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Reddit closes up 48%, at $50.44 per share, in its New York Stock Exchange debut, valuing the company at about $9.5B on a fully diluted basis — - Social media company, holders raised $748 Million in IPO … The San Francisco-based company's stock closed at $50.44 each on Thursday in New York …
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A survey finds US states have distributed over $25B to film incentive programs since 2002, but independent experts find the programs are break-even at best — Dozens of states have lured film and TV production with financial incentives. Years after gutting its program during a budget crisis, Michigan wants to rejoin the arms race.
Discussion:
Variety, Simon Pulman on LinkedIn, Axel W. Caballero on LinkedIn, @fgiroldini, @mariadoulis, @joegalarn, @chriskuo17 and @tonyromm


Kotaku EIC Jen Glennon, who joined in October 2023, resigns, citing in a letter the management team's recent decision to deprioritize news in favor of guides — Jen Glennon, who took over as editor in chief of Kotaku in October, resigned Thursday. In a resignation letter seen by Aftermath …
Discussion:
@damagecontrolblog …, @davidgross_man, @jeremypgordon, @leadergrev, @zwiezenz, The Daily Beast, @joeljohnson, @alyssa_merc, @momozuch, @robaeprice@threads.net, @iamasarch, @jasonkoebler@mastodon.social, @jeremysmiles, @mhoye@mastodon.social, @transgamerthink, @xoxogossipgita, @benjamin_goggin_@threads.net, @tamoorh, @carolynmichelle, @shepardcdr, @hellojenglen and @lainnafader


The FCC fines Nexstar and Mission Broadcasting $1.8M+, alleging violation of US ownership rules in operating New York TV station WPIX; Nexstar plans to appeal — Regulator rules that Nexstar committed ‘willful and repeated’ violations of ownership rules, also fines Mission Broadcasting $612,395
Discussion:
The Desk, Radio & Television …, Deadline, FCC and Nexstar Media Group, Inc.


Julia Angwin says Proof News aims to use “the scientific method” for investigative journalism, and expand beyond tech to cover corporate accountability, more — The cofounder of The Markup wants to expand beyond tech with her new publication. — At the end of February …
Discussion:
@sarahscire and @juliaangwin


The Mozilla Foundation and 90+ research and advocacy groups urge Meta to support CrowdTangle through January 2025 to track election misinformation globally — The letter, also signed by CrowdTangle's former CEO, claims shutting it down is a “direct threat” to researchers' work
Discussion:
@mozilla, @brandonsilverm, Mozilla Foundation and @andymstone, more at Techmeme »


Spotify's TikTok-like redesign reveals the follower numbers for top podcasters: The Joe Rogan Experience has 14.5M, followed by TED Talks Daily with 5M — A new TikTok-like redesign from the streaming giant unveils actual audience data for top podcasters — Welcome back to Soundbite.


How companies like iSpot and VideoAmp are trying to challenge Nielsen's ratings dominance, as the industry grapples with changing audience measurement protocols — The day after the Super Bowl typically brings with it another kind of celebration: Nielsen's annual announcement of the size of the audience for the NFL extravaganza.
Discussion:
Ad Age


A super PAC backing Ted Cruz got ~$215K from iHeartMedia, earned from selling ads for Cruz's podcast; Cruz had likened his show to cable news appearances — A super PAC affiliated with Sen. Ted Cruz reported receiving $215,000 in “digital revenue” from iHeartMedia on Wednesday …
Discussion:
Zach Everson on LinkedIn


How advertisers are trying to tie their ads to business outcomes, like a purchase, instead of ratings: in November, Fox guaranteed Netflix social media activity — Nearly every commercial that runs on TV is backed by a guarantee of how big an audience will watch it.
Discussion:
Brian Steinberg on LinkedIn


WBD plans to launch Max in Europe starting on May 21 in the Nordics, Iberia, and Central and Eastern Europe, in time for the Olympics, included in all plans — The rollout is also timed to the second season of “House of the Dragon” — Max will begin its launch in Europe on May 21 …
Discussion:
Engadget, The Desk, Financial Times, Variety, Deadline, The Streamable, Media Play News, Advanced Television, Next TV, Screen and Reuters, more at Techmeme »


YouTube TV gets multiview support on iOS and iPadOS, letting users watch up to four TV channels at once; Android support is set to arrive “in the coming months” — Google has confirmed that YouTube TV is now rolling out support for Multiview on the iPhone and iPad, but the feature won't arrive on Android for a while.
Discussion:
The Streamable, ZDNet, Tom's Guide, GSMArena.com, SamMobile, Tubefilter, iClarified and The Verge, more at Techmeme »