Hollywood is No Longer Relevant in Age of Netflix, Diller Says
Recode: Before he became a tech mogul, IAC chairman Barry Diller was a media mogul, working in executive roles at ABC, Paramount, and Fox. But now, he says, the people who used to have all the power in the entertainment business have a lot less. “Hollywood is now...
Netflix Turns to Weinstein Veteran for Big Push to Win Oscar
New York Times: Lisa Taback is an Oscar-campaign veteran who cut her teeth at Miramax with Harvey Weinstein in the 1990s and whose résumé includes best-picture winners like “The King’s Speech,” “The Artist” and “Spotlight.” Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s chief content...
Disney’s ABC Rakes In as Much as $2.6 Million for Oscar Ads
Bloomberg: ABC is still commanding strong ad prices for the Academy Awards, despite years of declining ratings and a fruitless attempt to find a host. The Disney-owned network is said to be getting prices between $2 million and $2.6 million for every 30-second...
Comcast’s NBC Faces Angry Call for ‘Retribution’ from Trump
USA Today: Many politicians and pundits reacted harshly Sunday after President Trump railed against the media on Twitter sparked by a "Saturday Night Live" sketch that mocked his performance at a Friday White House news conference where declared a national emergency...
Fox News Hosts Win Raves from Trump at Press Conference
Deadline: Asked if Sean Hannity influenced his decision to declare a state of emergency to fund a border wall, President Trump said, “Sean Hannity has been a terrific supporter of what I do, not of me." Trump then began, unsolicited, to give a worth-millions shout-out...
CBS News Journo Describes World’s Media as Mostly Liberal
Breitbart News: Lara Logan, foreign correspondent for CBS’s "60 Minutes," said Breitbart News offers “the other side” of news media relative to what she described as a mostly left-wing and partisan Democrat news landscape in the U.S. and...
AT&T’s WarnerMedia Won’t Bet on Future in Sports Gambling
Recode: As sports betting becomes legal in more U.S. states, big companies are becoming interested in getting a piece of the action. But we can rule out participation by AT&T’s WarnerMedia, per the response by AT&T CEO Randall...
Cox Inks Deal to Sell Local TV Stations to Buyout Firm Apollo
Reuters: Apollo Global Management has agreed to acquire a majority stake in 14 television stations from privately held Cox Media Group, a move that sets up Apollo to become a player in broadcasting, an industry it has sought deals in for some...
Tribune Media Looks to Sell Real Estate Along Chicago River
Crain's Chicago Business: Tribune Media is looking to cash out on a massive stretch of land it owns along the Chicago River after winning city approval to build a mixed-use campus on the site. The move paves the way for the redevelopment of a high-profile chunk of...
Univision Finds Snarky Blogs Obstruct Effort to Sell Gizmodo
New York Post: Not only is Gizmodo Media losing money, its snarky news and gossip sites may trash you if you buy them. Gizmodo’s track record of skewering owners is scaring away bidders, said sources. Private equity firm Great Hill Partners is said to be the latest...
Apple Needs to Buy Netflix – Or CBS-Viacom, Strategist Says
CNBC: Apple lacks video content, which is why Daniel Ives, managing director of equity research at Wedbush, believes that the tech giant will acquire a large film studio in 2019. "We've talked about potentially Sony, Lionsgate, A24 – a CBS or Viacom is potentially...
Hulu Signs Up NBA Stars for New Ads Promoting Live Sports
Adweek: Hulu secured Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers and Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers to remind you that the streaming service now has games available to watch live. The two 30-second spots were shown over the weekend, on Saturday during the...
Amazon Insiders: Bezos Wants to Avoid New York City Media
New York Post: Beyond the local political intrigue surrounding Amazon pulling out of a planned new headquarters in Queens, sources said that there is watercooler talk among staffers that the deal fizzling had a hidden upside for Jeff Bezos. He "does not want to be...
Facebook Launches Magazine in Print as Marketing Platform
Masthead: Facebook is expanding into print magazines with the launch of Grow, a quarterly title aimed at business owners. Grow is only available in the UK. While Grow has the appearance of a magazine, Facebook does not to call it a “magazine.” Grow is designed to be a...
McClatchy Eyes New All-Cash Bid to Buy Tribune Publishing
New York Post: McClatchy is back stalking the much larger Tribune Publishing with a new all-cash bid that could hit “as early as this week. This bid — supported by banking adviser Evercore — comes two months after its last bid at $16.50 a share, including...
Nikkei’s Financial Times Said in Talks to Buy The Information
Flashes and Flames: The Nikkei-owned, UK-based Financial Times is believed to be negotiating to acquire or invest in The Information, the subscription-based digital media company founded by Jessica Lessin in 2013. The Information derives some 90% of its revenue from...
Vox Media Publisher Says No Plans to Merge with BuzzFeed
Digiday: Melissa Bell, publisher at Vox Media: “We are not merging with Buzzfeed. I think consolidation is a common theme throughout time, again I don’t think there’s anything in this time period that makes it different from the past, I think people make these...
Hearst Buys Video Brand Clevver After Demise of Defy Media
Hollywood Reporter: Clevver has found a new home following the shutdown of owner Defy Media. Hearst Magazines has acquired the pop culture news brand. The deal brings together Clevver's YouTube audience of 15 million subscribers with the magazine publisher's digital...
American Media Inc Flap Won’t Threaten Tabloids at Walmart
Bloomberg: There’s little chance that Walmart will remove the National Enquirer. While magazine sales at supermarket checkouts have plummeted in recent years, Walmart still makes money pushing gossip titles, which depend heavily on single-copy sales at retail...
Lagardere Sells Off Most Magazines in France for $59 Million
MarketWatch: Lagardere has sold most of its magazine publishing titles in France to Czech Media Invest for 52 million euros ($58.7 million). The French group said it finalized the sale of magazines titles, which include Elle, and granted Czech Media an exclusive...
Conde Nast’s Wintour Sees Print Magazines Lasting ‘Forever’
Guardian: Anna Wintour insists that she believes print magazines will be around “forever.” Really? “Yes, forever. I really believe that. Print remains the jewel in the crown.” Does she think of Vogue as a magazine, or is it now a brand? “I don’t care for the word...
Amazon’s Escape from New York: Lots of Blame to Go Around
Bloomberg Businessweek: Amazon has decided not to move forward with its plans to build a second headquarters in Long Island City, Queens. According to urban policy experts and other observers of the fracas, there’s plenty of blame to go around. Amazon, too, is to...
Netflix’s ‘Roma’ Oscar Odds Pale Next to Old Hollywood Rivals
New York Times: Many Academy Award voters said they would place the comic-book blockbuster “Black Panther” near the top of their ballots – citing its commanding performances, sumptuous production design and overall cultural importance. Meanwhile, the chief complaint...
Fox’s Murdoch Children Ready for Deals After Haul from Disney
Bloomberg Businessweek: With the proceeds from the $71 billion sale of most of Fox’s assets, Rupert Murdoch has amassed a huge war chest his children can use to pursue their own business interests. Unlike their dad, they won’t be building traditional media...
CBS Hits 8 Million Streaming Subscribers Goal Two Years Early
CNBC: CBS now has 8 million streaming subscribers, the company announced in its fourth quarter 2018 earnings report Thursday. At a time where numerous media companies are trying to get into streaming, CBS's disclosure shows it has already been able to gain some...
Viacom Eyes ‘SpongeBob’ Spinoffs to Win Back Young Viewers
Variety: In an era when young TV viewers are increasingly abandoning the traditional TV screen, new president Brian Robbins wants to make it very difficult for kids to give up on Nickelodeon. Coming soon: the first-ever spin-offs of characters from “SpongeBob...
MSG, Pro Basketballer Invest in High-School Network Overtime
New York Post: High school basketball is so hot, it’s drawing star power. Carmelo Anthony and MSG Networks are announcing that they are backing Overtime, a Brooklyn-based sports network that focuses on emerging high school...
Univision Writes Down Struggling Digital Media Under Gizmodo
Hollywood Reporter: Univision is acknowledging the financial weakness of the Gizmodo Media Group digital media assets the company has purchased over the last few years, including the former Gawker Media Group publications it picked up in the summer of...
Fox Disputes News Report of Hoax Attack Against ‘Empire’ Star
Associated Press: Chicago police said Thursday night that local media reports that the attack against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett was a hoax are unconfirmed. The reports surfaced as detectives were questioning two “persons of interest” who were captured on...
Netflix Offices in Brief Lockdown Over False Report of Gunman
CNET News: Netflix's offices in Hollywood were briefly locked down Thursday afternoon as police searched for a person reported to be carrying a deadly weapon in a nearby parking lot. The report to police turned out to be false, but photos posted to social media showed...