🎢 Netflix Is About To Get Real

Are you ready for Stranger Things rides, Squid Game challenges, and Netflix-branded everything? | Streaming in Short - W24

Jun 13, 2025

This week, we cover Canal+ and Netflix partnership in Africa, the upcoming Netflix houses, and why Disney is taking the AI platform Midjourney to court.

🌍 Canal+ and Netflix double down in Africa

👉 Canal+ and Netflix are teaming up again, this time in 24 countries across sub-Saharan Africa. Starting in July, Netflix will be included in Canal+ packages for subscribers in French-speaking countries.

📍 Canal+ already offers 400+ live channels in the region, including 28 tailored for African audiences. The deal also brings hit series like Stranger Things, Lupin, and Squid Game, plus African originals like Blood & Water and Young Famous & African, under one roof.

💡 For Netflix, it’s a first-of-its-kind distribution deal in Africa. For Canal+, it strengthens its super-aggregator model and boosts value for millions of subscribers.

🎢 Is Netflix building its first theme parks?

👉 Netflix is going beyond the screen with Netflix House, its first real-world entertainment venues. The first two will open in Dallas and Philadelphia soon. The Dallas spot will take over a huge two-story space inside Galleria Dallas.

📍 Fans will be able to walk through Stranger Things, try the Squid Game glass bridge, float through Love Is Blind, eat Netflix-themed food, and shop exclusive merch.

💡 This is Netflix’s next big move. Turning its shows into full experiences, and bringing fans closer than ever to the stories they love.

A prototype of the Netflix House concept

⚖️ Disney & Universal take Midjourney to court

What happened?

👉 Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Universal, and DreamWorks just filed a lawsuit against Midjourney, the AI platform that lets users create images of famous characters like Darth Vader, Shrek, Yoda, and Iron Man, without permission.

The main claims:

Midjourney scraped copyrighted content from the internet to train its AI
Its tools generate images that look just like the originals
Those images are shown publicly on its “Explore” page
The company could block this, but chooses not to
Disney’s legal chief put it simply: “Piracy is piracy, even when done by AI”

Why it matters?

This is Hollywood’s first major legal fight against an AI company. Until now, studios like Disney mostly stayed quiet or made licensing deals. This case could change the rules for how AI and copyright work in the future.

🎯 If you own content or IP, it’s time to think about how AI might use, or misuse, your work.

✂️ HOLLYWOOD: Warner Bros. Discovery to split in two

WBD just announced a major change: by 2026, it’ll become two separate companies: one focused on streaming (Max, HBO, Warner Bros. Studios), the other on traditional TV (Discovery+, CNN, etc.).

The goal? Give each side more focus, and maybe set the stage for future deals.

⚽ SPORTS: FIFA Club World Cup streams on DAZN

The all-new FIFA Club World Cup kicks off this week in the U.S. with 32 teams, including Man City, Real Madrid, and Inter Miami.

It’s the first time the tournament follows a World Cup-style format, and DAZN has the exclusive rights. Messi, big matches, and $1B in prize money? Let’s go.

📱 TELCO: Etisalat x STARZPLAY bundle is live

Etisalat just launched a smart hard bundle: free STARZPLAY access for eligible users. One SMS, one click, and you’re in.

It’s frictionless, fast, and a great way to boost reach and reduce churn, plus it opens the door for upselling to STARZPLAY MAX.

🤝 SUBS: The bundle economy is here

According to Bango’s new Gravity Shift report, 48% of subscription leaders say direct acquisition is becoming a money pit. 90% are shifting to bundles and indirect growth.

The takeaway? Growth now comes from ecosystems, not just ads.

Download the free report here.

📡 FAST: wedotv expands across Europe via Eutelsat

wedotv launched three free streaming channels, movies, BIG stories, and sports, via Eutelsat’s Hotbird satellite, using HbbTV tech for dynamic ad insertion.

It’s free-to-air, cable-ready, and interactive. FAST is no longer just about CTV, satellite is in the game now.

🎤 ANNECY: Michael Hirsh interview

Animation legend Michael Hirsh is opening Annecy 2025 with a keynote on how he built a global cartoon empire.

In an exclusive

Streaming Made Easy

interview, he looks back on founding Nelvana, Cookie Jar, and Wow Unlimited Media, and shares why he wrote Animation Nation now.

🛥️ CANNES: The Ankler takes over the Croisette

Expect a live podcast with YouTube CEO Neal Mohan, invite-only events with Meta and DPAA, creator-focused panels, and a private dinner aboard the 122-meter superyacht Kismet.

From

Natalie Jarvey

’s special coverage to

Janice Min

’s high-profile interviews, The Ankler is turning Cannes into its own creator-powered stage.

🤖 Predator: Killer of Killers, from Dan Trachtenberg and Micho Rutare (Prime Video, 1h 24m): This original animated anthology follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge, a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession, and a WWII pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause.

⛳️ Stick, from Jason Keller (Apple TV+): Pryce Cahill was headed for golf greatness when an on-course meltdown derailed his career. Now struggling to stay afloat, he goes all in to mentor Santi—a teenage phenom with immense potential—and maybe save himself.

🧛 17 years ago, on June 10, 2008, True Blood premiered on HBO. Created by Alan Ball, the show takes you into a strange and steamy world where vampires live openly with humans in Louisiana. Known for its wild stories and dark, Southern style, True Blood became a fan favorite and helped bring new life to supernatural TV.