Why the golden age of streaming could be coming to an end

Big media companies are getting a lot bigger. AT&T and Time Warner are in the process of merging, despite the Department of Justice’s best efforts, and Disney finally beat out Comcast for control of 21st Century Fox. Of course, Comcast already owns NBC Universal and Illumination studios (proud home of the Minions franchise), so it’s not doing too bad on its own. Nearly every company is getting bigger and more vertically integrated.

At the same time, nearly every company that makes video is finding its way into the streaming media business. Disney is planning its own Netflix competitor for 2019, backed by content holdings like Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar. AT&T plans to launch its own Time-Warner focused equivalent around the same time....

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