Attending the Consumer Electronics Show is an eye-opening experience that offers intriguing glimpses into the future and an overwhelming amount of information about how the media, entertainment and tech industries are evolving in the present day.
For the past decade, Variety has partnered with the Consumer Technology Association to help Hollywood players navigate a fast-changing marketplace with an entertainment business-focused track of programming at the big show.
On this special edition of Variety podcast “Strictly Business,” our editorial team goes deep on the trends, innovations and industry rumors that swirled around Sin City as the tech, media and business worlds converged on Las Vegas this week. The daylong Variety Entertaiment Summit on Jan. 10 served up a powerhouse slate of executives, entrepreneurs, movers and shakers and even a TikTok star in comedian Leenda Dong.
As ever, Team Variety‘s mission is to track trends and new developments in content production and monetization,...
For the past decade, Variety has partnered with the Consumer Technology Association to help Hollywood players navigate a fast-changing marketplace with an entertainment business-focused track of programming at the big show.
On this special edition of Variety podcast “Strictly Business,” our editorial team goes deep on the trends, innovations and industry rumors that swirled around Sin City as the tech, media and business worlds converged on Las Vegas this week. The daylong Variety Entertaiment Summit on Jan. 10 served up a powerhouse slate of executives, entrepreneurs, movers and shakers and even a TikTok star in comedian Leenda Dong.
As ever, Team Variety‘s mission is to track trends and new developments in content production and monetization,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Disney plans to increase spending on Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution (Dmed) programming by more than $1 billion this quarter versus the same period last year.
For the current quarter, the company plans to up its spending on direct-to-consumer programming by between $800 million and $1 billion versus the comparable fiscal 2021 quarter, CFO Christine McCarthy said during Disney’s fiscal Q1 2022 earnings call Wednesday. On the linear network side, content spend is expected to go up by approximately $500 million.
“It’s all about content, content, content,” CEO Bob Chapek said on the call, which followed Disney’s announcement that Disney Plus had reached nearly 130 million subscribers by the end of 2021.
Disney Plus has achieved its goal of premiering one new title each week, Chapek said, and overall wants to double content output. By 2023, Disney will evaluate raising the price of Disney Plus once it achieves its target for new content.
“We are bullish...
For the current quarter, the company plans to up its spending on direct-to-consumer programming by between $800 million and $1 billion versus the comparable fiscal 2021 quarter, CFO Christine McCarthy said during Disney’s fiscal Q1 2022 earnings call Wednesday. On the linear network side, content spend is expected to go up by approximately $500 million.
“It’s all about content, content, content,” CEO Bob Chapek said on the call, which followed Disney’s announcement that Disney Plus had reached nearly 130 million subscribers by the end of 2021.
Disney Plus has achieved its goal of premiering one new title each week, Chapek said, and overall wants to double content output. By 2023, Disney will evaluate raising the price of Disney Plus once it achieves its target for new content.
“We are bullish...
- 2/9/2022
- by Jennifer Maas
- Variety Film + TV
In media, it’s the age of optimization and personalization.
How Hollywood harnesses technology to meet consumer demand for ever-more forms of content served up on an ever-widening array of platforms was the focus of Variety’s Winter Entertainment Summit, which ran virtually from Jan. 26-27. Industry insiders from a range of disciplines — from streaming content to live entertainment, technology and engineering to advertising and marketing — weighed in on the trends and hurdles that will shape the course of business in 2022.
Here are seven key takeaways from Variety’s Winter Entertainment Summit:
Navigating the Big Pivot
George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS and chief content officer of Paramount Plus, has been focused on the evolution of the Eye network and how CBS’ muscle can help bolster ViacomCBS’ streaming priorities, Paramount Plus and Pluto TV.
“We’ve got to evolve the CBS brand from a linear-only network to a multi-platform content brand,...
How Hollywood harnesses technology to meet consumer demand for ever-more forms of content served up on an ever-widening array of platforms was the focus of Variety’s Winter Entertainment Summit, which ran virtually from Jan. 26-27. Industry insiders from a range of disciplines — from streaming content to live entertainment, technology and engineering to advertising and marketing — weighed in on the trends and hurdles that will shape the course of business in 2022.
Here are seven key takeaways from Variety’s Winter Entertainment Summit:
Navigating the Big Pivot
George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS and chief content officer of Paramount Plus, has been focused on the evolution of the Eye network and how CBS’ muscle can help bolster ViacomCBS’ streaming priorities, Paramount Plus and Pluto TV.
“We’ve got to evolve the CBS brand from a linear-only network to a multi-platform content brand,...
- 1/29/2022
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
HBO and HBO Max rounded out 2021 with 73.8 million global subscribers, WarnerMedia parent company AT&T revealed in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.
The figure exceeds the company’s prior guidance that end-of-year subscribers would fall at the high end of the 70 million to 73 million target. It’s likely that a robust, audience-pleasing content slate on HBO and HBO Max in late 2021 — which included Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi blockbuster “Dune” (pictured) and “The Matrix Resurrections” as well as “Sex & The City” sequel “And Just Like That” — helped to draw subscribers.
Global HBO Max and HBO subscribers comprise domestic and international HBO Max and HBO subscribers, and excludes free trials, basic and Cinemax subscribers. Meanwhile, domestic HBO Max and HBO subscribers consist of U.S. accounts with access to HBO Max (including wholesale subscribers that may not have signed in) and HBO accounts, and also exclude free trials and Cinemax subscribers.
WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar,...
The figure exceeds the company’s prior guidance that end-of-year subscribers would fall at the high end of the 70 million to 73 million target. It’s likely that a robust, audience-pleasing content slate on HBO and HBO Max in late 2021 — which included Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi blockbuster “Dune” (pictured) and “The Matrix Resurrections” as well as “Sex & The City” sequel “And Just Like That” — helped to draw subscribers.
Global HBO Max and HBO subscribers comprise domestic and international HBO Max and HBO subscribers, and excludes free trials, basic and Cinemax subscribers. Meanwhile, domestic HBO Max and HBO subscribers consist of U.S. accounts with access to HBO Max (including wholesale subscribers that may not have signed in) and HBO accounts, and also exclude free trials and Cinemax subscribers.
WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar,...
- 1/5/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, or HBO Max can be a good one-stop shop for your media needs, but if you’re a fan of East Asian media and are looking for a deeper library of content, then there are more focused platforms in which to consider investing your time and money. British drama fans have Acorn TV and BritBox for when they’re looking to dip below the basic offerings of a mainstream streamer (mainstreamer?), and fans of East Asian content have Rakuten Viki, a California-based company that specializes in original and licensed content from Japan, Korea, China, and Taiwan. If you’re a longtime watcher of K-dramas or C-dramas, then you probably already know and use Viki, but if you’re relatively new to the world of foreign-language entertainment, then let me illuminate you…
Viki has been around since 2007, when it was launched as a streaming platform for international TV.
Viki has been around since 2007, when it was launched as a streaming platform for international TV.
- 8/28/2021
- by Kayti Burt
- Den of Geek
Endeavor aims to raise about $511 million with its initial public offering that will value the parent company of WME and UFC at about $10 billion.
Early Tuesday, Endeavor filed its full prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company aims to sell 21.3 million shares priced at $23-$24 per share. Endeavor is also doing a private sale of preferred shares to raise about $1.7 billion in order to buy out the remaining 49% of UFC that it does not already own.
The company plans to use $835.7 million of the funds for the UFC buyout, coming five years after Endeavor acquired the 50.1% majority stake in the mixed martial arts promoter for $4.4 billion in 2016. Firms taking part in the private placement include China’s Tencent, Elliott Investment Management, Mudabala Investment Co., Capital Research and Management, Third Point, Tako Ventures, Zeke Capital Advisors and Silver Lake Partners.
Click here to sign up for Variety’s new Media Earnings newsletter.
Early Tuesday, Endeavor filed its full prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company aims to sell 21.3 million shares priced at $23-$24 per share. Endeavor is also doing a private sale of preferred shares to raise about $1.7 billion in order to buy out the remaining 49% of UFC that it does not already own.
The company plans to use $835.7 million of the funds for the UFC buyout, coming five years after Endeavor acquired the 50.1% majority stake in the mixed martial arts promoter for $4.4 billion in 2016. Firms taking part in the private placement include China’s Tencent, Elliott Investment Management, Mudabala Investment Co., Capital Research and Management, Third Point, Tako Ventures, Zeke Capital Advisors and Silver Lake Partners.
Click here to sign up for Variety’s new Media Earnings newsletter.
- 4/20/2021
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Oscar-nominated documentary “Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah” is the first Academy Award nominee to be released as an Nft (non-fungible token).
The film, which examines the life and work of the “Shoah” director, was a contender in the 2016 documentary short Oscar race and aired on HBO; however, it’s never been made available for public purchase, either physically or digitally.
Enter the Nft: the latest fad in digital commerce. The tokens effectively provide a method of authenticating a piece of digital content, based on blockchain technology, allowing anyone to trace it back to the original owner. In this way, it certifies and tracks the ownership of a unique digital asset.
The market for NFTs has skyrocketed in recent weeks, as some buyers have speculated that the value of their NFTs could appreciate in value. Last week, a piece of digital artwork by Mike Winkelmann, the digital artist known as Beeple,...
The film, which examines the life and work of the “Shoah” director, was a contender in the 2016 documentary short Oscar race and aired on HBO; however, it’s never been made available for public purchase, either physically or digitally.
Enter the Nft: the latest fad in digital commerce. The tokens effectively provide a method of authenticating a piece of digital content, based on blockchain technology, allowing anyone to trace it back to the original owner. In this way, it certifies and tracks the ownership of a unique digital asset.
The market for NFTs has skyrocketed in recent weeks, as some buyers have speculated that the value of their NFTs could appreciate in value. Last week, a piece of digital artwork by Mike Winkelmann, the digital artist known as Beeple,...
- 3/15/2021
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Some subscribers to HBO Max got an unexpected preview of “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” on Monday when the four-hour superhero movie started playing instead of the Warner Bros. film “Tom and Jerry.”
Doug Bass, a realtor and digital marketing analyst based in Charlotte, N.C., tells Variety he was “just looking for some background TV while I worked, and when I clicked on ‘Tom and Jerry,’ [the] Snyder Cut started playing.”
Bass quickly posted a screenshot from the movie featuring the back of Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), joking that someone at HBO Max was “getting fired.”
@hbomax someone’s getting fired…Tom and Jerry this is not…#SnyderCut pic.twitter.com/B0ReNp2JR2
— Doug (@ThenDougSaid) March 8, 2021
About an hour into the feed, Bass says, he noticed the definition of the image began to degrade, then an error message appeared on his screen and the film disappeared.
Variety confirmed that the...
Doug Bass, a realtor and digital marketing analyst based in Charlotte, N.C., tells Variety he was “just looking for some background TV while I worked, and when I clicked on ‘Tom and Jerry,’ [the] Snyder Cut started playing.”
Bass quickly posted a screenshot from the movie featuring the back of Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck), joking that someone at HBO Max was “getting fired.”
@hbomax someone’s getting fired…Tom and Jerry this is not…#SnyderCut pic.twitter.com/B0ReNp2JR2
— Doug (@ThenDougSaid) March 8, 2021
About an hour into the feed, Bass says, he noticed the definition of the image began to degrade, then an error message appeared on his screen and the film disappeared.
Variety confirmed that the...
- 3/8/2021
- by Adam B. Vary
- Variety Film + TV
After a month of increasing anxiety and self-isolation due to the coronavirus pandemic, audiences in the U.S. are largely not eager to return to public events once the crisis subsides, according to a new study.
In a survey of 1,000 consumers in the U.S., 44% of respondents said they would attend fewer large public events, even once they are cleared by the Cdc, with 38% saying they’d attend about the same number, and 18% saying they’d attend more. And 47% agreed that the idea of going to a major public event “will scare me for a long time.”
The study was published by Performance Research, a sports and events research firm, in partnership with Full Circle Research Co.
The news for movie theaters was particularly grim, with 49% of respondents saying it would take “a few months” to “possibly never” for them to return, and 28% saying they will attend movie theaters less often once they’re safe.
In a survey of 1,000 consumers in the U.S., 44% of respondents said they would attend fewer large public events, even once they are cleared by the Cdc, with 38% saying they’d attend about the same number, and 18% saying they’d attend more. And 47% agreed that the idea of going to a major public event “will scare me for a long time.”
The study was published by Performance Research, a sports and events research firm, in partnership with Full Circle Research Co.
The news for movie theaters was particularly grim, with 49% of respondents saying it would take “a few months” to “possibly never” for them to return, and 28% saying they will attend movie theaters less often once they’re safe.
- 3/31/2020
- by Adam B. Vary
- Variety Film + TV
Recently, rumors have circulated about Yahoo's plan to turn Tumblr into a potential YouTube competitor. For that to happen, Tumblr's in-house video player need to be on par with its rivals, and the blogging site seems to understand that. It has announced several upgrades to its video player, debuting an automatic playback format that features Vine-like loops. Tumblr announced these upgrades in a blog post accompanied by a very silly introductory video. The main change is the ability to pop out videos and watch them in a separate window while simultaneously scrolling through other posts. The videos will automatically play, though as on Facebook and Vine, sound will be optional. Once completed, videos will loop back to the beginning. "Watch once, twice, forever, whatever," quips Tumblr's post. With these changes in place, is Tumblr ready to challenge the online video world? Some people, such as Todd Spangler of Variety, don't think so.
- 10/23/2014
- by Sam Gutelle
- Tubefilter.com
The best movie culture writing from around the internet-o-sphere. There will be a quiz later. Just leave a tab open for us, will ya? “Why The Conversation Should Be Required Viewing At The Nsa” — Alexander Huls at The Atlantic intelligently stretches an article that could have read “Because Gene Hackman rules.” into a potent exploration of the resonant Francis Ford Coppola spy film. “The Hotel Manager from The Shining Was the First Actor to Play James Bond” — Alison Nastasi at Movies.com briefly shares some cross-over movie trivia. “Five movies that adapt classic literature in unusual ways” — Noel Murray at The Dissolve lists a decently broad array of older stories coming back in new clothing. It turns out that cribbing from Shakespeare might be the best way to make a high school movie bearable. “10 Things in the Cinematic Marvel Universe That Make No Damn Sense” — Rob Bricken at io9 recognizes the head-slappingly dumb things that found their...
- 4/8/2014
- by Scott Beggs
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Look, there was already a site called Multichannel News before we heard about this... from Multichannel News: YouTube Preps 96 Channels With Original Content Google Video Destination Seeks to Create More Advertiser-Friendly Inventory By Todd Spangler -- Multichannel News, 10/28/2011 10:37:09 Pm Google's YouTube, looking to attract more advertising with professionally produced content, plans to launch some 96 new video channels in the next year featuring original content from a range of entertainment, sports and news partners. Content partners YouTube announced late Friday include: Shaquille O'Neal's Comedy Shaq Network, Deepak Chopra's Chopra Media/Generate, The Onion, Thomson Reuters, Slate, Ashton Kutcher, Hearst Magazines, Meredith, Varsity Pictures and The Wall Street Journal, which plans to launch a lifestyle channel covering design, fashion, travel, wine, food and tech. Traditional TV networks and movie studios are largely absent from the lineup. WWE is in the mix with plans to launch something called "WWE Fan Nation,...
- 11/1/2011
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
By Josef Adalian
So much for the liberal bias in Hollywood.
New data from TiVo, expertly analyzed by Multichannel News' Todd Spangler, shows that TNT's "Saving Grace" had a higher concentration of self-identified Democrats in July than any other show on TV.
"Grace," of course, stars Holly Hunter as a boozy, promiscuous cop who seeks justic. So liberal ... and soon, so canceled.
Rupert Murdoch's Fox TV Studios pulled its support from the show over the summer, leading TNT to announce a 2010 end date for the series.
At the time, financial reasons seemed to be beh...
So much for the liberal bias in Hollywood.
New data from TiVo, expertly analyzed by Multichannel News' Todd Spangler, shows that TNT's "Saving Grace" had a higher concentration of self-identified Democrats in July than any other show on TV.
"Grace," of course, stars Holly Hunter as a boozy, promiscuous cop who seeks justic. So liberal ... and soon, so canceled.
Rupert Murdoch's Fox TV Studios pulled its support from the show over the summer, leading TNT to announce a 2010 end date for the series.
At the time, financial reasons seemed to be beh...
- 10/5/2009
- by Adalian
- The Wrap
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