Top News
* Viacom Inc. bought annual online video conference VidCon for an undisclosed amount. VidCon will remain a stand-alone entity and retain its senior leadership team, according to an official blog post.
* Alphabet Inc. unit Google Inc. is working to launch a subscription-based game streaming service, The Information reports, citing sources familiar with the details. Codenamed Yeti, the service will reportedly be accessible on the company's Chromecast device or a Google-made console that is being developed.
* Gary Zenkel, president, NBC Olympics and Business, NBC Sports Group, says the production of more content will boost overall media consumption around the action from the 2018 Winter Games from Pyeongchang, South Korea.
* 21st Century Fox Inc. Executive Chairman Lachlan Murdoch said a five-year rights deal provides "clear runway" for company to grow value of its broadcast business. Fox recorded a 4.7% increase in revenue during the second quarter of fiscal 2018 ended Dec. 31, to $8.04 billion from $7.68 billion.
Technology
* Lyft Inc. hired Jon McNeill as COO of the company. Jon previously oversaw all customer-facing operations for Tesla as the president of global sales and service, according to an official blog post.
* Several analysts upgraded Snap Inc.'s stock following a better-than-expected earnings report that sent shares soaring, though some remained cautious on the social media company's future prospects. Several analysts upgraded Snap's stock following the earnings beat, though some remained cautious about the company's future growth prospects.
* Google has combined the Nest and Google Hardware teams, according to an official blog post. As a combined entity, the two teams will work on hardware, software and services for homes.
Internet & OTT
* Russian communications watchdog Roskomnadzor will investigate whether Facebook Inc. complied with Russian legislation in the second half of 2018, Reuters reports, citing a statement by the watchdog. Alexander Zharov, head of Roskomnadzor, reportedly met Facebook executives in Moscow to discuss the social networking giant's compliance efforts.
* Netflix Inc. acquired rights to stream Russian cartoon series "Yoko" in the U.S., the U.K., Italy, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Canada and India, The Hollywood Reporter reports, citing a statement by production company Wizart Animation. Nat Geo Kids Latin America bought rights to the series for Latin America and the Caribbean, while the series will be released by distributor Huashi TV on video websites and more than 10 IPTV channels and OTT platforms in China.
* In more Google news, the company unveiled features for the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games in South Korea, according to an official blog post. In addition to being able to find the latest information about the Olympic Games and results, consumers can watch select video highlights on YouTube, starting Feb. 8. People in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal can watch the Winter Games live and free on the Olympic Channel on YouTube.
The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, the Hang Seng rose 0.42% to 30,451.27, while the Nikkei 225 climbed 1.13% to 21,890.86.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 fell 0.87% to 7,215.73, and the Euronext 100 was down 1.21% to 1,009.32.
On the macro front
The jobless claims report, the EIA natural gas report, the Fed balance sheet and money supply report are due out today.
Featured news
The Daily Dose Europe: US SEC approves Spotify IPO; Yandex.Taxi, Uber complete merger: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved Spotify AB's plans to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, while Yandex.Taxi and Uber Technologies Inc. completed the merger of their ride-sharing businesses in Russia and other nearby countries.
M&A Replay: Asia-Pacific: Google closes HTC deal; SoftBank buys into Line Mobile: Google closed its deal to buy part of HTC Corp.'s smartphone business, while SoftBank Group Corp. will acquire a controlling stake in Line Mobile as part of a partnership with the latter's parent company Line Corp.
The Daily Dose Asia-Pacific: SoftBank prepares for mobile unit IPO; Vodafone India to off-load Indus stake: SoftBank Group has begun preparations to float shares of its domestic telecom unit SoftBank Corp., while Vodafone India is in advanced talks to sell its entire 42% stake in Indus Towers Ltd. to Bharti Infratel Ltd.
The Program Guide: 'Westworld' gets season 2 premiere date; Netflix, Fusion ink production deal: HBO (US) unveiling premiere date for the second season of "Westworld," and Netflix signing a production deal with Fusion are included in this edition of The Program Guide.
Viacom, Telefónica ink LatAm mobile agreement; RTVE seals distribution deals: In this monthly Latin American video spotlight feature, S&P Global Market Intelligence provides a roundup of news related to over-the-top, video-on-demand and other video initiatives in different Latin American markets.
Featured research
Economics of Advertising: Disney fiscal Q1'18 cable network revenues up slightly, no thanks to ESPN: Walt Disney Co.'s fiscal first-quarter results showed cable network revenues were up slightly to $4.49 billion despite an 11% decline in ESPN ad revenue.
Economics of TV & Film: Assessing MOWs' presence on Big 4 networks: Movies of the week on broadcast are gradually vanishing.
Economics of Networks: Charter shuffles the Viacom nets, expands Travel Channel carriage: With programming expenses on the rise, operators are becoming more selective with which networks get widespread distribution.
Global Multichannel: Top Canadian MVPDs leveraging TVE infrastructure to build OTT platforms: The latest survey of Canadian TV Everywhere offerings found the core group of top Canadian multichannel distributors leveraging existing TVE infrastructure to build over-the-top platforms.
Global Multichannel: Oi's $19B debt deal may pave way for Chinese giant's Americas debut: Brazilian telco Oi SA's December debt restructuring agreement significantly improves its prospects for 2018 and may open the door for a takeover by a foreign telco, China Telecom being a potential candidate.
Global Multichannel: TV sales house consolidation legacy can fuel progress in advanced advertising: Major TV advertising sales houses in key European markets are using established links from an era of market consolidation to contend with digital giants, such as Alphabet Inc.'s Google Inc., in the field of advanced TV advertising.
Wireless Investor: France mobile projections 2018: French mobile subscribers expand on strong growth in the machine-to-machine market, as 4G penetration reached 52%.
The Daily Dose is updated as of 7 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription.
