Month: April 2020

Netflix has yanked an episode of “Designated Survivor” in which a fictitious Turkish president is portrayed as a villain from its service in Turkey. “Following a demand from the Turkish regulator, we have removed one episode of ‘Designated Survivor’ from Netflix in Turkey only, to comply with local law,” the streaming giant said in a
0 Comments
ITV’s director of television Kevin Lygo has said the U.K. commercial broadcaster will need to “up its game” to keep audiences engaged and away from the lure of content-rich streaming giants such as Netflix and Disney Plus. During a virtual session hosted by the Edinburgh TV Festival, the executive said the broadcasters’ ratings are up
0 Comments
John Cena is the latest celeb to jump on the pandemic-driven 2020 virtual graduation trend. The popular WWE superstar and actor — and children’s book author — will kick off the “Oh, the Places You’ll Go! Virtual Graduation Celebration” on Friday, May 1, an event organized by Dr. Seuss Enterprises and Random House Children’s Books
0 Comments
MADRID —  June’s Annecy Festival, the world’s highest-profile animation event, has shared first details of its 2020 online edition and confirmed that Hollywood studios and major streaming platforms will continue to have a presence at this year’s totally online event. Even before France’s COVID-19 lockdown, “we were getting strong support from the studios and platforms,”
0 Comments
AT&T said it would fold its stand-alone Xandr ad-tech unit into WarnerMedia, just weeks after the CEO of Xandr abruptly departed. Gerhard Zeiler,  who was named chief revenue officer of WarnerMedia last year, and oversees advertising, distribution and international operations, will supervise all ad-sales outreach across AT&T going forward, the company said. Kirk McDonald, chief business
0 Comments
LevelK has sold the Swedish adventure-filled family film “Faunutland and the Lost Magic” to the U.S. and several territories across Europe. Directed by Marcus Ovnell, “Faunutland and the Lost Magic” was acquired by Uncorked Entertainment for North American rights and Kinologistika for Russia/CIS. Other deals were closed for Germany and Luxembourg (MFA) and Estonia (Estin
0 Comments
Imax Corporation posted a loss of $49.4 million in the first quarter of 2020, as theater closures — due to the coronavirus pandemic — were a drag on earnings. In the prior-year quarter, Imax had reported a profit of $8 million. Revenues for the company also sank to $34.9 million, a sharp drop from the
0 Comments
NBCUniversal chief Jeff Shell is not backing down from Universal’s flap with top exhibitors over the studio’s premium VOD release of “Trolls World Tour.” The NBCU CEO told investors Thursday during Comcast’s quarterly earnings call that premium VOD releases for some titles will be a “complementary element” to traditional theatrical distribution for the studio. Shell
0 Comments
The Recording Academy announced the appointment of Valeisha Butterfield Jones as its first Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer, a role that is among the recommendations of the organization’s Task Force for Diversity and Inclusion. Butterfield Jones will report directly to Academy Chair and Interim President/CEO Harvey Mason jr., effective May 11, 2020. According to the
0 Comments
Spotify’s Gimlet is tapping a nostalgic vein with “Mogul Mixtapes,” a throwback interview series taking listeners back to iconic moments in hip-hop history. The new show is a spinoff of critically acclaimed podcast “Mogul,” hosted by Brandon “Jinx” Jenkins. The new series comes from Gimlet, the podcast house Spotify acquired last year as part of
0 Comments
Tastemade has scored two more distribution deals: The food and lifestyle digital network goes live today on Vizio’s SmartCast internet-connected TVs and Dish Network’s Sling TV. The expanded footprint for Tastemade comes amid COVID-19 quarantines, when millions of Americans are streaming more video and cooking at home more frequently — a recipe for heightened engagement,
0 Comments
China’s Tencent Music has completed an investment in Radio Music Warehouse, a music-for-business company that distributes content to shops offices and other workplaces. The deal was announced this week with few financial terms disclosed. One of the few details shows that Tencent has been granted the right to increase its stake to a position of
0 Comments
Rishi Kapoor, one of India’s most beloved film actors who was best known for his romantic roles, has died. He was 67. Kapoor was hospitalized in Mumbai on Wednesday. “He is suffering from cancer and he has some breathing problems, so he has been admitted to the hospital,” his brother Randhir told Indian media on
0 Comments
Cis Corman, distinguished casting director and president of Barbra Streisand’s production companies, died in New York on Monday. She was 93. Born in Brookline, Mass., Corman began her career as a casting director in 1974, selecting roles for films such as Martin Scorsese’s “Raging Bull,” Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in America,” Michael Cimino’s
0 Comments