RECORD SPENDING FOR DAD’S DAY

The National Retail Federation projects that Father’s Day spending will hit $24 billion this year—topping the previous record of $22.9 billion set in 2023. Just over three-quarters of consumers plan to celebrate Father’s Day, with nearly half of them shopping for a father or stepfather. The rest are getting gifts for a husband, son, brother, grandfather, or friend. In addition to the traditional ties and polos, subscription boxes and special experiences continue to increase in popularity. It should come as no surprise that despite all the pomp and circumstance for dads, it lags behind the $33.5 billion that NRF projected for Mother’s Day last month. Anyway, thanks for the tie. (NRF: May 29, 2025)

BROADWAY’S BIG NIGHT FINDS A BIG AUDIENCE

Sunday night’s broadcast of the Tony Awards on CBS and Paramount+ drew 5.1 million viewers, according to Nielsen’s live-plus-same-day data, representing a 44% increase versus last year’s ceremony. This year’s surge reverses the trend of decreases that began in 2022. Parsing the numbers by demo, things look even better: Adults 25-54 saw a 99% increase, Adults 18-49 went up 116%, and younger viewers—those aged 18-34—posted growth of 157%. A number of factors likely contributed to this: host Cynthia Erivo is tremendously popular, as is nominee (and eventual winner) Cole Escola; it also didn’t hurt that CNN aired a live performance of George Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck the previous evening, putting the Great White Way top of mind. (The Wrap: May 29, 2025)

STREAMERS OFFER MORE UNIQUE TITLES

During the previous quarter, the five top premium streaming services increased the number of unique titles by five percent, reaching 94,400. The largest growth was achieved by Netflix, which added just over 18% and now has 20,400 exclusive titles. Amazon Prime Video remains the leader in unique titles with 68,500 (up 3.2%); following them are Disney with 9,200 (+1.6%), Paramount+ (3,300, +1.0%), and Apple TV+ (312, +3.7%) (MediaPost: May 29, 2025)

MAKING IT EASIER FOR VIEWERS TO FIND CONTENT

It doesn’t matter how many shows, movies, or sports a streaming platform has, if people can’t see them. When content is difficult to find, 73% of users say that they give up, and almost half cite frustration with current search tools. To remedy this, platforms and the smart TVs that feature them are working to improve the experience. With voice search, viewers can quickly ask their TV to find “something scary,” or “a funny movie;” the on-screen interfaces are being made more intuitive, and AI is getting better at making personalized recommendations. It’s a welcome change for everyone: streaming platforms avoid the ire of frustrated users and garner more viewing time; users have a more friction-free experience; and home-screen advertisers appear in an environment that isn’t already marred by viewer irritation. (TVREV: June 9, 2025)

TODAY IN VIDEO HISTORY

June 12, 2016 – It’s Lin-Manuel’s Night Driven by interest in Hamilton, 8.6 million viewers tuned into CBS for the 70^th Annual Tony Awards. Mr. Miranda’s show was a cultural phenomenon and received a record 16 nominations in 13 categories, taking home 11 trophies and ranking as the second-most awarded production in Broadway history (The Producers won 12 in 2001). To date, it remains the only hip-hop musical about America’s first Treasury Secretary. Watch it win Best Musical here.

Also: This year’s host was that year’s winner, as Cynthia Erivo was awarded Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in The Color Purple.