TVOT SF 2026: Local First, Global Fast: The New Economics of Multicultural Streaming
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2026
2:00pm - 2:45pm
The Sarnoff Room
Streaming platforms have gone global, but “global” doesn’t mean “generic.” Multicultural audiences—diaspora communities, multilingual households, culturally specific fandoms—are now some of the fastest-growing and most loyal segments in streaming, yet platforms still struggle to serve them as more than a localization checkbox. This panel will unpack what it actually takes to build for multicultural viewers: from recommendation algorithms that don’t flatten cultural nuance to greenlighting decisions that treat multicultural content as core business rather than niche experimentation.
Panelists will share data on engagement and retention, talk candidly about what’s failed, and debate where the industry is headed—including AI-driven localization, co-productions across markets, and the tension between authentic storytelling and algorithmic scale. Panelists include:
- Brandon Pankey, CEO, APEX (Moderator)
- Daniel Schnider, Head of Business Development and Distribution Partnerships, Revry
- Dean Cates, SVP of Sales and Business Development, The Africa Channel
- Jennifer Turner, CEO, MADCOOL Media
- Shamroc Peterson, CEO, Diverseego
- Stephen L. Hodge, CEO, OTTera
