Peacock is a Nightmare For NBC

Peacock is NBC Universal's streaming service, featuring everything from The Office to Twisted Metal. And it's not doing well! In this video, I go over where Peacock is worse off than Netflix, Max and Paramount Plus, as well as why they're all in trouble.

[captainmidnight]

What's your most used big streaming service?

[iagas]

The beginning of this video just seems like the setup to a 30 Rock episode. "Good news, Lemon. Peacock only lost $639, 000, 000 in Q1. We'll be breaking even in 25 years."

[johnsmith]

That Law & Order decision is mind baffling. It’s audience is primarily older people who still watch network TV

[mollywatts]

I think Abbott Elementary is a good example that episodic shows can still be done and have a dedicated audience. It’s won a ton of awards, beloved, and sticks to a traditional network format. It’s renowned for its dedication to its characters and being grounded. It’s still a model that can work, people just need to give it the opportunity

[otakubullfrog]

I think the problem is that, even in the broadcast era, three-letter networks didn't really have fans even if their shows did. At best, they could create some brand-identity for programming blocks such as NBC's Must-See TV or Fox's Animation Domination, but nobody really gets excited about a new show just because they hear it's from NBC, which is a problem for a streaming service that tries to make having all the NBC content its selling point. Even Disney, which has a much stronger brand identity, is struggling in the streaming game.

[benwasserman]

The sad part is that Peacock has some great shows on it like Poker Face. But it lacks a brand identity to help the platform stand out.

[EChacon]

Another thing to note is that because Peacock hasn’t been released in most international markets especially in Latin America some of the Peacock originals are now being put into other streaming services.

[jinpei]

As a traditional antenna tv watcher and fan of Law & Order: Organized Crime, I was so bummed to hear it was moving to Peacock exclusively.

[edczxcvbnm]

A hybrid of both styles? Like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Stargate SG-1, or Babylon 5. They all had long term story arcs. The characters grew and changed...but it wasn't overly serialized. Episodes were still allowed to be episodes with a beginning middle and end. Not everything was a cliff hanger for next week. Sometimes the episodes just allow you to see a different side of the characters, go on a wacky adventure, or expand the world. Scifi TV of the 90s can show us the way!

[jinpei]

Peacock actually bumped their prices just in time for the Olympics 😅

[TheWolf]

the ONE TIME IN HISTORY when a monopoly was a good thing for everyone... was Netflix, 10 years ago. absolutely crazy!

[markfacebook]

The reason why alot of those old franchises have the staying power they do as opposed to streaming boils down to one word: Syndication.

The reason why shows like Suits or Law and Order are popular is because stations will buy them up to fill up the mid-day/weekend hours that network TV doesnt own, or speciality channels like your Paramount Networks or your Bravos will buy them up to fill up the same time.

Streaming platforms arent selling their TV shows into syndication, so the only place you see a show like Wednesday or Twisted Metal is if you're already subbed to those services.

Netflix got away with it because for a while they were the only game in town for streaming. Everyone was watching Netflix. Now everything is broken up so bad that if you want to watch anything, you have to be subbed to everything. This is killing not just Peacock, but Max and Paramount+.

[JohnBainbridge]

Two of the other biggest things killing Cable TV are both about money:
First, (where I live) Cable costs like $60/month (CAD)! That's at least 4 streaming services.
Second, there are So. Many. Ads!
How is TV more expensive than streaming, with more ads, and less quality? What are they spending all their ad revenue on?

[frauleinfunf]

Council of Geeks recently made a great video related to this topic called "Streaming's Future isn't Good (and we're still stuck with it)". A point she made that's stuck with me is how the disruption model needs to be profitable, because once it usurps the old way of doing things, there's no going back. Unfortunately tech companies focus very little on this, and you can see how that's an issue in the age of streaming where TV and film are treated as tech ventures.

[rayzaramon]

Only thing I hate about Peacock is that, and I constantly complain to them about it is if you stop watching a show for over a month, you can't pick up where you were. You have to figure out where you left off. You can w/ Prime and Netflix. You can stop watching for YEARS w/ those 2 and it's still recorded.

[wghtmf]

As a Brit, it's interesting to see how differently British and American TV networks have reacted to streaming. Over here, all the major free-to-air channels do have their own streaming services, but they're free services and pretty much every original show from those companies is still broadcast on TV as well as being on their streaming platforms.

As a result, while the big American streamers are certainly very popular here, the long-running British broadcasters (and even the actual viewing of linear television, to an extent) have managed to maintain some degree of relevance. That's why it's bizarre to me that every American network seems to have fragmented their viewership by having some shows go out on broadcast TV and others exclusive to paid streaming services, especially now that many people are fed up of forking out for so many subscriptions.

[ProlificSpider]

I LOVE that Peacock plays all the commercials before you watch a movie.

[EdHelms]

Great video. I still don’t understand the thinking behind moving the soap opera Days of our lives from NBC to Peacock. I don’t watch this show but it seems like it is meant for an older audience, so why would you make it more complicated to watch? I would imagine that a large percentage of the audience didn’t move when it went to Peacock.

[MojiiOkay]

When you have 30+ million (presumably paying) users and you still loose hundreds of millions of dollars. What are we even doing? Remember when being good at business meant you made decisions that made money? When it was a simple as producing a product, people pay for product, make money from said people, utilize the profit made to reinvest? This is unhinged. The corporate elite have lost the plot.

[wstine]

I work at WWAY-TV which is a ABC/CBS/ CW affiliate in Wilmington, NC. My job relies heavily on Broadcast television.