By David McLaughlin, Andrew M Harris, and Scott Moritz February 26, 2019 | AT&T Inc. beat back another effort by the U.S. to undo its purchase of Time Warner, cementing an $85 billion deal to help it compete with Netflix Inc. The U.S. Appeals Court in Washington said Tuesday the Justice Department failed to establish that a lower-court judge made a clear error when he rejected...
Instead of trying to sell American ideas to a foreign audience, it’s aiming to sell international ideas to a global audience. By Farhad Manjoo February 22, 2019 | For months after the 2016 election, I wanted nothing more than to escape America. I don’t mean literally — in the cliché liberal way of absconding to Canada — but intellectually, socially, psychically. Donald Trump...
By Dade Hayes February 19, 2019 | When Disney’s $71.3 billion deal to acquire most of 21st Century Fox closes in the coming weeks, the combined company will remain an appealing target for investors, but only those willing to indulge hefty near-term spending on direct-to-consumer streaming. That’s the basic takeaway from a new research report by Macquarie analysts Tim Nollen and Stephen Beckett. Read more on Deadline. Related Articles: Disney’s...
By Matt Donnelly February 19, 2019 | Paramount Pictures has promoted Mary Daily, the current international marketing and home entertainment head, to co-president of worldwide marketing and distribution. Daily will join incoming co-president Marc Weinstock in the role. Variety previously, exclusively reported that Weinstock, former president of Annapurna Films, would be coming to the storied Hollywood lot to replace David Sameth. Both executives will report to Paramount CEO...
By Greg Tarr February 19, 2019 | In a head scratching development, Samsung confirmed reports that it will no long introduce new Blu-ray or 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player models in the U.S. market. The company issued the terse confirmation statement to us Monday, without explanation for the move, after the news was first reported in Forbes article late last week. Read more on...
By Todd Spangler February 14, 2019 | Walmart is using virtual reality to — what else? — get people excited to buy stuff. The retailer teamed up with DreamWorks Animation for a touring VR experience tied to “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.” Walmart is setting up installations in parking lots of its stores in 16 cities, starting Friday (Feb. 15) in Burbank and culminating...
By Martin Peers February 13, 2019 | As several of the big entertainment companies move toward the launch of Netflix-like video streaming services, the big questions for investors are how big a business will they build—and how much money will they lose along the way. To get a sense of that, we dug into some numbers. Consider this: To cover what we estimate...
By Elaine Low February 13, 2019 | Amazon has a firm grip on online shoppers. Now it is broadcasting its goals to expand its reach globally through television and movies. “International productions are such an important part of our business,” said Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke at the Television Critics Assn. winter press tour on Wednesday. The studio arm of the e-commerce and web services giant has greenlit...
By Alex Sherman February 13, 2019 | Apple is in the final stages of preparing its new streaming video service, which will feature free original content for device owners and a subscription platform for existing digital services. But don't expect Netflix to be a part of it, and HBO's participation is also in doubt, according to people familiar with the matter. Read more on CNBC. Related Articles: Amazon...
By Wendy Lee February 12, 2019 | WarnerMedia will first launch a beta of its new streaming service with content from its library in the fourth quarter, followed by the introduction of original content on the platform in 2020, an executive said on Monday. “It is our belief over time it will become one of the sought-after entertainment platforms in the world,” said Kevin...
