Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, March 11th, 2024:
BEING A 'TV INSIDER' HAS ITS DOWNSIDES
Because I have subscriptions to about 300 streaming services (an exaggeration, but only slightly), I regularly get email pitches from some streaming service asking me to sign up to be some sort of "insider/fan" of the service. The offer varies depending on the service, but it generally involves signing up with an email address and some basic demographic info in exchange for the occasional early at a show or the "opportunity" to provide feedback on the shows and platforms I watch on a regular basis.
To be kind, these offers are mostly efforts to convince viewers to willingly give up demographic and viewing data the service can then use to match the customer to other data collected from outside vendors and databases. It's all an effort to tie your personal information to your viewing data in a way that isn't possible otherwise.
I just received an email from Tubi offering me the chance to be a "Tubi Test Tube" member and even by the loose standards of most insider programs, this one is filled with red flags.
The sign-up pages ask for not just demographic info, but a wide range of viewing data: which platforms you watch, your favorite genres, how much you watch each week. And while that is a lot of info to volunteer, it's also not uncommon for these data gathering err...insider programs.
One thing Tubi asks for which I had never seen before is that you're required to enter the unique device number of the device you most commonly use to watch TV. There is even a helpful tutorial on the easiest way to find your device number. Which makes sense given that 98.7% of TV viewers probably have no idea there is a way for them to determine that number.
The sign-up also asks potential insiders to agree to Tubi's privacy agreement and if you click the link looking for more info on how your data might be shared, you're sent to this page. Which has a dizzying rundown of all the ways Tubi can share your personal viewing data, including with advertisers, partners and various third parties:
The information we collect from and about you may be made available to certain service providers, such as contractors, analytics and other measurement companies, and agents or sponsors, who help us analyze and understand your use of the Tubi Services, and manage and/or provide the Tubi Services, including to purchase a product, subscribe to a membership, or make payments.
And what kind of information do they collect? Turns out, there's a lot of it:
Activity Information. When you access and interact with the Tubi Services, Tubi and its service providers may collect certain information about those visits. For example, in order to permit your connection to the Tubi Services, our servers receive and record information about your computer, device, and browser, including potentially your IP address, browser type, and other software or hardware information. If you access the Tubi Services from a mobile or other device, we may collect a unique device identifier assigned to that device, geolocation data (including your precise location), or other transactional information for that device.
Cookies and other tracking technologies (such as browser cookies, pixels, beacons, local storage, and other mechanisms) use various approaches to collect and store data. Some of these technologies store data in the browser or on your device. Other technologies may use network-related or other information to recognize your device (e.g., IP address). Tubi’s websites, apps and other services use these technologies, for example, when you first request a web page and data is then stored on your computer or other device so the website or app can access information when you make subsequent requests for pages from that service. These technologies may also be used to collect and store information about your usage of the Tubi Services, such as pages you have visited, search history, and the video and other content you have viewed.
Other parties that support the Tubi Services by serving advertisements or providing services, such as allowing you to share content or tracking aggregate Tubi Services usage statistics, may also use these technologies to collect similar information when you use the Tubi Services (such as websites or e-mails) or other parties’ services. Those parties may also use these technologies, along with activity information they collect, to recognize you across the devices you use, such as a mobile device and a laptop or other computer. Tubi does not control these technologies and their use is governed by the privacy policies of parties using such technologies.
And if you're thinking to yourself, "luckily I have the browsers on my devices set to 'do not track," well, I have some bad news for you:
At this time we do not respond to the “Do Not Track” signal, as we await the work of interested stakeholders and others to develop standards for how the “Do Not Track” signal should be interpreted.
Sure, you're voluntarily giving up a lot of info. But maybe this "Tubi Test Tube" thing will offer up some cool inside info. Based on what is on the site right now...not so much:
A WORD FROM OUR SPONSORS
The members of the late ‘90s girl group Girls5eva – Dawn (Sara Bareilles), Wickie (Renée Elise Goldsberry), Summer (Busy Philipps), and Gloria (Paula Pell) – have reunited and recorded a new album, Returnity, so it’s time for the next logical step: a comeback tour. With no plan, tour manager, or venues secured, the ladies pile into a van and hit the great unknown, doing their damnedest to promote their album and get back on top. In the process, Girls5eva will grapple with life on the road, see their relationships tested, play a billionaire’s birthday party, sow their oats, confront parents they believe held them back, cross paths with the biggest pop star on the planet, and question if they really want “the big time” again. Will Girls5eva fast-track their comeback and sell their tour documentary in the process? Or will the road destroy them?
Stream Season 3 of Girls5eva on Netflix or by visiting UniversalFYC.com and enter code USGFYC2024 to watch.
ODDS AND SODS
* Following the news of the death of OJ Simpson, it's worth looking back at this absolutely brutal collection of O.J. jokes from Norm McDonald during his run on SNL's Weekend Update. And speaking of Norm McDonald, here is a hilarious Late Show interview in which he explains how he found out he had been fired from Weekend Update. He mentions a conversation with NBC Sports executive Don Ohlmeyer, and while he doesn't talk about it, the rumor has always been that McDonald's relentless OJ jokes led to the decision.
* It turns out Quiet On Set was as popular as you think it was. Vulture's Joe Adalian is reporting that next week Nielsen will report the documentary racked up a massive 1.2 billion minutes of streaming viewing time during the week ending March 24th. He argues it's a big win for Max (which it is), but it's worth noting the documentary was slated to air on Max early on and at some point shifted to the true crime linear channel Investigation Discovery. That move both boosted ID's ratings and didn't impact the number of people seeing it on Max, since it began streaming within hours of the linear premiere.
* A new season of Love & Marriage: Huntsville will premiere Saturday, May 4th on OWN.
* The CW Network has announced it will be the exclusive broadcast home for the final eight races of the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series this fall, sharing the season with NBC Sports. Starting in 2025, The CW Network will become the exclusive home to the series, extending through the 2031 racing season.
* Apple TV+ has ordered a second season of Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters and as part of the deal with Legendary Entertainment, will also stream multiple unidentified spinoff series based on the franchise.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
THURSDAY, APRIL 11TH:
* As The Crow Flies (Netflix)
* Baby Reindeer (Netflix) - [first look video] [photo gallery]
* Building Off The Grid Season Premiere (Magnolia)
* Elkhorn Series Premiere (INSP)
* Heartbreak High Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
* Lovers & Liars Series Premiere (The CW)
* Midsummer Night Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Patti Stanger: The Matchmaker Series Premiere (The CW)
* Roommate Regret (LMN)
* The Barnes Bunch Series Premiere (WE tv)
* True Crime Story: Smugshot Season Finale (Sundance TV)
FRIDAY, APRIL 12TH:
* A Journey (Netflix)
* Amar Singh Chamkila (Netflix)
* Apartment 404 Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* Best Bite In Town Series Premiere (Food)
* Cesar Milan: Better Human, Better Dog Season Premiere (NatGeo)
* Dora Series Premiere (Paramount+)
* Franklin Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
* Good Times Series Premiere (Netflix) - [first look video]
* Love, Divided (Netflix)
* Mama June: Family Crisis Season Six B Finale (WE tv)
* Ready To Love Season Finale (OWN)
* Shadowverse Flame (Crunchyroll)
* Stolen (Netflix)
* The Greatest Hits (Hulu)
* The Reluctant Traveler Season Two finale (Apple TV+)
* Woody Woodpecker Goes To Camp (Netflix) - [first look video]
SEE YOU ON FRIDAY!