Video-streaming services chase Hollywood dreams at the Oscars

The Oscars are purportedly about honouring the best movies of the year, but they also serve as a proxy war between old-guard Hollywood studios and next-generation streaming services. So if you want to root for the home team this year, you can cheer for your favourite studio to block Netflix from taking the first-ever best picture statue for a streaming service.

This year, Netflix actually has a pretty good shot at the prize that has so long eluded the tech industry. The company reportedly spent $25 million-plus to win Academy votes for its racehorse—the black-and-white, Alfonso Cuarón masterpiece, Roma. And it hired Oscar strategist Lisa Taback, the woman behind the campaigns for The King’s Speech, The Artist and Spotlight, to help shepherd Roma to victory.