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January 24, 2012 Huge Ratings for Giants-49ers Game TheDecember 28, 2011 NY Times Sells Regional Papers for $143 Million The"These news organizations have served as trusted institutions in their communities, delivering news and information that matter most to their readers," said
December 20, 2011 NBC, NFL to Stream Super Bowl Online The Super Bowl, Pro Bowl and NBC's Wild Card Saturday doubleheader will be available to fans on television, online and on select mobile phones for the first time.NBC's postseason games will be broadcast on NBC as well as streamed live on NFL.com and NBCSports.com, and will be available on NFL Mobile only from Verizon. This marks the first time postseason games will be available in the U.S. via live online streaming and via a mobile app. The live NFL.com and NBCSports.com coverage will come from NBC's TV coverage of the games. Complementing that stream will be a number of extra features to enrich the viewing experience including additional camera angles, in-game highlights, live statistics and other interactive elements. NBC's Sunday night football games have been streamed online all season long. In addition, NFL Mobile only from Verizon will stream the broadcast of NBC's Postseason games, for the first time using a mobile application. "We are pleased to work with our partners NBC and Verizon to bring our fans more ways to watch their favorite sport during their favorite time of the year," said Hans Schroeder, NFL Senior Vice President of Media Strategy and Development. NBC Postseason Extra will kick off on Saturday, January 7 with NBC's Wild Card Saturday doubleheader. Coverage will continue on Sunday, January 29 for the 2012 Pro Bowl live from Hawaii and then on Sunday, February 5 with Super Bowl XLVI live from Indianapolis. December 15, 2011 Howard Stern to Judge America's Got Talent Long-time morning radio show host Howard Stern is getting a new gig on network TV as a judge on NBC's America's Got Talent show starting in the summer of 2012.Stern replaces Piers Morgan, who left the show to concentrate on his new program on CNN. Stern will join Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel as the three judges on the NBC reality talent show which will begin its seventh season. Nick Cannon is the host of the show. Production of the show is moving to NYC from LA to accomodate Stern, who lives in NY. Stern plans to continue hosting his morning talk show on SiriusXM radio. Terms of the contract with NBC for Stern to appear on the show weren't released but estimated in the millions of dollars per season. December 13, 2011 CBS Buys TV Station WLNY CBS Television Stations, a division of CBS Corporation, has agreed to purchase independent New York television station WLNY-TV (Channel 55). Terms of the agreement with the seller, WLNY Holdings, Inc., were not disclosed. The acquisition of WLNY-TV (whose call letters stand for We Love New York), along with WCBS-TV (CBS 2), will give CBS a duopoly in the nation's largest media market."Our acquisition of WLNY-TV presents a tremendous opportunity for our TV Stations Division," said Peter Dunn, President, CBS Television Stations. "The combined strengths of CBS 2 and WLNY-TV will give us a terrific platform for serving the entire New York area. Our plans for the station include adding people and resources to fuel a significant expansion of local news programming well beyond the nightly half-hour that currently airs. And, of course, in doing so we will continue to honor the station's already deep commitment to serving the people of Long Island and the entire tri-state area. We also look forward to having a bigger and better news bureau on Long Island that will be a terrific resource for WCBS." WLNY-TV is widely distributed by cable, satellite and other subscription television service providers in the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut tri-state area. The station appears as either Channel 10 or Channel 55 on most channel lineups and Channel 55 as an over-the-air service. Once the acquisition of WLNY-TV has been finalized, CBS will own duopolies in 10 markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, Boston, Detroit, Miami, Sacramento and Pittsburgh. November 14, 2011 Chelsea Clinton Gets Job With NBC News Chelsea Clinton, daughter of former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, is joining NBC News as a special correspondent.Clinton will be teaming up with "Rock Center with Brian Williams" and "NBC Nightly News.".Clinton's role with the shows and the network will be to highlight stories within the "Making a Difference" franchise. This will be the second President's daughter to work for NBC News after Jenna Bush Hager, daughter of President George W. Bush, was hired as a correspondent for NBC's Today Show in 2009. "Chelsea is a remarkable woman who will be a great addition to NBC News. Given her vast experiences, it's as though Chelsea has been preparing for this opportunity her entire life," said Steve Capus, President of NBC News. "We are proud she will be bringing her considerable, unique talents and dedication to NBC News." "Our Making a Difference segments have become a signature of the broadcast. They adhere to a simple goal of highlighting the good works being done across the country and around the world," said Brian Williams, Anchor and Managing Editor of Nightly News and Rock Center. "Chelsea Clinton has led a remarkable life. She possesses an uncommon understanding of humanity -- on city streets, across this country and around the globe. We are so excited she's joining us to tell the stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things." October 12, 2011 CBS Has 20 of Top 30 Rated Shows CBS says it has made television history becoming the first Network ever to place 20 of the top 30 programs in viewers through the first three weeks of the fall TV season.CBS programs in the top 20 include TWO AND A HALF MEN, NCIS, NCIS: LOS ANGELES, THE BIG BANG THEORY, 2 BROKE GIRLS, CRIMINAL MINDS, THE MENTALIST, 60 MINUTES, UNFORGETTABLE, MIKE & MOLLY, PERSON OF INTEREST, CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION, HAWAII FIVE-0, BLUE BLOODS, THE GOOD WIFE, SURVIVOR: SOUTH PACIFIC, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, CSI: NY and CSI: MIAMI and THE AMAZING RACE. Through the first three weeks of the season, CBS is the #1 network in viewers, averaging 12.68 million, adults 18-49 with a 3.4/09 and adults 25-54 averaging a 4.4/11. NCIS is the #1 drama on television in viewers and key demographics and TWO AND A HALF MEN is the #1 comedy on television in viewers and key demographics. August 5, 2011 Versus to Change Name to NBC Sports Network The NBC Sports Group has announced that VERSUS cable network will be re-named the NBC Sports Network effective on January 2, 2012.The move was expected following the merger of Comcast's cable networks with NBC Universal earlier this year. VERSUS is best known for airing the Tour de France and NHL hockey games. The NBC Sports Network will serve as a 24/7 cable platform for NBC Sports' rich heritage and promotional power with the NBC network. January 2 was chosen as the re-brand date for several reasons, including the number of strategic events with large viewing audiences on NBC within a short timeframe that can be used to call attention to the re-branding efforts:
September 9, 2011 ESPN Extends NFL Deal Through 2021 ESPN has signed an eight-year contract extension with the NFL to air Monday Night Football games through 2021. ESPN will broadcast 17 Monday night games per season.The sports network will pay $15.2 billion to the NFL for eight years or about $1.9 billion per season according to The Wall Street Journal. The current deal, which expires in 2014, cost ESPN only $1.1 billion per year. The deal lets ESPN broadcast an additional 500 hours of NFL-related programming and increased digital rights usage including allowing viewers to watch games on the iPad. The broad multiplatform agreement, which begins in 2014, includes eight full seasons of MNF telecasts, expanded NFL studio programming (beginning this week), highlight rights for TV and ESPN.com, the Pro Bowl, the NFL Draft, 3D rights, and enhanced international rights. Monday Night Football averaged a 10.5 rating in 2010, and 10.5 million homes (14.7 million viewers). ESPN won the night vs. all networks, cable or broadcast, among men 18-34 and men 18-49 every week during the 2010 season and consistently competed against the broadcast networks in total viewers on Monday nights. Outside the U.S., ESPN will televise MNF and other regular season games, playoffs, and the Super Bowl in 30 million households in 144 countries and territories across five continents, including Brazil, the Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Israel, Australia-New Zealand, and Continental Europe. The agreement also provides the NFL with an option to air a postseason Wild Card playoff game on ESPN should the NFL decide to do so. August 5, 2011 Versus to Change Name to NBC Sports Network The NBC Sports Group has announced that VERSUS cable network will be re-named the NBC Sports Network effective on January 2, 2012.The move was expected following the merger of Comcast's cable networks with NBC Universal earlier this year. VERSUS is best known for airing the Tour de France and NHL hockey games. The NBC Sports Network will serve as a 24/7 cable platform for NBC Sports' rich heritage and promotional power with the NBC network. January 2 was chosen as the re-brand date for several reasons, including the number of strategic events with large viewing audiences on NBC within a short timeframe that can be used to call attention to the re-branding efforts:
July 22, 2011 Harry Potter Franchise Breaks $7 Billlion Mark The Harry Potter movie franchise has broken the $7 billion mark in total worldwide revenues for all of the films according to Warner Brothers."Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2" has earned an astounding $640.2 million worldwide in its initial week, encompassing $214.9 million domestically and $425.3 million at the international box office. The collective Harry Potter films are the highest-grossing franchise of all time, a global record it has held since the success of the sixth film, 2009's "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." Individually, the worldwide grosses for the previous films stand as: "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" at $974,755,371; July 8, 2011 ABC Licenses Rights to Departing Soaps ABC announced it has licensed two soap operas, "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" to Prospect Park which will continue them online after they end their TV run.The exclusive multi-year, multi-platform deal enables the soaps' stories to continue beyond their finale dates on ABC. ABC will broadcast its final episode of "All My Children" on Friday, September 23rd and will air the final episode of "One Life to Live" in January, 2012. The licensing agreement, brokered by Disney/ABC Domestic Television Group, enables Prospect Park to continue production of "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" beyond their life on ABC. Prospect Park will produce and deliver the two long-running programs to consumers via online formats and additional emerging platforms including internet enabled television sets. Under the terms of the arrangement, the programs will continue to be delivered with the same quality and in the same format and length. Additional details of the new productions and tune-in will be forthcoming from Prospect Park. "I'm just so happy that ABC found a home where the legacies of 'All My Children' and 'One Life to Live' can continue. I'm excited for their future with Prospect Park," said Agnes Nixon, creator of both "All My Children" and "One Life to Live." "It takes a lot of living to make a soap opera a serial, and the wonderful teams on both shows have done just that. Together, we are a big family that keeps going, and I'm looking forward to working alongside these wonderful people as we ensure that the shows will continue with all the love and excitement we've always had. I also am so happy for our loyal fans, whom we love so much, and who have been so supportive over the last 40 plus years." Prospect Park is a media and production company founded in 2009 by entertainment industry veterans Jeffrey Kwatinetz and former Disney Studios head Rich Frank. Along with successful film and music divisions, the company's television group has numerous shows in development and breakout network hits airing, including "Royal Pains" and "Wilfred." June 24, 2011 American Media Buys OK! Magazine American Media, Inc. (AMI), publisher of the National Enquirer, Star and Men's Fitness magazines, announced that it has purchased the U.S. edition of OK! Magazine from Northern & Shell. Terms were not disclosed but OK! has reportedly lost over $100 million since its launch and is not profitable.OK! Magazine, which will relocate to AMI's new headquarters at 4 New York Plaza from its current location, was launched in the U.S. in 2005 and quickly established itself in the celebrity weekly category. OK!, which often pays hefty fees for cover stories and photo shoots, has a weekly circulation of 800,000 copies and a readership of 6.6 million. "OK! Magazine is a very important strategic acquisition for AMI, as it increases our market share in newsstand unit sales from 30% to 36%," said Mr. Pecker. "It also allows us to offer our advertisers a wider range of celebrity coverage than any single publication or group of titles from any publisher." The acquisition provides significant benefits to AMI advertisers by providing increasingly diverse demographics of the readers of its roster of magazines; OK! has a median readership age of 29, the youngest readership in the celebrity category. OK!, combined with AMI's Star magazine, delivers a circulation of 1.6 million, with a readership of almost 17 million (25% greater than Us Weekly). The website OKMagazine.com has been averaging 2.9 million unique visitors and 9.4 million page views per month. Combined with AMI owned RadarOnline.com, the fastest growing celebrity site, and StarMagazine.com, the three sites will reach close to 10 million unique visitors per month and over 50 million page views. AMI's other related brands include Star, National Enquirer, Country Weekly, TV Guide, Soap Opera Digest and Soap Opera Weekly. Adding OK! to the mix creates the largest celebrity & entertainment news group in the industry, with a total audience of close to 40 million people. June 8, 2011 Katie Couric Joins ABC News Katie Couric has worked for NBC and CBS News. Now she is joining ABC News and will host and produce her own nationally syndicated talk show beginning in September 2012.Couric was anchor of the CBS Evening News for the past five years and will be reunited with former NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker, who will produce her yet unnamed talk show. Couric will also appear on ABC News both on TV and online contributing reports during the next year before her show starts. ABC said it has cleared the 3 p.m. time slot next September at its eight-owned stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh/Durham and Fresno. ABC said it will continue to support General Hospital, which usually appears at the 3 p.m. time slot in many markets. General Hospital will be the last remaining soap opera on ABC after the network announced it will end All My Children and One Life to Live this year. June 1, 2011 Lady Gaga Sells 1.1 Million Albums in First Week Lady Gaga sold over 1.1 million copies of her album Born This Way in the first week of release according to Billboard magazine.The figures are from Nielsen Soundscan and are the 17th album to sell over one million copies since sales data was first tracked in 1991. Born This Way had the highest sales since 2005 release of 50 Cent's The Massacre. Sales of Gaga's album include over 440,000 MP3 copies sold by Amazon.com in a 99 cent promotion. May 10, 2011 Meredith Vieira Leaving Today Show Meredith Vieira announced on the Today Show that she is leaving the morning program after nearly five years as co-host. Ann Curry will replace Vieira in June.Vieira formerly was a co-host of the View on ABC before moving to the Today Show. She plans to stay on with NBC News in an yet-to-be announced position. Natalie Morales has also been named news anchor for the Today Show. The new anchor team of Matt Lauer, Ann Curry, Al Roker and Natalie Morales will debut in June. Additionally, Savannah Guthrie has been named a co-host of the third hour of Today. She will co-host the third hour alongside Al Roker and Natalie Morales, also beginning in June. May 4, 2011 Scott Pelley to Anchor CBS Evening News Scott Pelley has been named the new anchor of the CBS Evening News, replacing Katie Couric, who is leaving the network. He will take over on June 6 and the broadcast will be renamed CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley.Pelley has been a journalist with CBS News for 21 years and will continue to report stories for 60 Minutes news magazine. "Scott has it all. He has the experience, the credibility and he is among the very best reporters ever to work at CBS News," said Jeff Fager, Chairman of CBS News and Executive Producer of 60 Minutes. "In more than two decades at CBS News, he has distinguished himself at every level, right up to his current role at '60 Minutes,' where his work has been incomparable. We like to think of CBS News as the 'reporter's network' and I can't think of anybody in this business better suited for the anchor chair than Scott." Pelley is a graduate of journalism school at Texas Tech University. Katie Couric has been anchor of the CBS Evening News for the past five years but will be leaving the network to pursue other unannnounced opportunities. April 14, 2011 All My Children and One Life to Live Canceled Two of the best known soap operas on TV are being canceled from ABC after years of declining ratings. "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" will broadcast their final episodes in September 2011 and January 2012, respectively.ABC will replace the soaps with the launch of two new shows, "The Chew," which will premiere in September 2011, and "The Revolution" (working title), which will premiere in January 2012. The Chew will be a food-related show and The Revolution will be about health and lifestyles. "General Hospital," the second-most popular show in daytime, will remain on the air according to ABC. "All My Children" premiered on the ABC Television Network on January 5, 1970, as a half-hour show; seven years later it expanded to an hour. "One Life to Live" debuted on ABC on July 15, 1968 as a half-hour show. Ten years later, it grew to a full hour in 1978. Only four soap operas will remain following the cancellations: Young and the Restless and Bold and the Beautiful on CBS; Days of Our Lives on NBC and General Hospital on ABC. March 17, 2011 NY Times to Offer Digital Subscriptions The NY Times announced it will finally begin offering digital subscriptions to its website and from access via smartphones and tablets beginning March 28 worldwide.For non-home delivery subscribers, the basic package - NYTimes.com plus Smartphone App - will start at $15 every four weeks. The NYTimes.com plus Smartphone App package is currently available for purchase by users in Canada. On March 28, the global launch, The Times will offer three digital subscription packages, all of which include access to the Web site. In making the announcement, Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., chairman of The New York Times Company and publisher of The New York Times, said, "Today marks a significant transition for The Times, an important day in our 159-year history of evolution and reinvention. Our decision to begin charging for digital access will result in another source of revenue, strengthening our ability to continue to invest in the journalism and digital innovation on which our readers have come to depend. This move will enhance The Times's position as a source of trustworthy news, information and high-quality opinion for many years to come." Details about the digital subscription:
March 10, 2011 AOL Cuts 20% of Workforce New York-based AOL is planning to cut 1,000 jobs or 20% of its workforce. The move comes just days after closing the acquisition of the Huffington Post website.According to the NY Times, AOL will eliminate 200 editorial jobs and also reduce operations in India by 400 jobs. It also plans to move 300 jobs to an outsourcing firm. The job eliminations are expected to save $20 million. The Huffington Post Media Group, the new content division of AOL, said earlier this week it would hire six new journalists to its team. AOL is planning to expand with more original content and articles than using just bloggers. AOL bought the Huffington Post for $315 million. February 8, 2011 Super Bowl Sets TV Record Super Bowl XLV between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers set an all-time record for TV viewership.The game broadcast on Fox averaged 111 million viewers and beat last year's Super Bowl by 4.5 million viewers according to NY Times. This number only includes viewership in homes and not in bars or restaurants. An estimated 162.9 million people watched some of th game, another all-time record. The victory by Green Bay in the Super Bowl caps a record year for NFL TV viewership with more people watching games all season due to high definition broadcasts and more large-screen high definition TVs being purchased. January 14, 2011 Conan Late Show Tops in Younger Audiences Conan O'Brien's new late night talk show on TBS has the youngest audience in late-night television, with top ratings in two key demos: adults 18-49 and 18-34. CONAN is averaging 1,443,000 adults 18-49 and 930,000 adults 18-34, while the show's median age is just 33 according to Nielsen research.These season-to-date figures run from Nov. 8 through Dec. 30, 2010, and add in time-shifted viewing data, providing the broadest picture yet of the current late-night landscape. Time-shifted viewing accounted for a sizable portion of the CONAN audience, including 361,000 growth in 18-49 and 236,000 growth in 18-34 when comparing Live to Live + 7 viewing. With these time-shifted numbers included, CONAN ranks first among all late-night talk shows. CONAN has a median age of 33, tied with Lopez Tonight, which airs immediately after CONAN on TBS. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with David Letterman both have a median audience of 56 years old, the highest among late night hosts. Season-to-Date Ratings Highlights for Late-Night Talk Shows: November 9, 2010 U.S. News to Stop Printing Monthly Magazine U.S. News, once a weekly news magazine, will stop printing its monthly issues following the December 2010 edition and focus content almost entirely online.In 2011, U.S. News will instead publish eight newsstand print publications focused on single topics, including its Best Colleges and Best Hospitals rankings franchises. Subscribers to the monthly print magazine will have the remainder of their subscriptions filled by other publications. "This allows us to continue to grow our online business and position ourselves to take advantage of the emerging platforms for distributing information," says company president Bill Holiber. Mortimer Zuckerman, real estate tycoon and owner of the NY Daily News, owns U.S. News magazine. U.S. News was published weekly until 2008 before it went bi-weekly and then monthly. The rise of the Internet has battered magazines and newspapers as readers migrate online and via smartphones to get more timely info. The magazine was founded as U.S. News in 1933 and merged with World Report in 1948. October 1, 2010 Anderson Cooper to Get Daytime Show CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, who hosts the night-time show Anderson Cooper 360, will be getting an additional job as daytime talk show host starting next year.The deal is with Time Warner's Warner Bros. unit according to Wall Street Journal. The one-hour show will be syndicated on local stations in fall 2011 and will help fill a void left by Oprah Winfrey, who is leaving her popular talk show to start her own cable network called OWN. Cooper's new show is expected to feature celebrity interviews along with investigative reporting. August 29, 2010 USA Today to Cut 130 Jobs USA Today, the national newspaper published by Gannett, is restructuring the newspaper toward a digital age and will eliminate 130 jobs as part of the process.The cutbacks amount to 9% of USA Today's 1,500 employees according to AP. The newspaper was once number one in circulation with 2.3 million but circulation has dropped to 1.8 million as more readers go to the Internet and smartphones. Advertising has also seen a sharp decline over the past several years. USA Today will no longer have managing editors for each of its News, Sports, Life and Money sections but will be broken up into content rings with their own editors overseeing each group. August 3, 2010 Harman to Buy Newsweek The Washington Post Company, owner of Newsweek magazine, announced it has sold the publication to Dr. Sidney Harman. No terms were disclosed but reports say Harman is paying little cash and assuming liabilities of tens of millions of dollars.Newsweek has struggled over the past several years with declining circulation to the Internet and loss of advertising. The 91-year old Harman is one of the pioneers who began the audio industry. He is founder of Harman International, developer of premium speakers for the home and car. "In seeking a buyer for Newsweek, we wanted someone who feels as strongly as we do about the importance of quality journalism. We found that person in Sidney Harman," said Donald Graham, chairman and chief executive officer of The Washington Post Company. "He has pledged not only to continue to produce a lively, compelling and first-rate news magazine, but also an equally dynamic Newsweek.com - and he intends to keep a majority of Newsweek's very talented staff." Newsweek employs 325 people and about 250 are expected to be retained. June 30, 2010 Larry King to Leave Show Larry King announced he will leave his CNN talk show "Larry King Live" by the end of the year. King has been on CNN for 25 years but has seen a sharp decline in ratings of nearly 40% along with the entire cable network.King has also had marital problems and said he plans to spend more time with his wife and kids. He will continue working for CNN hosting occasional specials. June 15, 2010 News Corp. Buys Skiff News Corporation announced that it has acquired Skiff, LLC, Hearst Corporation's e-reading platform designed to deliver premium journalism to tablets, smartphones, e- readers and netbooks. The Company also announced an investment in Journalism Online LLC, the venture dedicated to enabling newspapers, magazines and online-only publishers of quality content to collect revenue from their online readers. The financial terms of both agreements were not disclosed."Today's developments underscore News Corporation's ongoing commitment to create strong business models that support journalism at a time of great change in our industry," said Jon Miller, Chief Digital Officer, News Corporation. "Both Skiff and Journalism Online serve as key building blocks in our strategy to transform the publishing industry and ensure consumers will have continued access to the highest quality journalism." The Skiff platform specializes in delivering visually appealing layouts for newspaper and magazine content. With the capability to deliver high-resolution graphics, rich typography and dynamic updates, this unique platform has the ability to retain engaging design elements that consumers enjoy while allowing publications to maintain brand identity and differentiation. The News Corp. owns The Wall St. Journal and NY Post along with the Fox Network. June 10, 2010 ESPN Closing NY Restaurant ESPN is closing five of its ESPN Zone restaurants including one in Times Square due to weak performance.Restaurants in NY, Baltimore, Chicago, Las Vegas and Washington will close on June 16 according to Bloomberg. The restaurant in Times Square was 50,000 feet with four levels including plenty of large screen TVs and games on the top floor. It employs over 100 people. Two restaurants in Anaheim at Disneyland and Los Angeles will continue to remain open. May 6, 2010 Newsweek Put On Sale The Washington Post Company announced that it has retained investment bank Allen & Company to explore the possible sale of Newsweek magazine.The newsweekly was launched in 1933 and purchased by The Washington Post Company in 1961. Newsweek is an internationally known and respected publication, providing unique news, commentary and insight into political and social developments in the United States and around the world. "The losses at Newsweek in 2007-2009 are a matter of record. Despite heroic efforts on the part of Newsweek's management and staff, we expect it to still lose money in 2010. We are exploring all options to fix that problem," said Donald E. Graham, chairman of The Washington Post Company. "Newsweek is a lively, important magazine and website, and in the current climate, it might be a better fit elsewhere." The magazine reportedly has 400 employees after letting go one quarter of their workforce last year. Newsweek has lost tens of millions of dollars over the past several years due to a steep drop in advertising and reduced circulation. April 26, 2010 Avatar Sells 6.7 Million DVDs in Four Days Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment announced that Avatar became the best selling Blu-ray of all time after just four days in stores, with an astonishing 2.7 million units sold in North America alone. AVATAR Blu-ray sales crushed the previous record of 2.5 million units.Retail sales of AVATAR Blu-ray and DVD Discs have exceeded 6.7 million units since its launch last Thursday, on pace to be the best selling title in recent history. The Oscar and Golden Globe-winning AVATAR is the highest grossing film of all time, taking in over $2.7 billion in worldwide box office. Written by James Cameron and produced with his long-time collaborator Jon Landau, AVATAR stars Sam Worthington, Zoë Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Wes Studi and Laz Alonso. April 12, 2010 Conan O'Brien Heading to TBS Former Tonight Show host Conan O'Brien has found a new late-night home on cable network TBS. The Emmy-winning comedian's new program will air at 11 p.m. on weeknights and will be followed by Lopez Tonight, which will shift to a midnight time slot. The new Conan show hasn't been given a name yet and will air four nights a week - Monday to Thursday. O'Brien hosted the Tonight Show for about eight months before being axed unceremoniously and replaced with former host Jay Leno. Said Conan O'Brien in a statement: "In three months I've gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I'm headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly." February 24, 2010 ABC News Cutting 300-400 Jobs ABC News is looking to cut up to 25% of its workforce of 1,400 or 300-400 jobs. According to the Los Angeles Times, the areas of ABC News that are most affected will be the special events staff, which will be disbanded, as well as the newsmagazines "20/20" and "Primetime," which will see many full-time employees replaced with freelancers. The weekday and weekend staffs of "World News" and "Good Morning America" will be combined and the London bureau is expected to be substantially scaled back. ABC News is also moving to the use of hand-held digital cameras so one or two people can report a story instead of the current setup which features a correspondent, producer and two person camera crew. ABC News is blaming advertising declines as well as viewership drop for its woes. CBS News reportedly cut 90 positions last month. January 29, 2010 Miramax Movie Studio Closes Miramax, an independent movie studio acquired by Disney Corp. in 1993, has closed its offices in New York, London and Los Angeles. About 80 jobs will be lost according to a report by Bloomberg. The studio was founded by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein. Miramax won four Oscars for best picture, including Chicago, Shakespeare in Love and The English Patient. There are six movies produced by Miramax still waiting to be distributed. January 22, 2010 Conan Out as Tonight Show Host Conan O'Brien has hosted his final Tonight Show on NBC, exiting Friday night with a reported $33 million severance payment. NBC is paying a total of $45 million to end his show with the other $12 million going to the rest of O'Brien's staff. The network decided to cancel O'Brien due to lower than expected ratings and after he turned down an offer to move his show a half hour later to 12:05 a.m. Jay Leno will return as host of the Tonight Show starting on March 1 following the coverage of NBC's Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Leno's show at 10 p.m. has ended due to low ratings. Air America Shuts Down Air America, a liberal radio network, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy Thursday and closed all operations. The company said it was hurt by falling advertising revenues and the weak market for the radio and media industry. Air America launched in 2004 and aired through 100 stations nationwide. The company said all current employees will be paid through January 21. A severance package will be offered only to full-time current employees with more than six months of tenure. January 12, 2010 Jay Leno Show to Leave Prime Time NBC is ending the Jay Leno Show at 10 p.m. on February 11 following low ratings and a potential revolt from local affiliates. The show started on September 14, 2009 after Leno retired from The Tonight Show on May 29. Conan O'Brien took over the Tonight Show at 11:35 p.m. on June 1 but has also seen ratings drop. NBC wants Leno to move back to 11:35 for a half-hour show and move O'Brien to 12:05. However, reports are O'Brien may leave NBC altogether for a competing network like Fox. Local NBC affiliates were not happy with Leno's show at 10 p.m. because it hurt ratings for their 11 p.m. newscats, which generate the bulk of advertising at local stations. January 6, 2010 Dow Jones Combining Businesses Dow Jones & Company announced a new organizational structure combining its consumer and enterprise businesses in a unified group serving customers across all platforms and distribution channels. The new alignment puts key products such as The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Newswires and Factiva in a single operating unit. “We have devoted two years to improving our products. This is the right time for a strategic step aimed at coordinating their development and marketing for the future,” said Les Hinton, chief executive of Dow Jones. “This structure will provide the focus to make us faster and better than our rivals at identifying and meeting customer needs.” With the change, two Dow Jones executives take on enhanced roles. Todd Larsen becomes president of Dow Jones with responsibility for the primary commercial operations of the company. Stephen Daintith becomes chief operating officer of Dow Jones where he will provide strategic guidance for the entire organization while continuing his responsibilities as chief financial officer. Clare Hart, who was president of the Enterprise Media Group and an executive vice president of Dow Jones, will be leaving the company. Dow Jones is owned by News Corp. December 2, 2009 Time Inc. to Cut 280 Employees Time Inc. began notifying 280 employees this week they will lose their jobs as the magazine publisher looks to cut expenses following steep advertising declines. Time Inc. notified the NYS Dept. of Labor that it would cut 280 workers but the number could increase with buyouts. The NY Times reported 400-500 workers could eventually lose their jobs. Layoffs have been reported at Sports Illustrated, Fortune and People magazine and all areas of the company will likely be affected. Workers in editorial, sales and marketing have all suffered cuts. Fortune Small Business Magazine will be closed and Fortune magazine has announced it will reduce its frequency next year. Time Inc. is the magazine division of Time Warner and will reportedly charge $100 million against earnings to cover the layoffs and buyouts. December 11, 2009 Editor and Publisher to Close Editor and Publisher, a weekly trade magazine covering the newspaper industry, is closing this month after 125 years. Nielsen Business Media, which owns the publication, decided to shut down E&P after failing to find a buyer. It has forged a deal with e5 Global Media Holdings, LLC, a new company formed jointly by Pluribus Capital Management and Guggenheim Partners, for the sale of eight brands in the Media and Entertainment Group, including E&P sister magazines Adweek, Brandweek, Mediaweek, Backstage, Billboard, Film Journal International and The Hollywood Reporter. E&P was not included in this transaction. Terms of the sale weren't announced. About 10 staffers work at Editor and Publisher and they had hoped the publication could still exist online but Nielsen has decided to close it down entirely both print and on the Web. Editor and Publisher was founded in 1884 to cover the newspaper business. December 2, 2009 Time Inc. to Cut 280 Employees Time Inc. began notifying 280 employees this week they will lose their jobs as the magazine publisher looks to cut expenses following steep advertising declines. Time Inc. notified the NYS Dept. of Labor that it would cut 280 workers but the number could increase with buyouts. The NY Times reported 400-500 workers could eventually lose their jobs. Layoffs have been reported at Sports Illustrated, Fortune and People magazine and all areas of the company will likely be affected. Workers in editorial, sales and marketing have all suffered cuts. Fortune Small Business Magazine will be closed and Fortune magazine has announced it will reduce its frequency next year. Time Inc. is the magazine division of Time Warner and will reportedly charge $100 million against earnings to cover the layoffs and buyouts. November 7, 2009 Time Inc. to Cut 280 Employees Time Inc. began notifying 280 employees this week they will lose their jobs as the magazine publisher looks to cut expenses following steep advertising declines. Time Inc. notified the NYS Dept. of Labor that it would cut 280 workers but the number could increase with buyouts. The NY Times reported 400-500 workers could eventually lose their jobs. Layoffs have been reported at Sports Illustrated, Fortune and People magazine and all areas of the company will likely be affected. Workers in editorial, sales and marketing have all suffered cuts. Fortune Small Business Magazine will be closed and Fortune magazine has announced it will reduce its frequency next year. Time Inc. is the magazine division of Time Warner and will reportedly charge $100 million against earnings to cover the layoffs and buyouts. WSJ Hiring Reporters for NY Edition The Wall Street Journal is reportedly hiring 12 reporters for a NY Edition of its newspaper beginning next year. The WSJ will begin adding coverage at courthouses, City Hall and State government as it looks to compete with The NY Times. Owner Rupert Murdoch has sought to expand the WSJ beyond its business focus to include politics and government. The move to expand NY coverage is rather peculiar since he also owns the tabloid NY Post. The expansion into NY comes a week after the WSJ said it would close its Boston bureau and eliminate nine positions. October 28, 2009 Fortune Cutting Issues to 18 Per Year Fortune magazine is cutting its frequency from bi-weekly at 25 issues per year to just 18 beginning in 2010. There will be two issues in some months and just one issue in others according to The Wall Street Journal as the business magazine looks to reduce expenses. Fortune will also be redesigned and focus on longer in-depth business stories. Advertising pages have plunged 35% in Fortune from a year ago. Fortune is not the only business magazine in trouble. Top competitor Forbes is laying off an unspecified number of employees this week and Business Week was acquired by Bloomberg. October 21, 2009 NY Times to Cut 100 Newsroom Jobs The NY Times plans to eliminate 100 newsroom jobs by the end of the year through buyouts and layoffs if necessary. The paper last cut jobs in 2008. The job cuts will equal 8% of the newspaper's newsroom of about 1,250 reports and editors; no other American newspaper has more than 750. If the paper does not reach its goal of 100 buyouts, layoffs will be necessary according to a memo by Executive Editor Bill Keller. Budget cuts are affecting all divisions of the NY Times, including editorial, op-ed and the business side. October 14, 2009 Bloomberg to Buy BusinessWeek McGraw-Hill announced it will sell its flagship magazine BusinessWeek to Bloomberg LLP. The NY Times reports the purchase price of $5 million plus assumption of several millions dollars in liabilities including severance pay for workers that will be let go. BusinessWeek was once a very profitable magazine but has seen advertising drop significantly over the past several years with competition from the Internet. "I am very proud of the tremendous contributions BusinessWeek has made to The McGraw-Hill Companies throughout its rich history. It is a truly outstanding franchise and the best source of business reporting in the world," said Harold McGraw III, chairman, president and chief executive officer of The McGraw-Hill Companies. "We are pleased that we have reached an agreement for BusinessWeek to be acquired by Bloomberg, which shares the same high standards for editorial independence, integrity and excellence that have long defined BusinessWeek." "BusinessWeek will be a powerful addition to our portfolio of leading news and information services," said Peter T. Grauer, chairman of Bloomberg L.P. "BusinessWeek is one of the business world's most recognized and trusted sources of news and insight, and we believe that it will be highly valued by our customers worldwide." The magazine could be renamed Bloomberg BusinessWeek. September 19, 2009 Dan Brown's New Book Sets Record First-day sales of Dan Brown’s THE LOST SYMBOL, which went on sale Tuesday, September 15, exceeded 1 million copies in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. “Indeed, we are seeing historic, record-breaking sales across all types of our accounts in North America for THE LOST SYMBOL,” said Sonny Mehta, Chairman and Editor in Chief, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. “We are grateful to booksellers everywhere for this incredible launch and look forward to working with them to enjoy long and great continuing success with Dan's novel.” In light of the unprecedented inventory demand from U.S. retailers, Doubleday went back to press just prior to publication for an additional 600,000 copies of the book beyond the initial North American print run of 5 million copies. Total number of copies in print for THE LOST SYMBOL is now 5.6 million copies. Doubleday is an imprint of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. whose parent company is Bertelsmann AG. September 4, 2009 Diane Sawyer to Take Over World News Tonight Diane Sawyer will take over the lead anchor position of ABC's World News Tonight after Charlie Gibson announced his retirement effective at the end of 2009. Gibson has been anchor of the nightly news show since May 2006. Sawyer has been the co-host of ABC's Good Morning America since 1999 and was co-host with Gibson until he took over World News Tonight. Sawyer will be the second female nightly news anchor along with Katie Couric of CBS. Sawyer is 63 years old and a graduate of Wellesley College. August 29, 2009 A&E Network Merges With Lifetime The Disney-ABC Television Group, Hearst Corporation and NBC Universal announced an agreement for A&E Television Networks to acquire Lifetime Entertainment Services. The parent company will retain the name A&E Television Networks, LLC (AETN), and its subsidiary will retain the name Lifetime Entertainment Services, LLC. The closing of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to occur in 2009. Financial terms were not disclosed. Abbe Raven, president and chief executive officer of AETN, will serve as head of the combined company following the closing. Raven has been recognized with numerous industry awards for building some of the most prominent brands in media including A&E Network, History and The Biography Channel, and for spinning them off into successful global franchises. Andrea Wong, president and CEO of Lifetime Entertainment Services, will continue to head the Lifetime Networks and will report to Raven following the closing. Robert DeBitetto, president and general manager, A&E Network and The Biography Channel, and Nancy Dubuc, president and general manager, History and History International, will both continue to report to Raven and run their respective networks. The new agreement will, upon closing, consolidate three of the nation's top cable networks under single management while preserving the distinct brand identities of each network. In addition, the combined company will be a global media content company reaching over 250 million homes worldwide in more than 140 countries around the globe. AETN will now include: A&E Network, History, Lifetime Television, Lifetime Movie Network, Bio, History International, Lifetime Real Women, History en Español, Military History and Crime & Investigation Network. No word on how many jobs could be lost due to the merger. August 16, 2009 Journal News Lays Off 70 The Journal News, a newspaper owned by Gannett serving Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties in NY, is laying off 70 staff members. The number affected includes 50 newsroom positions and 20 in ad sales. Remaining workers must reapply for newly reclassified positions at the newspaper with an emphasis on digital technology. The cuts are the second round of layoffs this month. Last week the paper said it would eliminate 57 positions in production, information technology, human resources, finance and other departments. The total cuts would reduce employment at the paper to about 700. July 20, 2009 Business Week Up for Sale Business Week, the nation's only weekly business magazine, is available for sale by its owners the McGraw-Hill corporation. McGraw-Hill announced that it is exploring strategic options for the magazine which is likely losing tens of millions of dollars per year. Business Week has a circulation of 900,000 but is losing its immediacy with competition from the Internet and loss of advertisers in financial services and auto makers.
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