Top News:
Jessica Toonkel / The Information:
Sources: WarnerMedia is weighing two new streaming services, with a subscription service based on CNN content in 2021 and a free entertainment service for 2022 — AT&T's WarnerMedia, long a giant in cable TV, was a late arrival to streaming video. Under its new CEO, Jason Kilar, Warner is trying to make up for lost time.
Discussion:
CNBC, The Desk, @jtoonkel, @sherman4949, @carlquintanilla, @jyarow, @sherman4949, @sherman4949, @deepbagchee, @megancgraham, @rozzy, @stevekopack, @readdanwrite, @jackshafer, @awallenstein, @brianlring, @benmullin, @jbenton, @pkafka, @juancpedreira, @nickwingfield, @pkafka, @loudmouthjulia, @pkafka, @scottnover and @jackshafer, more at Techmeme »
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Peter White / Deadline:
HBO Max Global head Andy Forssell says the service will expand to Latin America in mid-year 2021 and then Europe in 2021's second half; goal is 190 countries — HBO Max is looking to make original DC Comics-based content outside of the U.S. for the first time.
Discussion:
@richardlnewby, @cbnostalgia, LABS English, PR Newswire, Broadband TV News and ScreenRant
Julia Alexander / The Verge:
Warner Bros. says it will release every single movie in 2021 simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max in the US and stream them for one month
Discussion:
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Peter Kafka / Vox:
Q&A with WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar on the logic behind simultaneous release of movies to HBO Max and theaters, economic fallout for talent, and Roku progress
Discussion:
CNBC, The Verge, CNET, Pressroom, Deadline, Light Reading, @tvgrimreaper, Decider, Polygon, Sparrow One, @sherman4949, The Ringer, @loudmouthjulia, @jimmaiella, @arlolikesmovies, @keithcalder, @pkafka, Context is King, ScreenRant, The Wrap and Collider
Stephanie Sengwe / The Streamable:
HBO Max removes its free trial option ahead of the release of Wonder Woman 1984 on Dec. 25, mirroring a step Netflix and Disney+ have taken before big releases
Discussion:
Variety, Deadline, The Wrap, @deadline, Screen Time, @carlquintanilla, @deadline, Hollywood Reporter, MediaPost, Mediaite, Adweek, TechCrunch, Ad Age, CINEMABLEND and Streaming
Katie Robertson / New York Times:
Tribune Publishing, part-owned by Alden Global Capital, is closing the Hartford Courant's newsroom on Dec. 27; journalists will work remotely into 2021 — The Hartford Courant, the Connecticut newspaper that has been in print since 1764, when it chronicled the locals' dissatisfaction with British rule …
Discussion:
@courantguild, The Hill, @alecmacgillis, @tomkrazit, @davidchang, @matt_velazquez, @mcfarland_shawn, @saragregory, @bookgirl96, @courantguild, @wolfe321, @courantguild, @xshularx, @katie_robertson, @brian_donlon, @tomforemancnn, @edokeefe, @mmcintire, @kgmcwilliams, @repjohnlarson, @hayley__harding and @i_m_m
Emily Bell / Columbia Journalism Review:
The remit of Facebook's Oversight Board is narrow by design and its 90-day time frame per case is too long, hindering its ability to have any lasting impact — This week saw the long-awaited public debut of Facebook's Oversight Board, a group of 20 eminent lawyers, human-rights experts …
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, @cjr, VentureBeat, Foreign Policy, @campuscodi, Business Insider, Oversight Board and Media Matters for America, more at Techmeme »
The Daily Beast:
Fox staffers say Porter Berry, EIC of FoxNews.com and former Hannity producer, has shifted the site's tone to mirror the channel's opinion content — According to insiders, Hannity and the network's right-wing opinion side have managed, as if by proxy, to influence the content of FoxNews.com, the channel's website.
Discussion:
@maxwelltani, @thedailybeast and @noahshachtman
Maxwell Tani / The Daily Beast:
~100 Meredith staff working for Entertainment Weekly, Martha Stewart Living, Shape, and PeopleTV have announced their intention to form a joint editorial union — The move among at least 100 staffers at the Iowa-based publishing giant is partially seen as a bulwark against Meredith's pandemic-related cuts.
Discussion:
@imjasondiamond, @taylorjwofford, @maxwelltani, @esile1 and @jackdickey
Alex Norcia / Columbia Journalism Review:
Profile of Enrique Abeyta, a metalhead former hedge fund manager who has bought Revolver, Inked, and The Hard Times, expanding e-commerce with long-term goals — Enrique Abeyta, a former hedge-funder, goes all in on metalhead media — Matt Saincome was used to ignoring people.
Discussion:
@cjr, @cjr, @cjr, @herbgreenberg, @mattsaincome, @mathewi, @betsymorais, @enriqueabeyta and @alex_norcia
Kayleigh Barber / Digiday:
Wired says 30% of revenue now comes via subscriptions and affiliate revenue, up from 20% earlier in 2020, as Black Friday and Cyber Monday boosted subscriptions — Black Friday and Cyber Monday (which has been stretched into a Cyber Week this year) were expected to be bountiful for Wired's affiliate e-commerce business.
Discussion:
The Agency Side
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
Zephr, a London startup that offers a no-code tool publishers can use to increase subscription revenue, raises $8M Series A led by Bertelsmann Digital Media — Zephr has raised $8 million in a new funding round led by Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (owned by media giant Bertelsmann).
Discussion:
@zephrglobal, Zephr Blog and Zephr Blog, more at Techmeme »
Hollywood Reporter:
Activision sues Netflix for poaching its CFO, says Netflix induced him to breach his contract; Fox and Viacom also have said Netflix illegally poached staff — The gaming giant alleges “Netflix's tortious and unethical conduct is intentional and a directive ‘from the top.’”
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Reuters, PC Gamer, Bloomberg, Axios, Variety and The Wrap, more at Techmeme »
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Mitch McConnell has moved to end debate on a Trump nominee that would deadlock FCC when Biden takes office and for months after, setting up a vote next week — Cloture motion could end debate and advance nominee to Senate vote next week. — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) …
Dade Hayes / Deadline:
Amazon adds live and on-demand US local news to its news app on Fire TVs, starting with 12 major markets and expanding into 90 more during 2021 — At the end of a record-setting year of news consumption, Amazon Fire TV said local TV stations in 12 U.S. cities will be added to Amazon's news app, with another 90 on deck for 2021.
Discussion:
MediaPost, @adamwiener, Amazon Fire TV, Engadget and Android Central, more at Techmeme »
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