Mediagazer: The Hallmark Channel says it will launch streaming service Hallmark+ for $8/month in September, with on-demand access to old content and memberships perks (Brooks Barnes/New York Times)

Brooks Barnes / New York Times:

The Hallmark Channel says it will launch streaming service Hallmark+ for $8/month in September, with on-demand access to old content and memberships perks — Hallmark+, which arrives in September, will include free greeting cards and a “Hallmark Hunk” competition show.

Discussion: The Wrap, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, Alyssa Zeisler on LinkedIn and The Streamable

Wes Davis / The Verge:

YouTube announces new Shorts features, including TikTok-like text-to-speech video narration, in-app auto-generated captions, and a set of Minecraft effects — YouTube has announced a set of new features for YouTube Shorts, some of which are available now, like a new text-to-speech video narration …

Discussion: TechCrunch and Engadget, more at Techmeme »

Anne Steele / Wall Street Journal:

Sources: comedian Dax Shepard signs an $80M podcasting deal with Amazon, shifting his Armchair Expert show to Amazon's Wondery service from Spotify — New deal includes video episodes, gives Amazon's Wondery exclusive distribution and ad-sales rights — Comedian Dax Shepard has signed …

Discussion: Variety, The Hollywood Reporter and @kerrymflynn

CNN:

A US jury finds Archegos Capital Management's Bill Hwang guilty of fraud for artificially inflating stocks of companies including ViacomCBS and Discovery — Bill Hwang, founder of Archegos Capital Management, was found guilty of fraud Wednesday by a Manhattan federal court after the 2021 collapse …

Discussion: Deadline, Variety, Financial Times, The Hollywood Reporter, Associated Press, New York Times and Bloomberg

Brian Steinberg / Variety:

Brian Lowry, the veteran Hollywood reporter, critic, and a contributor to CNN's Reliable Sources newsletter, is set to leave in the new round of CNN job cuts — The news outlet is cutting approximately 100 jobs as it works to boost its digital business.

Discussion: @blowryontv, @tvmojoe, Cord Cutters News, The Wrap and Talking Biz News

Claire Atkinson / The Media Mix:
Sources: CNN lays off the team producing its Opinion section, with an end date of August 9; a source says Senior Editor Sheena McKenzie is among those leaving

Discussion: @simondowens@threads.net, @newspolitics, Axios and @bsdtectr.bsky.social

Wall Street Journal:
Memo: Mark Thompson says CNN is cutting about 100 jobs, plans to launch its first CNN.com subscription product later in 2024, but offers few details, and more

Daniel Tencer / Music Business Worldwide:

Ticketmaster and Shazam announce a partnership letting artists link their live events in Shazam, adding to Ticketmaster's integration with Snap and TikTok — After integrating its ticket sales platform with Snap and TikTok, ticketing giant Ticketmaster is taking another step towards sales …

Discussion: Billboard, Music Ally, CMU, Ally Norton on LinkedIn and Digital Music News

Reuters:

Source: Turkey is seeking an explanation from Saudi Arabia for detaining a Turkish journalist who allegedly made comments about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi — Turkey is seeking an explanation from Saudi Arabia after Saudi police detained a Turkish journalist over alleged comments …

Discussion: Committee to Protect …

Andrew Marchand / New York Times:

Sources: the NBA finalizes contracts with new partners NBC and Amazon Prime Video, while maintaining ABC/ESPN for the NBA Finals; TNT could still match — The NBA and network executives finalized contracts that will make NBC and Amazon Prime Video new partners, while maintaining ABC/ESPN …

Discussion: New York Post, Variety, Sportico, Adweek, Barrett Media, The Guardian, WCMH-TV, Front Office Sports, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Mediaite, Front Office Sports, The Streamable, Awful Announcing and UPROXX

Kate Park / TechCrunch:

South Korea-based Beeble AI, which is developing virtual production services for indie filmmakers, raised $4.75M in seed funding at a valuation of $25M — Visual effects (VFX) have emerged as essential in filmmaking and have transformed storytelling and creativity in the film industry with its diverse digital techniques.

Katie Kilkenny / The Hollywood Reporter:

The Writers Guild of America West negotiates a $3.05M settlement with CBS to compensate 24 writers on MacGyver, Seal Team, and Hawaii 5-0 for unpaid work — The union told members on Wednesday of the resolution to an arbitration claim made on behalf of ‘MacGyver,’ ‘Seal Team’ and ‘Hawaii 5-0’ scribes.

Discussion: The Wrap, Variety and Deadline

Andrew Deck / Nieman Lab:

Q&A with filmmaker Errol Morris on his 1988 The Thin Blue Line documentary, generative AI, disinformation, reenactment, his new Separated documentary, and more — “Our task is to get back to the real world, to the extent that it is recoverable.” — Errol Morris is used to being called a liar, a trickster, and a manipulator.

Discussion: @decka227 and @decka227

Lauren Feiner / The Verge:

How the SCOTUS NetChoice ruling on social media platforms' First Amendment rights could affect a host of tech legislation, including kids' online safety laws — Here's what the SCOTUS decision might mean for everything from kids online safety laws to the TikTok ‘ban.’

Discussion: Wired, @lauren_feiner, @eff and ACLU, more at Techmeme »

Janko Roettgers / Lowpass:

A US court grants Redbox owner Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Chapter 7 bankruptcy, paving the way for shutting down Redbox and liquidating its assets — Redbox will shut down, corporate parent is being liquidated — The bankruptcy case of Redbox's corporate parent Chicken Soup …

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Verge, Deadline, Engadget, Wall Street Journal, @aagave, Cord Cutters News, The A.V. Club, Ximena Suarez on LinkedIn, @jank0@sfba.social and @kajord@scicomm.xyz, more at Techmeme »