 In a presentation to investors, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said the company's streaming business is "no longer bleeding" after a successful first quarter of 2023. WBD had several quarters of streaming losses before posting a $50 million profit in Q1. More: - Zaslav assured investors that, with "this business under control," the company can now focus on "nourish[ing] and delight[ing] subscribers with the greatness of HBO."
- Zaslav also indicated the company is looking to bring more news and sports content to its streaming platforms.
- According to WBD CEO and President of Global Streaming JB Perrette, the company will focus on migrating current HBO Max consumers over to the new Max platform, which also incorporates content from Discovery+.
- Zaslav didn't mention the WGA strike during his presentation or earnings call on Friday; in an appearance on CNBC's "Squawk Box" this week, he suggested that the writers will return because of "a love for the business and a love for working."
- The new Max platform launches on May 23.
DEADLINE 
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State of Play: Nielsen's yearly "State of Play" survey features insights from consumers about their views of streaming products and shows. The 2022 report indicates that the majority of Americans are overall happy with their streaming options -- 72% of respondents said that they "love" the user experience with their favorite streaming service -- and are starting to spend more money per month on streaming subscriptions. Consumers ages 35-49 currently spend the most on streaming services; 24% of this demographic in the US pay for five or more simultaneous services. Weekly Streaming Time: It logically follows that US consumers are willing to spend a bit more on streaming, as they're spending more of their leisure time watching streaming content. Nielsen's average weekly time spent streaming video online was up 18% from February 2021 to February 2022, to 169.4 billion minutes. Americans are largely happy with their current streaming plans as well; 93% said they plan to either keep the streaming plan that they current have or add additional services. Inaccurate Reporting: Note that, because Nielsen survey data is self-reported, it's not always accurate at predicting the future. Other studies and surveys looking at "churn" or cancellation of services indicate that a significant number of people who responded that they don't plan to cancel services will ultimately choose to do so, even though they don't realize it now. NIELSEN
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 "Scream VI" on Paramount+ Paramount Global stock dipped by around 14% after the company announced disappointing Q1 returns. Paramount+ hit 60 million total subscribers, adding 4.1 million in Q1, less than half of the platform's growth from Q4 2022. More: - Paramount's Q1 revenue was $7.26 billion for the first quarter, below Wall Street expectations of $7.4 billion; the company posted an overall loss of $1.1 billion for the quarter.
- Overall streaming losses widened to $511 million from $456 million, with executives noting that this trend will likely continue through 2023 as the company continues beefing up its content offerings.
- Pluto TV now has 80 million monthly active users.
- A weak global ad market continued to hurt the company, particularly in terms of NFL games on CBS; content licensing also declined 15% over the year before.
DEADLINE
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 McConaughey in "Killer Joe," Costner in "Yellowstone" Paramount confirmed that "Yellowstone" -- the most popular scripted series on cable TV -- will wrap up its run with the second half of its current fifth season. The company greenlit an untitled sequel series, set to debut on cable's Paramount Network in December. More: - Matthew McConaughey is in talks to star in the new "Yellowstone" spinoff series, which will likely air on cable before streaming on Paramount+.
- In addition to McConaughey, it's expected that other "Yellowstone" cast members will return for the new series, though details remain sketchy at this point.
- The news follows months of behind-the-scenes scheduling conflicts between series co-creator Taylor Sheridan and star Kevin Costner.
- The final episodes of "Yellowstone" enter production in August, though Costner's availability and participation remain in question.
DEADLINE
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 Season 2 of Amazon's "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" will complete production during the WGA strike, with no writers or showrunners on the set. The epic fantasy series -- among the most expensive TV productions in history -- has 19 shooting days remaining on its second season. More: - With co-creators and showrunners J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay absent from set, non-writing executive producers, directors, and crew members will take over management of the UK shoot.
- Payne and McKay apparently planned out the remainder of the season with the production team, in the event a possible writers' strike.
- In other strike news, "Saturday Night Live" canceled its two remaining episodes this season, which were to be hosted by Kieran Culkin and Jennifer Coolidge, while production shut down on Season 2 of Netflix's "Unstable."
VARIETY
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 According to Amazon's internal figures, the spy thriller series "Citadel" enjoyed one of Prime Video's most popular debuts ever. Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke posted to Instagram that the series is "the #1 title on Prime" and attracted "one of the largest global audiences in the history of Prime Video." More: - According to a source close to the production, the only Prime Video show to debut to stronger numbers than "Citadel" was the "Lord of the Rings" adaptation "The Rings of Power."
- At the time, Amazon reported that "Rings of Power" was viewed by 25 million people on its first day.
- "Citadel" -- the first series in a planned franchise of global espionage dramas -- stars Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Richard Madden, and was executive produced by "Avengers: Endgame" directors Joe and Anthony Russo.
DEADLINE
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 "Shadow and Bone" Season 2 On Reddit, fans of the fantasy drama "Shadow and Bone" have organized nightly "viewing parties" in order to boost the show's numbers on Netflix. Many passionate members of Reddit's r/ShadowAndBone community are devoted readers of author Leigh Bardugo's "Grishaverse" books, which inspired the series. More: - "Shadow and Bone" originally debuted in 2021; Season 2 arrived on March 16.
- Writer and self-proclaimed Netflix insider Brian Michael Scully helped to kickstart the campaign on Twitter, cautioning "Shadow and Bone" fans about the importance of the show's performance during its first 28 days of release.
- One fan told Rolling Stone that she has rewatched Season 2 60 times in order to boost its Netflix numbers.
- Though "Shadow and Bone" remained in the #2 spot on Netflix's US charts throughout much of March (behind "The Night Agent"), it no longer ranks among the platform's most popular shows.
KOTAKU
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 Netflix renewed the political drama series "The Diplomat" for a second season. The show debuted on April 20 in the #1 spot on Netflix's charts, as the streamer's most popular US series, dethroning long-time champion "The Night Agent." More: - Ultimately, "The Diplomat" hit Netflix's Top 10 series in 86 countries.
- Keri Russell stars as Kate Wyler, the new US ambassador to the UK, who juggles international crises along with personal problems at home with her husband (Rufus Sewell).
- "Grey's Anatomy" and "Fosse/Verdon" vet Debora Cahn created the series and serves as showrunner.
VARIETY
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QUICK HITS - The company behind these surgical robots is planning to list on Nasdaq. Last day to fund your investment is on 5/10.*
- A civil lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court by a former production assistant on the HBO series "We're Here" accuses star Darius Jeremy “DJ” Pierce (who performs as the drag queen Shangela) of rape.
- The upcoming Max documentary "Bama Rush" chronicles the sorority recruitment process at the University of Alabama; the school's intense "rush week" activities became infamous after being featured in a series of viral TikTok posts in 2021.
- Netflix announced plans to open an official Stranger Things store at the Showcase Mall on the Las Vegas Strip.
- 8 CBS-owned TV stations from across the US plan to drop their affiliation with The CW and go independent; moving forward, the networks will air content from across the Paramount Global portfolio, potentially including local sports coverage.
- In an interview with Variety, "Jury Duty" co-creators David Bernad and Todd Schulman talked about the process of casting the prank reality series, and their plans for a potential second season.
- Netflix ordered a comedy-drama series based on Greg Cope White's memoir "The Pink Marine," about joining the Marines as a gay teen in the 1990s; Miles Heizer and Vera Farmiga will co-star.
- Netflix's former director of UK features, Fiona Lamptey, exited the company within the last few weeks; Netflix declined to comment on her departure.
- Sling TV added 12 new free ad-supported streaming channels, bringing its total to over 335.
- Demo Divvy, get an Ember heated mug. Hot coffee and quick and easy expense management — get both when you demo Divvy.*
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 |  | Lon Harris is the writer and editor of Inside Streaming and was the very first person to ever write an Inside newsletter. He lives in Los Angeles, California, and also writes about TV and film for Fandom, Screen Junkies, Rotten Tomatoes, Gamma Ray and others. Plus he has a Game of Thrones podcast called "Casterly Talk" and competes on The Movie Trivia Schmoedown as "The Professor." |  | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
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