Millions of Americans are junking cable and satellite TV services — and moving to internet-delivered pay-TV streaming services. In 2019, the number of traditional pay-TV households in the U.S. will decline by 4.2%, to 86.5 million, per the latest forecast from research firm eMarketer. The number of cord-cutter households (those that have canceled cable or
Tech
Disney came close to buying Twitter in 2016. Michael Eisner made an impassioned pitch to the Disney board to block Bob Iger’s acquisition of Pixar. In the mid-1980s, Iger almost joined ICM as a sports agent. Those are some of the intriguing revelations in Iger’s new book “The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned From
Microsoft has filed a patent application for a dedicated floor mat for virtual reality (VR), which could help users avoid obstacles while wearing a headset. The patent application also suggests that the company hasn’t given up entirely on the idea of bringing VR to its Xbox game console. A Microsoft spokesperson declined to comment. The
October 4, 2019 9:53AM PT Apple has acquired a U.K.-based started called IKinema that is using motion capture for real-time video production. Financial details of the deals haven’t been disclosed. The acquisition of IKinema was first reported by MacRumors this week, which got hold of regulatory filings showing that an Apple lawyer became director of
UPDATED: Amazon’s Prime Video app was restored to Apple’s App Store for iOS and Apple TV app menu on Friday afternoon, after it had mysteriously disappeared earlier in the day. The ecommerce giant’s video-streaming app on Friday morning was no longer available in Apple’s App Store for iOS or Apple TV and it wasn’t showing
October 4, 2019 9:41AM PT Tidal announced today that it has promoted Tony Gervino to executive vice president, editor-in-chief and Elliott Wilson to chief content officer. Both appointments are effective immediately, and both will report to Tidal CEO Richard Sanders. According to the announcement, Gervino will oversee all editorial direction at the streaming platform, including leading
The girls of “RWBY” will return at Rooster Teeth for at least two more seasons — or “volumes,” as the AT&T-owned media company calls the anime-style series. Rooster Teeth greenlit an additional two volumes of “RWBY” (Volumes 8 and 9) with more details to be released at a later date. The announcement came as RT
October 4, 2019 12:46AM PT SAG-AFTRA has commended California Gov. Gavin Newsom for signing legislation that institutes penalties for nonconsensual digital sexually explicit videos, also known as “deep fakes.” The legislation, Assembly Bill 602, targets companies and individuals who create and distribute the videos in California without the consent of the individual being depicted. SAG-AFTRA said the
Quibi founder Jeffrey Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman are slated to hit the CES 2020 keynote stage in Las Vegas to talk up their billion-dollar bet on mobile TV streaming, three months ahead of its scheduled debut. The duo are to deliver a keynote presentation at the annual consumer-electronics convention on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020,
An extended version of “48 Hours with Kygo” will be available to stream on Hulu and ABC News Live beginning Oct. 4. A “Nightline” segment with the DJ originally premiered Wednesday night. In the exclusive interview, “Nightline” shadowed the Norwegian artist-producer, whose real name as Kyrre Gørvell-Dahll, for an entire weekend as he performed three
Whistle, a digital sports and entertainment media company, reached a deal to acquire Vertical Networks, a content studio focused on Snapchat original shows founded by Elisabeth Murdoch and backed by Snap. The deal is the second acquisition for Whistle this year, following its purchase of L.A.-based studio New Form, under which that company’s investors —
Activision Blizzard released the viewership numbers on Overwatch League’s season capstone event, the 2019 Grand Finals, on Thursday, showing an increase on its inaugural season. The league uses average minute viewers (AMA) in its measurements, which counts viewers by how many minutes they watch the broadcast. Using this AMA metric, Grand Finals drew 1.12 million
October 3, 2019 11:28AM PT Amazon and Disney are in a dispute over Fire TV ad sales that could delay the addition of Disney’s upcoming streaming service to Amazon’s Fire TV devices, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Spokespeople for Disney and Amazon declined to comment. At the core of the dispute is Amazon’s demand
Congressman Jerrold Nadler may be in headlines in recent weeks as part of the impeachment proceedings against President Trump, but he’s also been a longtime advocate for creators’ rights in the music industry and played an enormous role in last year’s passage of the Music Modernization Act — which National Music Publishers’ Association president/CEO David
Six alleged members of a drug-delivery service in New York City were arrested and charged Tuesday with distributing heroin and cocaine. The defendants allegedly operated a service dubbed “Mike’s Candyshop,” which supplied the drugs that resulted in the death of Colin Kroll, the co-founder of the HQ Trivia app, in December 2018, according to authorities.
The paper magazine has increasingly become a luxury good, as more publishers jettison titles into digital lifeboats. The internet’s years-long rising tide keeps pulling readers away from legacy print editions — and has spurred a new wave of dealmaking in the sector. Many of the buyers have been wealthy tech tycoons or digital-media firms facing their
Facebook-owned Instagram launched a new messaging app Thursday that is meant to simplify communication with close Friends. Called Threads, the app also offers users an easy way to share their status to let close friends know what they’re up to. “For your smaller circle of friends, we saw the need to stay more connected throughout
Netflix and Mediaset are forging an alliance in Italy under which they will jointly produce seven feature films, a move that marks the U.S. streaming giant’s biggest Italian content deal to date. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings will officially unveil the movie titles and specifics of the multi-year pact at an event in Rome next Tuesday. The deal
October 3, 2019 7:00AM PT Rapper Post Malone will stream an upcoming gig of his “Runaway” tour in virtual reality: Post Malone’s Raleigh, NC concert will be broadcast live to users of Facebook’s Oculus Go and Quest headsets on 10/17 starting at 5p.m. PT. “When putting together this tour, I wanted to make sure I
Michael Smith, a longtime ESPN commentator and host whose contract with the network just expired, has a new gig: He’s EVP and chief content officer of (co)laboratory — a new L.A. studio startup focused on developing original content about sports, featuring athletes as storytellers. (Co)laboratory was formed earlier this year by three partners: Basil Iwanyk,
October 3, 2019 6:00AM PT Twitch has teamed up with Berlin-based generative music startup Endel for a new channel that aims to lull gamers and other Twitch viewers to sleep. Endel’s new “Insomnia” Twitch channel plays 24 hours of music specifically designed to improve the sleep of its listeners. “Sleep is universally important and everyone
Donald Trump, trying to smear Joe Biden and his son over their supposedly illicit business dealings in Ukraine, used Nickelback’s 2005 “Photograph” in a tweet Wednesday. Now the video has been pulled down by Twitter. As of Thursday morning, the video in Trump’s tweet was no longer available. Instead, it included a message that said,
October 3, 2019 5:55AM PT Actress and Singer Rita Wilson will host a new monthly, one-hour SiriusXM talk show called “The Spark” that launches next Wednesday (Oct. 9) at 7 p.m. Eastern Time on the “Volume” (channel 106). Justin Bieber/ Ariana Grande manager Scooter Braun will be the guest on the show’s premiere, while Grammy
October 3, 2019 3:59AM PT Netflix is under investigation for alleged tax evasion in Italy, according to an Italian news report. Although the U.S. streaming giant does not have offices or other sorts of physical presence in Italy, prosecutors in Milan have opened a preliminary probe of the company on the basis that the computer
European courts have the power to order Facebook to take down content globally if that content is deemed illegal. The European Court of Justice made the ruling Thursday in response to an Austrian politician, Green Party official Ewa Glawischnig-Piesczek, who wanted Facebook to remove disparaging comments about her that were found to be defamatory. Those
After three years of construction, Iovine and Young Hall opened its doors on the University of Southern California campus today following a dedication ceremony attended by its namesakes Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young, aka Dr. Dre. Founded in 2013, the USC Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy for Arts, Technology and the Business of Innovation
October 2, 2019 12:38PM PT Apple appears to be close to introducing the next version of its AirPods wireless headphones: The latest beta version of iOS already includes an illustration featuring the long-rumored third-generation AirPods, 9to5Mac was first to report Wednesday. The white-on-gray icon shows an AirPod version that is bigger than its predecessors, and
After months of talks, Vice Media sealed an agreement to acquire Refinery29, a bet by the two digital-centric media companies they can create a stronger union together to reach youth-skewing audiences. The value of the pact, expected to close before the end of 2019, isn’t being disclosed. In the transaction, Vice is issuing mostly stock
YouTube is letting users set their accounts to automatically clear the list of videos they’ve watched and search for after preset time periods, as part of several new privacy and security features Google has launched. YouTube users have been able to clear their history manually, but with the new controls they can set that data
Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s recently launched digital content studio is hitting the driving range. The couple’s Westbrook Media is teaming up with Topgolf Studios, a unit of golf-venue chain Topgolf Entertainment Group, to produce original entertainment projects. Productions under the pact will be designed to “further engage and grow Topgolf communities around the