Here are the global TV and streaming television stories that should be on your radar for Thursday, January 30th, 2025:
Channel 4 Boss Warns Against UK “Sliding Into American News Swamp” (Deadline)
Channel 4 boss Alex Mahon has urged UK intervention on public service news to help resist “sliding into an American news swamp.” The network commissioned research into Gen-Z news consumption habits and uncovered a wealth of what it deems concerning findings, although Channel 4 said the UK regulatory environment is equipped to attempt to resolve the problem.
Netflix Touts New European Content From Italy, The Nordics And More (Variety)
Netflix showed off its sprawling footprint across Europe during its Next on Netflix event, held simultaneously in multiple locations on Jan. 29. Hotly anticipated titles were teased, such as the Omar Sy movie “French Lover,” Italy’s reimagining of the classic novel “The Leopard,” Norwegian action-adventure movie “Troll 2” and Lena Dunham’s upcoming series “Too Much.”
Italy: Prime Video Dropping DAZN Carriage (Advanced-Television)
Prime Video has informed its subscribers in Italy that, from February 28th, it will no longer carry DAZN as part of its Prime Video Channels offering. The decision stems from a disagreement between the two parties over audience measurement, according to Italian daily Il Sole 24 Ore.
BBC Apologizes as Russell Brand Review Finds Employees “Joked About” Host Exposing Himself (THR)
The BBC on Thursday published the findings of a review carried out into Brand’s conduct during his time at the channel, in particular for 6 Music and Radio 2, between 2006 and 2008. It follows extensive allegations against Brand — including of sexual harassment and rape — that came to light in 2023.
As ‘Paatal Lok 2’ Tops Indian Charts, Its Creator And Star Talk Show’s Evolution And If There Will Be A Third Season: ‘I Haven’t Made Up My Mind Yet’ (Variety)
Season 2 of Prime Video‘s “Paatal Lok,” a riveting crime thriller created by Sudip Sharma and directed by Avinash Arun Dhaware, has emerged as India’s most-watched streaming show with 7.2 million viewers in its first week, according to data from Indian media consulting firm Ormax Media.
Canal+ Threatens To Withdraw From French Cinema Investment, Blaming Disney+ (Broadband TV News)
Canal+ Group has threatened to reduce its €220 million annual movie investment in France in light of the fresh windowing agreement between Disney+ and the industry. “This offer is no longer on the table today. From my point of view, it will necessarily drop, the question is by how much,” stated CEO Maxime Saada.
Amazon MX Player Hosts ‘StreamNext’: Unveils 100+ Titles For 2025, Expands Suite Of Interactive, Shoppable Ad Formats (Mediabrief)
Amogh Dusad, Head of Content, unveiled an exciting lineup of more than 100 new shows set to launch in 2025, including 40 new Hindi originals and returning seasons of India’s beloved and award-winning shows like Aashram, Hunter, Jamnapaar, Half CA, Hip Hop India, Sixer, Who’s your Gynac and Playground.
BeIN Renews Exclusive ATP Tour Rights In MENA Through 2028 (Sportcal)
BeIN Sports, the international pay-TV broadcaster, has retained exclusive rights to tennis’ men’s ATP Tour across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) until 2028. Under the renewed deal with ATP Media, the tour’s broadcast arm, BeIN will have broadcast rights in 24 countries in the region.
South Africa Analogue Deadline Looms (Advanced-Television)
South Africa must totally end analogue TV transmissions by March 31st. The problem is that there are at least 220,000 homes needing new set-top boxes in order to receive digital signals. The obligation for the installation falls on the country’s signal transmission company, the publicly-owned Sentech.
Disney+ Hotstar, Colors Cineplex To Air Inaugural Season Of International Masters League (Mediabrief)
Cricket fans are in for a prime-time feast, with old rivals poised to return to action. The International Masters League (IML) has unveiled the schedule of fixtures for the highly-anticipated inaugural season, which will feature six teams – India, Australia, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.