Post by Brightcove

The CW has been streaming since 2006 with no subscription, no login, and no credit card on file. 🤯 That reality turns nearly every product decision into the same question: build it or buy it? At StreamTV 2026, The CW's Head of Product & Data, Zachary Mannon, joins Brightcove's Phil Green for a candid conversation about what it takes to run a free, ad-supported streaming network at scale. They'll discuss: ⭐ Using AI to keep a 20,000-title catalog current without hiring an army ⭐ Keeping viewers engaged when you know almost nothing about them ⭐ The monetization math behind choosing free over a paywall ⭐ A build-vs.-buy framework you can take back to your own roadmap See you there! 📅 Free, Ad-Supported, and Worth It: How The CW Decides What to Build vs. Buy Phil Green, VP Media and Strategic Accounts, Brightcove Zach Mannon, Head of Product & Data, The CW (Nexstar) Thursday, June 18 | 11:00–11:20 AM | Juniper Ballroom C