Disney rep[orts loss from BamTechDisney Cable Networks revenue for 1Q18 rose 1% year-over-year, while operating income fell 1%. Lower operating income was due to a loss at BAMTech and lower advertising revenue hurt EPSN. Lower average viewership, fewer units delivered and lower rates hurt lower advertising revenue.
Back when BAMTech was all the rage, I posted that BamTech will not be profitable because the market is just not there yet and it needed really super big deals to just cover their costs. When Disney took over we got to see performace that until then was a big question mark. All the hype said it should be hugely profitable but instead Disney reported a significant loss directly attributed BAMTech performance. This bodes well for NLN because it is scalable, properly sized to service it target client and provides an end to end service that allows so many companies to stream like the big guys/girls without having to add to their head count. Essentially SVOD is not yet ready for prime time in terms of generating significant profits but at the same time it is an essential service, albeit a necessary evil or cost of doing business so to speak. Today's webinar covered the complexities of the business which would make any business think twice of building their own service. This is where NLN comes in. Apply time and NLN will do well as long as it remains steady at the helm.