Tubi CEO Anjali Sud is set to keynote the Banff World Media Festival, organizers said on Wednesday.
Sud in Sept. 2023 took the helm at Fox’s free, ad-supported streamer after taking over from Tubi founder Farhad Massoudi. She is the first confirmed keynote speaker for Banff’s annual Summit Series at the festival’s upcoming 46th edition, which will run from June 8 to 11 in Alberta, Canada’s Rocky Mountains.
Tubi in early January reported it had surpassed 97 million monthly active users. That’s a jump from more than 78 million MAUs posted in mid-2024. The streaming platform, which launched in 2014, also said it streamed over 10 billion streaming hours in the 2024 calendar year.
Sud is expected to talk about her company’s latest growth spurt as Tubi fends off competition in the FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) space from top rivals like Pluto TV and Roku Channel, and the service has expanded its own content offerings to more than 275,000 library movies and TV episodes and more than 300 Tubi originals.
“Audiences around the globe increasingly value a premium entertainment experience that is also 100 percent free, fun and reflective of culture. Tubi has built a large and growing fanbase by putting viewers first, and I’m excited to share our perspective at the Banff World Media Festival this year,” Sud said in a statement on Wednesday ahead of her Banff appearance.
The FAST space features streaming platforms like Tubi offering linear TV content for free in exchange for watching commercials. FAST channels are also quickly gaining users as paid streaming giants are bundling with one another to reduce operating costs and keep cost-conscious subscribers online.
Additional keynotes for the festival in June will be announced in the coming months. Past Summit Series speakers include Rob Wade, Channing Dungey, Bela Bajaria, George Cheeks, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Paula Kerger, Pearlena Igbokwe, Ted Sarandos and Maverick Carter.
Banff fest organizers and Netflix also announced that the Netflix-Banff Diversity of Voices Initiative will return in June 2025 to allow industry professionals from under-represented communities to gain access to leading industry players in Banff for possible dealmaking.
In all, 75 people will receive an all access pass to the Banff World Media Festival and dedicated industry sessions. And 25 participants will be chosen for bespoke pitch sessions.
“We value Banff’s commitment to providing this meaningful access to Canadian creatives and are inspired by the program’s impact on participants’ careers over the years,“ Lindsay Doyle, director of public policy at Netflix Canada, said in a statement about supporting the initiative done in partnership with the Black Screen Office, the Indigenous Screen Office and the Reelworld Screen Institute.
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