By Carolyn Giardina July 26, 2018 | Technicolor is shutting down its feature film sound and immersive sound units by the end of the year, after honoring current commitments to clients, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The company intends to refocus its sound resources on sound for episodic series and other streaming content. It will also concentrate its production services on VFX and color...
By Tara Lachapelle July 25, 2018 | No, AT&T probably isn’t going to ruin HBO. John Stankey, the longtime AT&T Inc. executive appointed to run its recently acquired Time Warner division (now called WarnerMedia), caused quite a stir this month in his and AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson’s early days as media moguls. The New York Times got its hands on a recording of Stankey speaking alongside HBO...
By Todd Spangler June 20, 2018 | Walt Disney Animation Studios will debut its first virtual-reality short film next month, marking a new experiment by a major studio to use the power of VR to enhance storytelling. The short film, “Cycles,” is directed by Disney Animation lighting artist Jeff Gipson, marking his VR directorial debut. Read more on Variety. Related Articles: Next UP “Alternate Realities” | How...
By Joe Pompeo July 15, 2018 | As a result of the never-ending AT&T-Time Warner combination, John Stankey has gone from being Richard Plepler’s suitor to becoming his boss. (On Thursday, despite the deal’s closure, the Department of Justice announced it would appeal a federal verdict that approved the sale.) Subsequently, the media world has become endlessly fascinated by how a...
By Dino-Ray Ramos July 8, 2018 | AT&T executive-turned-head of Warner Media John Stankey spoke at a town hall in New York and addressed the changes to come for HBO after the $85.4 billion merger between AT&T and Time Warner. Although Stankey didn’t mention streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, there were hints that he wanted to pave a road to be more of a streaming giant considering the...
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 Ben Munson June 22, 2018 | The Walt Disney Company is promising to sell off even more Fox assets if its $71 billion deal for the company’s studio and cable network businesses earns regulatory approval. In a filing with the SEC, Disney said that it would be willing to part ways with Fox assets representing up to $1 billion in total EBITDA. That’s an...
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...