188bet app, the "century-old store", is having a bad time.

Since this year，Affected by the epidemic，Many of its blockbusters have been withdrawn、Theme park closed、Raising US billion in debt...a series of negative reports，Let 188bet app, which has gone through 97 years of ups and downs, be questioned。

On one side is 188bet app’s “Darkest Hour”，On one side is Netflix’s three-fold overtaking in market capitalization，former N.O 1，Facing the fierce pursuit of the "back wave"，Feeling a little panic。

The advantage of "a century-old store" is，I’m used to strong winds and heavy rain，Panic again，Always come up with solutions。

In 2018，After being surpassed by Netflix in market value for the first time，188bet app is already adjusting its strategy，To cope with changes in the market environment。Transforming to digital business，Strive to win the online entertainment market，will be the next stop of this "century-old store"。

ABC is the present and 188bet app+ is the future

Transforming to digital business，means 188bet app has made a big bet，To shift strategic focus to online entertainment markets such as streaming media。

This is a strategic shift from traditional media to emerging media，Look to the future，There is nothing wrong with 188bet app’s approach，But he has a series of traditional media businesses under his name，For example, the former cash cow——ABC、Traditional TV groups such as ESPN are a bit embarrassed。Once upon a time，They are also the future that 188bet app is betting on，But under the trend of streaming media，They have reached a point where they are forced to clear the way。

188bet app and ABC、ESPN is a 25-year story。

Everyone knows，The wealthy 188bet app has never stopped “buying, buying, buying”。1995，After spending billion，188bet app takes over ABC，Become ABC’s largest shareholder。

At that time，This is the second largest acquisition in the United States，188bet app has spent a lot of money。

Smart businessmen do not engage in loss-making transactions，188bet app will not lose money on this deal。

With the assistance of a series of "hot hits" such as "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy"，ABC’s peak viewership accounted for 30% of U.S. households.13%，Ranked 2nd in both TV ratings and radio listening ratings，Advertising profits are considerable。

As ABC’s largest shareholder, 188bet app sits back and collects the money.

Of course，In this acquisition，188bet app’s most proud one，Didn’t spend billion to swallow ABC，But in the form of "dowry"，Acquired ABC’s cable TV network ESPN together。

As a TV network broadcasting sports content 24 hours a day，ESPN has the rights to broadcast multiple sports events，Has 19 TV channels outside the United States，Covering 61 countries and regions，It also covers websites、APP、Businesses such as radio festivals and magazines，At its peak, the number of viewers exceeded 100 million。

Until now，ABC、The media network revenue contributed by TV networks such as ESPN and 188bet app Channel is a very eye-catching part of 188bet app’s four major business segments。188bet app’s 2019 financial report display，Media network revenue 248.USD 2.7 billion，Accounting for 35% of annual revenue.7%。

Just talking about now，ABC、TV networks such as ESPN and 188bet app Channel still contribute the majority of profits，But 188bet app is far-sighted，Never limited to the present，Belongs to the next 5-year plan for the future，There aren’t many places for these traditional TV networks。

One question is，Under the general trend of streaming media，Why 188bet app-owned TV networks still contributed strong revenue in 2019？

The answer is 188bet app "cheating".

Don’t forget，A big event happened in 2019，188bet app acquires Fox for billion，In addition to heavyweight IPs such as "X-Men", "Avatar" and "The Simpsons"，20th Century Fox Television Company, a subsidiary of Fox、FX Cable Network、National Geographic Channel，And 30% of Hulu shares、39% of European Sky TV shares、India Star TV、Asia Pay TV Network Star Media and other industries，Also merged into the 188bet app name，Becoming an important part of 188bet app’s 2019 media network revenue。

Next 5 years，There will never be a similarly large and powerful Fox that 188bet app can acquire，At that time，Cable and broadcast TV revenue will no longer be so impressive，The revenue of the media network section will naturally be affected。

Another question is，On the issue of growth rate reflecting future trends，ABC、The financial reports submitted by TV networks such as ESPN are not ideal。According to 188bet app’s first quarter financial report for fiscal year 2020 released on May 5，Media network section revenue 72.US.7 billion，28% year-on-year increase；Direct-to-consumer and international segment revenue 41.USD 2.3 billion，360% year-on-year increase。

The "Direct-to-Consumer and International Business" section here refers to 188bet app+、ESPN+、Revenue contributed by streaming media services such as Hulu。

360% growth rate and 28% growth rate，Which one represents the future，The answer is self-evident。

To make matters worse，In the face of the year-by-year decline in TV network ratings，Advertisers slash budget，It also had a huge impact on 188bet app’s media network business revenue。

Nielsen data display，2011，188bet app’s ESPN TV network, the largest sports channel in the United States, has had 100 million subscribers，But by the end of 2017，This number dropped to 87 million households。UBS analyst forecast，2020，The loss of cable TV customers in the United States will continue to grow，Expected to reach 6.2 million。When the general environment is not strong，Future，A series of 188bet app-owned broadcast and television networks including ESPN，Everyone will face the dilemma of declining subscribers。

Advertising revenue also faces great challenges.

April this year，Affected by the epidemic，Advertising revenue grows against the trend at ABC TV Network 2.6% of the time，188bet app advertising revenue still fell by 33%.3%。Future，Even if the haze of the epidemic dissipates，Facing the loss of TV network users、Double whammy of soaring TV production costs，The revenue and profit margins of the media network business will continue to be hit。

Ideal Hulu、ESPN+、188bet app+ should “round up” the market，But the reality is very skinny

To switch to online entertainment business，188bet app has three trump cards: Hulu、ESPN+、188bet app +。

April 2009，188bet app announces investment in Hulu，Became a major shareholder holding about 30% of the shares。

The situation at that time was，The Internet is gradually developing，Business giants recognize the prospects of online entertainment business，But Netflix’s House of Cards came out later in 2013，Therefore, 188bet app did not invest much energy and resources into Hulu at that time。

Times have changed and the world has changed，Netflix rises with thunder after “House of Cards”，Dominate the streaming media market。A data from the American Motion Picture Association，2018，U.S. domestic streaming media subscription services surpass cable TV subscriptions，The future of the film and television industry belongs to streaming media。At this time，188bet app realizes，The big pie in the streaming media market，It’s more than just a share of the pie，But it has reached the point where it must be won。

March 2018，188bet app integrates its four major business segments，Through business split、The business combination created a new department - "Direct-to-consumer and international"。This department is designated to be solely responsible for 188bet app’s streaming media business at home and abroad。

April 13, 2018，ESPN+, the streaming media platform launched by 188bet app’s ESPN TV network, is online。

May 14, 2019，188bet app reaches agreement with Comcast, Hulu’s major shareholder，188bet app could gain full control of Hulu in 5 years。This means，If nothing unexpected，2024，Hulu will officially become a wholly-owned subsidiary of 188bet app。

November 12, 2019，188bet app+, a “biological child” operated entirely in accordance with 188bet app’s vision, is online。

To this point，188bet app has gathered the three most competitive streaming media platforms under its name。

As expected，The “family fun” content that 188bet app has always been good at will be handed over to 188bet app+，ESPN+ is based on the sports content market，Hulu focuses on video entertainment content for adults。

To put it in very popular words now，This is called differentiated competition，Three streaming 188bet app brands target three markets respectively，If you manage it safely，Sooner or later we will be able to “circulate” the market，Winning audiences of all ages。

Judging from the results，188bet app’s first quarter financial report shows，As of March 28 this year，188bet app+ global subscribers 54.5 million，Among them, 33.5 million are subscribers in the United States；Hulu subscribers 32.1 million，27% year-on-year increase；ESPN+ subscribers 7.9 million，259% year-on-year increase。

Already mentioned above，First quarter of 2020，Hulu、ESPN+、188bet app+’s direct-to-consumer and international segment revenue 41.USD 2.3 billion，360% year-on-year increase。

From the perspective of revenue and growth rate，Hulu、ESPN+、188bet app+ is quite capable，But due to the high cost of content sharing，Entire first quarter，The "direct-to-consumer and international business" segment revenue is in profit loss，The loss is 8.USD 1.2 billion，Loss in the same period last year was 3.USD 8.5 billion，The expansion of losses is mainly due to the launch of 188bet app+ and the integration of Hulu costs。

Compare to Netflix，188bet app’s three major killers are still very good。Netflix’s first quarter 2020 financial report released on April 22nd，Q1 revenue 57.USD 6.8 billion，27 year-on-year increase.6%，Net profit reaches 7.USD 0.9 billion。

In terms of qualifications，The fledgling 188bet app+ is naturally not as good as Netflix。After all，Netflix has 23 years of original accumulation，188bet app+, the youngest among 188bet app’s streaming media platforms，It’s only been out for 7 months。

188bet app+ today、Hulu、ESPN+ can’t compete with Netflix，Then，What about the future？

In 188bet app’s plans，188bet app+, which is loved by thousands of people, is undoubtedly the C position holder，Spend a lot of resources、After smashing the IP，188bet app+’s opening drama “The Mandalorian” delivered a passing grade。But，Obviously，Both in terms of market popularity and reputation，This is not a hit，In addition to the support of Star Wars fans，It didn’t impress other viewers。

188bet app+ wasn’t an instant hit.

Of course，There is no denying that 188bet app+ has gained 54.5 million users in 7 months, which is an excellent achievement，Compare 188bet app + 6.Subscription price of ，You can know these 54.5 million users，To a large extent, it was won by low price strategy。and，To attract users，188bet app launches eco-membership concept，Will 188bet app+、ESPN+ and Hulu are integrated and provided，The package price is 12 per month.USD 99。

Currently，The Netflix subscription price is 12 per month.USD 99，Future，If the price of 188bet app+ per platform is raised to the same level as Netflix，Will 188bet app+’s existing 54.5 million users turn against the trend?？

There are also problems with the direction of ESPN+ operations.

itself，ESPN+ is launched under the leadership of ESPN Television Network，To avoid conflicts of interest with ESPN’s main sports business，188bet app’s positioning of ESPN+ is that this service is aimed at “sports fans with niche interests，The sports they want to watch get too little coverage on traditional TV，Or the team they love is not big enough，Little media attention。”

The word "niche" has already sealed the future of ESPN+。For the majority of sports fans，ESPN’s flagship program Sports Center，And the esports content they most want to see，ESPN+ will not be provided，Then，How much subscription value does it have left？

A case is，The Michael Jordan documentary "The Last Dance" aired on April 19 set a viewing record for ESPN TV network's non-live programs，But outside the continental United States，Its broadcast platform is neither ESPN+，Not 188bet app+，It’s Netflix。

Sitting on ESPN+、Hulu、In the case of 188bet app+ three major streaming media platforms，188bet app has strategic loopholes in content copyright distribution，Benefiting competitors in vain，What a pity。

Finally, Hulu.

In Hulu’s original equity structure，NBCUniversal、News Corporation (formerly Fox parent company)、188bet app each holds approximately 30% shares，WarnerMedia holds 10% shares。Then，Hulu repurchases 10% of Warner's shares for approximately US.5 billion，Plus 188bet app’s acquisition of Fox，188bet app has acquired about 70% of the shares。

Although 188bet app has reached an agreement with NBCUniversal parent company-Comcast，will acquire approximately 30% of Comcast’s Hulu shares in 2024，But in the agreement，188bet app agrees，During 2019-2024，Pay Comcast for Hulu content，and，Comcast affiliate NBCUniversal will broadcast Hulu Live channel at a higher than previously agreed fee，Meanwhile，NBCUniversal can also air the same content on its own streaming service at the same time。

NBCUniversal will provide programming for Hulu until the end of 2024。July 15th this year，Peacock, NBCUniversal’s streaming 188bet app platform, will be launched，At that time，NBCUniversal reserves the right to withdraw exclusively licensed programming provided to Hulu。By 2022，NBCUniversal has the right to terminate most content licensing agreements with Hulu。

While “driving” away the major shareholder NBC Universal，188bet app also lost Hulu’s largest content provider，At that time，Stretched inventory if you can’t keep up，Then 188bet app is really embarrassed。

Overseas markets are the next stop for 188bet app’s streaming media layout.

This responsibility must be handed over to 188bet app+.

188bet app+ is under great pressure，But not bad，There is a "dad" who smashes the IP and recommends it，Future，The immature 188bet app+ still has hope to sustain itself。

*Source of this article: WeChat public account "New Drama Observation”（ID:xinjuguancha），Author:Mingyue Sail, original title：《188bet app’s next five-year plan: to develop online entertainment business，188bet app+ targets overseas markets》.