Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE | Tags: Disney Channel, ESPN, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Oprah Winfrey, Russia, United States, Walt Disney Company
With its venerable “WWE Raw” fightfest, USA attracted an average 3.11 million viewers during the week ended Dec. 14, according to Nielsen live-plus-same-day figures. It was the first weekly ratings race that ESPN did not win since the beginning of the 2008 football season. Mediaweek (12/16)
Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films has made final a programming-collaboration deal with HBO that will give the cable network known for cutting-edge content access to series, movies and documentaries. The deal came together after Harpo executives, citing the need for greater creative freedom, ended a 15-year relationship with ABC. Los Angeles Times (12/17) , The Wall Street Journal (free content) (12/16)
The Walt Disney Co. sometime in 2009 will purchase a 49% stake in a new joint venture with Russian TV station operator Media-One Holdings and begin offering the broadcast equivalent of the Disney Channel in the country. Russia, according to these articles, is considered to be one of the last great untapped regions of the globe for the media industry. The Wall Street Journal (12/16) , The New York Times (12/16)
A&E Network’s sixth season debut of Intervention last Monday night at 9p attracted 1.6 million A25-54 viewers, 1.7 million A18-49 viewers and 2.2 million total viewers. GRB produces the series for A&E. (Cynopsis 12/17)
CBS Corporation is the latest entertainment company to eliminate staff as employees of CBS Entertainment and CBS Paramount Network Television were laid off Monday. A few high-level CBS Paramount TV executives were also let go: EVP Maria Crenna who served under President David Stapf; SVP/Head of Comedy Brian Banks; and VP/Current Programming Jocelyn Freid. (Cynopsis 12/17)
Viacom‘s BET, with popular shows such as “106 & Park” and “College Hill,” now is available in nearly 30 African countries. The recent move puts the network, which serves up African-American-centric content, in the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and the U.K. MediaPost Communications (12/16)
FOX approved a 13-episode order for Glee, a musical comedy series from Ryan Murphy (Nip/Tuck, Popular). The 60m series, featuring a soundtrack of popular songs, is about an energetic high school teacher, Will Schuester (played by Matthew Morrison) who is charged with bringing back the McKinley High School Glee Club to its winning glory days by encouraging a group of misfit students to compete in the Nationals. (Cynopsis 12/17)
Fox Business Network has inked a new digital-carriage deal with Charter Communications that will add about 200,000 homes in the Midwest and Northeast to FBN’s subscriber total. The network recently completed a similar deal with Cox, and the two new agreements mean the FBN soon will be available to 45 million homes. TVWeek.com (12/16)
CBS Paramount Network Television signed a first-look deal with actor Laurence Fishburne and his Cinema Gypsy Productions, reports Variety. Fishburne recently joined as star of CBS’ CSI: Crime Scene Investigation also produced by CBS Paramount Network TV. (Cynopsis 12/17)
MTV introduces a diverse slate of new reality series set to debut in first quarter 2009. Also new for the network next year will be a two-hour primetime block on Sundays starting at 9p. (Cynopsis 12/17)
AT&T’s U-Verse IPTV service reached a milestone, signing its 1 millionth subscriber across 79 markets in 16 states. (Cynopsis 12/17)
Fox Cable Networks made a deal with DIRECTV and Verizon FiOS to make FUEL TV On Demand available to viewers, with 10 original hours of action sports programming each month. (Cynopsis 12/17)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=faea443f-21e9-4c2d-a5e9-9e920e8f0db3)
Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE | Tags: Chicago Tribune, HBO, Jay Leno, Los Angeles Times, NBC, Real estate, Sam Zell, Tribune Company
According to B&C, NBC will be moving Jay Leno to 10p on weeknights, thereby allowing NBC to cut back on its primetime programming as well as keeping both Leno and Conan O’Brien in house. The start date is as yet unknown, but speculation pegs next fall. (Cynopsis 12/9)
Co-President Harold Akselrad has decided to leave HBO after 25 years, the network announced Tuesday. Mr. Akselrad recently concluded negotiations with several of the studios that supply the pay cable network with theatrical movies. (http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/12/akselrad_to_leave_hbo.php 12/9)
Billionaire real estate investor Sam Zell was unable to keep the wolves from the door as The Tribune Company filed for bankruptcy protection in federal court in Delaware on Monday. The company will restructure debt obligations and says it has the cash to continue to operate its media businesses during the process. It also reassured advertisers its broadcasting affiliations and pre-paid ad contracts are still in place. Zell described the move as a reaction to a “perfect storm” of factors including a rapid decline in revenue and severe tightening of credit markets. Tribune owns 23 TV stations and 8 major daily newspapers and newspaper websites including the LA Times, Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun. (Cynopsis 12/9)
TNT delivered 2.1 million A18-49 viewers for its new original series Leverage Sunday night at 10p. The Timothy Hutton-starring drama also attracted 5 million total viewers and it moves into its regular time period of Tuesdays at 10p beginning tonight. (Cynopsis 12/9)
Bravo is sticking by its commitment to four of its up-and-coming reality projects. That means “Flipping Out” and “Million Dollar Listing,” both of which focus on the real estate market, will get a third season and beauty-centric “The Rachel Zoe Project” and “Tabatha’s Salon Takeover” will be back for their sophomore campaigns. Variety (12/8)
The Rachel Zoe project is back for another season proving finally that. . .there IS a god.
Philippe Dauman, Viacom’s chief executive officer, moved to assure investors that the debt burdens of Sumner Redstone and his National Amusements holding company will not affect Viacom. “I am totally focused on running Viacom,” Dauman said. “It doesn’t impact our financial position (and) we have taken every appropriate governance measure to make sure that Viacom is not affected by the National Amusements situation.” Variety (12/8) , Multichannel News (12/8)
Magical Elves, the production entity behind such shows as Project Runway and Top Chef, made a development agreement with Kelly Cutrone for a new reality series about Cutrone’s fashion PR agency, People’s Revolution. The series will go behind the scenes at Cutrone’s company and its bicoastal offices, chronicling the personal and professional lives of Cutrone and her staff. (Cynopsis 12/9)
Time Warner Cable has reported a slowdown in subscriber growth for its video, Internet and phone services. “Consumers just sort of closed their pocket books.” Likewise, Cablevision has experienced a pullback in sales of its services. “There are no new opportunities.” (Iwantmedia 12/9, http://www.crainsnewyork.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081208/FREE/812089974/1084 12/8)
Cablevision, whose network DVR has stirred some controversy because of the way it allows subscribers to store programs, will proceed with plans to roll out the device in 2009 … as long as it is not deemed illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court, according to Chief Operating Officer Tom Rutledge. “We have plans to begin deploying it some time next year,” he said. “It has all the functionality of a DVR, it looks to you like a DVR. You can’t really tell the difference.” Reuters (12/8)
Comcast debuted a trio of new triple-play packages, ranging from $115 per month to $180 per month. The top-tier package includes an HD DVR, 200 digital channels, Internet speeds of up to 22 Mbps and premium networks such as HBO, Starz, Cinemax and Showtime. “We will continue to innovate and evolve our packaging,” said Dave Watson, executive vice president of operations for the company. OneTRAK (12/8)
Worldwide advertising spending in measured media could decrease by 0.2% to $458 billion next year versus this year with spending up 2.6%, according to the study “This Year, Next Year” from GroupM. The study also projects the U.S. ad spending will decline by 3% to $157 billion next year after spending has increased this year by 0.3% to $162 billion. (Cynopsis 12/9)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=70383cba-380e-4ade-96da-fd237e65e470)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: BlackFriday, Blu-ray Disc, High-definition television, Los Angeles Times, Netflix, PriceGrabber, Samsung Group, Washington Post
TECHNOLOGY
LG and Samsung have announced that they will begin offering upgrades to their respective Blu-ray players that will accommodate Netflix streaming. Between the two companies, LG’s BD300 and Samsung’s BD-P2500 and BD-P2550 will serve up more than 300 Netflix titles in HD. CEPro.com (11/26) , TWICE (11/26)
With Black Friday now in the rearview mirror, manufacturers of HDTV sets, Blu-ray discs and other video-enhancing goodies are hoping that consumers take advantage of steep discounts on their products to drive retail trends higher through the holiday shopping season. On the cable front, companies such as Comcast are busy acquiring the rights to movies and TV shows to play on those cool, new TVs. USA TODAY (11/27)
Despite one of the worst economic climates in decades, consumer spending on Black Friday hit $10.6 billion, 3% higher than the day after Thanksgiving in 2007, according to researcher ShopperTrak. CE products accounted for nine of the top 10 most popular Black Friday products, PriceGrabber said. 
ClipSyndicate (11/28) , The Washington Post (12/1) , Los Angeles Times (free registration) (12/1) , CNET (11/30)
With the launch of multiple DSLRs including today’s Nikon D3X
, camera manufacturers are ready and waiting for you to buy their wares. But should you? (http://www.crunchgear.com/2008/12/01/help-key-why-when-and-where-should-you-buy-a-dslr 12/1)
Visible World and Ensequence are developing technology to enable TV providers to more effectively deliver interactive advertising, according to this article. The solution, which employs CableLabs’ Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format, combines Ensequence’s interactive-television platform with Visible World’s IntelliSpot Connect network. Multichannel News (11/30)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=48d455c7-972d-49d2-bc47-d09fba37dbeb)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: Business and Economy, California, Diego Union-Tribune, Directed Electronics, Los Angeles Times, Newspapers, San Diego California, San Diego Union-Tribune
TECHNOLOGY
Xtreme Technology has come out with two new models in its XLink line, which features devices that integrate mobile and wireline phones. The XLink BT allows users to route up to three mobile lines through a home’s wireline system, while the BTTN incorporates up to three cell phones as well as a fixed line. Electronista (11/6)
Directed Electronics, the California company that began making car radios for satellite-radio service Sirius in 2004, has announced that it will drop that part of its business after the contract between the two companies expires in January. Directed, which plans to concentrate instead on car alarms and audio speakers, expects to save between $20 million and $25 million with the new direction. San Diego Union-Tribune (11/7)
Consumers can expect to see an all-out push for Blu-ray this holiday season, as several major studios and electronics companies are investing in a $25 million marketing campaign. Los Angeles Times (11/7)
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=e6b96a4c-eed2-440a-8068-55c062202946)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY | Tags: Apple, iPhone, iPod, Los Angeles Times, Mac, Macintosh, New York Times, Wall Street Journal
TECHNOLOGY
Apple reported a 26% rise in profit and 27% gain in revenue from a year earlier as the company reported strong results Tuesday across its iPhone, iPod and Mac computer lines in the latest quarter. Sales of the iPhone rose 1.1 million from a year earlier to 6.9 million units, as computer shipments increased 21% and — fueled by its new Nano player — iPod sales rose 8%. 
ClipSyndicate/Bloomberg (10/22) , Los Angeles Times (10/22) , The Wall Street Journal (10/22) , The New York Times (10/21)
Vizio has debuted two new 1080p-capable liquid-crystal-display TVs — the 37-inch VOJ370F and the 32-inch VOJ320F — in the company’s new “Java” styling, which is designed to complement modern home-decorating schemes. “Capturing the pulse of the consumer to meet their demand for the best-looking and highest performance value in flat-panel TVs is our focus,” said Laynie Newsome, Vizio’s vice president of sales and marketing. Digital Trends (10/21
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=9d8ba267-c802-45b6-97f4-a361f8fc258e)
Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE | Tags: George Lopez, George Lopez Show, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Nick at Nite, Nickelodeon, Nielsen Media Research, Television
A lot of people were waiting for the Season Two premiere of AMC hit “Mad Men” on Sunday night … about 1.95 million of them, according to Nielsen Media Research’s fast nationals data. The show, about advertising in the 1960s, attracted young and old alike: 996,000 adults 25 to 54 tuned in, and 955,000 viewers 18 to 49 watched the show. Los Angeles Times (free registration) (7/28) , Mediaweek (7/28)
Nick at Nite, Nickelodeon‘s prime-time and overnight block, gained more than 400,000 viewers during the second quarter. The ratings rebound, according to this article, is in no small part due to programming decisions at the channel that have replaced golden oldies such as “I Love Lucy” with more contemporary offerings such as “The George Lopez Show.” The New York Times (7/29)
Building on the success of “The George Lopez Show,” Nick at Nite is adding more original programs to attract viewers whose parents were weaned on Nickelodeon. Among the new shows is “Glenn Martin D.D.S.,” an animated family comedy show about a dentist who takes his family on a cross-country trip.
MGM has launched THIS TV network, a 24/7 ad supported linear channel designed for the US broadcast marketplace and available to local broadcasters as a turn-key solution for generating revenue in the digital arena. MGM is targeting the local broadcasters newfound digital channels which will become a significant priority when the analog transmissions are turned off in February 2009. (Cynopsis 7/29)
Cox Communications said that triple-play subscribers were up 17% in the second quarter of this year and that HD customers had risen almost 50%, compared with the same period a year earlier. The privately held company does not reveal specific quarterly earnings figures, but CEO Pat Esser predicted that revenue from commercial services in 2010 would hit $1 billion. OneTRAK (7/28)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA | Tags: Los Angeles Times, Microsoft, Netflix, United States, us, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Xbox 360
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
Looking to boost its presence in living rooms, Microsoft has announced a deal with movie-rental service Netflix that will allow Xbox 360 users to stream movies over the Internet and download them to the game consoles. Not to be outdone, Sony today is expected to announce its own service for downloading online theatricals to its PlayStation 3 machines. The Washington Post (7/15) , Los Angeles Times (free registration) (7/15) , The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (7/15)
As Digg becomes more mainstream, so are the headlines linked to on its homepage. The once tech-heavy site long ago expanded into other categories such as entertainment, world, and business news. But that change is finally hitting its home page, either because Digg is attracting more mainstream users who are Digging more mainstream stories or it is using other (algorithmic) methods to point its firehouse in the direction of mainstream media. (Comscore shows 15.4 million unique visitors in May, and 6.3 million U.S. visitors in June). (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/15/digg-is-pushing-more-traffic-to-traditional-news-sites 7/15)
MTV Networks signed an exclusive deal to begin producing multimedia digital comic books with a start-up named Gain Enterprises that will give users the chance to participate in the stories. The comic books, containing music and audible dialogue, will contain tools for adding and reciting dialogue to give fans a chance to put their own spin on the tales. The project’s first title, Invincible, will be previewed at Comic-Con next week and will be available on iTunes, Xbox Live and MTV Mobile from Aug. 24. (Cynopsis 7/15)
Google, for the discovery portion of its YouTube unit’s lawsuit with Viacom, will turn over an edited version of its database that does not show individual user information. Maintaining user privacy has been a central concern in the case, in which Viacom is charging YouTube with numerous piracy violations. The Washington Post/Reuters (7/15) , The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (7/15)
ABC.com released some upbeat online viewing data for May from Move Networks, the online video vendor that powers its HD video player. Viewers watched a record 37 million episodes during the month – a 27% increase from April, or a total of 815 million minutes of full-length content (a 53% month-over-month increase.) A total of 400 million episodes have been viewed on the site since the original player launched in 2006. (Cynopsis 7/15)
ABC.com will release its third version of the player this fall, with enhancements including:
- True full-screen viewing, with no browser border
- Closed captioning for the hearing impaired
- Content sharing tools providing users with the ability send and share video links from full episodes with others through email or by embedding links on other sites
- Enhanced navigation and video search capabilities that will allow users to search for series graphically, alphabetically, by genre or popularity
NBC has already sold 85% of its online ad inventory for its expansive Summer Olympics coverage, according to Mediaweek. The network is selling 15 and 30 second pre and mid-roll video spots but no overlays, per International Olympic Committee rules. (Cynopsis 7/15)
A federal court in Manhattan cleared eBay of wrongdoing in a 4-year old suit brought by Tiffany & Co. for facilitating the sales of knockoffs on the site. The decision comes a week after eBay was ordered to pay $60 million to Louis Vuitton in France for violating intellectual property laws. (Cynopsis 7/15)
Microblogging site Twitter has acquired the Summize search engine, Twitter co-founder Evan Williams confirmed to me. The size of the transaction is not being disclosed, although the transaction price was paid “mostly in stock.” (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/15/confirmed-twitter-acquires-summize-search-engine 7/15)
Fox Interactive Media cut into YouTube‘s market share of online videos by 1.3 percentage points in May over the previous month, primarily due to the videos it streams on its MySpaceTV portal. It’s the first time in months that YouTube hasn’t increased its share, dropping from a 37.9% to a 34.8% share of all videos viewed during the month. Total online video views grew to over 12 billion in May, recovering from a slight dip in April. Over 74% of the total U.S. internet audience watched online video in May, with the average user watching 228 minutes of video. The duration of the average clip viewed was 2.7 minutes. (Cynopsis 7/15)
Top U.S. Online Video Properties* by Videos Viewed – May 2008
Property Videos (000) Share Of Videos (%)
Total Internet 12,086,273 100.0
Google Sites 4,205,700 34.8
Fox Interactive Media 778,168 6.4
Yahoo! Sites 346,825 2.9
Microsoft Sites 245,899 2.0
Viacom Digital 206,047 1.7
Time Warner (ex.AOL) 145,113 1.2
ABC.com 126,589 1.0
Disney Online 107,876 0.9
AOL LLC 104,681 0.9
Hulu.com 88,284 0.7
Source: comScore Video Metrix
Top U.S. Online Video Properties* by Unique Viewers – May 2008
Property Unique Viewers (000) Ave. Videos per Viewer
Total Internet 141,657 85.3
Google Sites 83,828 50.2
Fox Interactive Media 60,760 12.8
Yahoo! Sites 40,197 8.6
Microsoft Sites 29,471 8.3
Time Warner (ex.AOL) 24,612 5.9
AOL LLC 21,670 4.8
Viacom Digital 21,260 9.7
Disney Online 12,385 8.7
ESPN 8,425 8.9
ABC.com 7,747 16.3
Source: comScore Video Metrix
