Second Season Diet

PRESENTED BY SUNO

Welcome to a new week, Future Party. Did anyone get some cool gifts this holiday season? Even if you did, probably nothing beats the present this kid got for Christmas — a pair of Air Jordan 1s customized by famed sneaker-customizer, Niko Barber (Neeks Custom Sneaks). What makes them particularly awesome is that the kid drew the design, and Barber brought them to life. Understandably, the kid’s reaction is pretty priceless.

DAILY TOP TRENDS

Touchdown for Netflix

Netflix scored a big win on Christmas with its two nearly glitch-free, live NFL games that featured a halftime show from Beyoncé — garnering an average concurrent audience of roughly 24 million viewers.

The Big Game: Netflix has been a hit or miss with the quality of its livestreams because… well… it’s really hard to handle immense global viewership on the internet. The success of the NFL games shows that the streamer can officially handle the traffic for more consistent, live-event programming down the road.

Behind the Plays: Netflix is doing a little touchdown dance with the first roster of NFL-game metrics.

• The first game (Chiefs vs. Steelers) had an average-minute audience of 24.1 million, while the second game (Texans vs. Ravens) had an audience of 24.3 million.

• Beyoncé’s halftime show had an average-minute audience of 27 million.

• When the final tally comes in (international audience data is still forthcoming), the average-minute audience will likely hit 30 million.

• In total, Netflix says that the entire day’s programming was viewed by at least 65 million unique accounts spread across all 190 countries it operates.

Final Score: Netflix needed this win. Although it racked up huge viewership, its Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight was plagued by glitches. According to Forbes, Netflix paid north of $150 million for the game day rights and, of course, rolled out the Brinks truck for Beyoncé. Additionally, it has WWE’s Monday Night Raw starting next year and recently signed a deal to stream the FIFA Women’s World Cup for its next two editions. Now that Netflix has proven to have the tech to match its reach, it’s only a matter of time until the company is outbidding everyone else for full league rights.

Together with Suno

Turn Your Vision into Music in 2025 (Instantly)

With Suno’s AI-powered music platform, you can break through your creative blocks and produce music like never before. 

Whether you’re a seasoned pro, bedroom producer, or just starting out, Suno makes producing and editing wayyy more creative (and intuitive):

• Easy: Produce tracks from text prompts, audio clips, images/videos, or full-length songs

• Quality: Export in WAV/MP3 and distribute everywhere

• Creative: Powerful tools to make new songs or revitalize old projects

…which means you can finally drop that new album this year. 

Start creating music with Suno in just a few seconds.

Hit Streaming Shows Keep Getting Shorter Seasons

Shows across all the major streaming services have had their sophomore seasons roll out with fewer episodes than their first seasons, giving eager audiences less content despite the growing amount of time in between seasons. 

The Big Picture: Streaming shows have increasingly become as expensive as most blockbuster films, so each episode cut is a huge cost saving for companies currently in budget-contraction mode. But a lower episode count means a lower engagement (the Holy Grail of streaming). That push-and-pull could remake TV.

Behind the Scenes: Where did all the episodes go?

• Netflix’s The Diplomat, Hulu’s Tell Me Lies, AppleTV+’s Bad Sisters, and HBO’s House of the Dragon are just a handful of the popular shows whose second seasons had reduced episode counts — typically by two or three.

• In some cases, it’s the creator’s call (as was the case with The Diplomat), but more often than not, it’s the streamer who’s asking for fewer episodes. That’s pretty strange, considering companies will typically always ask for more.

• So, what gives? There are several forces at play here — new cost-cutting mandates, last year’s strikes that postponed production between seasons, and the time it takes to dub episodes in a different language.

Closing Credits: In the streaming age, audiences already need to wait between 18 months to over two years for new seasons to drop, so a reduced episode count could give audiences a case of diminishing returns. A prime test case could be the latest season of Squid Game — audiences waited over three years for the second season but are getting two fewer episodes than the first. If Squid Game doesn’t pull the viewership metrics Netflix hopes it generates, that’s a big tell.

That could swing the pendulum toward producing cheaper, more contained shows that are closer to the broadcast model (you know, the one streaming upended).

Together with Nike

Nike Holiday Sale: Extra 25% Off

Ready to elevate your game in 2025? Nike's latest sale is here, bringing you a year-end gift of 25% off to power up your runs, workouts, and everyday adventures! Just use the code “MOMENT” at checkout. 

See what’s in store:

• Legendary Air Max: Step up your sneaker game

• Fresh Training Gear: Look good while you sweat

• Stylish Sneakers: Turn heads wherever you go

• Cozy Hoodies: Perfect for those chill days

Don’t sleep on this holiday gift — grab your favorites before they're gone and enjoy the thrill of saving big while you stay ahead of the pack.

Check out the Nike sale and enjoy an extra 25% off before it ends!

DEEP DIVES

• Read: Variety has a detailed report on the state of celebrity deepfakes that’s packed with data.

• Watch: Deadline chats with the 95-year-old actress June Squibb about her first-ever starring film role in the action comedy Thelma (great movie).

• Listen: The Future of Everything breaks down who’s currently winning the global EV market.

91.8% of you voted NO in Friday’s poll: Would you travel abroad just to buy a viral product?

“If I'm traveling, it's to see and experience new things, not just for a product.”

“I worked in a detour to Paris to pick up butter on the way home. It was worth it.”

“If it's viral, it's everywhere. Maybe not initially, but soon will be, even if they're copy cat products.”

“For me, traveling abroad is about the cultural experience, not chasing a flash-in-the-pan social media product.”

“I would never plan travel around purchases, but if I always try to shop locally when I travel and find unique goods that I can't get anywhere else.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

QUICK HITS

→ Entertainment / Media

📺 Apple may be opening up its entire film and TV library for free to audiences next weekend (and just for the weekend).

🎮 Video game developers can’t afford (literally) for their games to look as photorealistic as they currently do.

👯‍♀️ A new New York law is extending a lot of protections to models, especially when it comes to exploitation by AI.

→ Technology

🤖 OpenAI laid out a roadmap to how it's transforming from a non-profit company into a for-profit one.

📱 Tech companies must officially now comply with the EU’s USB-C law.

🧑‍⚖️ Do Kwon, who was behind the crash of crypto company Terra, is being extradited to the US on multiple fraud charges.

→ Fashion / E-commerce

💰 Private equity firm SKKY Partners has removed Kim Kardashian from her executive position after the company failed to gain much traction.

👕 Nike’s Kobe Brand is rolling out a new Kobe Bryant-inspired capsule collection dubbed “Year of the Mamba.”

💵 Turns out that your brain likes using cash more than card or digital payments.

Together with Morning Brew

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