Mediagazer: Amazon expands its suite of AI-powered ad tools to let US advertisers use generative AI to make audio ads, available now in beta, and unveils AI creative studio (Kathryn Lundstrom/Adweek)

12:50 PM ET, October 15, 2024

Top News:

Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:

Five ex-Pitchfork journalists launch online subscription music outlet Hearing Things, aiming to capture Pitchfork's independent spirit, starting at $70 per year — After the popular publication was folded into GQ, a group of them is striking out on its own. One of the first orders of business: doing away with album scores.

Discussion: @benmullin, @simondowens@threads.net, @dada_drummer, @jeremydlarson, @jawnita, @ryandombal, @jillian_mapes, @tombreihan, @benmullin, @hearingthingsco, @pellz_, @markrichardson, Hearing Things and Resident Advisor

Alexandra Bruell / Wall Street Journal:

The NYT sends a cease-and-desist letter to AI startup Perplexity to stop using its content; Perplexity says it is “interested in working with every” publisher — Publisher demands that Perplexity stop accessing its content. Startup isn't interested “in being anyone's antagonist,” CEO says.

Discussion: TechCrunch, Reuters, The Information, Seeking Alpha, PCMag, @rustybrick, @glenngabe, @scottadamssays, @brianstelter and @lutherlowe, more at Techmeme »

Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:

Internal memo: the BBC plans to cut 155 BBC News jobs, including closing Asian Network News and the HARDtalk program, to save £24M, or 4% of BBC News' budget — Broadcaster hopes move will save £24mn from budget, according to internal memo sent to staff

Jessica Testa / New York Times:

Tina Brown, who became synonymous with Manhattan media in the 1980s and 1990s, launches Fresh Hell, a weekly Substack diary newsletter in “notebook form” — Tina Brown's decision to join Substack is a coup for the newsletter company, which considers prestigious names to be magnets …

Discussion: Fresh Hell, @mediaevan and @jtes

Associated Press:

Taliban-run media stops showing images of living beings in some Afghan provinces to comply with morality laws, sparking press freedom concerns — Taliban run-media have stopped showing images of living beings in some Afghan provinces to comply with morality laws, an official confirmed Tuesday.

Discussion: Telegraph, Times of India, Daily Mail, @natiqmalikzada, @visegrad24, Boing Boing, LBC, WION, Amu TV, The Independent, Global Village Space, @qaisalamdar, Outlook India and PetaPixel

Ross A. Lincoln / The Wrap:

WBD plans to launch Max in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand on November 19, with pricing details to be announced — Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand also among new countries where you'll be able to see “Dune: Prophecy”

Discussion: Deadline, Media Play News, Broadband TV News, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, WORLD SCREEN, Bloomberg, Reuters and Advanced Television

Kathryn Lundstrom / Adweek:

Amazon expands its suite of AI-powered ad tools to let US advertisers use generative AI to make audio ads, available now in beta, and unveils AI creative studio — The tech giant announced new products at its annual ad conference — Soon, you'll hear more audio ads on Amazon's properties that were created with generative AI.

Discussion: MediaPost, About Amazon and Mumbrella

Mark Stenberg / Adweek:

The Athletic names Fubo as its first streaming partner in a multi-year deal to integrate Fubo initially into live game blogs and then into newsletters and more — The partnership will see Fubo integrated throughout The Athletic's website — The New York Times sports publisher …

Discussion: Advanced Television, The Streamable, @financewithjohn, @tvanswerman, Cory Adelson on LinkedIn, Streaming Better and Cord Cutters News

Sifted:

UK tech journalist Steve O'Hear, who worked for TechCrunch for over a decade before leaving to work in tech in 2021, and had muscular dystrophy, died at age 49 — Former TechCrunch reporter Steve O'Hear has died after a short illness, his team announced today

Poynter:

The Poynter Institute partners with Knight Foundation to educate philanthropic funders, who are interested in supporting local news, about journalism ethics — Partnership with Knight Foundation aims to help strengthen local news ecosystem — Today, Maribel Pèrez Wadsworth …

Discussion: Knight Foundation

Abner Li / 9to5Google:

YouTube rolls out new features: granular playback speed controls, an improved miniplayer on iOS and Android, updated playlists, a sleep timer, and more — YouTube is making official a number of updates that it's been testing in recent months, like the new miniplayer and several design updates.

Discussion: The Wrap, YouTube Official Blog, TechCrunch, Engadget, Gizmodo, Neowin, The Verge, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, Digital Trends and 9to5Google, more at Techmeme »

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:

Spotify starts rolling out music videos in beta for Premium subscribers in 85 additional markets, after introducing the feature in 12 markets earlier in 2024 — Music streaming company Spotify said today that it is testing music videos for premium users in 85 additional markets.

Discussion: Spotify, Neowin, The Verge, Digital Music News and Music Business Worldwide, more at Techmeme »

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More News:

Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Amazon plans to expand ads on Prime Video to Brazil, India, Japan, the Netherlands and New Zealand in 2025, joining the US, Canada, France, the UK, and more

Discussion: The Wrap, Variety, Deadline and IN About Amazon

Mark Savage / BBC:
NewJeans star Hanni gives a tearful testimony on workplace harassment to South Korean lawmakers, alleging that the entertainment agency Hybe undermined her band

Discussion: Reuters, Agence France-Presse, The Korea Times, ABC, @kchartsmaster, @poppykpoppie, @cato_o_o, News18, Philstar Life, Korea Joongang Daily, Koreaboo, Koreaboo, Agence France-Presse and New York Times

Richard Fausset / New York Times:
A look at George magazine, which stopped publication in 1999 after co-founder John F. Kennedy Jr.'s death and was revived by a QAnon proponent in 2022

Discussion: @xpangler, @lkonstan and @azi

Tom Warren / The Verge:
The Internet Archive's Wayback Machine is back in a “provisional, read-only manner”, after a DDoS attack on the Internet Archive on October 9 and a data breach

Discussion: @brewster_kahle, Ars Technica, Tom's Hardware, @brewster_kahle, Boing Boing, @internetarchive, 9to5Mac, @tariqkrim, PCMag, ZDNET, Mashable, MEDIANAMA, Neowin, Fast Company, AV Club, Engadget and Cord Cutters News, more at Techmeme »

Jeremy Gray / PetaPixel:
Adobe says its Firefly Video Model is the first “commercially safe” text-to-video generative AI model that was trained on licensed and public domain content

Discussion: PCWorld, CNET, @joematoske, @joshgong10, @acostin, @lizkmiller, Neowin, Forbes, Neowin, Ars Technica, Silicon Valley Business …, Adobe Newsroom, Thurrott, Engadget, TechCrunch, Reuters, The Verge and Hindustan Times, more at Techmeme »

Jane Clinton / The Guardian:
BBC DG Tim Davie says funding cuts to BBC World Service have helped state-funded media operators from Russia and China broadcast “unchallenged propaganda”

Discussion: Hong Kong Free Press HKFP, Deadline and The Guardian

Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Fox Deportes and NBCUniversal's Telemundo will each produce separate Spanish-language broadcasts of Super Bowl LIX in 2025, an unusual arrangement

Discussion: Awful Announcing, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek, Deadline, The Desk, Barrett Media, @jeremydstanley.com, TVNewsCheck and Sports Media Watch

Earlier Picks:

Lucas Manfredi / The Wrap:
Legendary Entertainment buys out Wanda Group's remaining 60% equity stake in the studio; Legendary board will be evenly split between management and Apollo

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, @mtfiii, @xpangler, Bloomberg, Variety, Los Angeles Times, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter and Reuters

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Filing: the UK's PA Media Group reports 2023 revenue up 6% YoY to £112.1M and operating profit up 53% YoY to £8.3M, as it grows through revenue diversification

Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Sources: Disney plans to simulcast six broadcasts of Monday Night Football, typically a mainstay of ESPN, on the ABC broadcast network

Discussion: Cord Cutters News and Adweek

Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
The Evening Standard reports revenue down 15% YoY to £26.8m in the FY ending October 1, 2023 and a loss of £20.6M, its highest loss since going free in 2009

Discussion: Financial Times, @baekdal and The Guardian

Max Tani / Semafor:
Yashica Olden, who was Condé Nast's first head of diversity, equity, and inclusion, quietly left in June 2024, after internal tensions over the Israel-Hamas war

Discussion: @maxwelltani, @jessesingal, @semaforben, The Daily Caller and New York Post

Matthew Garrahan / Financial Times:
An interview with IAC chair Barry Diller on his Paramount bid being “more of a duty than a desire”, why Hollywood's hold on entertainment is “gone”, and more

Discussion: @tvgrimreaper, Benzinga, @jonthn_wheatley, @arogdc, @tonytassell and Business Insider

Ben Smith / Semafor:
Q&A with ATTN co-founder and co-CEO Matthew Segal on the current social ecosystem, vertical video optimization, trying to be the “HBO of short-form”, and more

From Techmeme:

Michael Kan / PCMag:
OpenAI makes the ChatGPT desktop app for Windows available to all users, following an October release limited to paying ChatGPT subscribers

Financial Times:
Sources: the US FTC plans to investigate allegations that Microsoft is abusing its market power in productivity software to prevent customers from leaving Azure

Decrypt:
Eighteen US states, led by Kentucky, sue the SEC and its commissioners, including Chairman Gary Gensler, over its crackdown on the crypto industry

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