Figuring Out Paramount+, ITVX Windowing Strategy, Ad Loads, MPEG News

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	nScreenMedia A Disney+ Ad-supported Tier is Low-risk, High Reward Move
With Disney+ increasing US and Canadian subscribers by 18% last year, does the service need an ad-supported tier? Here are two reasons why an ad-supported service tier is a low-risk, high-reward strategy for Disney+.

	The Verge Paramount Plus is Still Figuring Out Paramount Plus
“I think they’re afraid to make hard choices. That’s the thing that sticks with me,” Andrew A. Rosen, PARQOR founder and a former Viacom digital media executive, tells The Verge. “There’s basic questions that are not unreasonable to ask that they don’t have answers for.”

	MediaPost The Top 5 AVODs Are Duking it Out for a Handful of Ad Categories
Paramount+’s ad load is nearly twice that of its nearestcompetitor, both per hour and per show. Peacock and HBO Max have the lightest ad loads. This may be a way to win oversubscribers with a better viewing experience, but also to win advertisers.

	Digital TV Europe Record Year for Smart TV Shipments in India
The smart TV market grew at a faster rate of 55% year-over-year in 2021 and 65% year-over-year in Q4 2021, reaching its highest ever shipments for a calendar year.

	Videonet The ITVX Windowing Strategy That Confirms ITV is Thinking Digital-first
A digital-first windowing strategy that will see much of its new content appearing first on ITVX before making its way to ITV broadcast channels not days later, or weeks later, but months later (6-9 months later for a wealth of dramas, for example)

	AdExchanger Will More Ads Make AVOD Less ‘Plus’?; Why iOS CPMs Are up While Performance is Down
The transition is difficult for linear TV companies, which go from 20 minutes of commercial breaks per hour to small pockets of valuable inventory. “Netflix wrecked everyone’s ad tolerance,” Shields writes. “How do you shove a $70 billion market into those five minutes, let alone grow the market?”

	Multimedia Communication MPEG News: a Report From the 137th Meeting
This update focuss on the Emmy® Awards, video coding updates (AVC, HEVC, VVC, and beyond), and a brief update about DASH.