Mediagazer: X begins making ad revenue payouts to smaller creators, after issuing payments to select accounts in July 2023; how X calculates the payouts remains unclear (Elizabeth de Luna/Mashable)

2:55 PM ET, August 9, 2023

Top News:

Blake Brittain / Reuters:

Gizmodo EIC Dan Ackerman sues Apple, the Tetris Company, and others, accusing them of adapting his book about Tetris into a feature film without his permission — Dan Ackerman, editor in chief of the tech-news website Gizmodo, filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court on Monday accusing Apple …

Discussion: Plagiarism Today, IndieWire, New York Post, PC Gamer, @11thjeff, @xpangler, @reedalbergotti, Metro, The Verge, Talking Biz News, Engadget, The Wrap, Variety, 9to5Mac and AppleInsider, more at Techmeme »

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

The RNC picks Fox Business to host the second GOP presidential primary debate on September 27, after Fox News hosts the first debate later on August 23 — It's now two-for-two for the Murdoch empire when it comes to presidential candidate forums. — The Republican National Committee …

Discussion: The Wrap, @jeremymbarr, UPI, Deadline, The Hill, @wlabovitz, @brianstelter, @politicoalex, @joelmathis.bsky.social, New York Daily News and Semafor

Steven Waldman / The Atlantic:

Funding US local news, which may cost ~$1.5B per year to sustain 25,000 local reporter positions, would more than pay for itself and “save American democracy” — The decline of local journalism isn't just a threat to democracy. It's also costing us money. — Zak podmore did not bring down a corrupt mayor.

Discussion: Media Nation, American Press Institute, @jrussellmi, @mckaycoppins, @stevenwaldman, @dlberes and @bykenarmstrong

Scott Roxborough / The Hollywood Reporter:

RTL Deutschland launches a €12.99 per month “all-in-one” streaming bundle with video, live sports, music, podcasts, audiobooks, and digital magazines — The new “all-inclusive” platform is promising German subscribers a one-stop-shop for video, live-sports, music, podcasts …

Discussion: The Desk

Joe Otterson / Variety:

Wonya Lucas, who became the president and CEO of Hallmark Media in 2020, plans to depart the company at the end of 2023 but will continue on its board — Hallmark Media president and CEO Wonya Lucas will depart the company at the end of the year. Upon her departure, Lucas will continue …

Discussion: TheBlaze, The Desk, Cord Cutters News, The Wrap, Advanced Television, Next TV, The Hollywood Reporter, WORLD SCREEN, Adweek and Deadline

Amanda Meade / The Guardian:

Australia's ABC shutters all but four of its accounts on X, citing “toxic interactions” and cost, amid shifting resources to TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram — The public broadcaster says interactions on the platform are ‘toxic’ as it closes almost all its Twitter accounts

Discussion: New York Times, Reclaim The Net, @qanda, @markdistef, @zachvat@newsie.social, @archcontext, @sirsteven, @markdistef, The Desk, @Greguti@pouet.chapril.org and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »

Axios:

Penn Entertainment is selling Barstool Sports back to founder Dave Portnoy, who has accepted certain noncompete agreements; Penn had bought Barstool for $551M — - Tim Baysinger- Kerry Flynn- Sara Fischer — ESPN on Tuesday announced a betting joint venture with casino operator PENN Entertainment …

Katherine Sayre / Wall Street Journal:
ESPN's deal allowing Penn to use its brand for ESPN Bet is worth $2B over 10 years: $1.5B in cash plus warrants worth about $500M to purchase shares in Penn

Discussion: Financial Times, Front Office Sports, Barrett Media, CNN, The Streamable, New York Post and Awful Announcing

ESPN Press Room U.S.:
ESPN and Penn Entertainment announce a deal to launch ESPN Bet, as Penn rebrands its sportsbook in the 16 US states where it is licensed; PENN jumps ~15%

Pamela McClintock / Hollywood Reporter:

Netflix reopens NYC's iconic Paris Theater after major upgrades, with plans to screen its original movies and host special events, retrospectives, and more — The iconic cinema will be able to screen 70mm film for the first time in years and also has a new Dolby Atmos system.

Lara O'Reilly / Insider:

Private equity firm Novacap acquires TV adtech company Cadent from Lee Equity Partners, a source says for $600M — - PE firm Novacap has acquired TV adtech company Cadent. — The deal is valued at around $600 million, according to a source. — Cadent now plans an acquisition spree to bolster the platform's growth.

Discussion: Axios, AdExchanger, Next TV and Advanced Television

Reuters:

The WGA strike hits 100 days: negotiations with major studios are stalled and writers are protesting what they describe as a disregard for their demands — The Hollywood writers' strike marks 100 days on Wednesday with contract talks stalled and people on the picket lines protesting what they describe as a disregard for their demands.

Variety:

Source: Comcast-owned Sky, the UK's largest pay-TV broadcaster, gives up the rights to broadcast the Oscars, acquired from the BBC in 2004, as ratings decline — After a 20-year pact, the Oscars will no longer broadcast on Sky in the U.K., Variety has confirmed.

Discussion: The Hollywood Reporter, @goldbart1, Deadline and Advanced Television

Elizabeth de Luna / Mashable:

X begins making ad revenue payouts to smaller creators, after issuing payments to select accounts in July 2023; how X calculates the payouts remains unclear — ‘$8 to make $370 is a fantastic ROI for something I do anyway,’ one creator tweeted. … X is finally paying smaller creators …

Discussion: TechCrunch, Engadget, MarTech, @support, Techlusive, The Information, Forbes, Adweek and The Wrap, more at Techmeme »

Martin K.N Siele / Rest of World:

In Kenya, TikTok's most active African country, creators make money hosting protest livestreams, which protesters say help them stay safe from police violence — At least 23 people have reportedly been killed as crowds oppose proposed tax increases. — • NAIROBI, KENYA

Discussion: Fox News and Reuters Institute, more at Techmeme »

Catherine Perloff / Adweek:

Google renames “in-stream ads” to “skippable ads”, to “more accurately describe the ad format”, after an Adalytics report accused YouTube of misleading buyers — What was once in-stream ads are now skippable ads — Google removed “in-stream” …

more at Techmeme »

Ben Schoon / 9to5Google:
YouTube plans to stop showing recommended videos in some places, including on the homepage, if a logged-in user's watch history feature is turned off entirely

Discussion: Techlusive, @sportstvratings, The Verge, Engadget, @carnage4life@mas.to and TechCrunch, more at Techmeme »

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More News:

Sophie Culpepper / Nieman Lab:
A look at Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang's “transparency portal”, launched to improve audience trust after facing criticism for a botched story

Gavin J Blair / The Hollywood Reporter:
Sony Pictures reports Q1 profit down 68% YoY to $115M, revenue down 6% YoY to $2.3B, and forecasts unchanged FY 2023 profit; Music profit rose 20% YoY to $86M

Discussion: The Wrap, Associated Press, Sony, Sony, Deadline and Variety, more at Techmeme »

Committee to Protect Journalists:
A look at the increasingly hostile environment for journalism in the Netherlands, where the 2021 killing of journalist Peter R de Vries has had ripple effects

Discussion: Voice of America, @pressfreedom, @naomizeveloff, @cpj_eurasia, @pressfreedom and @pressfreedom

Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:
An analysis of Paramount's $1.62B deal to sell Simon & Schuster to PE firm KKR, in which Simon & Schuster employees receive an ownership stake in the company

Discussion: @mariskreizman, @vanityfair, Yahoo News, Los Angeles Times, Publishers Weekly, Fast Company, ScheerPost.com and UPI

Kate Harloe / Popula:
The Albany Public Libraries partnered with the city's local paper, the Times Union, to produce a series of articles and examine what kind of news locals needed

Discussion: @sleslie@mastodon.social, @maria@thelife.boats, @philmeyer@newsie.social and @shannonmattern.bsky.social

Earlier Picks:

Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Endeavor says the ongoing Hollywood strikes are expected to the cost the company ~$25M per month in revenue, but the company will stand with its clients

Discussion: Deadline and The Wrap

Jeff Kosseff / Wired:
Unlike in Gonzalez v. Google, SCOTUS in the next year can't just punt the NetChoice cases challenging social media content moderation laws in Texas and Florida

Discussion: @joeo10@mastodon.sdf.org and @PrivacyDigest@mas.to

Natalie Korach / The Wrap:
BuzzFeed misses with Q2 revenue down 27% YoY to $77.9M, ad revenue down 33% YoY to $35.4M, and a net loss of $27.8M vs. $23.6M in Q2 2022

Discussion: AdExchanger, @ckrewson, @baekdal, @jordannovet, @matthewkeyslive, The Hollywood Reporter, BuzzFeed Inc. and Business Wire

Mark Hicks / The Detroit News:
Bob Giles, who led two newsrooms to Pulitzers, oversaw Nieman Journalism Lab's launch, and selected and hosted hundreds of Nieman Fellows at Harvard, dies at 90

Discussion: @jodeet, @bethelmckenzie, @erniesuggs, @tommytomlinson, Detroit Free Press and Nieman Foundation

Sara Fischer / Axios:
The Atlantic CEO Nicholas Thompson says the outlet hopes to be profitable in 2024, plans to seek higher-margin ad deals, and has 925K subscribers

Discussion: Media Voices and @sarafischer

From Techmeme:

Gavin Anderegg / anderegg.ca:
Bluesky is working to become fully decentralized but it could take years amid financial concerns as it makes money only by selling domains for usernames

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
How Tim Cook may navigate Trump's presidency, a closer look at Apple's upcoming smart home command center, sources detail a new AirTag coming in 2025, and more

Wall Street Journal:
Sources: ByteDance is valuing itself at about $300B as part of a recent buyback offer, one of its highest valuations ever

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