Silver Linings Playbook
The Economist recently published an article on how it pays to be an optimist
I know it’s hard sometimes these days - but here are a few of the news stories I came across this week that I think are good news for those of us in Canadian media, at least indirectly.
1. Matthew Prince, the billionaire CEO of Cloudflare, explained in the WSJ why he laid off more than 20% of his workforce last week, despite the company’s revenues growing more than 30%.
He did it in a less Bond-villainy way than fellow billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, who told HIS minions during their mass layoffs that it was server racks or engineers, and those useless meatbags who remained had to upload their skills, brains, and souls so the next wave of AI could replace them.
Prince’s explanation is based on the work of management theorist Peter Drucker, who said that all companies have builders who make stuff, sellers who bring in the money, and measurers who, well, measure.
Prince says he’s cutting the measurers. AI can do it better, more efficiently.
But, he goes on - he has lots of roles for builders and sellers and expects to grow his overall headcount over time.
I think this is relatively good news for people who know how to write and be creative. At a reception this week, an AI expert summed it up neatly for me over a spring roll and a glass of wine - middle managers are screwed. But if you can read, write and think for yourself, there’s a market for your services.
2. The CRTC upped Cancon funding requirements from 5% to 15% for the big streamers, and knocked the Canadian broadcasters’ requirements down to 25%. As far as I can make out, foreign streamers make about $4 billion a year here, so it’s a significant hit to them if it goes through. My guess is that new staffing announcements (respected exec Lea Marin just left CBC for Netflix) are part of a strategic acknowledgment by the streamers that, even if a revamped CUSMA does away with this, they will have to be more active in this market to maintain long-term access.
3. Colbert went off the air. Nostalgia, as our PM says, is not a strategy. But if you’re a Gen X comedy nerd, or a fan of anyone making jokes about Trump from a (relative) position of power, this sucked. At $200 million, it’s a very expensive comedy podcast - nevertheless, I’m sure he will pop up pretty quickly on YouTube, Netflix, Spotify or all three. The streamers haven’t really solved podcasting, which would be a big boost for daily tune-in. June 1, Netflix is launching its first daily podcast, “The Breakfast Club” with host Charlamagne Tha God. Clear trend towards Netflix having a daypart strategy and live events to basically become all TV.
4. Two provinces are trying to separate. Oh yeah - there are sizable populations in parts of the country who want to leave, which would effectively end Canada. At the same time, our southern neighbour is threatening to annex us, and our polar neighbour, Russia, is actively invading its neighbour, Ukraine, and losing 30,000 troops a month. Great moment to be squabbling amongst ourselves. Only goes to show you that Joni Mitchell was right - we don’t know what we’ve got til it’s gone. As catastrophically awful as this all is, people who love this country will almost certainly want to watch more Canadian shows, read more Canadian books, and listen to more Canadian music. And a government and corporate elite who will support them.
5. Big Tech has a PR problem and a culture problem. Social media bans. Rage against the broligarchs. Nixing AI data centres. People are primed for something different. If you can be a disruptor in this space, it’s a moment. Google is hard to replace, but there’s no reason to assume that Instagram and TikTok won’t go the way of MySpace or Tumblr. For Canadian creators, I’d hedge platform bets - but if I had to choose, I’d go for YouTube. Karma catches up with consumer brands. And, for god’s sake, if you’re a writer, separate your AI research from your actual writing the way you would raw chicken fingers from your bag of Doritos. It will make you sick.
6. The World Cup is looking like a bit of a financial disaster for Canada, but live events will just keep getting more valuable. The lottery marketers figured out years ago that millennials didn’t dream about cars and boats - they wanted experiences. I went to a sold-out theatre this week to see the latest Munk Debate - a weighty intellectual back and forth on American foreign policy. The crowd of more than 3000 at Meridian Hall was from late teens to retirees - all pumped for a fun night out. Not Argentina vs Germany, but still. It’s not a very big secret that the way to make a living as an author is to be a good public speaker - you can make more in a couple of days than you’ll earn from a bestseller. Musical artists make nearly all their money touring. The key, as any kind of creator, is to understand how your different audiences serve each other. One might be more of a marketing channel, the other more for monetization. But live has the highest ARPU, and you should focus on growing that part of your business.
Political scientist John Mearsheimer and friends pack the hall in Toronto this week
Light plug for the excellent podcast we did for TVO with writer, speaker and all-around genius Alexandra Samuel. I met her at Ted a couple of years ago, and I was dazzled by her personal journey with an AI she’d built over the years, who she’d named Viv. She turned that relationship into a show that examines the deep philosophical issues at play as we integrate tech with our larger sense of human purpose, “Me and Viv.” It just won an award at the New York Festivals this week in the technology category, and you can listen to it, show tunes and all, here.