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Streaming
Embracing Ads: More Individuals Choosing Ad Tiers
Ad-supported streaming now accounts for 46% of SVOD subscriptions (where both ad and ad-free options exist), driven largely by new users and making up 71% of net subscriber growth over the past nine quarters.

International
Supporting London Filmmakers: New Mid-Budget Co-Production Initiative
Arts Alliance, parent of Garden Studios, has launched a co-production initiative to support indie films with £5–10M budgets, offering equity and cashflow support via a £17M revolving credit facility. The goal: back 5–8 films a year.

Diversity
More Writers of Color: New WGA Report Shows Increase in TV Diversity
From 2020 to 2024, the percentage of BIPOC writers in television grew to 40.4% of TV writing staff, while white writers declined to 45.4%. Gains were strongest among BIPOC women and men in mid- and lower-level roles.

Television
TV Trends: Popular Series Revolve Around World Building
Today’s TV series focus on rich world-building with interconnected stories and characters, deepening engagement. Shows like Andor, The White Lotus, and Severance lead the trend.

Unions
SAG-AFTRA and AI: Commercial Contracts Limit AI Trainings
Following the 118-day 2023 strike over AI concerns, SAG-AFTRA's new commercial contracts now ban using members’ performances to train generative AI without consent and add fees to deter replacing actors with AI.

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