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Last week, Netflix announced it was buying Warner Bros. in a massive $82.7 billion deal. The streaming giant’s acquisition will set Netflix, which already leads the streaming wars, even further apart from competitors, as it will also add HBO, a Warner subsidiary. But while the deal will further cement Netflix’s domination, questions are swirling around how it will impact viewers, as well as the talent platforms rely on.Streaming platforms have recently undergone consolidation, creating three mega-platforms. According to a Forbes survey, Netflix is the most popular streaming service in America with 55% of Americans saying they use it, followed by Amazon Prime (51%), and Disney+ (49%). And, for talent, like actors and writers, the further consolidation of streaming platforms may escalate financial worries that have already been growing for some in the entertainment industry. In recent years, a number of actors have openly raised concerns about fair pay, as streaming platforms began to change the game. While traditional broadcast series pay residuals for each re-airing, as a percentage of the actor’s salary, later agreements changed the way actors earned residuals entirely. The new formula was based around a predetermined licensing fee, rather than the number of re-runs. Netflix, which seemed to favor paying actors more upfront while rather than residuals may have been particularly guilty of underpaying talent. And there was no shortage of actors calling the streaming giant out. A number of actors on some of Netflix’s most popular shows have spoken about their low-ball paychecks, having to keep their day jobs, or even pay for their own transportation to the set a conversation which gained traction with the 2023 writer’s strike. Alysia Reiner, who played the warden Natalie (Fig) Figueroa, in Netflix’s hit series, Orange is the New Black, told New York Magazine in a 2023 interview, about the “risk” that actors took during the early days of streaming, saying that “the reward for Netflix does not seem in line with the reward for all of us who took that risk.” Reiner continued, “I can go anywhere in the world and Im recognized, and Im so deeply grateful for that recognition. Many people say theyve watched the series multiple times, and they quote me my lines. But was I paid in a commensurate way? I dont think so. With the latest transaction under way, SAG-AFTRA addressed the reignited concerns around talent’s pay in a Dec. 5 statement, explaining that the consolidation “raises many serious questions about its impact on the future of the entertainment industry, and especially the human creative talent whose livelihoods and careers depend on it.” The statement continued, A deal that is in the interest of SAG-AFTRA members and all other workers in the entertainment industry must result in more creation and more production, not less. It must do so in an environment of respect for the talent involved.” However, it seems like those things may not come without a fight, especially given how Netflix prefers to put big-budget films directly on its streaming service for subscribers, rather than opting for theatrical releases. That recent transaction has some groups, like the Directors Guild of America (DGA), already expressing “significant concerns ” over the development. In a Dec. 5 statement, the DGA said, We believe that a vibrant, competitive industry one that fosters creativity and encourages genuine competition for talent is essential to safeguarding the careers and creative rights of directors and their teams.” The DGA added that it will be meeting with the streaming giant “to outline our concerns and better understand their vision for the future of the company.” Jon Shavitz, an independent filmmaker and writer living in Los Angeles, also addressed concerns around the deal in a recent blog post, writing that the experience of going to the movie theater is endangered as the giants take over, but it’s not because audiences don’t want theatrics, which, in his view, is utterly irreplaceable. Audiences still want the big screen,” Shavitz writes. “They still want the magic of the lights coming down and the quiet anticipation before the picture starts. They still want to gasp with a hundred people at the same time. You cant algorithm that. You cant stream your way out of that fundamental human appetite for an exciting theatrical-only event.” Still, Shavitz tells Fast Company that the concern creators are feeling around financials, as well as potentially fewer jobs, is “fair. He says that, simply, the streaming model doesnt work as far as getting talent paid fairly. Still, the writer says he’s also hopeful that people within the industry “will fight to fix what’s broken,” noting that he believes the economics of deals such as this which dont support talent, could ultimately force a return to core business fundamentals. By that he means an eventual return to the ever-evaporating exclusive theatrical windows. As he writes in his blog, Netflix’s deal is an “overreach” that will force both those working within the industry, as well as audiences, to decide between “a streaming-only future for major release films, or working to restore the very thing that made cinema a cultural force in the first place”. Once the deal goes through, whatever happens next, Shavitz says, will be “up to us industry and non-industry people alike to fight for the theatrical experience.” Fast Company reached out to Netflix for comment.
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E-Commerce
Cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday for misleading investors who lost billions when his companys crypto ecosystem collapsed in 2022. Kwon, known by some as the cryptocurrency king, pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court in August to fraud charges stemming from Terraform Labs $40 billion crash. The company had touted its TerraUSD as a reliable stablecoina kind of currency typically pegged to stable assets to prevent drastic fluctuations in prices. But prosecutors say it was all an illusion that came crumbling down, devastating investors and triggering a cascade of crises that swept through cryptocurrency markets. Kwon, who hails from South Korea, has agreed to forfeit over $19 million as part of the plea deal. While federal sentencing guidelines would recommend a prison term of about 25 years, prosecutors have asked the court to sentence Kwon to 12 years. They cited his guilty plea, the fact that he faces further prosecution in Korea, and that he has already served time in Montenegro while awaiting extradition. Kwons fraud was colossal in scope, permeating virtually every facet of Terraforms purported business, prosecutors wrote in a recent memo to the judge. His rampant lies left a trail of financial destruction in their wake. Kwon’s attorneys asked that the sentence not exceed five years, arguing in their own memo that his conduct stemmed not from greed, but hubris and desperation. In a letter to the judge, Kwon wrote, I alone am responsible for everyones pain. The community looked to me to know the path, and I in my hubris led them astray, while adding, I made misrepresentations that came from a brashness that is now a source of deep regret. Authorities said investors worldwide lost money in the downfall of the Singapore crypto firm, which Kwon cofounded in 2018. Around $40 billion in market value was erased for the holders of TerraUSD and its floating sister currency, Luna, after the stablecoin plunged far below its $1 peg. Kwon was extradited to the U.S. from Montenegro after his March 23, 2023, arrest while traveling on a false passport in Europe.
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E-Commerce
Some of the countrys most prestigious colleges are enrolling record numbers of low-income students a growing admissions priority in the absence of affirmative action. America’s top campuses remain crowded with wealth, but some universities have accelerated efforts to reach a wider swath of the country, recruiting more in urban and rural areas and offering free tuition for students whose families are not among the highest earners. The strategy could lead to friction with the federal government. The Trump administration, which has pulled funding from elite colleges over a range of grievances, has suggested its illegal to target needier students. College leaders believe theyre on solid legal ground. At Princeton University, this year’s freshman class has more low-income students than ever. One in four are eligible for federal Pell grants, which are scholarships reserved for students with the most significant financial need. That’s a leap from two decades ago, when fewer than 1 in 10 were eligible. The only way to increase socioeconomic diversity is to be intentional about it,” Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber said in a statement. Socioeconomic diversity will increase if and only if college presidents make it a priority. Last year, Princeton set aggressive goals to recruit more low-income students in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ban on affirmative action in higher education. Without the ability to consider race, officials wrote in a campus report, focusing on economic diversity offers the universitys greatest opportunity to attract diverse talent.” The country’s most selective colleges still enroll large proportions of students from the wealthiest 1% of American families. Many of those campuses have tried for years to shed reputations of elitism, with only gradual changes in enrollment. Colleges set records for enrollment of low-income students Only a small fraction of the nations colleges have publicly disclosed their low-income enrollments this year, and national data wont be released by the federal government until next year. But early numbers show a trend. At 17 highly selective colleges that have released new data, almost all saw increases in Pell-eligible students between 2023 and this year, according to an Associated Press analysis. Most saw increases in consecutive years, and none saw a significant decrease in aggregate over the two years. Yale, Duke, Johns Hopkins, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology all have set enrollment records for Pell-eligible students in the past two years. Part of the uptick owes to a federal expansion that made more students eligible for Pell grants last year. But campus leaders also believe the increases reflect their own efforts. The numbers in MITs freshman class have climbed by 43% over the past two years, and low-income students account for more than a quarter of this years class. MIT officials cited its policy providing free tuition for families that earn less than $200,000 a year. MIT has always been an engine of opportunity for low-income students, and we are dedicated to ensuring we can make an MIT education accessible for students from every walk of life,” Stu Schmill, MITs dean of admissions, said in a statement. Nationwide, roughly a third of undergraduate students have received Pell grants in recent years. Two years ago, Amherst College in Massachusetts made tuition free for students in the bottom 80% of U.S. earnings. It also started covering meals and housing for those below the median income, and it stopped prioritizing children of alumni and donors in admissions decisions. Since then, low-income enrollment has risen steadily, reaching 1 in 4 new students this year. At the same time, the admissions office has stepped up recruiting in overlooked parts of the country, from big cities to small towns. When we go out and talk to students, its not in the fanciest ZIP codes,” said Matthew McGann, dean of admissions. Its in places where we know theres a lot of talent but not a lot of opportunity. Racial diversity does not necessarily follow economic diversity On many campuses, officials hoped the focus on economic diversity would preserve racial diversity Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous Americans have the country’s highest poverty rates. But even as low-income numbers climb, many elite campuses have seen racial diversity decrease. Without the emphasis on income, those decreases might have been even steeper, said Richard Kahlenberg, a researcher at the Progressive Policy Institute who advocates for class-based affirmative action. He called the latest Pell figures a significant step in the right direction. Economic diversity is important in its own right, he said. It’s important that Americas leadership class which disproportionately derives from selective colleges include people who’ve faced economic hardships in life. Swarthmore College saw the most dramatic leap in Pell enrollment, jumping from 17% to 30% last year. While many campuses were delaying scholarship decisions until the government resolved problems with a new financial aid form, Swarthmore used other data to figure out applicants financial need. That allowed Swarthmore to offer scholarships to students while they were still awaiting decisions from other schools. More financially disadvantaged students ended up enrolling at Swarthmore than officials expected. College leaders also credit their work to reduce campus costs laundry is free and students get yearly credits for textbooks, for example. Yet Swarthmore saw its Black enrollment fall to 5% of its freshman class this year, down from 8% the year before. In a race neutral environment, those numbers are likely to drop,” Jim Bock, the admissions dean, said in a statement. Not all minority students are low-income, and not all majority students have significant financial means.” The approach risks federal scrutiny In legal memos, the White House has alleged that prioritizing students based on earnings or geography amounts to a racial proxy in violation of the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision against affirmative action. In a June letter, Trump officials accused the University of California-Los Angeles of race-based admissions in all but name.” It criticized UCLA for considering factors like applicants’ family income, ZIP code, and high school profile. Colleges ften weigh that kind of information in admissions decisions. Yet the Trump administration has declared that the Supreme Court decision outlaws a wide range of long-accepted education practices, including scholarships targeting students in underserved areas. Already, there are signs of an impact. Earlier this year, the College Board the nonprofit that oversees the SAT suddenly discontinued an offering that gave admissions offices a wealth of information about applicants, including earnings data from their neighborhoods. Kahlenberg and others see it as a retreat in the face of government pressure. The College Board offered little explanation, citing changes to federal and state policy around the use of demographic information in admissions. ___ The Associated Press education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. Collin Binkley, AP education writer
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E-Commerce
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