Netflix collects reams of data, but it keeps most viewing metrics close its vest. That leaves third-party measurement firms to try to estimate what’s trending on the streaming service. Occasionally, though, Netflix does dribble out a few stats — to promote its own original TV shows and movies. That’s despite the fact that the majority of
December 11, 2018 8:05AM PT Amber Grimes has been named to the newly-created position of Senior Vice President of Global Creative for Capitol Music Group, it was announced today by Chairman & CEO Steve Barnett, to whom Grimes will report. According to the announcement, in her new position, Grimes will be integrally involved in formulating
Kevin Hart won’t be showing up for the Oscars, but advertisers will. Walt Disney’s ABC has sold more than three-quarters of its commercial inventory for its February 24 broadcast of the glitzy awards fest, according to Jerry Daniello, senior vice president, entertainment brand solutions, for Disney ad sales, pacing ahead of its progress at this time
December 11, 2018 7:11AM PT [embedded content] Pop star Katy Perry is going to appear in the mobile role-playing game “Final Fantasy Brave Exvius” starting on Wednesday, Dec. 12, publisher Square Enix announced on Sunday. Perry has created an all-new song for the game called “Immortal Flame.” She’s also lending her likeness to several playable
Kathie Lee Gifford will leave “Today” after more than a decade co-hosting the fourth hour of the NBC morning franchise. Gifford wants to spend more time focused on a variety of media projects, and said during Monday’s broadcast that her decision was “bittersweet, as these things are.” She expects to stay with the program through
Verizon’s rollup strategy combining Yahoo and AOL hasn’t panned out the way it expected. The telco spent around $10 billion to acquire Yahoo and AOL, merging them under the Oath operating division. But the internet-media business isn’t performing as well as Verizon originally expected — and on Tuesday, Verizon said it expects to record a
Annie Lennox, Chrissie Hynde, Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, Paloma Faith, Ed Sheeran manager Stuart Camp and Grammy/Emmy award-winning film composer David Arnold and several leading UK music industry bodies are among the signees of a letter drafted by the new organization Music4EU, stating that Brexit “represents a significant threat to the UK’s music industry” and
A small group of protestors chanted “No money for Les” outside of CBS Corp.’s annual shareholders meeting in New York on Tuesday, but inside there were no questions from shareholders about the sexual misconduct scandal that has enveloped the company and former chairman-CEO Leslie Moonves. The meeting held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was
Some of 21st Century Fox’s best-known ad-sales executives will leave the company when it closes a large sale of its assets to Walt Disney in 2019. Bruce Lefkowitz, executive vice president of ad sales at Fox; Mike Denby, a senior vice president of ad sales; and Jake Piasecki, another senior vice president, are slated to
Director Alfonso Cuaron opted to work with Netflix for his latest film “Roma,” but the decorated filmmaker isn’t discounting the importance of a big-screen viewing. “The complete experience of ‘Roma’ is unquestionably in a movie theater,” Cuaron said Monday night at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles for the premiere of “Roma.” The streaming giant did
The United States Department of Education is betting on virtual reality to help students with high-functioning autism and learning disabilities in schools across the country. This month the Office of Special Education and Programs announced its investment of $2.5 million toward a new program that will use VR to nurture social skills in students with
Time selected Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, Philippine editor Maria Ressa, jailed Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and the Capital Gazette of Annapolis, Md. as the magazine’s Person of the Year, recognizing the journalists as “guardians” at a time of a “war on truth.” “In its highest forms, influence — the measure that has for nine
As goes MTV, so goes Viacom. For the industry, there is no stronger measure of the health of Viacom than the state of MTV. Chris McCarthy, a 15-year Viacom veteran, has been leading the effort to revive the brand since October 2016, when he added oversight of MTV to his portfolio that already included VH1
A “Duke Nukem” movie is in the works with Gearbox Software teaming with “Assassin’s Creed” producer Jean-Julien Baronnet to adapt the video game into a feature film, Variety has learned exclusively. Gearbox had been working on “Duke Nukem” with Paramount Studios and Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes, with John Cena rumored as a possible star earlier
Bob Bakish was days into his job as CEO of Viacom in late 2016 when he began convening meetings with senior executives to execute a triage effort to save the once-mighty media giant. Paramount Pictures had just posted a $445 million annual loss. Viacom’s cable networks were in danger of being dropped by major distributors
Carol Burnett will receive the inaugural Golden Globe television special achievement award, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. (HFPA) announced Tuesday. Aptly named the Carol Burnett Award, this new honor will celebrate the highest level of achievement in the medium. Burnett, who is a five-time Globe winner — the most decorated in the television category —
A TV drama series about the life of Hollywood icon Audrey Hepburn is being developed by Wildside, the expanding Italian production company behind “The Young Pope” and “My Brilliant Friend,” with plans to start shooting in 2020. The Oscar-winning actress was one of Hollywood’s most recognizable faces of the 20th century and was celebrated for
December 11, 2018 4:35AM PT Oscar-winning French actress Juliette Binoche will preside over the main jury at the 2019 Berlin Film Festival. Binoche is known worldwide for her work in such films as “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” and “Chocolat.” She won an Academy Award and a Silver Bear in Berlin for her role in
Belgian film house Eklektik Productions is teaming with Italy’s Alba Produzioni and Argentina’s Aramos Cine to co-produce Stefano Pasetto’s feature drama project “El velo” (The Veil). “The Veil” was presented at September’s San Sebastian Co-Production Forum and then chosen for pitching at the upcoming Proyecta showcase, a new joint initiative launched by Argentine film-TV market
BUENOS AIRES — Jonathan Olsberg, who speaks at Ventana Sur, calls it a “production deluge.” According to Ampere Analysis’ Guy Bisson, talking in a podcast last week, in the third quarter of 2018 the number of unique SVOD homes in 16 maturer markets around the world overtook the number of unique pay TV homes. Also,
Acorn TV launched in 30 new markets Tuesday, the biggest wave of international launches to date for the AMC-owned streaming service, which focuses on British and English-language drama. The platform is now live in Australia and New Zealand, India, Spain, the Nordics, the Benelux countries and South Africa. The international rollout started in June, when Acorn
BUENOS AIRES — In the first deal to be announced on a title in Ventana Sur’s three live-action feature competitions, Madrid-based Latido Films, headed by Antonio Saura, has acquired world rights outside Mexico on Hari Sama’s Copia Final contender “This Is Not Berlin.” Latido’s buy, celebrated with a handshake at Ventana Sur, effectively re-calibrates the
Chile’s Storyboard Media has announced an agreement to co-produce, along with Calibre71, Javier Valdés and Benjamin Vicuña, director David Albala’s second feature, “Viento Blanco.” (“White Wind”) Albala’s debut, “Jailbreak Pact,” turned on a dramatic real-life prison-break which took place in Santiago, Chile in 1990. That film was also produced by Calibre 71, and featured Chilean
Argentina’s Pablo Salarz, one of Latin America’s best-known film and TV writer-directors, has entered a non-exclusive financing relationship with C International Sales, the international arm of Cinestaan Film Company. Although non-exclusive, the deal is an early example of international companies moving to court or tie-down key talent in Latin America. The deal was negotiated by C International
A disenchanted young pregnant woman is afraid of getting stuck in the small Cuban town where she lives. But when a tornado whisks her away to a luxury resort – where her competitive shooting skills turn her into a celebrity amongst the island’s Communist elite – she comes to realize, like a Hollywood heroine of
The first look image has been released from British independent movie “The Show,” based on an original story by graphic novel creator Alan Moore, best known for “Watchmen,” “V for Vendetta,” “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” and “From Hell.” The cast is led by Tom Burke, whose credits include “War and Peace,” “The Souvenir” and
BUENOS AIRES — “You can’t condition Cannes on an event which takes place in Hollywood the following March,” said Thierry Frémaux in a keynote speech at Ventana Sur, “Questions on the Present of Cinema,” which took in Netflix, “Roma,” and the need to educate audiences for more complex cinema. Cannes Festival’s charter insisted that it
Cinedigm, the operator of specialty OTT services in North America, has signed a deal with China’s Starrise Media to release several Starrise productions on its soon-to-launch Chinese content streaming service, Bambu. The company has also signed deals with Alibaba-owned Chinese streaming giant Youku to distribute 30 original Chinese feature films. The deal covers release on
Safaree Samuels Over the Meek Beef … Dude Has Matured 12/11/2018 12:30 AM PST EXCLUSIVE A lot has happened to Meek Mill since he allegedly sent goons to jump Safaree Samuels more than a year ago — and that’s exactly why Safaree says it’s all water under the bridge. Our Raquel Harper chopped it up with
December 11, 2018 12:01AM PT Wanda Cinema Line has placed an order for 100 RealD Ultimate Screens from visual tech specialist RealD. For RealD the deal, announced at the CineAsia convention in Hong Kong, is the largest order in its history from a single exhibition circuit. The high-end equipment, which optimizes the 3D experience, will