Hollywood’s many mega-mergers are inherently bad for audiences. Consolidation means less competition, less voices being heard, and less stories being told. But the next potential combining of companies could also mean less criticism. Unfortunately, a new report says Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount, and Netflix are among the bidders for the popular fan movie review site Letterboxd.
According to news we first heard at Variety, Letterboxd is currently “shopping” itself to potential buyes. Among the interested parties in the social media site, which boats 30 million users globally, is (as Puck first reported) Netflix. Also in talks to buy the site are Paramount, Sony, and Reddit co-creator Alexis Ohanian.
At least three of them pose a pretty obvious problem. Letterboxd allows users to track and share their opinions on films. If any movie studio/streamer bought it they would ultimately own one of the internet’s best resources for movie lovers. It’s one of the best places to share your thoughts on cinema. Would a Netflix-owned Letterboxd allow negative reviews of its films? Would Sony prioritize positive reviews of its own releases over other studios? And would Paramount make it so you only got to read reviews of the roughly 80 gazillion movies it might soon own?
Would any of them allow the very funny reviews, some from very famous celebs, that make Letterboxd one of the web’s funniest places?
Even if Letterboxd’s next owner didn’t do any of that and committed to keeping it as an independent warehouse for film buffs, how could users trust that? How could they believe a studio would buy a criticism site without assuming they had a selfish reason? (Beyond the obvious “they only use it to acquire precious data,” as though that’s not terrible for its own reasons.)
And that’s exactly why it would seem as though if a place like Netflix were to buy Letterboxd it would essentially destroy the very value the site now has. (Which might be relatively small for big budget studios, but isn’t exactly insignificant. In 2023, current majority owner Tiny bought 60% of Letterboxd at a valuation of $50 million.)
Mergers are bad for consumers, but this one could destroy everything people love about Letterboxd.
The post Netflix, Sony, Paramount Reportedly Want to Buy Letterboxd appeared first on Nerdist.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
All rights reserved to : USAGOLDMIES . www.usagoldmines.com
You can Enjoy surfing our website categories and read more content in many fields you may like .
Why USAGoldMines ?
USAGoldMines is a comprehensive website offering the latest in financial, crypto, and technical news. With specialized sections for each category, it provides readers with up-to-date market insights, investment trends, and technological advancements, making it a valuable resource for investors and enthusiasts in the fast-paced financial world.