{"id":675194,"date":"2025-06-15T00:50:21","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T21:50:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/corporate-tv-branding-has-gotten-out-of-control\/"},"modified":"2025-06-15T00:50:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T21:50:21","slug":"corporate-tv-branding-has-gotten-out-of-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/corporate-tv-branding-has-gotten-out-of-control\/","title":{"rendered":"Corporate-TV Branding Has Gotten Out of Control"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tOnce upon a time in 2019, Disney had a decision to make: What would it call its new big-swing streaming service, a platform meant to take on Netflix in a way that Hulu never could? It turns out that all it took was a mathematical symbol. Disney+ was born.<\/p>\n

\n\tIt was an incredibly simple name that was also perfectly descript<\/a>ive. It means \u201cDisney, and then some.\u201d How strong was the name \u201cDisney+\u201d? Well, good enough that half of the media<\/a> industry followed suit. Soon, we had Paramount+, Apple TV+, Discovery+ and AMC+. (Technically, Disney followed \u2026 itself. ESPN+ was launched the previous year.)<\/p>\n

\n\tThis all came to mind with the news<\/a> in May that Warner Bros. Discovery \u201cde-branded\u201d Max back to HBO Max (after former owner AT&T had launched HBO Max five years ago). \u201cMax\u201d is about as close to \u201cPlus\u201d as you can get without being a total copycat.<\/p>\n

\n\tA lot of streaming services have been naming or renaming themselves lately, coming up with a new handle that\u2019s definitely, unquestionably better than the old handle. They\u2019re trying to stand out from their competitors, but could end up confusing consumers and Emmy voters \u2014 at exactly the moment that the latter group is deciding whether to honor a company\u2019s actors, directors and other\u00a0contenders.<\/p>\n

\n\tAfter AT&T\u2019s WarnerMedia merged with Discovery in 2022, forming (the obvious but reasonably named) Warner Bros. Discovery, executives renamed HBO Max just \u2026 Max. They wanted it to be clear that Max was more than just HBO \u2014 you know, the three most powerful letters in television. But also, like Justin Timberlake in The Social Network<\/em>, they definitely thought it sounded cooler.<\/p>\n

\n\tIt didn\u2019t. Warner Bros. Discovery realized the error of its ways and did the debrand. But worthy Max original series<\/a> like Hacks<\/em> and The Pitt<\/em> will still contend for Emmys this year as \u201cMax\u201d shows, not \u201cHBO Max\u201d series. It hasn\u2019t seemed to hurt Hacks<\/em> in the past \u2014 voters are general<\/a>ly astute \u2014 but the letters \u201cH,\u201d \u201cB\u201d and \u201cO\u201d are still how you spell \u201cprestige\u201d in the TV biz.<\/p>\n

\n\tNBCUniversal called its streamer Peacock when it launched in 2020. Peacock, named after the old NBC logo, was a silly name then, and it\u2019s a silly name now. The nicest thing I can say about \u201cPeacock\u201d is that it\u2019s not \u201cSeeso,\u201d its short-lived, comedy-focused predecessor. (Actually, the nicest thing I can say about Peacock in an FYC magazine is that its Emmy contender The Day of the Jackal<\/em> is quite good.)<\/p>\n

\n\tPeacock is also not \u201cVersant.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFormerly known as SpinCo., Versant is a new company (owned by NBCU-parent Comcast) composed of a bunch of cable channels that NBCU felt ambivalent about, along with some digital assets. Don\u2019t ask me what the hell \u201cVersant\u201d means. Ask Mark\u00a0Lazarus.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cVersant represents more than a name \u2014 it speaks to our adaptability and embraces the opportunity to shape a new, modern media company,\u201d the firm\u2019s CEO said in a memo to staff, adding that NBCU \u201ctook into account our overarching goal to influence culture, connect communities and signify a unified direction forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd Disney? A few years ago, it was back in the naming game<\/a> for its much-teased new ESPN streaming offering. It needed something that evoked \u201cESPN,\u201d so it went with \u2026ESPN.<\/p>\n

\n\tIt doesn\u2019t get any less confusing when you consider there\u2019s already an ESPN app, as well as ESPN+, which the company stresses is a \u201cservice\u201d and not an \u201capp.\u201d The new ESPN app (a bona fide, confirmed app), is in actuality an enhancement of the existing ESPN app. Perhaps ESPN should have stuck with \u201cFlagship,\u201d the new offering\u2019s working title. Then again, never mind.<\/p>\n

\n\tAll of this branding, rebranding and de-branding is puzzling enough for voters and other folks in the industry. So imagine how consumers feel.<\/p>\n

\n\tEven the unwavering Netflix is playing the game. The undisputed streaming leader recently revamped its once-in-a-while marketing event Tudum, which is named after the sound effect that plays before each film or series. (It\u2019s a little too easy to make a Tu-dumb joke.)<\/p>\n

\n\tThe company uses Tudum for its platform on what to watch and what\u2019s trending. But mainly, Tudum is a promotional event \u2014 one long Netflix ad, basically \u2014 now wrapped in a variety show (of sorts) featuring more than 100 Netflix stars.<\/p>\n

\n\tThere is one thing that can save a confounding name: a good tagline.<\/p>\n

\n\tESPN revealed its new tagline on June 5: \u201cSports Forever.\u201d Hey, that\u2019s not bad! Of course, ESPN\u2019s old motto, \u201cThe Worldwide Leader in Sports,\u201d was working fine for everyone.<\/p>\n

\n\tLess than a year ago, Starz unveiled its own new tagline: \u201cWe\u2019re All Adults Here.\u201d I\u2019ve got nothing negative to say about that one: It clearly defines the brand strategy. \u201cWe\u2019re All Adults Here\u201d informs potential subscribers (and bundlers, and maybe buyers) of exactly what to expect.<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s no surprise Starz nailed its new tagline. Starz knows what it is and who it serves. The Starz audience is women and Black adults \u2014 whom it has targeted since 2014, when it launched both Outlander<\/em> and Power<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\n\tHBO knows what it is; Max never did.<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd we\u2019re still<\/em> trying to figure out what Versant is.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis story first appeared in a June stand-alone issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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