Top News:
New York Times:
ByteDance strikes a deal with a group of non-Chinese investors to create a new TikTok US entity and avoid a federal ban, concluding a six-year legal saga — TikTok said on Thursday that its Chinese owner, ByteDance, had struck a deal with a group of non-Chinese investors to create a new U.S. TikTok …
Discussion:
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Financial Times:
TikTok's new majority US-owned JV includes investors Oracle, Silver Lake, and Abu Dhabi's MGX, each holding 15%, and Dell Family Office; ByteDance retains 19.9% — Video app launches US joint venture with American investors to enact deal criticised by China hawks
Jonathan Vanian / CNBC:
Adam Presser, previously TikTok's head of operations and trust and safety, will be the CEO of TikTok USDS Joint Venture; TikTok CEO Shou Chew will be a director — TikTok said Thursday that it formed a joint venture that will keep the video-sharing app operating in the United States.
Discussion:
Deadline, TikTok, CNET, Blockonomi, Mashable, @newsguy.bsky.social, Arabian Business and Social Media Today, more at Techmeme »
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Source: the TikTok US deal values it at just around $14B; TikTok's US entity makes roughly $14B annually in advertising revenues alone, per analyst estimates — TikTok on Thursday closed a deal to divest its U.S. entity to a joint venture controlled by American investors …
Sean Hollister / The Verge:
Google says replacing some article headlines with AI-generated ones is now a feature in Discover, but they can be false or fail to highlight new, relevant info — It now says AI headlines are a ‘feature,’ not an experiment. … In early December, I brought you the news that Google …
Discussion:
diginomica and Disrupt Africa
Financial Times:
Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters expects Netflix to win WBD, says Paramount's bid “doesn't pass the sniff test” and a “very small” number of WBD holders backed it — Co-chief Greg Peters says Netflix is winning Warner Bros shareholder support for a deal that would upend Hollywood
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Matthew Keys / TheDesk.net:
AMC Networks says Chief Financial Officer Patrick O'Connell will depart the company in March to “pursue an opportunity outside of the media industry” — AMC Networks says its Chief Financial Officer Patrick O'Connell will depart the company in March.
Discussion:
The Wrap, Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter
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Mia Galuppo / The Hollywood Reporter:
AMC Networks' Sundance Now rebrands from offering scripted TV to airing indie film and festival titles, for $7.99/month, as this year's Sundance Festival begins — AMC Networks runs the shingle that previously had scripted TV offerings. — As the Sundance Film Festival gets started …
Zach Taylor / On Substack:
Substack launches its Substack TV app for Apple TV and Google TV in beta for free and paid subscribers, with access matched to their current subscription levels — Today we're launching the Substack TV app for Apple TV and Google TV. Substack is the home for the best longform …
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Filing: Disney CEO Bob Iger's pay package rose 11.5% in 2025 to $45.8M; the Disney board is expected to name his successor early this year — Bob Iger, in his second-to-last year leading Disney as CEO, saw his total compensation increase 11.5%, to a total of $45.8 million in 2025.
Discussion:
Deadline, Los Angeles Times, Reuters, The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Bloomberg and The Business Times
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
Analysis: among the top 50 news websites in the US and the UK, 34% blocked all major AI training bots; 14%, including Fox and Substack, allowed access to all — Almost eight in ten of the biggest news websites in the UK and US are now blocking AI training bots.
Discussion:
Simon Owens's Media Newsletter, MediaPost, @pressgazette.co.uk and Search Engine Journal
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
British podcasters like Steven Bartlett of The Diary of a CEO are adopting various strategies, including moving to the US, to break into the larger US market — Most of the top podcasts in the UK have yet to hit the same levels of popularity in the US — Welcome back to Soundbite.
