shrinking (Apple TV+); Sugarplummed (Hallmark Channel– yes, really)

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Disney’s Grand Streaming Vision Is Finally Coming Together

Is ESPN+ Going Away? How the Disney+ App Integration Works

Comcast Gets Max Bundling Rights Under Warner Bros. Discovery Deal

‘Moana 2’ Shatters Box Office Records Around the World | The Walt Disney Company

'Moana 2': Why Disney Decided to Turn a Series Into a Theatrical Movie

Apple's movie mistakes, Comcast pushes cable channels onto the ice floe, Diamond exits bankruptcy, Netflix goes live, the holiday season as a streaming opportunity, and our TV picks!

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.

Guest Starring:

Natalie Jarvey

Links and Show Notes:

Natalie mentioned: A Man on the Inside (Netflix), No Good Deed (Netflix), Squid Game (Netflix), The Agency (Paramount+), Skeleton Crew (Disney+), Scotland's Home of the Year, and Rivals (Hulu/Disney+).

Jason mentioned "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" (Paramount+).

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Jon Watts On Why He Canceled George Clooney & Brad Pitt 'Wolfs' Sequel

Comcast Announces Intention to Create Leading Independent Media Business Through Spin-Off of Select Cable Television Networks

Comcast Cable Spinoff Employee Reaction: Skepticism but Also Optimism

Diamond Sports cleared to emerge from bankruptcy after new MLB deals | Reuters

MLB plans new national TV packages for 2028; changes to revenue sharing, CBA crucial - The Athletic

Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson Was the Most Streamed Sporting Event in History - Netflix Tudum

Monday Night football on ABC, streaming delays, and more TV picks. (Downstream+ subscribers also get: an Unrivaled new sports TV product; Amazon's deal with the NBA; and pondering the limits of the NFL.)

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.

Guest Starring:

Will Carroll

Links and Show Notes:

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ESPN’s Delicate Streaming Balance - Puck

Grand Designs Australia - Wikipedia

Holiday specials and streaming rights; the questionable future of linear cable channels; Bob Iger's Endgame gets interesting; Sports Corner with Rob Manfred, Jason Kelce, and Charles Barkley; Behold, the power of CBS; and some TV shows you should watch.

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.
• Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.

Guest Starring:

Josef Adalian

Links and Show Notes:

Joe's picks:

• Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List (Peacock)
• CBS Thursdays: Ghosts, Matlock, Elsbeth

Jason's picks:

• Bad Monkey (Apple TV+)
• The Diplomat (Netflix)
• Don Giller’s YouTube channel

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‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ Is Moving From CBS to NBC

Why Is "Rudolph" and "Frosty the Snowman" Not Streaming?

Can Comcast Save Cable TV With a Channel Rollup Company?

Disney Names James Gorman Chairman, Sets ‘Early 2026’ for C.E.O. Change - The New York Times

Disney’s Race to Replace Bob Iger: The Succession Strategy Game

Watch Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List Streaming Online | Peacock

Don Giller - YouTube

Letterman - YouTube

Apple TV+ comes to Prime Video, and the Diamond bankruptcy continues to disrupt the entire economy of sports. [Downstream+ listeners get: ESPN Flagship, Paramount and the NFL, the future of sports rights, and in praise of narrowcasting.]

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.

Guest Starring:

Will Carroll

Links and Show Notes:

Get Downstream+ and don't miss a segment!

Submit Feedback

Apple TV+ Coming to Amazon Prime Video as Subscription Add On

Diamond Looks to Retain Some MLB Contracts as Chapter 11 Exit Looms

Texas Rangers leaving Diamond Sports Group, considering local media options for 2025

Brian Williams will bring live news to Prime Video, but what's the future of streaming news? Also: More cable bundles include streaming services; Amazon programs a night of game shows; Netflix's coming compensation crunch; and a Diamond/MLB update.

This episode of Downstream is sponsored by:

• Trakt.tv: Track shows and movies you watch. Discover what's hot and where to stream it. Get 50% off your first year.

Guest Starring:

Josef Adalian

Links and Show Notes:

Get Downstream+ and don't miss a segment!

Submit Feedback

"Max Headroom" War (TV Episode 1987) - IMDb

Does Brian Williams’ Return Offer a Future for Cable News? - Puck

Brian Williams is set to anchor election night coverage on Prime Video. Is Amazon getting into live news? | CNN Business

‘Free HBO’ Isn’t the Full Picture of WBD’s Charter Bundle

NBCU-Charter Renewal Deal: Peacock Bundled With Spectrum Select TV

Are You Smarter Than an Amazon Streaming Executive?

What We Watched the First Half of 2024 - About Netflix

The Limits of Netflix’s Semiannual Viewing Ratings

Broadcaster Diamond Sports Group drops two MLB teams, implies nine others are in danger - The Athletic