By Daniel Kohn July 5, 2018 | Fans who couldn’t wait to see the red band trailer of Sony’s upcoming “Khali the Killer” film were in for a major surprise when they went to check it out… and it wasn’t due to its violent content. Instead, when the clip was posted on Tuesday, the entire movie landed on Sony’s official YouTube page, accidentally...
By Ryan Faughnder June 28, 2018 | Walt Disney Co. is shuffling its executive ranks as it prepares to launch its streaming video service, a key initiative by the company to remain a dominant entertainment player in the digital age. The Burbank-based studio on Thursday put its film marketing president, Ricky Strauss, in charge of content and marketing for its streaming initiative, which...
By Bryan Bishop June 28, 2018 | We’ve known for some time that DC Comics has been preparing its own digital streaming service, but today, the company revealed that the platform will go far beyond just TV shows. DC Universe isn’t a streaming platform so much as a subscription service for all things DC, including comics, TV shows, and movies. A beta version...
By Todd Spangler June 27, 2018 | Warner Bros. has reached a new agreement that will make all of the studio’s new release DVD and Blu-ray Disc titles available to rent at Redbox’s kiosks the same day as their retail on-sale dates. Previously, Warner Bros.’s agreement with Redbox allowed for rentals seven days after home-video release. Under the new pact, the retailer also...
By Antonio Villas-Boas June 27, 2018 | Headphones may start to look like old technology in 2019 when Noveto, a startup based in Israel, showcases its new "focused audio" devices to attendees of the biggest tech show of any year, CES. Noveto has come up with a technology that can do exactly the same thing as headphones — deliver sound right to your...
By Paige Albiniak June 20, 2018 | Under chairman Mike Hopkins, Sony Pictures Television is being reorganized across its television networks, distribution and home entertainment units. As part of these changes, global networks operations and worldwide distribution/home entertainment will combine into a single business unit operating in a “territory management model.” SPT also will establish a direct-to-consumer unit “focused on engaging audiences and building new platforms.” The...
By Dade Hayes and Dawn C. Chmielewski June 20, 2018 | Disney CEO Bob Iger said changes in consumer habits are driving the company’s aggressive pursuit of 21st Century Fox studio and network assets. Facing historic levels of competition from Netflix and other digital players, traditional media powers have no choice but to act, he said in a conference call this morning with Wall Street analysts. “Direct-to-consumer distribution has actually become an even more...
By Janko Roettgers July 19, 2018 | Roku plans to launch a marketplace for video subscription services in the coming months, which will allow consumers to sign up for and watch subscription services without the need to download separate apps on Roku devices, Variety has learned from multiple sources familiar with the company’s plans. The marketplace is said to be similar to Amazon Channels, a popular à la...
By Gerry Smith and Scott Moritz June 15, 2018 | HBO’s new owner is looking to devote more money to the network behind “Game of Thrones” and “Westworld.” John Stankey, the incoming head of AT&T Inc.’s entertainment division, plans to boost the service's original-programming budget to keep pace with deep-pocketed rivals like Netflix Inc. AT&T took over HBO and the rest of Time Warner Inc. on...
By Dawn C. Chmielewski and Dade Hayes June 14, 2018 | Comcast is prepared to make concessions, including shedding Fox’s stake in the online streaming service Hulu, in order to win regulatory approval for its $65 billion offer to acquire most of 21st Century Fox’s film and television assets, according to sources. The U.S. cable giant, in a competing bid submitted yesterday, promised to match any of the remedies...