BizofShowBiz: February 2007 Archives

« January 2007 | Main | March 2007 »

Feb28	Liberty Media Show Some Strong Growth Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 Know More: Show Business Statistics Liberty Media showed a good fourth quarter as they had cash flow gains at two of its major divisions. For Liberty Interactive Group, which is parent of QVC, the revenue grew by 11 percent and in its operating cash flow 21 percent. It was led by QVC which increased revenue by 7 percent in the fourth quarter to $2.24 billion and its operating cash flow by 19 percent to $557 million. With the Liberty Capital Group, parent of Starz, they increased revenue by 4 percent to $257 million and its operating cash flow by 72 percent to $50 million. Liberty Media added that it projects that interactive revenue and operating cash flow should increase from the high single digits to low double-digit percentages for the next three to five years. The major growth for the fourth quarter came from Starz increased subscription growth and the QVC shopping channel from its growing retail sales. Posted at 7:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb28	Will AT&T's Big Gamble Pay Off? Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 With cable companies encroaching increasingly on their telephone business, AT&T (T) has had to find ways to fight back, and they have with their new U-verse service which will blend computers, TV sets and cell phones together in one service... Continue Reading Posted at 5:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Online TV Viewing Becoming a Win/Win for Everyone Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 Rather than being concerned about the effect of online TV upon broadcast or cable viewing, networks should be embracing it even more, studies are showing.For those who have been overly concerned about TV being watched or streamed on the Internet,... Continue Reading Posted at 2:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb27	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Raising Millions Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Saying that the industry can't keep up with the publics' appetite for new movie content, Chairman Harry Sloan told reporters that Wall Street investors are lining up to pay for the upcoming projects.Sloan said that with their top movie franchises... Continue Reading Posted at 7:31 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Martin Scorsese, William Monahan Teaming Up Again for Rock 'N' Roll Film Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 With his first Oscar under his belt, Martin Scorsese didn't take long to tackle his next project, a rock 'n' roll film called The Long Play.He is teaming up again with The Departed Oscar-winning screenwriter William Monahan for the project.Also... Continue Reading Posted at 5:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham Close to Own Reality Show Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Former Spice Girl, known in the group as Posh Spice, Victoria Beckham, is rumored to be close to a decision to appear in her own reality show. The specifics of the deal haven't been finalized yet, but according to sources... Continue Reading Posted at 4:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hallmark Channel CEO Looking for Higher Subscriber Fees Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Using the Fox News (NWS-A) network as an example, Hallmark Channel CEO Henry Schleiff says that the two networks get just about the same amount prime-time viewership and the same demographic, yet Hallmark comes nowhere close to getting the types... Continue Reading Posted at 2:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb26	Apple TV Launch Delayed Until March Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The highly anticipated launch of the Apple (AAPL) TV has been put off till next month, although the company gave no reason why that happened.In January the company said that the set-top box would be ready to go in February... Continue Reading Posted at 10:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sci Fi Channel, Richard Branson and Virgin Comics Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 If nothing else, this new partnership between the Sci Fi Channel, Richard Branson and Virgin comics won't be boring. In an announcement they said they have partnered to develop content that can be featured in games, the Internet, television and... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Judge Recommends NBC Universal Complaint be Dismissed Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The increasing use of digital content by TV studios has led to confrontation between the Writers Guild of America West and NBC Universal (GE). The problem began when NBC Universal decided it wanted to produce Webisodes, short content created for... Continue Reading Posted at 4:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Rooftop and Indoor Antenna Renaissannce? Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 Increasing cable and satellite TV costs are driving many customers to go back to the old rooftop antenna as a means of receiving local television in high definition, without paying the extra costs that companies demand. One example is in... Continue Reading Posted at 4:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	FCC Wants More Information on DirecTV-MLB Deal Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The possible deal between Major League Baseball and DirecTV (DTV) has come under scrutiny as Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., has asked the FCC to look into the deal that could potentially prohibit millions from subscribing to see the games.Kerry was... Continue Reading Posted at 3:26 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Black Donnelly's Premiering Tonight on NBC Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 NBC (GE) is trying to leverage its only new hit of the season to try to help another start off strong. They are taking their popular "Heroes" and offering it as a lead-in to the new series "The Black Donnellys,"... Continue Reading Posted at 2:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb25	CBS Investing in Virtual World Developer Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 CBS Corp. (CBS) announced that it is participating in a $7 million round of financing for virtual world content developer Electric Sheep co. They said it's part of their ongoing strategy to reach beyond the TV screen. Existing investors Gladwyne... Continue Reading Posted at 10:47 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Movie Theaters Now Offering Video Games Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 With increasing competition for movie tickets, and admissions down across Spain, Enrique Martinez has been working hard at transforming his building into a hybrid movie theater. Writing for IHT, Doreen Carvajal said that Martinez' creations has "all the digital fire... Continue Reading Posted at 5:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Netflix Reaches 1 Billionth DVD Rental Milestone Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 It doesn't seem that long ago where Netflix (NFLX) was considered an "upstart" in the DVD viewing space. Now that they've been around for about 7 1/2 years, they have reached their first huge milestone by renting their 1 billionth... Continue Reading Posted at 4:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 Other than last weeks upword blip, the box office plummeted again as moviegoers decided they had other things to do than watch the offerings presented for the weekend."Ghost Rider" was able to hold on to its hold on first place,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb24	FCC Hits Univision with $24 Million Record Fine Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Univision is expected to be hit with the largest fine in history as the media company received numerous complaints since 2004. The fine is related to the company not providing the type of programming that was designated by FCC rules.... Continue Reading Posted at 5:49 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Marvel's Big Risk Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Marvel (MVL) is a company that has huge potential, as it has a portfolio of over 5,000 characters it can draw on for all sorts of revenue possibilities. There is also the licensing potential from its characters to movie studios,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Time Warner Agrees to $405 Million Settlement Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Shareholders of Time Warner brought had brought a law suit against media company Time Warner (TWX) in reference to accounting issues at their Internet division AOL. The parties have now reached an agreement for a payout of $405 million to... Continue Reading Posted at 3:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb23	Ministry of Sound Quits Association of Independent Music Over Backing Warner/EMI Deal Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 After a second profit warning in as many weeks, EMI had been more receptive to a bid by Warner Music Group (WMG) for the company. At first the UK-based Association of Independent Music (AIM) was all on board, backing the... Continue Reading Posted at 6:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dove Offering User-Created Ad on Academy Awards Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Companies continue to experiment with consumer-generated content, as Dove initiated an online contest that will result in the winner having their ad presented on the Academy Awards telecast, promoting its new Cream Oil Body Wash. The winner will have an... Continue Reading Posted at 4:18 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Train Running on "Idol" Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Taking on and demolishing all comers, the Fox (NWS-A) juggernaut "American Idol" just keeps on rolling, taking out another victim "Jericho" from CBS (CBS-A). It wasn't even an effort for Fox in taking the evening as they owned the 8... Continue Reading Posted at 2:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Strategy to Spinoff from "Grey's Anatomy" a Good One Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 While probably everybody has heard that "Grey's Anatomy" looking to spinoff a new show from their popular character neonatal surgeon Addison Shepherd, I want to take a brief look at the strategy itself.The major thing that seems to be a... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	CBS Gets Cable Retransmission Deals Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Saying that the deal represented a new "paradigm" for its business, Les Moonves, CEO of CBS (CBS-A) Corp. and the company announced that it has in place the retransmission consent deals with cable operators which they have been looking forward... Continue Reading Posted at 12:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb22	Getty Images Inc. Acquiring WireImage for $200 Million Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 Getty Images Inc., announced that it is in the planning stages of buying celebrity photo provide WireImage for a reported $200 million, and is also in negotiations with another competitor, Jupitermedia Corp. Getty is already the No. 1 provider of... Continue Reading Posted at 8:12 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Spielberg's "On the Lot" Kicking off with "American Idol" Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 Fox (NWS-A) aims to give Steven Spielberg's new reality show "On the Lot" a big push as they have scheduled its debut to start on Wednesday, May 16 along with powerhouse "American Idol.""On the Lot" is a filmmaker competition which... Continue Reading Posted at 7:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mergers Won't Solve Big Media Problems Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 With the two big potential mergers of media companies announced this week, it reveals an underlying weakness in an industry that has no answers.Why the proposed mergers between XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (XMSR) and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (SIRI),... Continue Reading Posted at 6:03 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	CBS Ends Talks with Google/YouTube Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 CBS (CBS) has decided to end talks on offering an extension of its deal with Google (GOOG) to allow more video clips of its show on the YouTube site, the Wall Street Journal reported.It's an interesting decision in that the... Continue Reading Posted at 12:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb21	Two-Hour American Idol Cleans House Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 Fox (NWS) ran its "American Idol" for two hours on Tuesday and demolished the competition again, reaching a 11.7 rating/30 share for the night in the major 18-49 demographic, said the Nielsen overnights data. The show gained momentum as the... Continue Reading Posted at 8:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	6-Week Canadian Actor Strike Over Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 The 6-week long strike by Canadian actors is over, as the union representing them reached a tentative contract agreement.ACTRA, the union representing the actors said on their Web site that "ACTRA's first national strike is finally over." The union represents... Continue Reading Posted at 7:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New "Dancing with the Stars" Contestants Revealed Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 On today's Good Morning America, former "Dancing with the Stars contestant Jerry Springer announced several of the celebrities that will be appearing on the show this year.Some of those mentioned by Springer were Joey Fatone, formerly of 'N Sync, Heather... Continue Reading Posted at 4:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A&E Taps Adtech to Serve Display Ads Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 A&E has decided to drop Falk eSolutions as their ad-serving company and instead have decided to go with Adtech as their online display advertising company, which is based in Frankfurt, Germany, who has been seeking to increase its U.S. client... Continue Reading Posted at 3:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb20	Will Smith Contacts Michael Bay to Get Another Bad Boys Movie Going Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 "Bad Boys" director Michael Bay has confirmed reports that actor Will Smith's people contacted Jerry Bruchheimer to talk about plans for another sequel to the movie. Bay added that he'd be open to doing another "Bad Boys," and that it... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Charlotte Church Says She's Going Back to Her Classical Roots Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 Charlotte Church, who stormed the music world when her debut album "Voice of an Angel" brought critical acclaim and success, says that she is now going to return to her classical roots, dropping her television career.Being quoted on Contactmusic.com, Church... Continue Reading Posted at 7:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	APA Says Girls, Young Women Harmed by Sexual Imagery Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 The American Psychological Association, in response to analyzing the effects of sexualized images on girls and young women, found that it had a strong negative impact upon their healthy development.They defined sexualization as "occurring when a person's value comes only... Continue Reading Posted at 6:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Will Carrie Underwood Stick to Her Roots? Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 Some have been wondering what's next for Carrie Underwood after she won Grammy's, including Best New Artist, as a country music artist. She became the first country star to win Best New Artist since Shelby Lynne in 2001.When asked if... Continue Reading Posted at 5:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Oscar Ballots Are In Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 With all the hooplaand red-carpet preliminaries over, the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have made their decisions, and now it simply comes down to counting the votes.The usual accountants have been secretly sequestered away in... Continue Reading Posted at 5:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Warner Approaches EMI Again About Bid Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 The second profit warning by EMI in two months has stoked the Warner Music Group (WMG) into approaching British music company EMI about a potential bid. Warner has long wanted to merge with the company. There have always been regulatory... Continue Reading Posted at 4:47 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb19	Charlize Theron Rumored to be top in Line to Play Anna Nicole Smith Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 Rumors are starting to emerge that Charlize Theron is in the top position to play the late Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith who collapsed and died last week at 39 years of age.Times online reported that, "Ron Rale, Smith’s lawyer,... Continue Reading Posted at 9:03 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	All Academy Award Ad Spots Sold Out Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 ABC (DIS) has announced that all ad spots for the upcoming telecast of the 79th Annual Academy Awards on February 25 have been sold out. Unnamed sources said that the 30-second spots sold for around $1.7 million. On last years... Continue Reading Posted at 5:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Richard Branson Lands Uma Thurman, Kate Moss and Pamela Anderson Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 Richard Branson is gathering a bevy of beauties as he promotes is newest business, Virgin Media, which will offer media services in TV, broadband and mobile. Already making deals with supermodel Kate Moss and Pamela Anderson, Branson has now got Uma Thurman... Continue Reading Posted at 5:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Long Beach Ragga Muffins Festival: A Return to the Ordinary Kimberlee Morrison February 19, 2007 The 26th annual Ragga Muffins Festival in Long Beach marked a much needed return to the festival's roots, both musically and culturally - homogeneous merchandise not withstanding. The show lost a sizable portion of last year's KROQ pseudo-rocker crowd,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	XM, Sirius Plan to Merge Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 In a proposed $13 billion deal, XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (XMSR) and Sirius (SIRI) have announced that they want to merge after months of rumors circulating in the media.With the current rules in place, this wouldn't be allowed to... Continue Reading Posted at 3:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Impact the Growing Affluent Population will have on Media Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 The number of affluent people in America, which now entail 17 percent of the population, will increase to 22 percent by 2010, according to the U.S. Census estimates.The typical affluent household embraces cable TV as pretty much a commodity. Some... Continue Reading Posted at 2:42 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb18	Fox Says New Business Channel Friendlier to Business Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 In a move pulled from their old playbook, Fox (NWS) has already started to market their new business channel as "more business-friendly" than rival CNBC (GE), similar to their strategy when starting the Fox News Channel about 10 years ago.Roger... Continue Reading Posted at 6:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	EMI Music may Sell or Demerge Recorded Music Division Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 Via a report in the Guardian, sources are quoted as saying that EMI Music may either sell or demerge its recorded music division in response to huge profit losses and two profit warnings in the last month. EMI has plans... Continue Reading Posted at 5:38 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 Sony's adaptation of the comic-book character Ghost Rider rode to the top of the weekend box office with an estimated $44.5 million. It stars Nicolas Cage as a motorcycle stunt driver gathering evil souls up for the devil.The second-place finisher for... Continue Reading Posted at 1:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb17	The Donald and Vince McMahon in Shave-Off Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 Vince McMahon, through his World Wrestling Entertainment, has announced that he is going to go against Donald Trump in a "hair match" for Wrestlemania 23, the pay-per-view event planned April 1 in Detroit. The loser will have to shave their head.... Continue Reading Posted at 7:54 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Here's Some Food for Thought - ah, Stomach Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 Spike TV with its predominately male audience has entered into the competitive eating business as it has made a deal with Major League Eating to broadcast four major competitive events this year, beginning with "MLE: St. Patrick's Day Chowdown" on... Continue Reading Posted at 7:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBA All-Star Game Experimenting with 3D Telecast Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 For the first time in history there will be a live high-definition 3D sports telecast that will be watched by an invitation-only crowd at the upcoming NBA All-Star game on Sunday.The NBA is hosting the special event in unique screening... Continue Reading Posted at 2:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb16	Local Radio Fighting Satellite Radio Encroaching on Territory Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 For the fourth time around, the National Association of Broadcasters has enlisted some politicians to sponsor a bill to limit the satellite radio industry.The bill called "Local Emergency Radio Service Preservation Act of 2007," H.R. 983 was cosponsored by Rep.... Continue Reading Posted at 10:23 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Strange Case of "Winnie the Pooh" Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 The ongoing battle between the Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and the estate of Winnie the Pooh license holder Stephen Slesinger took another turn as a federal judge dismissed a suit backed by Disney but filed the granddaughters of Pooh author... Continue Reading Posted at 7:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	FCC May Regulate TV Violence - Maybe Even Cable Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 Almost three years ago a bipartisan group of 39 members of the House asked for a report to determine whether the FCC could offer a definition of "exceedingly violent programming that is harmful to children." Alongside of that definition the... Continue Reading Posted at 4:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Commercials Not Skipped as Much as Thought Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 With a lot at stake, Nielsen has been surveying people to find out how many of them skip commercials with their DVRs and how many keep on watching them.What they found out was that an average of two-thirds of those... Continue Reading Posted at 4:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	BSkyB May Be Turned Down for Premium Channels Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 The move by BSkyB to offer a terrestrial pay TV service is meeting opposition from the U.K. regulator that make s the decision on whether to approve of the plan or not.Britains, Office of Communications (Ofcom), has concerns that the... Continue Reading Posted at 2:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Beth Comstock Picked to Head NBC Universal Integrated Media Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 In a move meant to send a message to shareholders and NBC Universal (GE) as a whole, the company has chosed Beth Comstock to head up their entire ad sales operations. It signals that the company is seriously commited to... Continue Reading Posted at 12:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb15	James Cameron Adds Sigourney Weaver to 'Avatar' Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 James Cameron has enlisted his former "Alien" star Sigourney Weaver to play a supporting role in his long-anticipated film, "Avatar." "Sigourney and I have always looked back fondly on our collaboration in 'Aliens,' and we're excited at the prospect of... Continue Reading Posted at 6:22 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'House' and 'Bones' Renewed by Fox Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 In a somewhat early, but not surprising move, Fox (NWS-A) renewed its hit series "House" for next year. Also being picked up and given an extra chance is "Bones," which has shown some improvement during the season."House" has been building... Continue Reading Posted at 5:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Sopranos' Lifts A&E Network Into Top Five Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 The makeover of A&E Network seems to have taken hold as they have moved into the top five in cable networks.With the decision to add "The Sopranos" to their lineup, it culminated a plan that they've been working on for... Continue Reading Posted at 5:02 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	TVs' Second-Quarter Advertising Looks Strong Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 Reports are that the second-quarter advertising market is going along pretty strongly. Some industry exec's are more cautious than others on whether that will mean a strong upfront or not.While it hasn't been confirmed, some large cable networks are said... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb14	"24" Leads Fox to Another Win Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Fox (NWS-A) scored big again with its two-hour special of '24.' The popular show had a 4.9 rating for the two hours, helping the network to a 5.0 rating and 12 share for the night. Number one again.The new CBS... Continue Reading Posted at 11:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Time Warner Cable About To Go Public Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 After a long wait, the promise of spinning off Time Warner Cable (TWX) is almost fulfilled, as they could possibly be listed under the ticker symbol TWC as early as next month, said parent company Time Warner.This is especially important... Continue Reading Posted at 10:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	First "Jesse the Body," Now "Al the Mouth" Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Minnesota looks like they'll have to endure another celebrity politician wannabee, as Al Franken is telling Democrat insiders that he's going to run for the U.S. Senate in 2008, challenging current Repulican Senator Norm Coleman.I guess Minnesota residents will have... Continue Reading Posted at 7:05 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dreamgirls turns into Nightmare as SUV Smashes Through Theater Wall Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Talk about the ultimate reality show. While people were watching the movie "Dreamgirls" at a theater in Torrington, Connecticut, an SUV smashed through the side of the building and ended up only inches above the moviegoers heads.The incident happened at... Continue Reading Posted at 6:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lea Thompson Starring in "A Life Interrupted" Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Lea Thompson has been pegged to start in the upcoming Lifetime movie "A Life Interrupted," where she'll portray Debbie Smith, who survived a rape and fought for the passage of anti-rape legislation that was meant to be used to get... Continue Reading Posted at 5:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	DirecTV, Nielsen Partnering for Measurments Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 DirecTV (DTV) and privately held Nielsen Co., which conducts marketing research, have partnered to find out the viewing habits of DirecTV's subscribers, the two companies announced today.In the U.S., Nielsen is the No. 1 television rating company while DirecTV is... Continue Reading Posted at 3:31 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A New Bionic Woman is in the Wings Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Move over Lindsay Wagner, there's a new girl in town. British actress Michelle Ryan has been chosen to be the new Bionic Woman, who was chosen after a search far and wide, beating out a lot of other big-name stars.The... Continue Reading Posted at 12:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb13	Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller Playing "The Hardy Men" Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 If you've ever been a fan of the old Hardy Boys book series, you may be glad to hear that Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller have been tapped to play the duo in a grown up version called The Hardy... Continue Reading Posted at 10:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	HBO Launching On-Demand Programming in Britain Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 Time Warner (TWX) via its HBO network has now launched a subscription-based video on demand service in Britain which will feature programs like "Six Feet Under" and "The Sopranos." The newly created UK firm Virgin Media, BT Vision and Tiscali... Continue Reading Posted at 6:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Carson Daly Ready for 12:30 Slot Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 While NBC (GE) hasn't been willing to name a successor to Conan O'Brien's probable move to 11:30 p.m. in 2009, Carson Daly is hoping that he is the one picked to fill that slot. Last Call With Carson Daly has... Continue Reading Posted at 5:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb12	Court TV is Back in the House Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 The battle between Turner Broadcasting and Dish Network has finally come to an end, as Court Tv has now been put back in the homes it was blacked out of since Jan. 1, when the two couldn't agree to terms... Continue Reading Posted at 11:18 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Human Rights Group Wants '24' Torture Scenes to be More Authentic Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 In a bizarre encounter between a so-called human rights group called Human Rights First and the writers of Fox's "24," they got together to discuss that the way it's shown on "24" isn't realistic and they want it to be... Continue Reading Posted at 4:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Grammy's Grab Larger Audience This Year Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 When the Grammy's thought they could go up against "American Idol" last year, they got clobbered. This year they changed nights to lower the competition level and it worked fairly well for them. They had an estimated 20.1 million viewers... Continue Reading Posted at 2:11 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sting, Police Reuniting for Tour Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 In what seems an avalanche of old groups and acts getting together, "The Police" have joined the ranks of those reuniting. On Monday the trio announced that they are getting back together for a reunion world tour in May. It's... Continue Reading Posted at 1:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Murdoch Says No New Channels This Fall Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 Rupert Murdoch announced that other than the upcoming launch of the Fox Business Channel, there will no new cable channels upcoming for News Corp. (NWS-A). He thinks that they may have reached the limit of the amount they can carry.He... Continue Reading Posted at 1:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb11	MTV Woes Continue - Cutting More Jobs Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 MTV continues its plummet from being one of the most edgy, compelling networks for young viewers, to a disgruntled, seemingly out of synch unit that has no idea what it stands for anymore. The result is that an unidentified source said... Continue Reading Posted at 5:48 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 Eddie Murphy and his comedy "Norbit," where he plays three completely different roles, came in No. 1 for the weekend box office with an estimated $33.7 million in sales for Dreamworks. While it has been marketed pretty strongly, MGM-Weinstein's prequel... Continue Reading Posted at 5:01 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Is "Lost" Lost? Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 The news that "Lost" only garnered an audience of 14.5 million viewers has to cause some concern to ABC (DIS) as it returned its former powerhouse to the screen. It was the smallest audience they've received for Lost for an... Continue Reading Posted at 2:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Who Launching 28-City European Tour Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 Crediting the theme from "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," which uses "Who Are You," a "Who" hit as a major reason for keeping their music in the public eye during their slow years, Pete Townshend, 61, and Roger Daltrey, 62, announced... Continue Reading Posted at 11:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb10	Nick at Nite Bringing Back Young Hunks for Valentine's Day Growing Pains Marathon Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 Nick at Nite is putting on a Valentine's Day marathon featuring three hot Hollywood stars before they reached superstardom. Featured in the "Growing Pains" marathon will be Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Kirk Cameron playing in romantic episodes which will... Continue Reading Posted at 6:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hollywood Insider Calls it "The Cult of Deception" - Part 2 Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 Continuing our look at comments made by Hollywood insider Edward jay Epstein at a recent seminar, let's search a little deeper into the state of Hollywood at this time.One thing that Epstein does say about finding information on the motion... Continue Reading Posted at 5:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hollywood Insider Calls it "The Cult of Deception" Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 In an extraordinary assertion, Edward Jay Epstein, Ph.D., that Hollywood has been engaging in smokescreens and mirrors to attempt to retain the image of a former "glamorous movie culture that no longer exists." Epstein is an industry insider and has... Continue Reading Posted at 5:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Starbucks' Hear Music Debut CD series Releasing First International Act Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 When singer/songwriter CeU secured a nomination for the Latin Grammy Award for best new artist, she gained the attention of Starbucks and their CD Hear Music initiative. As a result they're teaming up with Six Degrees Records to release their... Continue Reading Posted at 3:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 9	Will Comedy Central Make a Clown out of YouTube? Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 With Viacom's (VIA-B) demand that YouTube (GOOG) get rid of 100,000 of their video clips on their site, we knew that there had to be something else going on, and there was.Seeing that there wasn't really ever going to be... Continue Reading Posted at 10:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Toy Story 3' Scheduled for 2009 Release Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 At Disney's (DIS) investor conference they announced that "Toy Story 3" is slated for release in 2009, but it won't include former director John Lasseter. Directing it this time around will be Lee Unkrich. It's the first time that there... Continue Reading Posted at 7:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	EMI May Loosen Up Its Protections Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 With the extraordinary 74 percent drop in quarterly net income reported by Warner Music Group (WMG) recently, it may have been the final push for music companies to start releasing their music catalogs without protections on them.The EMI Group is... Continue Reading Posted at 3:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	U.S. Cinema Admissions Fall for 4th Straight Year Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 What does it mean when an industry hasn't experienced growth in sales since 1997? For the majority of industries it would be devastating to them. Look at the music industry as an example, they've been going down since 2000, and... Continue Reading Posted at 12:37 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 8	Hallmark Channel Renews Distribution Agreement Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 The Hallmark Channel has come to agreement with Mediacom Communications (MCCC) in a multi-year deal which ensures the network will be available to the 1.4 million subscribers the operator represents. After a time when there were concerns on whether the cable... Continue Reading Posted at 8:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Pre-Grammys Show to be Streamed Online by CBS Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 If you can't get enough of the Grammy Awards show, there's good news for you: CBS (CBS-A) has announced that it will stream a pre-Grammy Awards show on its CBS.com site, along with its CBS Radio Web sites on February... Continue Reading Posted at 8:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Warner Music Group Net Income Plunges 74 Percent Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 Even with expectations much lower than last year's same quarter, Warner Music Group (WMG) still underperformed far below analysts projections. They dropped an enormous 74 percent in net income for its fiscal first-quarter in comparison to last year.The reasons given... Continue Reading Posted at 6:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Business Channel to Ramp Up in the Fourth Quarter Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 With anticipation building, News Corp. (NWS-A) announced today that its upcoming business cable network show will be launched in the fourth quarter this year, providing competition for the CNBC (GE) network. The network said that it wouldn't go forward until they... Continue Reading Posted at 5:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Anna Nicole Smith Dead at 39 Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 According to Anna Nicole Smith's lawyer, she has died after collapsing at a hotel and being rushed to a hospital, she was 39 years old."She checked in Monday at 8 p.m. as a guest. She was due to check out... Continue Reading Posted at 2:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	U.S. TV Households Projected to Grow 47 Percent by 2050 Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 While a growing number of people like to consume their media on various devices or platforms, a new report by Nielsen shows that it won't have any dampening effect upon the number of U.S. homes with TV set in them,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 7	The Mouse Continues to Roar Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 The Walt Disney Company (DIS) exploded past all expectations as it reported its first-quarter earnings which grew to 29 cents a share, far above the 11 cents analysts projected. Part of the surge was connected to its sale of shares in US... Continue Reading Posted at 5:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Celine Dion Introducing Newest Song at Academy Awards Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 According to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Celine Dion will be introducing her new song "I Knew I Loved You," at the Academy Awards this year. The song will be sung during a tribute to Italian composer... Continue Reading Posted at 4:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Zucker in, NBC Universal Out? Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 Fox News (NWS) reported that the reason for the installation of Jeff Zucker as president and CEO of NBCU was that the company is going to be put up for sale. According to the report, former NBCU Chairman and CEO... Continue Reading Posted at 3:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Universal Forges Deal with Ben Silverman's Reveille Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 NBC Universal (GE) scored a coup when it forged a two-year deal with Hollywood producer Ben Silverman and his company Reveille for first option on shows they develop. The deal will include any scripted or unscripted projects from Reveille.The company... Continue Reading Posted at 2:05 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Apprentice' Hires Adspace to Play Role Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 The February 18 episode of "The Apprentice" will feature in-mall promotional outlet Adspace Networks as part of the challenge to the contestants. It's unusual in that the platform of the media is becoming the brand in this case. the two... Continue Reading Posted at 1:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 6	David Zaslav Flattening 'Discovery' Leadership Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 In what he is calling the need to "create a lean and aggressive organization," Discovery's new CEO David Zaslav has eliminated some positions and brought other reponsibilities together under other certain managers.The first position eliminated in the Discovery fold was... Continue Reading Posted at 11:27 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Grabs Rights to Scorsese's Stones Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 While Paramount (VIA) has already attained the U.S. rights to the upcoming Martin Scorsese documentary on the Rolling Stones, 20th Century Fox didn't wait around to get their own rights as they grabbed rights to the "Stones" in the U.K.,... Continue Reading Posted at 9:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Judge Orders DirecTV They Can't Say They're Better Than Time Warner Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 In response to a lawsuit filed by Time Warner (TWX) in December, a U.S. court ordered satellite television provider DirecTV (DTV) to stop advertisements that said that their service was better than what Time Warner offered.The ad, which had former... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	AOL's Randy Falco Likes the Positioning of the Company Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 The recent installment of Jeff Zucker as head of NBC Universal reminds me of former "Universal" COO Randy Falco, who stepped away from the company to head up Time Warner's AOL (TWX). Answering questions at the iMedia Brand Summit, Falco said... Continue Reading Posted at 4:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Chicago/Indianapolis Score Big in Local Ratings of Super Bowl Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 The CBS (CBS-A) owner-and-operated station, WBBM-TV scored big in the Chicago market as it recorded its second-highest ratings ever behind the NBA finals between the Bulls and the Jazz on WMAQ-TV, NBC Universal’s (GE) owned and operated station in 1988.Their... Continue Reading Posted at 1:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 5	Disney/Robert Zemeckis Setting Up New Film Company Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) announced that it is partnering with "Polar Express" director Robert Zemeckis to create a new film company that will develop three-dimensional animated movies. Besides "Polar Express," Zemeckis also made "Monster House" and is working on... Continue Reading Posted at 9:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sinclair Broadcast Group Extends Retransmission Agreement with Comcast Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 With their current contract set to expire on February 5, which would have an effect upon 3 million Comcast (CMCSA) subscribers, Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI) agreed to extend it retransmission agreement to March 1. Some large markets like Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Minneapolis,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:15 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	"Lost" Returning with Promises of Change Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 Hearing the rumblings of discontent among its core fans, and after a three-month break, "Lost" is returning Wednesday with promises that changes are in store very quickly. There will be sixteen new episodes offered with no breaks and in a... Continue Reading Posted at 2:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Prince Rocks 'em at Super Bowl Half-time Show Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 I'm not sure what the outcome long-term will be for Prince, but I'm not sure there's anyone out there that was disappointed in the half-time show performance he gave to millions. Most feedback I've gotten is that it is one... Continue Reading Posted at 12:36 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 4	Disney's Commitment to Niche Scores Big for Them Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 About a decade ago, Disney (DIS) executives got together and discussed the direction they wanted to take the Disney Channel in. When the smoke cleared, the decision had been made to target the 'tween' demographic. The main reasoning behind the... Continue Reading Posted at 4:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 Film buffs decided that fright was what they wanted this weekend as the film "The Messengers" debuted at the number one spot at the weekend box office, taking in $14.5 million. It's based on the familiar story of an urban... Continue Reading Posted at 2:39 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Changing of the Guard at NBC Universal Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 Sending a message to NBC Universal, General Electric (GE) head Jeff Immelt is set to replace long-time CEO Bob Wright with Jeff Zucker. While this isn't a surprise, it is a surprise that it happened this quickly; it was expected... Continue Reading Posted at 1:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 3	Penelope Cruz in High Demand Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Woody Allen has asked Penelope Cruz to stay available for for is upcoming summer film shoot in Spain. Katrina Bayonas, Cruz's European agent and manager, has confirmed that Cruz has been cast for the film. The news was announced when foxnews.com's... Continue Reading Posted at 5:30 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Paramount Vantage and Groundswell Prods. Partnering for "The Marc Pease Experience" Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Production companies Paramount Vantage and Michael London's Groundswell Prods. have partnered to produce and co-finance the upcoming film "The Marc Pease Experience." Starring in the project will be Jason Schwartzman. Ben Stiller is in negotiations for the co-starring role.Former actor... Continue Reading Posted at 5:00 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	David Lee Roth Reuniting with Van Halen for Summer Tour Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Rumors have been circulating that the original frontman of the legendary rock band Van Halen, David Lee Roth, will be reuniting with the band during a summer tour of North America. Those rumors are true as Roth will perform with... Continue Reading Posted at 4:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Trial Over Clive Cussler's Sahara Begins Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 In the beginning of the trial concerning the film version of Clive Cussler's book "Sahara," Cussler's attorney alleged that the production company that made the film reneged on the deal that gave Cussler creative control of the film. Cussler's attorney Bert... Continue Reading Posted at 2:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	MyNetworkTV Taught That Too Much Was Too Much Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 The attempt by News Corp.'s (NWS-A) MyNetworkTV to broadcast sex and violence every day of the week revealed that an every-night dosage is far more than the public wants. With viewers increasingly ignoring the telenovelas, the new network has started... Continue Reading Posted at 12:02 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 2	CBS Sells the Last of Super Bowl Spots Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 Coming down to the wire, along with a little nail-biting, CBS (CBS-A) was finally able to close out its Super Bowl spots in several late deals."It was a race to the wire," says one media-agency executive. "But this isn't uncommon. There... Continue Reading Posted at 9:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dutch satellite Explosion Delays DirecTV's Expansion Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 The explosion of the $300 million Dutch satellite New Skies-8 satellite will delay DirecTV's (DTV) planned expansion to its promised HDTV offering this year. The satellite has launched from a Sea Launch floating platform. The satellite that was destroyed wasn't... Continue Reading Posted at 9:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Artists Beginning to Make Their Own Deals Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 A new independent start-up label, 180 Music, is partnering with Target (TGT) to release 15 adult contemporary CDs in all of the companies 1,449 stores, beginning on February 25. The CDs will be offered a $9.99 each. They won't be... Continue Reading Posted at 7:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Disney Shows the Way for Other Big Media to Follow Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 Not waiting around to get permission or see the way the winds would blow, Disney (DIS) aggressively pursued the changing media focus toward the Internet and has been rewarded strongly.After partnering up with Apple iTunes (AAPL), the number of Disney... Continue Reading Posted at 2:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lindsay Lohan Drops Out of "A Woman of No Importance" Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 It seems like Lindsay Lohan has decided that it's okay to run around with friends and do her everyday errands, but when it comes to her upcoming movie project working with Annette Bening, she has decided to say no and... Continue Reading Posted at 1:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Viacom Demands YouTube Remove Over 100,000 Unauthorized Video Clips Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 In what looks like a warning shot by Viacom (VIA-B) toward YouTube (GOOG), the company let them know that they wanted over 100,000 video clips removed from the site. This isn't unprecedented as the Japan Society for Rights of Authors,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 1	J.K. Rowling Announces Last "Harry Potter" Book Will be Published July 21 Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 J.K. Rowling, saying that she'll miss Harry Potter, announced that the last of the book series "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," will be published July 21. Her U.S. publisher, Scholastic, said that there would be a hardback edition offered... Continue Reading Posted at 9:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Chef Cooks Up Good Numbers in Season Finale Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 It looks like Top Chef fans will be happy, as the season finale drew a show record 3.9 million viewers in the 10 to 11 p.m. slot for Bravo, virtually guaranteeing they'll get more of their culinary competition next season.... Continue Reading Posted at 9:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Comcast Flexing its Muscles Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 Comcast (CMCSA) has shown strong growth in a number of categories as the cable company increased in revenue and profits over the fouth quarter. It's growth in its subscription base for cable Internet, phone and video were especially strong. Its net... Continue Reading Posted at 7:20 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Court TV and Echostar: Time May Be Running Out Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 With EchoStar (DISH) chairman and CEO Charlie Ergen implying that he may pull Court TV off of the network for good at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas if they aren't able to come up with a deal, time... Continue Reading Posted at 6:38 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fergie Recruited to Show Off Candie Shoes Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 Female singer for The Black Eyed Peas, Fergie, has been enlisted by Candie's shoes to launch their spring ad campaign. The first showing of a commercial with Fergie in it will be on the Grammy's February 11 in limited markets.... Continue Reading Posted at 4:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Universal's Streaming Video Growing Strong Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 NBC Universal (GE) started offering viewers the ability to watch full episodes of their TV shows on the Internet last October. The results show that the majority of users streaming the shows do it after missing one of the shows... Continue Reading Posted at 12:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments

« January 2007 | Main | March 2007 »

Feb28	Liberty Media Show Some Strong Growth Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 Know More: Show Business Statistics Liberty Media showed a good fourth quarter as they had cash flow gains at two of its major divisions. For Liberty Interactive Group, which is parent of QVC, the revenue grew by 11 percent and in its operating cash flow 21 percent. It was led by QVC which increased revenue by 7 percent in the fourth quarter to $2.24 billion and its operating cash flow by 19 percent to $557 million. With the Liberty Capital Group, parent of Starz, they increased revenue by 4 percent to $257 million and its operating cash flow by 72 percent to $50 million. Liberty Media added that it projects that interactive revenue and operating cash flow should increase from the high single digits to low double-digit percentages for the next three to five years. The major growth for the fourth quarter came from Starz increased subscription growth and the QVC shopping channel from its growing retail sales. Posted at 7:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb28	Will AT&T's Big Gamble Pay Off? Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 With cable companies encroaching increasingly on their telephone business, AT&T (T) has had to find ways to fight back, and they have with their new U-verse service which will blend computers, TV sets and cell phones together in one service... Continue Reading Posted at 5:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Online TV Viewing Becoming a Win/Win for Everyone Gary Bourgeault February 28, 2007 Rather than being concerned about the effect of online TV upon broadcast or cable viewing, networks should be embracing it even more, studies are showing.For those who have been overly concerned about TV being watched or streamed on the Internet,... Continue Reading Posted at 2:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb27	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Raising Millions Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Saying that the industry can't keep up with the publics' appetite for new movie content, Chairman Harry Sloan told reporters that Wall Street investors are lining up to pay for the upcoming projects.Sloan said that with their top movie franchises... Continue Reading Posted at 7:31 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Martin Scorsese, William Monahan Teaming Up Again for Rock 'N' Roll Film Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 With his first Oscar under his belt, Martin Scorsese didn't take long to tackle his next project, a rock 'n' roll film called The Long Play.He is teaming up again with The Departed Oscar-winning screenwriter William Monahan for the project.Also... Continue Reading Posted at 5:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham Close to Own Reality Show Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Former Spice Girl, known in the group as Posh Spice, Victoria Beckham, is rumored to be close to a decision to appear in her own reality show. The specifics of the deal haven't been finalized yet, but according to sources... Continue Reading Posted at 4:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hallmark Channel CEO Looking for Higher Subscriber Fees Gary Bourgeault February 27, 2007 Using the Fox News (NWS-A) network as an example, Hallmark Channel CEO Henry Schleiff says that the two networks get just about the same amount prime-time viewership and the same demographic, yet Hallmark comes nowhere close to getting the types... Continue Reading Posted at 2:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb26	Apple TV Launch Delayed Until March Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The highly anticipated launch of the Apple (AAPL) TV has been put off till next month, although the company gave no reason why that happened.In January the company said that the set-top box would be ready to go in February... Continue Reading Posted at 10:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sci Fi Channel, Richard Branson and Virgin Comics Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 If nothing else, this new partnership between the Sci Fi Channel, Richard Branson and Virgin comics won't be boring. In an announcement they said they have partnered to develop content that can be featured in games, the Internet, television and... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Judge Recommends NBC Universal Complaint be Dismissed Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The increasing use of digital content by TV studios has led to confrontation between the Writers Guild of America West and NBC Universal (GE). The problem began when NBC Universal decided it wanted to produce Webisodes, short content created for... Continue Reading Posted at 4:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Rooftop and Indoor Antenna Renaissannce? Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 Increasing cable and satellite TV costs are driving many customers to go back to the old rooftop antenna as a means of receiving local television in high definition, without paying the extra costs that companies demand. One example is in... Continue Reading Posted at 4:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	FCC Wants More Information on DirecTV-MLB Deal Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 The possible deal between Major League Baseball and DirecTV (DTV) has come under scrutiny as Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., has asked the FCC to look into the deal that could potentially prohibit millions from subscribing to see the games.Kerry was... Continue Reading Posted at 3:26 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Black Donnelly's Premiering Tonight on NBC Gary Bourgeault February 26, 2007 NBC (GE) is trying to leverage its only new hit of the season to try to help another start off strong. They are taking their popular "Heroes" and offering it as a lead-in to the new series "The Black Donnellys,"... Continue Reading Posted at 2:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb25	CBS Investing in Virtual World Developer Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 CBS Corp. (CBS) announced that it is participating in a $7 million round of financing for virtual world content developer Electric Sheep co. They said it's part of their ongoing strategy to reach beyond the TV screen. Existing investors Gladwyne... Continue Reading Posted at 10:47 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Movie Theaters Now Offering Video Games Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 With increasing competition for movie tickets, and admissions down across Spain, Enrique Martinez has been working hard at transforming his building into a hybrid movie theater. Writing for IHT, Doreen Carvajal said that Martinez' creations has "all the digital fire... Continue Reading Posted at 5:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Netflix Reaches 1 Billionth DVD Rental Milestone Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 It doesn't seem that long ago where Netflix (NFLX) was considered an "upstart" in the DVD viewing space. Now that they've been around for about 7 1/2 years, they have reached their first huge milestone by renting their 1 billionth... Continue Reading Posted at 4:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 25, 2007 Other than last weeks upword blip, the box office plummeted again as moviegoers decided they had other things to do than watch the offerings presented for the weekend."Ghost Rider" was able to hold on to its hold on first place,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb24	FCC Hits Univision with $24 Million Record Fine Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Univision is expected to be hit with the largest fine in history as the media company received numerous complaints since 2004. The fine is related to the company not providing the type of programming that was designated by FCC rules.... Continue Reading Posted at 5:49 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Marvel's Big Risk Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Marvel (MVL) is a company that has huge potential, as it has a portfolio of over 5,000 characters it can draw on for all sorts of revenue possibilities. There is also the licensing potential from its characters to movie studios,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Time Warner Agrees to $405 Million Settlement Gary Bourgeault February 24, 2007 Shareholders of Time Warner brought had brought a law suit against media company Time Warner (TWX) in reference to accounting issues at their Internet division AOL. The parties have now reached an agreement for a payout of $405 million to... Continue Reading Posted at 3:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb23	Ministry of Sound Quits Association of Independent Music Over Backing Warner/EMI Deal Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 After a second profit warning in as many weeks, EMI had been more receptive to a bid by Warner Music Group (WMG) for the company. At first the UK-based Association of Independent Music (AIM) was all on board, backing the... Continue Reading Posted at 6:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dove Offering User-Created Ad on Academy Awards Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Companies continue to experiment with consumer-generated content, as Dove initiated an online contest that will result in the winner having their ad presented on the Academy Awards telecast, promoting its new Cream Oil Body Wash. The winner will have an... Continue Reading Posted at 4:18 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Train Running on "Idol" Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Taking on and demolishing all comers, the Fox (NWS-A) juggernaut "American Idol" just keeps on rolling, taking out another victim "Jericho" from CBS (CBS-A). It wasn't even an effort for Fox in taking the evening as they owned the 8... Continue Reading Posted at 2:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Strategy to Spinoff from "Grey's Anatomy" a Good One Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 While probably everybody has heard that "Grey's Anatomy" looking to spinoff a new show from their popular character neonatal surgeon Addison Shepherd, I want to take a brief look at the strategy itself.The major thing that seems to be a... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	CBS Gets Cable Retransmission Deals Gary Bourgeault February 23, 2007 Saying that the deal represented a new "paradigm" for its business, Les Moonves, CEO of CBS (CBS-A) Corp. and the company announced that it has in place the retransmission consent deals with cable operators which they have been looking forward... Continue Reading Posted at 12:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb22	Getty Images Inc. Acquiring WireImage for $200 Million Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 Getty Images Inc., announced that it is in the planning stages of buying celebrity photo provide WireImage for a reported $200 million, and is also in negotiations with another competitor, Jupitermedia Corp. Getty is already the No. 1 provider of... Continue Reading Posted at 8:12 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Spielberg's "On the Lot" Kicking off with "American Idol" Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 Fox (NWS-A) aims to give Steven Spielberg's new reality show "On the Lot" a big push as they have scheduled its debut to start on Wednesday, May 16 along with powerhouse "American Idol.""On the Lot" is a filmmaker competition which... Continue Reading Posted at 7:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mergers Won't Solve Big Media Problems Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 With the two big potential mergers of media companies announced this week, it reveals an underlying weakness in an industry that has no answers.Why the proposed mergers between XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (XMSR) and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (SIRI),... Continue Reading Posted at 6:03 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	CBS Ends Talks with Google/YouTube Gary Bourgeault February 22, 2007 CBS (CBS) has decided to end talks on offering an extension of its deal with Google (GOOG) to allow more video clips of its show on the YouTube site, the Wall Street Journal reported.It's an interesting decision in that the... Continue Reading Posted at 12:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb21	Two-Hour American Idol Cleans House Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 Fox (NWS) ran its "American Idol" for two hours on Tuesday and demolished the competition again, reaching a 11.7 rating/30 share for the night in the major 18-49 demographic, said the Nielsen overnights data. The show gained momentum as the... Continue Reading Posted at 8:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	6-Week Canadian Actor Strike Over Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 The 6-week long strike by Canadian actors is over, as the union representing them reached a tentative contract agreement.ACTRA, the union representing the actors said on their Web site that "ACTRA's first national strike is finally over." The union represents... Continue Reading Posted at 7:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New "Dancing with the Stars" Contestants Revealed Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 On today's Good Morning America, former "Dancing with the Stars contestant Jerry Springer announced several of the celebrities that will be appearing on the show this year.Some of those mentioned by Springer were Joey Fatone, formerly of 'N Sync, Heather... Continue Reading Posted at 4:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A&E Taps Adtech to Serve Display Ads Gary Bourgeault February 21, 2007 A&E has decided to drop Falk eSolutions as their ad-serving company and instead have decided to go with Adtech as their online display advertising company, which is based in Frankfurt, Germany, who has been seeking to increase its U.S. client... Continue Reading Posted at 3:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb20	Will Smith Contacts Michael Bay to Get Another Bad Boys Movie Going Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 "Bad Boys" director Michael Bay has confirmed reports that actor Will Smith's people contacted Jerry Bruchheimer to talk about plans for another sequel to the movie. Bay added that he'd be open to doing another "Bad Boys," and that it... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Charlotte Church Says She's Going Back to Her Classical Roots Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 Charlotte Church, who stormed the music world when her debut album "Voice of an Angel" brought critical acclaim and success, says that she is now going to return to her classical roots, dropping her television career.Being quoted on Contactmusic.com, Church... Continue Reading Posted at 7:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	APA Says Girls, Young Women Harmed by Sexual Imagery Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 The American Psychological Association, in response to analyzing the effects of sexualized images on girls and young women, found that it had a strong negative impact upon their healthy development.They defined sexualization as "occurring when a person's value comes only... Continue Reading Posted at 6:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Will Carrie Underwood Stick to Her Roots? Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 Some have been wondering what's next for Carrie Underwood after she won Grammy's, including Best New Artist, as a country music artist. She became the first country star to win Best New Artist since Shelby Lynne in 2001.When asked if... Continue Reading Posted at 5:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Oscar Ballots Are In Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 With all the hooplaand red-carpet preliminaries over, the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have made their decisions, and now it simply comes down to counting the votes.The usual accountants have been secretly sequestered away in... Continue Reading Posted at 5:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Warner Approaches EMI Again About Bid Gary Bourgeault February 20, 2007 The second profit warning by EMI in two months has stoked the Warner Music Group (WMG) into approaching British music company EMI about a potential bid. Warner has long wanted to merge with the company. There have always been regulatory... Continue Reading Posted at 4:47 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb19	Charlize Theron Rumored to be top in Line to Play Anna Nicole Smith Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 Rumors are starting to emerge that Charlize Theron is in the top position to play the late Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith who collapsed and died last week at 39 years of age.Times online reported that, "Ron Rale, Smith’s lawyer,... Continue Reading Posted at 9:03 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	All Academy Award Ad Spots Sold Out Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 ABC (DIS) has announced that all ad spots for the upcoming telecast of the 79th Annual Academy Awards on February 25 have been sold out. Unnamed sources said that the 30-second spots sold for around $1.7 million. On last years... Continue Reading Posted at 5:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Richard Branson Lands Uma Thurman, Kate Moss and Pamela Anderson Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 Richard Branson is gathering a bevy of beauties as he promotes is newest business, Virgin Media, which will offer media services in TV, broadband and mobile. Already making deals with supermodel Kate Moss and Pamela Anderson, Branson has now got Uma Thurman... Continue Reading Posted at 5:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Long Beach Ragga Muffins Festival: A Return to the Ordinary Kimberlee Morrison February 19, 2007 The 26th annual Ragga Muffins Festival in Long Beach marked a much needed return to the festival's roots, both musically and culturally - homogeneous merchandise not withstanding. The show lost a sizable portion of last year's KROQ pseudo-rocker crowd,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	XM, Sirius Plan to Merge Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 In a proposed $13 billion deal, XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (XMSR) and Sirius (SIRI) have announced that they want to merge after months of rumors circulating in the media.With the current rules in place, this wouldn't be allowed to... Continue Reading Posted at 3:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Impact the Growing Affluent Population will have on Media Gary Bourgeault February 19, 2007 The number of affluent people in America, which now entail 17 percent of the population, will increase to 22 percent by 2010, according to the U.S. Census estimates.The typical affluent household embraces cable TV as pretty much a commodity. Some... Continue Reading Posted at 2:42 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb18	Fox Says New Business Channel Friendlier to Business Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 In a move pulled from their old playbook, Fox (NWS) has already started to market their new business channel as "more business-friendly" than rival CNBC (GE), similar to their strategy when starting the Fox News Channel about 10 years ago.Roger... Continue Reading Posted at 6:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	EMI Music may Sell or Demerge Recorded Music Division Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 Via a report in the Guardian, sources are quoted as saying that EMI Music may either sell or demerge its recorded music division in response to huge profit losses and two profit warnings in the last month. EMI has plans... Continue Reading Posted at 5:38 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 18, 2007 Sony's adaptation of the comic-book character Ghost Rider rode to the top of the weekend box office with an estimated $44.5 million. It stars Nicolas Cage as a motorcycle stunt driver gathering evil souls up for the devil.The second-place finisher for... Continue Reading Posted at 1:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb17	The Donald and Vince McMahon in Shave-Off Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 Vince McMahon, through his World Wrestling Entertainment, has announced that he is going to go against Donald Trump in a "hair match" for Wrestlemania 23, the pay-per-view event planned April 1 in Detroit. The loser will have to shave their head.... Continue Reading Posted at 7:54 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Here's Some Food for Thought - ah, Stomach Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 Spike TV with its predominately male audience has entered into the competitive eating business as it has made a deal with Major League Eating to broadcast four major competitive events this year, beginning with "MLE: St. Patrick's Day Chowdown" on... Continue Reading Posted at 7:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBA All-Star Game Experimenting with 3D Telecast Gary Bourgeault February 17, 2007 For the first time in history there will be a live high-definition 3D sports telecast that will be watched by an invitation-only crowd at the upcoming NBA All-Star game on Sunday.The NBA is hosting the special event in unique screening... Continue Reading Posted at 2:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb16	Local Radio Fighting Satellite Radio Encroaching on Territory Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 For the fourth time around, the National Association of Broadcasters has enlisted some politicians to sponsor a bill to limit the satellite radio industry.The bill called "Local Emergency Radio Service Preservation Act of 2007," H.R. 983 was cosponsored by Rep.... Continue Reading Posted at 10:23 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Strange Case of "Winnie the Pooh" Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 The ongoing battle between the Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and the estate of Winnie the Pooh license holder Stephen Slesinger took another turn as a federal judge dismissed a suit backed by Disney but filed the granddaughters of Pooh author... Continue Reading Posted at 7:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	FCC May Regulate TV Violence - Maybe Even Cable Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 Almost three years ago a bipartisan group of 39 members of the House asked for a report to determine whether the FCC could offer a definition of "exceedingly violent programming that is harmful to children." Alongside of that definition the... Continue Reading Posted at 4:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Commercials Not Skipped as Much as Thought Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 With a lot at stake, Nielsen has been surveying people to find out how many of them skip commercials with their DVRs and how many keep on watching them.What they found out was that an average of two-thirds of those... Continue Reading Posted at 4:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	BSkyB May Be Turned Down for Premium Channels Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 The move by BSkyB to offer a terrestrial pay TV service is meeting opposition from the U.K. regulator that make s the decision on whether to approve of the plan or not.Britains, Office of Communications (Ofcom), has concerns that the... Continue Reading Posted at 2:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Beth Comstock Picked to Head NBC Universal Integrated Media Gary Bourgeault February 16, 2007 In a move meant to send a message to shareholders and NBC Universal (GE) as a whole, the company has chosed Beth Comstock to head up their entire ad sales operations. It signals that the company is seriously commited to... Continue Reading Posted at 12:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb15	James Cameron Adds Sigourney Weaver to 'Avatar' Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 James Cameron has enlisted his former "Alien" star Sigourney Weaver to play a supporting role in his long-anticipated film, "Avatar." "Sigourney and I have always looked back fondly on our collaboration in 'Aliens,' and we're excited at the prospect of... Continue Reading Posted at 6:22 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'House' and 'Bones' Renewed by Fox Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 In a somewhat early, but not surprising move, Fox (NWS-A) renewed its hit series "House" for next year. Also being picked up and given an extra chance is "Bones," which has shown some improvement during the season."House" has been building... Continue Reading Posted at 5:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Sopranos' Lifts A&E Network Into Top Five Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 The makeover of A&E Network seems to have taken hold as they have moved into the top five in cable networks.With the decision to add "The Sopranos" to their lineup, it culminated a plan that they've been working on for... Continue Reading Posted at 5:02 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	TVs' Second-Quarter Advertising Looks Strong Gary Bourgeault February 15, 2007 Reports are that the second-quarter advertising market is going along pretty strongly. Some industry exec's are more cautious than others on whether that will mean a strong upfront or not.While it hasn't been confirmed, some large cable networks are said... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb14	"24" Leads Fox to Another Win Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Fox (NWS-A) scored big again with its two-hour special of '24.' The popular show had a 4.9 rating for the two hours, helping the network to a 5.0 rating and 12 share for the night. Number one again.The new CBS... Continue Reading Posted at 11:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Time Warner Cable About To Go Public Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 After a long wait, the promise of spinning off Time Warner Cable (TWX) is almost fulfilled, as they could possibly be listed under the ticker symbol TWC as early as next month, said parent company Time Warner.This is especially important... Continue Reading Posted at 10:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	First "Jesse the Body," Now "Al the Mouth" Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Minnesota looks like they'll have to endure another celebrity politician wannabee, as Al Franken is telling Democrat insiders that he's going to run for the U.S. Senate in 2008, challenging current Repulican Senator Norm Coleman.I guess Minnesota residents will have... Continue Reading Posted at 7:05 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dreamgirls turns into Nightmare as SUV Smashes Through Theater Wall Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Talk about the ultimate reality show. While people were watching the movie "Dreamgirls" at a theater in Torrington, Connecticut, an SUV smashed through the side of the building and ended up only inches above the moviegoers heads.The incident happened at... Continue Reading Posted at 6:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lea Thompson Starring in "A Life Interrupted" Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Lea Thompson has been pegged to start in the upcoming Lifetime movie "A Life Interrupted," where she'll portray Debbie Smith, who survived a rape and fought for the passage of anti-rape legislation that was meant to be used to get... Continue Reading Posted at 5:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	DirecTV, Nielsen Partnering for Measurments Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 DirecTV (DTV) and privately held Nielsen Co., which conducts marketing research, have partnered to find out the viewing habits of DirecTV's subscribers, the two companies announced today.In the U.S., Nielsen is the No. 1 television rating company while DirecTV is... Continue Reading Posted at 3:31 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A New Bionic Woman is in the Wings Gary Bourgeault February 14, 2007 Move over Lindsay Wagner, there's a new girl in town. British actress Michelle Ryan has been chosen to be the new Bionic Woman, who was chosen after a search far and wide, beating out a lot of other big-name stars.The... Continue Reading Posted at 12:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb13	Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller Playing "The Hardy Men" Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 If you've ever been a fan of the old Hardy Boys book series, you may be glad to hear that Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller have been tapped to play the duo in a grown up version called The Hardy... Continue Reading Posted at 10:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	HBO Launching On-Demand Programming in Britain Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 Time Warner (TWX) via its HBO network has now launched a subscription-based video on demand service in Britain which will feature programs like "Six Feet Under" and "The Sopranos." The newly created UK firm Virgin Media, BT Vision and Tiscali... Continue Reading Posted at 6:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Carson Daly Ready for 12:30 Slot Gary Bourgeault February 13, 2007 While NBC (GE) hasn't been willing to name a successor to Conan O'Brien's probable move to 11:30 p.m. in 2009, Carson Daly is hoping that he is the one picked to fill that slot. Last Call With Carson Daly has... Continue Reading Posted at 5:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb12	Court TV is Back in the House Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 The battle between Turner Broadcasting and Dish Network has finally come to an end, as Court Tv has now been put back in the homes it was blacked out of since Jan. 1, when the two couldn't agree to terms... Continue Reading Posted at 11:18 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Human Rights Group Wants '24' Torture Scenes to be More Authentic Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 In a bizarre encounter between a so-called human rights group called Human Rights First and the writers of Fox's "24," they got together to discuss that the way it's shown on "24" isn't realistic and they want it to be... Continue Reading Posted at 4:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Grammy's Grab Larger Audience This Year Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 When the Grammy's thought they could go up against "American Idol" last year, they got clobbered. This year they changed nights to lower the competition level and it worked fairly well for them. They had an estimated 20.1 million viewers... Continue Reading Posted at 2:11 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sting, Police Reuniting for Tour Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 In what seems an avalanche of old groups and acts getting together, "The Police" have joined the ranks of those reuniting. On Monday the trio announced that they are getting back together for a reunion world tour in May. It's... Continue Reading Posted at 1:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Murdoch Says No New Channels This Fall Gary Bourgeault February 12, 2007 Rupert Murdoch announced that other than the upcoming launch of the Fox Business Channel, there will no new cable channels upcoming for News Corp. (NWS-A). He thinks that they may have reached the limit of the amount they can carry.He... Continue Reading Posted at 1:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb11	MTV Woes Continue - Cutting More Jobs Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 MTV continues its plummet from being one of the most edgy, compelling networks for young viewers, to a disgruntled, seemingly out of synch unit that has no idea what it stands for anymore. The result is that an unidentified source said... Continue Reading Posted at 5:48 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 Eddie Murphy and his comedy "Norbit," where he plays three completely different roles, came in No. 1 for the weekend box office with an estimated $33.7 million in sales for Dreamworks. While it has been marketed pretty strongly, MGM-Weinstein's prequel... Continue Reading Posted at 5:01 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Is "Lost" Lost? Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 The news that "Lost" only garnered an audience of 14.5 million viewers has to cause some concern to ABC (DIS) as it returned its former powerhouse to the screen. It was the smallest audience they've received for Lost for an... Continue Reading Posted at 2:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Who Launching 28-City European Tour Gary Bourgeault February 11, 2007 Crediting the theme from "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," which uses "Who Are You," a "Who" hit as a major reason for keeping their music in the public eye during their slow years, Pete Townshend, 61, and Roger Daltrey, 62, announced... Continue Reading Posted at 11:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb10	Nick at Nite Bringing Back Young Hunks for Valentine's Day Growing Pains Marathon Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 Nick at Nite is putting on a Valentine's Day marathon featuring three hot Hollywood stars before they reached superstardom. Featured in the "Growing Pains" marathon will be Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Kirk Cameron playing in romantic episodes which will... Continue Reading Posted at 6:44 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hollywood Insider Calls it "The Cult of Deception" - Part 2 Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 Continuing our look at comments made by Hollywood insider Edward jay Epstein at a recent seminar, let's search a little deeper into the state of Hollywood at this time.One thing that Epstein does say about finding information on the motion... Continue Reading Posted at 5:55 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hollywood Insider Calls it "The Cult of Deception" Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 In an extraordinary assertion, Edward Jay Epstein, Ph.D., that Hollywood has been engaging in smokescreens and mirrors to attempt to retain the image of a former "glamorous movie culture that no longer exists." Epstein is an industry insider and has... Continue Reading Posted at 5:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Starbucks' Hear Music Debut CD series Releasing First International Act Gary Bourgeault February 10, 2007 When singer/songwriter CeU secured a nomination for the Latin Grammy Award for best new artist, she gained the attention of Starbucks and their CD Hear Music initiative. As a result they're teaming up with Six Degrees Records to release their... Continue Reading Posted at 3:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 9	Will Comedy Central Make a Clown out of YouTube? Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 With Viacom's (VIA-B) demand that YouTube (GOOG) get rid of 100,000 of their video clips on their site, we knew that there had to be something else going on, and there was.Seeing that there wasn't really ever going to be... Continue Reading Posted at 10:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Toy Story 3' Scheduled for 2009 Release Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 At Disney's (DIS) investor conference they announced that "Toy Story 3" is slated for release in 2009, but it won't include former director John Lasseter. Directing it this time around will be Lee Unkrich. It's the first time that there... Continue Reading Posted at 7:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	EMI May Loosen Up Its Protections Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 With the extraordinary 74 percent drop in quarterly net income reported by Warner Music Group (WMG) recently, it may have been the final push for music companies to start releasing their music catalogs without protections on them.The EMI Group is... Continue Reading Posted at 3:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	U.S. Cinema Admissions Fall for 4th Straight Year Gary Bourgeault February 9, 2007 What does it mean when an industry hasn't experienced growth in sales since 1997? For the majority of industries it would be devastating to them. Look at the music industry as an example, they've been going down since 2000, and... Continue Reading Posted at 12:37 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 8	Hallmark Channel Renews Distribution Agreement Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 The Hallmark Channel has come to agreement with Mediacom Communications (MCCC) in a multi-year deal which ensures the network will be available to the 1.4 million subscribers the operator represents. After a time when there were concerns on whether the cable... Continue Reading Posted at 8:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Pre-Grammys Show to be Streamed Online by CBS Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 If you can't get enough of the Grammy Awards show, there's good news for you: CBS (CBS-A) has announced that it will stream a pre-Grammy Awards show on its CBS.com site, along with its CBS Radio Web sites on February... Continue Reading Posted at 8:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Warner Music Group Net Income Plunges 74 Percent Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 Even with expectations much lower than last year's same quarter, Warner Music Group (WMG) still underperformed far below analysts projections. They dropped an enormous 74 percent in net income for its fiscal first-quarter in comparison to last year.The reasons given... Continue Reading Posted at 6:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Business Channel to Ramp Up in the Fourth Quarter Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 With anticipation building, News Corp. (NWS-A) announced today that its upcoming business cable network show will be launched in the fourth quarter this year, providing competition for the CNBC (GE) network. The network said that it wouldn't go forward until they... Continue Reading Posted at 5:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Anna Nicole Smith Dead at 39 Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 According to Anna Nicole Smith's lawyer, she has died after collapsing at a hotel and being rushed to a hospital, she was 39 years old."She checked in Monday at 8 p.m. as a guest. She was due to check out... Continue Reading Posted at 2:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	U.S. TV Households Projected to Grow 47 Percent by 2050 Gary Bourgeault February 8, 2007 While a growing number of people like to consume their media on various devices or platforms, a new report by Nielsen shows that it won't have any dampening effect upon the number of U.S. homes with TV set in them,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:34 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 7	The Mouse Continues to Roar Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 The Walt Disney Company (DIS) exploded past all expectations as it reported its first-quarter earnings which grew to 29 cents a share, far above the 11 cents analysts projected. Part of the surge was connected to its sale of shares in US... Continue Reading Posted at 5:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Celine Dion Introducing Newest Song at Academy Awards Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 According to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Celine Dion will be introducing her new song "I Knew I Loved You," at the Academy Awards this year. The song will be sung during a tribute to Italian composer... Continue Reading Posted at 4:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Zucker in, NBC Universal Out? Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 Fox News (NWS) reported that the reason for the installation of Jeff Zucker as president and CEO of NBCU was that the company is going to be put up for sale. According to the report, former NBCU Chairman and CEO... Continue Reading Posted at 3:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Universal Forges Deal with Ben Silverman's Reveille Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 NBC Universal (GE) scored a coup when it forged a two-year deal with Hollywood producer Ben Silverman and his company Reveille for first option on shows they develop. The deal will include any scripted or unscripted projects from Reveille.The company... Continue Reading Posted at 2:05 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	'Apprentice' Hires Adspace to Play Role Gary Bourgeault February 7, 2007 The February 18 episode of "The Apprentice" will feature in-mall promotional outlet Adspace Networks as part of the challenge to the contestants. It's unusual in that the platform of the media is becoming the brand in this case. the two... Continue Reading Posted at 1:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 6	David Zaslav Flattening 'Discovery' Leadership Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 In what he is calling the need to "create a lean and aggressive organization," Discovery's new CEO David Zaslav has eliminated some positions and brought other reponsibilities together under other certain managers.The first position eliminated in the Discovery fold was... Continue Reading Posted at 11:27 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fox Grabs Rights to Scorsese's Stones Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 While Paramount (VIA) has already attained the U.S. rights to the upcoming Martin Scorsese documentary on the Rolling Stones, 20th Century Fox didn't wait around to get their own rights as they grabbed rights to the "Stones" in the U.K.,... Continue Reading Posted at 9:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Judge Orders DirecTV They Can't Say They're Better Than Time Warner Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 In response to a lawsuit filed by Time Warner (TWX) in December, a U.S. court ordered satellite television provider DirecTV (DTV) to stop advertisements that said that their service was better than what Time Warner offered.The ad, which had former... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	AOL's Randy Falco Likes the Positioning of the Company Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 The recent installment of Jeff Zucker as head of NBC Universal reminds me of former "Universal" COO Randy Falco, who stepped away from the company to head up Time Warner's AOL (TWX). Answering questions at the iMedia Brand Summit, Falco said... Continue Reading Posted at 4:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Chicago/Indianapolis Score Big in Local Ratings of Super Bowl Gary Bourgeault February 6, 2007 The CBS (CBS-A) owner-and-operated station, WBBM-TV scored big in the Chicago market as it recorded its second-highest ratings ever behind the NBA finals between the Bulls and the Jazz on WMAQ-TV, NBC Universal’s (GE) owned and operated station in 1988.Their... Continue Reading Posted at 1:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 5	Disney/Robert Zemeckis Setting Up New Film Company Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) announced that it is partnering with "Polar Express" director Robert Zemeckis to create a new film company that will develop three-dimensional animated movies. Besides "Polar Express," Zemeckis also made "Monster House" and is working on... Continue Reading Posted at 9:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sinclair Broadcast Group Extends Retransmission Agreement with Comcast Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 With their current contract set to expire on February 5, which would have an effect upon 3 million Comcast (CMCSA) subscribers, Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI) agreed to extend it retransmission agreement to March 1. Some large markets like Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Minneapolis,... Continue Reading Posted at 4:15 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	"Lost" Returning with Promises of Change Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 Hearing the rumblings of discontent among its core fans, and after a three-month break, "Lost" is returning Wednesday with promises that changes are in store very quickly. There will be sixteen new episodes offered with no breaks and in a... Continue Reading Posted at 2:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Prince Rocks 'em at Super Bowl Half-time Show Gary Bourgeault February 5, 2007 I'm not sure what the outcome long-term will be for Prince, but I'm not sure there's anyone out there that was disappointed in the half-time show performance he gave to millions. Most feedback I've gotten is that it is one... Continue Reading Posted at 12:36 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 4	Disney's Commitment to Niche Scores Big for Them Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 About a decade ago, Disney (DIS) executives got together and discussed the direction they wanted to take the Disney Channel in. When the smoke cleared, the decision had been made to target the 'tween' demographic. The main reasoning behind the... Continue Reading Posted at 4:53 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Ten Box Office for the Weekend Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 Film buffs decided that fright was what they wanted this weekend as the film "The Messengers" debuted at the number one spot at the weekend box office, taking in $14.5 million. It's based on the familiar story of an urban... Continue Reading Posted at 2:39 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Changing of the Guard at NBC Universal Gary Bourgeault February 4, 2007 Sending a message to NBC Universal, General Electric (GE) head Jeff Immelt is set to replace long-time CEO Bob Wright with Jeff Zucker. While this isn't a surprise, it is a surprise that it happened this quickly; it was expected... Continue Reading Posted at 1:17 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 3	Penelope Cruz in High Demand Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Woody Allen has asked Penelope Cruz to stay available for for is upcoming summer film shoot in Spain. Katrina Bayonas, Cruz's European agent and manager, has confirmed that Cruz has been cast for the film. The news was announced when foxnews.com's... Continue Reading Posted at 5:30 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Paramount Vantage and Groundswell Prods. Partnering for "The Marc Pease Experience" Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Production companies Paramount Vantage and Michael London's Groundswell Prods. have partnered to produce and co-finance the upcoming film "The Marc Pease Experience." Starring in the project will be Jason Schwartzman. Ben Stiller is in negotiations for the co-starring role.Former actor... Continue Reading Posted at 5:00 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	David Lee Roth Reuniting with Van Halen for Summer Tour Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 Rumors have been circulating that the original frontman of the legendary rock band Van Halen, David Lee Roth, will be reuniting with the band during a summer tour of North America. Those rumors are true as Roth will perform with... Continue Reading Posted at 4:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Trial Over Clive Cussler's Sahara Begins Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 In the beginning of the trial concerning the film version of Clive Cussler's book "Sahara," Cussler's attorney alleged that the production company that made the film reneged on the deal that gave Cussler creative control of the film. Cussler's attorney Bert... Continue Reading Posted at 2:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	MyNetworkTV Taught That Too Much Was Too Much Gary Bourgeault February 3, 2007 The attempt by News Corp.'s (NWS-A) MyNetworkTV to broadcast sex and violence every day of the week revealed that an every-night dosage is far more than the public wants. With viewers increasingly ignoring the telenovelas, the new network has started... Continue Reading Posted at 12:02 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 2	CBS Sells the Last of Super Bowl Spots Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 Coming down to the wire, along with a little nail-biting, CBS (CBS-A) was finally able to close out its Super Bowl spots in several late deals."It was a race to the wire," says one media-agency executive. "But this isn't uncommon. There... Continue Reading Posted at 9:51 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dutch satellite Explosion Delays DirecTV's Expansion Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 The explosion of the $300 million Dutch satellite New Skies-8 satellite will delay DirecTV's (DTV) planned expansion to its promised HDTV offering this year. The satellite has launched from a Sea Launch floating platform. The satellite that was destroyed wasn't... Continue Reading Posted at 9:24 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Artists Beginning to Make Their Own Deals Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 A new independent start-up label, 180 Music, is partnering with Target (TGT) to release 15 adult contemporary CDs in all of the companies 1,449 stores, beginning on February 25. The CDs will be offered a $9.99 each. They won't be... Continue Reading Posted at 7:58 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Disney Shows the Way for Other Big Media to Follow Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 Not waiting around to get permission or see the way the winds would blow, Disney (DIS) aggressively pursued the changing media focus toward the Internet and has been rewarded strongly.After partnering up with Apple iTunes (AAPL), the number of Disney... Continue Reading Posted at 2:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lindsay Lohan Drops Out of "A Woman of No Importance" Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 It seems like Lindsay Lohan has decided that it's okay to run around with friends and do her everyday errands, but when it comes to her upcoming movie project working with Annette Bening, she has decided to say no and... Continue Reading Posted at 1:29 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Viacom Demands YouTube Remove Over 100,000 Unauthorized Video Clips Gary Bourgeault February 2, 2007 In what looks like a warning shot by Viacom (VIA-B) toward YouTube (GOOG), the company let them know that they wanted over 100,000 video clips removed from the site. This isn't unprecedented as the Japan Society for Rights of Authors,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:28 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 1	J.K. Rowling Announces Last "Harry Potter" Book Will be Published July 21 Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 J.K. Rowling, saying that she'll miss Harry Potter, announced that the last of the book series "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," will be published July 21. Her U.S. publisher, Scholastic, said that there would be a hardback edition offered... Continue Reading Posted at 9:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Top Chef Cooks Up Good Numbers in Season Finale Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 It looks like Top Chef fans will be happy, as the season finale drew a show record 3.9 million viewers in the 10 to 11 p.m. slot for Bravo, virtually guaranteeing they'll get more of their culinary competition next season.... Continue Reading Posted at 9:09 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Comcast Flexing its Muscles Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 Comcast (CMCSA) has shown strong growth in a number of categories as the cable company increased in revenue and profits over the fouth quarter. It's growth in its subscription base for cable Internet, phone and video were especially strong. Its net... Continue Reading Posted at 7:20 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Court TV and Echostar: Time May Be Running Out Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 With EchoStar (DISH) chairman and CEO Charlie Ergen implying that he may pull Court TV off of the network for good at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas if they aren't able to come up with a deal, time... Continue Reading Posted at 6:38 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Fergie Recruited to Show Off Candie Shoes Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 Female singer for The Black Eyed Peas, Fergie, has been enlisted by Candie's shoes to launch their spring ad campaign. The first showing of a commercial with Fergie in it will be on the Grammy's February 11 in limited markets.... Continue Reading Posted at 4:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Universal's Streaming Video Growing Strong Gary Bourgeault February 1, 2007 NBC Universal (GE) started offering viewers the ability to watch full episodes of their TV shows on the Internet last October. The results show that the majority of users streaming the shows do it after missing one of the shows... Continue Reading Posted at 12:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments

Devoted to show business and the entertainment industry

Advertise

Related Resources

recent comments

sponsored ads

topics

subscribe

Current News

resources

Support This Blog

archives

blogroll

business social media

Know More Media - Media / Entertainment

know more media network

we support unitus

PRWeb

Influencer

ProductivityGoal

CallCenterScript

AdHurl

TheBizofKnowledge

LandingTheDeal

CustomersAreAlways

HealthCareVox

BrainBasedBusiness

TheInsurancePolicy

MarketingBlurb