While TV investments have remained resilient, YouTube is looking to drive viewership in a unique, consumer-first way. In this Q&A, Google's Brian Albert, managing director, shares why linear TV is largely going to revolve around live sports and news and connected TV is going to be the main topic in every Upfronts negotiation this year.

On today's episode, we discuss how networks and distributors' continuing fight over retransmission fees will affect consumers and what an increasingly crowded streaming market will look like. We then talk about just how big in media Apple wants to be and the relationship live sports have with linear TV and streaming. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Ross Benes.

The return of live sports produced a flurry of licensing activity from broadcast networks and streaming services—including digital video, social, and ecommerce platforms. It also reignited concerns about the sustainability of pricing models for sports video and TV.

Among US gamers, Facebook Gaming is the most popular destination for viewing live gameplay, with 42% watching esports and other gaming livestreams on the platform.

Netflix will have to do more than be yet another streaming service fracturing sports and offering livestreams in order to build out a compelling live content offering.

We expect vMVPD viewership to increase as live sports resume a more normal routine and the NFL, the US’ most popular sport, proceeds through its longest-ever regular season. But what’s notable is that vMVPDs, which were once heralded as traditional TV’s savior to cord-cutting, are not adding enough viewers to replace those leaving satellite and cable TV.

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Why it matters: US streaming giants are making bold moves to garner more subscribers: YouTube renewed its deal with Major League Baseball to stream live sports, Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed it plans to merge Discovery Plus and HBO Max into one streaming service, and Amazon acquired filmmaker MGM.

The NBC app benefits from a combination of linear and on-demand content as well as live sports broadcasts like the Olympics and Sunday Night Football. It has also drawn viewership with big titles available for exclusive streaming like “The Office” and “The Boss Baby 2.”. Looking ahead: Peacock will reach one-fifth of internet users by the end of this year.

Streamers are also locked in a bidding war for exclusive rights to stream live cricket matches which could exceed $5 billion, per Bloomberg, a sign of the importance of both the Indian market and live sports to the streaming industry. The challenge: Pushing into India isn’t as easy as shipping a platform overseas.

Streaming services are currently warring over exclusive rights to live sports, Japanese animation, studio films, and more. If users find it difficult to hunt down specific content now, it might only become harder as time goes on. Streaming has been at a saturation point for some time now, and the space is only going to become more divided and competitive.

Looking ahead: The streaming landscape is changing, as streamers strike deals for live sports programming and introduce ad-supported tiers of membership. These factors create an increasingly enticing environment for disgruntled pay TV households to finally cut the cord.

The MLB deal gives Capital One expansive advertising opportunities as the MLB season kicks off next month: The number of US live sports viewers is expected to hit 160.2 million in 2022, up from 158.4 million last year, per Insider Intelligence forecasts. Potentially expand its co-brand portfolio and coverage.

For years, network TV broadcasts and live sports have experimented with digital product inserts. Stadiums can digitally inject different companies into their billboards, and the NBA makes money from on-court ads. The number of streaming services is on the rise: 65% of paid video subscribers owned three or more subscriptions in 2021, up from just 32% in 2018, per Activate.

They like live sports, but they like to be in moments that are culturally relevant. And they really pushed us on that. Yes, [it] need[s] to be efficient and effective in [its] message, but being part of culture and being part of conversation is at the core of what [it is].

Competition will be tighter than ever in 2022, with streamers doing all they can to stand out, whether it be live sports, gaming, or news. But Netflix will remain the most popular: 59.0% of US internet users will be monthly viewers in 2022, while 29.1% will watch HBO Max at least once per month. More like this:. Report: Insider Intelligence’s US Video Trends to Watch in 2022.

Streamers are breaking into new markets and features including live sports, ad-supported subscription tiers, and bundles that resemble the cable packages of old. Disney is reportedly considering a cheaper, ad-supported subscription tier for Disney+, per The Information.