Top News:
Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
Fox reports Q4 revenue up 6% YoY to $3.29B, ad revenue up 7% YoY to $1.1B, driven by Tubi and Fox News, and a net income of $719M, up from $320M in Q4 2024 — The company saw revenues rise across the board in tis fiscal Q4 quarter, as it prepares to launch its Fox One streaming service.
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Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch says Fox One, a streaming service offering NFL and MLB games, Fox News programs, and more, will debut August 21 at $19.99 per month — The new broadband outlet, a venue that offers Fox Corp.'s Sunday-afternoon NFL games and post-season MLB play along with Fox News programs and more …
Discussion:
Engadget, UPI, The Streamable, Awful Announcing, TVLine, TheDesk.net, @matthewkeyslive, Los Angeles Times, The US Sun, TVNewsCheck, Adweek, New York Times, MacDailyNews, The Verge, Fox Corporation, The Wrap, CNBC, Deadline, Streaming Better, @jbflint, @tvgrimreaper, @jbflint, Media Play News, @tvgrimreaper, Oh No They Didn't!, Bloomberg and The Hollywood Reporter
Neel Dhanesha / Nieman Lab:
Newsletter service Ghost says publishers have earned $100M+ on it, its annual revenue is $8.5M+, it now supports ActivityPub, and is upping new member pricing — The open-source publishing platform Ghost, which powers the websites and newsletters of many independent news outlets …
Matthew Keys / TheDesk.net:
Ad tech company Ad.com acquires Public Good to help with development of a search engine, Search.com, which will offer cash-back rewards and other perks — Search.com incentivizes online searches with cash back rewards, and provides publishers an opportunity to generate revenue from their content in the era of artificial intelligence.
Rebecca Falconer / Axios:
Court filing: Trump and Rupert Murdoch agree to postpone Murdoch's deposition in the Epstein letter libel suit until after a ruling on the WSJ's dismissal case — President Trump and Rupert Murdoch reached a deal Monday to postpone the media mogul's deposition in a libel lawsuit related …
Discussion:
Deadline, New York Times, TVNewsCheck, @joshgerstein, Washington Examiner, Business Insider, Law & Crime, The Wrap, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, CNBC, Bloomberg, Telegraph, NewsMax.com, @davidfolkenflik, HuffPost, @meiselasb, Sydney Morning Herald, @hissgoescobra, @jeremymbarr, Joe.My.God., Forbes and Southern District of Florida
John Herrman / New York Magazine:
Search-engine optimization feels dated as marketers look to generative-engine optimization, or GEO, which focuses on tricking AI chatbots rather than Google — Search-engine optimization now feels dated. Generative-engine optimization is all about trying to trick AI chatbots.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Skydance announces the 10 board directors for Paramount Skydance, including Oracle CEO Safra Catz and former Paramount Pictures CEO Sherry Lansing — Skydance Media announced the full slate of 10 directors for Paramount Skydance Corp., the company resulting from its merger with Paramount Global.
Discussion:
TVNewsCheck, Radio & Television …, Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, Yahoo Finance, The Hollywood Reporter and Skydance Media
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Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter:
David Ellison names Paramount Global's senior leadership team, appointing himself as CEO, Jeff Shell as president, and RedBird Capital's Andy Gordon as COO
Discussion:
The Information, Forbes, Deadline, Reuters, Variety, Deadline, The Wrap, Variety, Deadline, Sports Business Journal, New York Post, Adweek, Los Angeles Times, WORLD SCREEN and MediaPost
Jennifer Maas / Variety:
Skydance TV President Matt Thunell will run a merged division with Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios, reviving Paramount TV Studios which was shut down in 2024
Skydance TV President Matt Thunell will run a merged division with Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios, reviving Paramount TV Studios which was shut down in 2024
Discussion:
The Wrap, Deadline, C21Media, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline, LateNighter and Sports Media Watch
Jon Blistein / Rolling Stone:
A Parkland shooting victim's parents created an AI version of their late son to speak about gun safety, starting with an interview with journalist Jim Acosta — AI-generated Joaquin Oliver, which was created by his parents, discussed gun control measures and movies in a new interview
Discussion:
Variety, @acosta, The Independent, Fox News, HuffPost, Mediaite, New York Sun, Futurism, Newsbusters, @robbysoave, WPLG-TV, @acosta, The Guardian, @jarvis_best, Newser, @jarvis_best, @redsteeze, IJR, @redsteeze, Decrypt, Moneycontrol, The Post Millennial, Townhall, Straight Arrow News, The Daily Caller, Jim Acosta on YouTube, Salon, Instapundit, twitchy.com, Blaze Media, RedState and The Gateway Pundit, more at Techmeme »
Kelly Lawler / USA Today:
Roku launches Howdy, an ad-free streaming service for $2.99 per month, initially only on Roku devices, with content from Lionsgate, WBD, FilmRise, and others — Roku is ready to say Howdy. — The company − which sells set-top streaming devices, smart TVs and has its own free …
Discussion:
CNBC, The Streamable, StreamTV Insider, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, The Wrap, TheDesk.net, Roku, Bloomberg, Benzinga, TechCrunch, Los Angeles Times, Advanced Television, Tom's Guide, Android Authority, Lifewire, Investor's Business Daily, Android Police, PCWorld, PCMag, The Verge, Engadget, CNET, Deadline, @loudmouthjulia, Cord Cutters News, Media Play News, How-To Geek, Streaming Better, Broadband TV News and WORLD SCREEN, more at Techmeme »
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Japanese news aggregator SmartNews releases NewsArc, a new AI-powered, subscription-based news discovery app, available on iOS and Android in the US — SmartNews, the Japanese news discovery app founded in 2012, is releasing a new subscription news discovery app, powered by artificial intelligence, executives tell Axios.
Discussion:
@sarafischer, SmartNews and @smartnews
Oliver Darcy / Status:
Axios shutters its Pro: Policy product, which launched in September 2022 and offered legislative tracking tools, breaking news alerts, and more for $4,500+/year — It began with a thank you for being a “valued subscriber” and expressed a desire to “better serve” both them and the outlet's “entire audience.”
Discussion:
@murshedz.bsky.social, @passantino.bsky.social and @oliverdarcy.bsky.social
Max Goldbart / Deadline:
BAFTA changes its rules to let all 6,000 members vote in the international TV category; the 2026 TV awards are set for May 10, and the craft awards for April 26 — BAFTA has tweaked its international TV category so that all of its 6,000 members are allowed to determine the nominations and winners.
Discussion:
Variety, Broadcast, The Hollywood Reporter, Bafta and MacTech.com
Jay Peters / The Verge:
IGN lays off staff, including eight members of the IGN Creators Guild, representing 12% of the bargaining unit, as parent company Ziff Davis cuts costs — The ‘perplexing’ cuts laid off eight employees at IGN. … Ziff Davis-owned IGN Entertainment has laid off staff, including eight members of the IGN Creators Guild.
