Top News:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Memo: Paramount starts layoffs to reduce costs; sources say ~800 employees, or an estimated 3% of its headcount, are getting cut across all divisions — Paramount Global, amid a swirl of M&A discussions, is laying off about 800 employees worldwide — an estimated 3% of its headcount — as it looks to trim costs.
Discussion:
Deadline, CNBC, Fox Business, Awful Announcing, Observer, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, The Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, Bill Dempsey on LinkedIn, Mark Emerson on LinkedIn, The Desk, New York Daily News, Front Office Sports, Erin Riska on LinkedIn, Zak Brocchini on LinkedIn, Alex Sherman on LinkedIn, CNN, @caplangaby, Joey Esposito on LinkedIn, Engadget, Defector, Deadline, Quartz, Adweek, Barrett News Media, Ad Age, Bloomberg, Reuters, @thesimonetti, The Information, @sherman4949, IndieWire, @sherman4949, The Wrap, Next TV, Fortune, Forbes, Advanced Television and Cord Cutters News
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Alexandra Steigrad / New York Post:
Sources: CBS News was hit with job cuts affecting 20 people, including Catherine Herridge, who is in a legal battle to protect sources of a 2017 Fox News story — Several CBS News reporters were caught up in layoffs at Paramount Global that claimed 800 jobs, including one who is embroiled …
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Forbes' Cyrus Farivar and Poker.org's Haley Hintze face libel lawsuits from Bitcoin Latinum over their coverage of securities fraud lawsuits against the firm — Bitcoin Latinum angry about quotes from fraud lawsuit and Star Trek reference. — The cryptocurrency firm Bitcoin Latinum …
Discussion:
Techdirt and Talking Biz News
Selome Hailu / Variety:
Nielsen and Adobe Analytics: Super Bowl 2024 averaged 123.4M viewers across CBS and streaming services, making the game the most-watched US telecast ever — The Feb. 11 Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers brought in an average of 123.4 million viewers …
Discussion:
The Wrap, CNN, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, CNN, @cbssportsgang, FOX 26 Houston, MarTech, IndieWire, Fast Company, Vanity Fair, The Guardian, VIBE.com, Andrew Steinberg on LinkedIn, @deggans, Bleacher Report, Poynter, @claytravis, Shelly Palmer, Billboard, Dr Rochelle Parks-Yancy on LinkedIn, New York Times, Financial Times, Paramount Press Express, Adweek, Mediaite, Awful Announcing, Sports Media Watch, Los Angeles Times, CNBC, The Wrap, TVLine, Reuters, Fox Business, GoldDerby, Decider and Wall Street Journal
Mark Stenberg / Adweek:
Axel Springer announces its first US leadership team, a 10-person group that includes Politico Europe co-founder Gabriel Brotman, a sign of its US ambitions — The 10-person cohort includes five new hires and points toward centralization — German media company Axel Springer announced …
Bloomberg:
A look at Adobe's careful adoption of AI, pushed by Dall-E and Midjourney, as it tries to differentiate its tools by emphasizing brand safety and IP protections — Dall-E and Midjourney pushed the Photoshop behemoth to develop Firefly, a suite of AI tools. Will creatives get on board?
Kristin Robinson / Billboard:
The Mechanical Licensing Collective sues Pandora for allegedly failing to adequately pay and report monthly royalties, including for its ad-supported tier — This is the first time the mechanical licensing organization has filed a lawsuit against a streaming service.
Discussion:
Inside Radio, Radio & Television …, The Desk, Music Business Worldwide, RouteNote Blog, CMU and Digital Music News
Georg Szalai / The Hollywood Reporter:
Q&A with Marc Jury, the CEO of African streamer Showmax, on doubling down on originals, working with Comcast, the appeal of the English Premier League, and more — Marc Jury discusses the appeal of the English Premier League, the challenges of serving 44 markets across sub-Saharan Africa …
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Memo: SiriusXM plans to cut ~160 jobs, or ~3% of its workforce, after laying off 475 employees, or ~8% of its workforce, in March 2023 — SiriusXM is eliminating about 160 jobs, a move to cut expenses that represents a layoff affecting just under 3% of the satellite radio and audio streamer's workforce.
Chris Vallance / BBC:
The BBC says its iPlayer streaming service will stop supporting PC and Mac program downloads in March 2024, citing cost and low usage, but mobile is unaffected — The BBC's iPlayer streaming service is to end downloads for users who watch on desktop or laptop computers.
Discussion:
The Desk, Daily Mail, @alexgjohnson, London Evening Standard, Wales Online, The Mirror, Leicestershire Live, GB News, Daily Record, @robertrea, Metro.co.uk, Yorkshire Live, LADbible, Birmingham Live, Coventry Live, @stevegerrard, Daily Express, Liverpool Echo, The Irish Sun, @sorreld, TechRadar, Cord Busters, @back_the_bbc, Chronicle Live, BBC and Advanced Television
Matthew Keys / The Desk:
TVNewsCheck, which covers the TV broadcasting business, says it is suspending updates to its website and newsletters but will continue its events and webinars — TV NewsCheck, a popular online publication that covers the television broadcast industry, says it will temporarily stop publishing new articles …
Discussion:
MediaPost, Ethan Holland on LinkedIn and TVNewsCheck
Peter Beaumont / The Guardian:
Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and photojournalist Ahmad Matar were seriously injured during an Israeli airstrike on northern Rafah in the Gaza Strip — Correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and photojournalist Ahmad Matar allegedly targeted by IDF — An Al Jazeera correspondent …
Discussion:
Committee to Protect …, Al Jazeera and CAIR
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