This Old Marketing - News Podcast Weekly with Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose

Disney + OpenAI?, The $100B Studio Fight, and Robert's AI Music Experiment (510)

11 snips

Dec 12, 2025

A major deal involving Disney and OpenAI is in the works, allowing creators to use beloved Disney characters in innovative ways. This investment could change how content is made. The intense bidding for Warner Bros. Discovery is heating up, raising questions about who will come out on top and potential antitrust issues. Australia is taking bold steps by banning social media for kids under 16, prompting debates on effectiveness and enforcement. Plus, a dive into Robert's exciting AI music project showcases creativity in a new digital landscape.

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INSIGHT

Disney Embraces Controlled AI Licensing

Disney's $1B investment in OpenAI signals major media endorsement of AI-created content and controlled IP licensing.
The deal limits voice and long-form use but opens short-form creator workflows to Disney characters under set guardrails.

INSIGHT

Guardrails Don't Stop Creative Misuse

Licensed character access can be a defensive strategy to set guardrails rather than ban AI usage entirely.
Robert warns creative misuse will still appear despite Disney's safety controls.

INSIGHT

Streaming Consolidation Invites Geopolitics

The Warner Bros. Discovery bid race shows media consolidation is accelerating with massive cross-border capital.
Complex bidders and sovereign investors raise antitrust and editorial-control concerns.

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Joe and Robert open the episode with major breaking news: Disney is reportedly finalizing a $1 billion investment in OpenAI along with a licensing deal that would allow creators to use select Disney IP inside OpenAI tools. The boys unpack what this actually means—

Why Disney is making this move now
How this could transform creator workflows
What Disney gets strategically vs. what OpenAI gains
Whether this is the first domino in a wave of entertainment–AI partnerships

The $100 Billion Battle for Warner Bros. Discovery

Next, Joe and Robert dig into the increasingly chaotic race for Warner Bros., as Paramount, Skydance, and Netflix position themselves for what could be a $100B mega-deal. They discuss:

Who really has the leverage
Which bidder makes the most strategic sense
Potential antitrust concerns
Who stands to win (and who almost certainly loses) if this deal happens

Australia Moves to Ban Social Media for Kids Under 16

The conversation shifts to Australia's new legislation banning social media access for children under 16. Joe and Robert debate:

Will it work?
How would it even be enforced?
Are governments finally becoming serious—or is this political theater?
What responsibility platforms have in the mental-health crisis

Special Segment: Robert's AI Music Persona, Lyla Rae Hightower

A highlight of the episode, Robert takes listeners behind the scenes of creating his AI-powered music persona. He details:

The creative spark behind the character
Tools and workflows he used to bring the music to life
Unexpected challenges in the process
How he's distributing and promoting the project
Why this experiment signals a new frontier for creators

Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/09m7OjGKcL1aOKKqyhZjui Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/artist/lyla-rae-hightower/1857062007 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDwdVLXGCWaO-SMOLuhSE8Q Website https://lylahightower.com/ Winners & Losers

Marketing Loser of the Week: Salesforce — Joe walks through the company's confusing decision to consider a name change and what it signals about the brand's broader struggles.
Rants & Raves: Joe ends with commentary on Kara Swisher's reporting around Apple possibly buying Disney—and whether such a deal is even remotely plausible.

Subscribe and Follow: Follow Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose on LinkedIn for insights, hot takes, and weekly updates from the world of content and marketing.

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Get Joe's new book, Burn the Playbook, at http://www.joepulizzi.com/books/burn-the-playbook/ Subscribe to Joe's Newsletter at https://www.joepulizzi.com/signup/.

Get Robert Rose's new book, Valuable Friction, at https://robertrose.net/valuable-friction/ Subscribe to Robert's Newsletter at https://seventhbearlens.substack.com/

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