Video on demand
FAST Channels and Furious Growth
Philippe Guelton
Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Chief Revenue Officer
Dade Hayes
Deadline Business Editor
Amy Kuessner
Paramount Streaming Executive Vice President of Content Strategy and Global Partnerships
Adam Lewinson
Tubi Chief Content Officer
Jim Packer
Lionsgate President of Worldwide Television DistributionIt’s no surprise that the FAST conversation continued its position of dominance at this year’s NAB Show.
2022 revenues for the U.S. FAST market were roughly $4 billion and are projected to triple over the next five years. Global revenues from FAST channels are expected to reach $6.3 billion this year and top $12 billion by 2027.
Executives in charge of four of the leading FAST services convened in Las Vegas to give a 360-degree overview of the sector and where it is headed.
Industry leaders share strategies for monetizing audiences’ appetite for free, ad-supported, ‟lean-back TV.” Executives from Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, Lionsgate, Paramount Streaming, and Tubi discuss programmatic challenges and opportunities; how to effectively utilize targeted advertising; and methods to build infrastructure quickly.
Tubi Chief Content Officer Adam Lewinson predicted “that the future of streaming television is going to be predominantly on demand.”
Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment’s Chief Revenue Officer Philippe Guelton described FAST as “television on steroids” adding, “there’s so much more of it that can now be surfaced. I think you really have to look at the entire Connected TV ecosystem of FAST, AVOD and VOD.”
In a wide-ranging discussion the group touched on topics ranging from ad volume, media buying, programming, distribution partnerships and how consumers best navigate thousands of channels available to them.
“We look out over the next three years and try to figure out what are the shows that are going to really resonate,” said Lionsgate President of Worldwide Television Distribution Jim Packer. “We’ve really started to get much more tactical and strategic. Licensing is still the primary business [for us].”
Nonetheless, Paramount Streaming EVP of Content Strategy and Global Partnerships Amy Kuessner says FAST still has interesting dynamics to balance at this stage of the game: “It’s that whole art and science, the creative judgment that goes into the channel and then it’s rigorous data analysis.”
Watch the full conversation on demand (above), moderated by Deadline’s Dade Hayes.