Anonymous media executives are predicting radical changes for TV and streaming in 2026, from mega-mergers and sports rights battles to ad-supported tiers and AI-driven content strategies, signaling a volatile but defining year for the entertainment industry.

Logos of Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance representing media industry consolidation
Warner Bros. Discovery and the newly formed Paramount Skydance symbolize the consolidation era reshaping Hollywood. Source: CNBC / Warner Bros. Discovery / Paramount Skydance

As streaming fatigue sets in and linear TV keeps melting, the media business is heading into 2026 like a prestige drama entering its final season: the stakes are high, the cast keeps changing, and no one is sure who will survive the finale. CNBC recently spoke with 16 anonymous media executives, each offering a bold prediction for where the industry will land next year—and their forecasts paint a picture of a business on the brink of dramatic transformation.


The State of Media Heading Into 2026

If the 2010s were about “cord-cutting,” the mid-2020s are about “everything-cutting.” Cable bundles are shrinking, streaming growth is slowing, advertising is fragmenting, and debt-heavy conglomerates are under pressure from Wall Street to prove they can still make money in a world where viewers can unsubscribe at any time.

The anonymous executives CNBC spoke to span legacy studios, streamers, tech platforms, and sports media. Unsurprisingly, their bold predictions cluster around a few themes: consolidation, sports rights, subscription economics, and the impact of AI. Underneath all of them is one anxiety: the current media model doesn’t really work, at least not at the scale these companies were built for.

Person browsing multiple streaming services on a TV screen
The streaming menu is crowded, but growth is slowing—forcing media giants to rethink their strategies. Photo: Pexels (royalty-free)

Consolidation Nation: Will 2026 Deliver the Next Mega-Merger?

One of the most consistent throughlines in the anonymous predictions is the idea that media’s biggest players are simply too small. That may sound absurd for companies the size of Warner Bros. Discovery or Paramount Skydance, but in a world where they compete with Apple, Amazon, and Google, the logic is brutal: scale or be acquired.

“We’re past the point where everyone gets to be a global streamer. There will be three, maybe four real general-entertainment platforms. The rest become content suppliers or niche services.”

Executives point to recent moves—like Skydance’s takeover of Paramount and the still-evolving strategies at Warner Bros. Discovery under CEO David Zaslav—as proof that merger season isn’t over, it’s just entering a more complicated phase. Regulatory scrutiny is tighter, balance sheets are uglier, and investors are less patient.

  • Likely targets: smaller studio-streamer hybrids with significant libraries but weak direct-to-consumer economics.
  • Likely buyers: tech giants that see streaming as an ecosystem play, not a profit center on its own.
  • Wild card: private equity, which has already circled everything from regional sports networks to music catalogs.

The cultural implication here is stark: fewer green lights, fewer experimental shows, and more IP recycling. The upside for viewers could be simpler bundles and better product experiences. The downside is a narrower definition of what gets to exist on screen.

Corporate merger concept with skyscrapers reflected in glass buildings
Behind every logo mashup is a deep reset of jobs, strategies, and libraries. Photo: Pexels (royalty-free)

Sports Rights, Streaming Bundles, and the Battle for Live Events

If scripted TV is shrinking, live sports is the one genre still growing in value. Several of CNBC’s anonymous executives frame 2026 as an inflection point: by then, big chunks of the NFL, NBA, global soccer, and emerging women’s leagues will be locked into long-term digital-heavy deals.

The prediction many circle around: by 2026, sports will live in hybrid ecosystems—part traditional TV, part direct-to-consumer apps, part big-tech platforms. That means more fragmentation for viewers, but also new kinds of bundles.

  1. “Sports tiers” inside streamers: pay a little extra to unlock full leagues or advanced features.
  2. Cross-company sports bundles: a single subscription that quietly routes money to multiple rights holders behind the scenes.
  3. Free, ad-heavy entry points: especially for younger leagues and international rights, to build audience before upselling.
“If you don’t have sports or news, you’d better have incredible IP. Otherwise, you’re going to get bundled into somebody else’s product.”
Stadium full of fans under bright lights symbolizing live sports broadcasting
Live sports remains the last true must-watch-now genre—fueling billion-dollar streaming decisions. Photo: Pexels (royalty-free)

Ads Are Back: The Rise of Hybrid Streaming Models

Almost every executive quoted by CNBC agrees on one thing: the all-you-can-eat, ad-free streaming era is ending. The math doesn’t work. Content costs are too high, churn is too easy, and investors now care more about cash flow than about subscriber bragging rights.

By 2026, they predict:

  • Most major services will push viewers toward ad-supported or hybrid tiers as the default.
  • Premium, fully ad-free viewing will become a luxury upsell, not the baseline.
  • Personalized ads and shoppable formats will quietly blur the line between content and commerce.
“Advertising didn’t die. It just took a sabbatical while streamers chased subs. Now it’s coming back with more data and less patience.”

For viewers, this will feel a lot like… cable, but with better interfaces and more control. Expect more creatively placed ad breaks, sponsorships baked into shows, and “watch this ad to unlock” options that subsidize rentals, pay-per-view events, or early access.

Person watching streaming video with laptop and smartphone showing digital ads
From “no ads, ever” to “some ads, smarter”: streaming economics are resetting viewer expectations. Photo: Pexels (royalty-free)

AI, Data, and the New Rules of Content Greenlighting

While no executive is predicting fully AI-generated blockbusters in 2026 (the talent guilds would like a word), almost all of them talk about AI and data as quiet but powerful forces behind the scenes. The next phase of AI in media isn’t about replacing writers; it’s about reshaping how executives make bets.

According to the CNBC conversations, by 2026 AI will be deeply embedded in:

  • Development: testing loglines, poster art, trailers, and casting combinations against audience data.
  • Localization: faster, more natural dubbing and subtitling to maximize global reach.
  • Discovery: personalized homepages that increasingly resemble TikTok’s “For You” feed for longform content.
“We’re not asking AI what show to make. We’re asking it, ‘If we make this show, what’s the smartest way to package and release it?’”
Data visualization on multiple screens symbolizing AI and analytics in media
The real AI revolution in media is happening in the control room, not on the red carpet. Photo: Pexels (royalty-free)

Who Wins and Who Loses in the 2026 Media Shake-Up?

The anonymous predictions aren’t just structural; they’re also quietly judgmental. There’s a sense that certain strategies are aging badly—and others are finally starting to pay off.

Probable winners, according to the executives:

  • Streamers with strong franchises (think: superheroes, fantasy worlds, procedural universes) that travel globally.
  • Companies with healthy balance sheets and diversified revenue—theme parks, gaming, consumer products.
  • Platforms that can bundle media into a wider ecosystem (shopping, cloud, devices, or sports).

Likely strugglers:

  • Standalone streamers without distinct brands or must-watch originals.
  • Legacy cable networks stuck in slow-decline carriage deals.
  • Over-leveraged companies forced to shrink their way to survival.
“The days of being ‘everything for everyone’ are over. If audiences can’t describe what you’re for in one sentence, you’re in trouble.”

For viewers, 2026 will likely feel paradoxical: there will be more content than ever, but less of it will feel truly surprising. Risky mid-budget films and singular, oddball shows remain the most endangered species in a world optimized for IP, franchises, and algorithm-friendly formats.


What This Means for Viewers: Fewer Apps, More Trade-Offs

Strip away the corporate jargon, and the anonymous predictions boil down to a few viewer-facing realities for 2026:

  • You’ll probably have fewer apps on your home screen, but each one will contain more brands and channels.
  • You’ll see more ads, but they’ll be better targeted, more skippable, and occasionally useful.
  • Big events—sports, finales, live specials—will get louder, more global rollouts, as platforms chase must-see moments.
  • The line between “TV,” “social,” and “gaming” will blur further, especially for younger audiences.

In other words, the 2026 media ecosystem may actually feel simpler day-to-day but more consolidated behind the scenes. Choice won’t go away, but it will increasingly happen inside big platforms, not between them.


Related: Trailers, Interviews, and Further Reading

To understand the kinds of bets media companies are making heading into 2026, it’s worth looking at how they’re marketing their biggest franchises and corporate pivots.

For a more visceral look at where media is headed, compare trailers for a 2012 tentpole film and a 2025 streaming blockbuster: shorter runtimes, quicker hooks, and a clear emphasis on global appeal tell you everything about what executives think will work in 2026.


Final Take: 2026 as Media’s Reckoning—and Reset

The anonymous executives talking to CNBC sound less like masters of the universe and more like characters trapped in a prestige drama they didn’t quite write. Their bold predictions for 2026 are really survival strategies: merge or partner, embrace ads, lean into sports and franchises, and quietly let AI and data reshape the playbook.

For the industry, 2026 could be the year when wishful thinking about “infinite streaming growth” finally dies—and a more sober, diversified version of the business emerges. For audiences, the change will be subtler but still significant: fewer logos, more bundles, and a steady negotiation between cost, convenience, and control.

The big open question is cultural, not financial: in a world optimized for efficiency and IP exploitation, who will still pay to make the weird, risky, unforgettable stuff that defines an era? By the end of 2026, we should have a clearer answer—and a much better sense of which media giants will be around to shape the decade that follows.