After two years of unprecedented growth in social media and streaming, a post-pandemic reality is beginning to set in.
Why it matters: Huge revenue gains during COVID inspired media and tech titans to take big bets. As growth stalls, Wall Street wants them to pivot from promise to profit.
Driving the news: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday strayed from his typical earnings call remarks about innovation, telling investors that given current growth levels, "we are now planning to slow the pace of some of our investments."
The big picture: Slowed growth coming out of the pandemic, in conjunction with wider macroeconomic factors like inflation and the war in Ukraine, is forcing the biggest companies in media, tech and entertainment to temper expectations.
Be smart: The pandemic pivot to digital prompted enormous investments in new technologies like streaming, e-commerce and the metaverse.
What to watch: As more companies begin to streamline costs, it may help consumers feel less overwhelmed by options. Netflix, for example, will reportedly focus on producing fewer, higher quality programs, following a year of record high volume in original scripted series.
