Mediagazer: Q&A with Danny Fisher, CEO of FilmRise, the largest independent content provider to AVOD services, on finding undervalued shows, his business model, and more (Scott Roxborough/The Hollywood Reporter)

Top News:

Sports Illustrated publisher Arena Group is working with AI startups Jasper and Nota to help produce articles from its own content library and pitch journalists — Arena Group uses the technology to help produce Men's Journal pieces such as workout tips — The publisher of Sports Illustrated …

Discussion: Business Wire, Insider, @jjvincent, @heyjasperai, @lilyraynyc, @alexweprin, The Verge, @stevekovach, @heyrosenberg and @harrymccracken, more at Techmeme »

Erin Woo / The Information:

Source, document, and emails: PepsiCo and Anheuser-Busch committed to $3M+ and $2.4M, respectively, for Twitter takeover ads before and during the Super Bowl — After weeks of turmoil and layoffs, Twitter's sales team in recent weeks has reorganized to focus more on big advertisers and launch …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Front Office Sports, @jbflint, The Indian Express, @shortingisfun, TechCrunch and The Drum, more at Techmeme »

Kelsey Weekman / BuzzFeed News:

After YouTuber Mr. Beast made a video about paying for 1,000 blind people's eye surgery, critics raise questions about “stunt philanthropy” and “charity porn” — Is it stunt philanthropy or self-funded charity in the YouTube age? — A YouTuber just helped treat 1,000 people with blindness and low vision.

Discussion: @rubensteinadam, @loudmouthjulia, @bendreyfuss, @sonnybunch, @ambiej, @g17esiason, @varadmehta, Insider and Fortune

Scott Roxborough / The Hollywood Reporter:

Q&A with Danny Fisher, CEO of FilmRise, the largest independent content provider to AVOD services, on finding undervalued shows, his business model, and more — By betting big, and early, on the potential of advertising-backed streaming, Danny Fisher has grown the firm …

Frank Bajak / Associated Press:

Microsoft researchers say state-backed Iranian hackers hit Charlie Hebdo with a hack-and-leak campaign after Hebdo's December 2022 contest mocking Iran's leader — After the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo launched a cartoon contest to mock Iran's ruling cleric …

Discussion: @fbajak

Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:

Amazon reports content spending up 28% YoY to $16.6B in 2022, of which ~$7B went to originals, live sports, and licensed third-party content included with Prime — The expenses related to video and music content were up 28 percent from 2021, when the tech giant spent $13 billion.

Discussion: TechCrunch and Deadline, more at Techmeme »

Mitchell Clark / The Verge:

Elon Musk says Twitter will start sharing revenue from reply-thread ads with users who pay for Twitter Blue, starting on February 3, but doesn't give details — Elon Musk says that Twitter will start sharing revenue from reply-thread ads with creators who are subscribed to Twitter Blue Verified.

Discussion: The Wrap, Social Media Today, New York Daily News, @thoughtfulnz, Engadget, The Information, @morningbrew, @libshipwreck, @sdkstl and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Kamran Haider / Bloomberg:

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority blocks Wikipedia in the country, saying the site failed to remove “sacrilegious” content within a 48-hour deadline — Pakistan has blocked Wikipedia services in the South Asian nation after the platform failed to remove “sacrilegious” content.

Discussion: @faseehmangi, The Register, The Indian Express and MediaNama, more at Techmeme »

Emily Leedham / PressProgress:

Canada's Overstory Media Group, which presented itself as a local news savior and set a goal of hiring 250 journalists by 2023, has 22 journalists after layoffs — Journalists question Overstory Media Group's commitment to local news after gutting flagship Capital Daily's newsroom

Discussion: Ricochet

Jesse Whittock / Deadline:

BFI: production spend in the UK's high-end TV and film industries reached a record £6.3B in 2022, of which 86% came from international streamers and studios — Production spend in the UK high-end TV (HETV) and film industries reached a record £6.3BN ($7.8BN) in 2022, BFI statistics released today reveal.

Discussion: Variety and The Hollywood Reporter

Jess Weatherbed / The Verge:

YouTube rolls out Go Live Together, a feature that lets creators with 50 or more subscribers co-host livestreams with one guest at a time, on iOS and Android — YouTube is rolling out a collaboration feature that allows two users to livestream together. “Go Live Together” …

Discussion: @kantrowitz, Engadget, Insider and 9to5Google, more at Techmeme »

Mandy Dalugdug / Music Business Worldwide:

Los Angeles-based Shamrock Capital raises $600M+ for its third equity fund, investing in film, television, music, video games, sports rights, and other content — Los Angeles-based investment company Shamrock Capital has raised more than $600 million in commitments for its third equity fund …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal and Billboard