[1] First Major SAG-AFTRA Contracts Approved with 96 Percent of Vote
June 3 – TV Technology
By Staff
SAG-AFTRA members approved three-year contracts with the advertising industry. The 2013 SAG-AFTRA Commercials Contract and 2013 SAG-AFTRA Radio Recorded Commercials Contract are the first major contracts negotiated by SAG-AFTRA since the March 2012 union merger.
BWW TV Exclusive: Backstage with Richard Ridge – SAG Foundation Conversations Series with Tony Nominee Keith Carradine!
June 3 – Broadway World
By Backstage with Richard Ridge
Screen Actors Guild Foundation and Broadway World have partnered for an inaugural filmed Conversations Q&A series to recognize and celebrate the vibrant theatre community in New York City and the union actors who aspire to have a career on the stage and screen. The most recent event was a two hour career conversation with 2013 Tony nominee Keith Carradine moderated by Broadway World's own Richard Ridge, and you can check out highlights from the discussion below!
Indie Film Director Wants to Make Delaware Her Hollywood
June 4 – NBC 10 Philadelphia
By Mark Eichmann
A Brooklyn-based director is trying to use her low budget indie film to draw attention to Delaware as a great location for other filmmakers.
Writer and director Lindsey Copeland needs to raise $500,000 to make her film "Thumper" a reality.
California Film Commission Reports Record Number of Tax Credit Applications
June 3 – The Hollywood Reporter
By Alex Ben Block
A record 380 applications were filed Monday by movie and TV productions seeking a share of the $100 million annual allocation of tax incentives provided by the state of California, which marks an 18 percent increase over submissions in June 2012.
This is the fifth year of the program. A total of 322 applications were filed last year, while 176 were filed in 2011.
Netflix, Hulu Dominate Mobile TV Viewing
June 3 – Variety
By Todd Spangler
The bulk of TV content watched on smartphones and tablets today is provided through Netflix and Hulu Plus — not networks or pay TV providers, according to a new study.
About 64% of TV shows viewed on smartphones and 54% on tablets were via Netflix, Hulu Plus or another online video-subscription service, according to a survey commissioned by the Council for Research Excellence, which is funded by Nielsen.
DirecTV Said Among 3 Hulu Bidders at $1 Billion or More
June 1 – Bloomberg News
By Andy Fixmer & Alex Sherman
DirecTV (DTV), the second-biggest U.S. pay-TV service, and two other bidders are each offering at least $1 billion for Hulu LLC, the online video website, said people with knowledge of the bid.
The other two couldn’t be identified immediately. Los Angeles-based Hulu’s board has been weighing at least seven buyout offers and plans to narrow those to three or four in a few weeks, said the people, who requested anonymity because the deliberations are private.
Amazon, Viacom Ink Multi-Year Licensing Deal
June 4 – The Hollywood Reporter
By Lacey Rose
Netflix's loss appears to be Amazon's gain.
The Seattle-based e-commerce company has inked a multi-year, multi-national deal to carry Viacom shows, including kid favorites Dora the Explorer, The Backyardigans and SpongebobSquarePants.
Disney Eliminating ‘Digital Copy’
June 3 – The Hollywood Reporter
By Thomas K. Arnold
Walt Disney Studios is making it easier for consumers to access a movie digitally that they buy on Blu-ray Disc or DVD by doing away with the cumbersome "digital copy" process and launching a new website that streamlines the film's digital delivery.
The debut of the Disney Digital Copy Plus website has been set for June 11, the same day the studio’s Oz the Great and Powerful is released on disc.
Top Wall Street Analyst: Pay TV “Cord-Cutting Is Real”
June 3 – Variety
By Andrew Wallenstein
No one on the planet may know more about the pay-TV business than Craig Moffett, who analyzed it consistently and cogently for about a decade at Bernstein Research up until the end of last year. He resurfaced last month at his own research firm, Moffett Research, and returned Monday to the subject he knows so well with a simple message that stood out from the rest of a 135-page coverage initiation document: “cord-cutting is real.”
Comcast CFO Discusses Telemundo Profits, NBC Upside, Aereo
June 4 – The Hollywood Reporter
By Georg Szalai
Comcast remains "very optimistic" about the financial upside of NBCUniversal, including from ratings and retransmission consent fee revenue at NBC and Spanish-language arm Telemundo, CFO Michael Angelakis said here Tuesday.
Speaking at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch 2013 Global Telecom & Media Conference, he also said NBCUniversal remains confident that content companies would prevail in their litigation against Aereo, which provides over-the-air TV programming online and is funded by the likes of Barry Diller, and Dish's Hopper, which allows users to skip commercials in primetime shows a few days after the show aired.
Upfront Pauses As Media Buyers, Nets Bicker Over Price
June 3 – Variety
By Brian Steinberg
TV’s upfront market appears to have hit a snag.
The annual ad-sales frenzy during which the nation’s TV outlets attempt to sell the bulk of their ad inventory for the coming year is turning out to be anything but. While it’s true Viacom’s cable nets and the Fox broadcast outlet have begun to write business with advertisers, those players opted to press for price increases that are de minimis, according to ad buyers.
Digital Ad Revs Soar, Display Sees 20% Growth
June 3 – Media Post News
By Gavin O’Malley
Driven by consumers’ continued embrace of all things digital, domestic digital ad revenue hit $9.6 billion in the first quarter of the year.
The figure -- released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC U.S. on Monday -- represents a 15.6% increase over the $8.3 billion in ad revenue earned during the first quarter of 2012.
To read the entire article, click here
The figure -- released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC U.S. on Monday -- represents a 15.6% increase over the $8.3 billion in ad revenue earned during the first quarter of 2012.
To read the entire article, click here
Meet the Press Strikes Second-Screen Sponsorship With Shell on Zeebox
June 4 – Ad Week
By David Taintor
This summer, Meet the Press viewers using the second-screen app Zeebox will be presented with exclusive content sponsored by Shell, including photos from the Sunday talk show and surveys centered around information presented on the program.
The sponsorship launches July 1 and will run for an unspecified number of episodes, said Peter Naylor, evp of digital media for NBC News Digital Group.
Is political reporting dying?
June 3 – Washington Post
By Chris Cillizza
Technology killed the political reporter.
That’s the idea Frank Bruni explored in a terrific piece in the Sunday New York Times titled “Who needs reporters?”
In the piece, Bruni uses Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann’s decision to announce her retirement via an eight-plus minute video — as well as other video-announced decisions by the likes of Anthony Weiner and Hillary Clinton — as evidence of a growing trend of politicians using the available technology to end-run the media filter.
Chicago Sun-Times trains reporters to shoot wit iPhones after laying off all its photographers
June 1 – The Verge
By Amar Toor
The Chicago Sun-Times this week laid off all 28 of its staff photographers, and has reportedly begun training its remaining reporters on "iPhone photography basics." Media journalist Robert Feder first reported the news in a post to his Facebook page Friday, citing an internal memo from Sun-Times managing editor Craig Newman.
No FM? No problem for Windows phone users
June 4 – Inside Radio
By Staff
The final pieces of a three-year deal with Sprint to get FM onto 30 million phones are coming into place. The hope is once the initial period is over, Sprint will keep FM on handsets without the initial $15 million a year in payments.
Clear Channel inks Fearless Deal
June 4 – Radio Ink
By Staff
Clear Channel and Indy record label Fearless Records announced an agreement that will allow artists to receive revenue from play on Clear Channel’s digital and broadcast radio stations. The joint press release announcing the deal states, "This agreement is the latest step in establishing a sustainable business model for the Internet radio industry."
Apple Reportedly Refocuses iAd On New Streaming Music Radio Service
June 4 – Tech Crunch
By Darrell Etherington
Apple is said to be directing engineering and sales talent from its iAd business, which currently supports mobile display advertising run by Apple on iOS, to help further its new music service offering, which is rumored to be free and ad-supported. Businessweek claims that Apple will unveil the service next week, backing up what we heard yesterday, and that apple is changing its in-house ad strategy to help businesses build campaigns that address customers as they listen to songs on the new service.
AT&T rolls Country Deep interactive music channel on U-verse TV
June 3 – Fierce Cable
By Steve Donohue
AT&T (NYSE: T) said it is looking to draw country music fans to its U-verse TV service with the launch of an interactive music channel that will feature original programming, live performances and music from artists ranging from Lady Antebellum to George Strait.
The telco said Monday that it struck a licensing deal with Universal Music Group to program its new Country Deep channel, which is available in high-definition on U-verse channel 1530.
Can a new generation of web companies finally bring emotion to online advertising?
June 4 – Paid Content
By Eliza Kern
There’s a common theme among the young founders of social web companies that haven’t yet made money when it comes to advertising: they want it to be beautiful. They want it to inspire people. And they don’t want it to feel like advertising. But is this even possible on the web?
Rovi selling targeted advertising service to cable operators, networks
June 3 – Fierce Cable
By Steve Donohue
Interactive program guide technology company Rovi (Nasdaq: ROVI) is expanding into the targeted advertising business, announcing Monday that it will supply pay TV distributors and networks with a "predictive analysis solution" that relies on data collected from cable set-tops and other connected devices.
Rovi is using assets it picked up through its acquisition in April of IntegralReach to launch its new Rovi Audience Management Solution.
The Distasteful Side of Social Media Puts Advertisers on Their Guard
June 3 – New York Times
By Tanzina Vega and Leslie Kaufman
As social media sites pursue advertising in a bid for new revenue, they are finding that they must simultaneously create a safe space for the advertisers they attract.
With the money, they are discovering, comes responsibility.
Latest music stream: iRadio
June 4 – Los Angeles Times
By Chris O’Brien and Dawn Chmielewski
Apple is on the verge of rolling out its own music streaming service, a move that could shake up the fast-growing Internet radio market.
Apple Inc. has signed deals with two major music labels for the rights to stream their songs but is still negotiating with a third music label, which could delay Apple's plans to announce the iRadio service next week at the company's developers conference.
Music Subscription Service Rhapsody Expands to 14 European Countries
June 4 – The Hollywood Reporter
By Alex Pham, Billboard
Rhapsody on Monday expanded its subscription music service to 14 additional European countries in a bid to accrue scale and more effectively compete with Spotify, Deezer and others in the burgeoning on-demand music market.
The expansion brings the total number of countries where Rhapsody offers its service to 17.