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☆ Elon Musk has upended Twitter’s business. Here’s how he could fix it
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The Tesla CEO has previously said he “hates advertising” and, as Twitter’s owner, professed a desire to make the company more reliant on subscription revenue than advertising dollars. Twitter has always struggled to turn its outsized influence in media, politics, and culture into a highly successful advertising business. Twitter’s advertising business has long been smaller than that of rivals like Facebook, in part because it didn’t offer the same level of user targeting. To successfully overhaul Twitter into a thriving subscription business would be to buck the trend of many other media properties that have struggled with the model. Twitter’s ad woesWhether he likes advertising or not, the business made up 90% of Twitter’s revenue prior to Musk’s takeover and replacing it won’t be an immediate shift.

☆ Some Amazon staffers joked that the writers of its mega-expensive 'Lord of the Rings' series should be laid off after the company cut thousands of roles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Travis Clark | Katherine Long | Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Some Amazon staffers have joked that the "Rings of Power" writers should be laid off. "The Rings of Power" was hit with a mixed reception, and Amazon has been quiet about its viewership. Several of those employees have joked that the writers of Amazon's uber-expensive series, "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power," should be laid off, Insider reported. No press release followed its season finale; by contrast, HBO released viewership for the finale of its own fantasy series, "House of the Dragon," the next day. And judging by the jokes in the layoffs-focused Slack channel, that seems to even be a narrative within Amazon among staffers.

☆ 14 TV insiders rank the streamers where they want to sell shows now as Apple TV+ closes in on HBO Max amid turmoil at Warner Bros. Discovery
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Elaine Low | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

"It's definitely been not the most exciting and robust year," said one TV agent at a major agency. Around 70 people at HBO and HBO Max have been let go this year, and their comedy development teams have merged. While WBD doesn't break out streamer-specific figures, it said on Thursday's earnings call that HBO Max, HBO, and Discovery+ have a combined 94.9 million subscribers, ensuring that any show on HBO Max has the chance to get a lot of eyeballs. They'll also take smaller swings in the genre department, do things at a lower budget," said the second TV agent. Echoed the first TV agent: "You pitch and sell to them if no one else wants it."

☆ Amazon has been suspiciously quiet about 'The Rings of Power' viewership in the 2 weeks since the first season concluded
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Steven Tweedie | Travis Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Amazon has yet to share viewership numbers on its "Rings of Power" finale, weeks later. The show has yet to cross the vague 100 million viewers milestone it teased three weeks ago. Payne and Patrick McKay later noted that 12.6 million viewers watched the premiere in the US in the first four days. Still, Amazon said "Rings of Power" in its first two months has driven "more Prime signs-up globally than any other Amazon original." HBO said this week that "House of the Dragon" was averaging 29 million viewers per episode.

☆ Netflix wants more shows like 'Emily in Paris' and a female 'Jack Ryan.' Disney+ is looking for the next 'Nashville.' Here are the series top streamers are seeking from Hollywood.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Insider spoke with agents and Hollywood insiders about what new series Netflix, HBO Max, and more streamers are looking for. Netflix wants more "Emily in Paris" and a major reality talent competition show like "The Voice." As the streaming wars continue, developing shows that appeal to new subscribers is key. Programming choices, from the company's decision to scrap feature film "Batgirl" to paring down its kids and animated TV library, have been affected. Apple TV+ is known for being a big spender, while Amazon Studios recently plunked down the largest sum in history on a single TV series with its $1 billion bet on "Lord of the Rings" prequel "The Rings of Power."

☆ 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' season finale: Amazon has more battles to come (SPOILERS)
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers about “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” season finale. CNN —“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” has ended its first season, with plans for several more to come. Yet the real battle for Amazon could be convincing everyone that its very expensive – and mostly underwhelming – gamble on J.R.R. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was personally involved in acquiring rights from the Tolkien estate way back in 2017, reflecting the company’s high-stakes bet. It’s become popular to refer to certain large corporations as being “Too big to fail,” and in TV terms, “Rings of Power” is about as big as they come.

☆ Squarespace, a Website-Development Firm, Names Amazon Executive as CFO
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Mark Maurer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Mr. Gooden most recently led the finances of the unit behind Alexa, Amazon’s virtual assistant, and Echo, which sells the online retailer’s smart-speaker products. At Squarespace, Mr. Gooden is set to succeed Marcela Martin, who held the CFO role from November 2020 until July of this year. Photo: Squarespace Inc.Liz Coddington, the former vice president of finance for Amazon Web Services, in June joined exercise equipment company Peloton Interactive Inc. as CFO. Squarespace declined to make Mr. Gooden available for an interview, nor did he immediately respond to a request for comment via LinkedIn. Prior to joining Amazon, Mr. Gooden held CFO roles at companies such as payments firm SpacePointe and defunct commerce platform Solavei LLC.

☆ Netflix, HBO Max, and more streamers are scrapping original kids series and battling for more IP-based hits like 'CoComelon' in a 'bummer year for animation'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

HBO Max's abrupt removal of dozens of series, mostly kids shows, took creators by surprise. You can't stream it on HBO Max or any subscription service; it's available only for purchase on iTunes. The move was a cost-saving one for HBO Max parent Warner Bros. HBO Max will continue to release new kids and animated programming but is expected to be more selective. "It's a small community" of animation creators, the animation exec told Insider, and those HBO Max cancellations hurt.

☆ Amazon’s ‘Thursday Night Football’ is a hit
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Frank Pallotta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN Business —Amazon hit it big with its “Thursday Night Football” debut. The tech giant’s first exclusive NFL game, which saw the Kansas City Chiefs edge out the Los Angeles Chargers 27 to 24, averaged 13 million viewers last Thursday, according to Nielsen. Amazon added that, per its “first party measurement and Nielsen, across all platforms” the game drew slightly more fans, averaging 15.3 million viewers. These numbers show that the sport can be a big draw on digital as well as on old fashioned TV. Thursday’s debut is also an example of how Amazon is boosting its Prime Video investment as it broadens its footprint in the streaming marketplace.

☆ Woody Allen announces his retirement
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Woody Allen has announced his retirement from filmmaking. While in Europe to work on his 50th film, Woody Allen told Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia that he intended to retire from making movies and to dedicate more time to writing during his twilight years. What is now set to be his final film is set in Paris and will be shot entirely in French in a couple of weeks. Allen has been shooting more often in Europe as his support in the U.S. has plunged given the abuse accusations against him. In 2020, he opened the San Sebastian Film Festival with “Rifkin’s Festival,” shot in and around the tony city of San Sebastian.

☆ It's a 'bummer year for animation' as HBO Max, Netflix, and more streamers scrap original kids series and hunt for the next 'CoComelon'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-07 | by ( Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

☆ Elon Musk bashes Amazon's 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' saying 'Tolkien is turning in his grave'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-05 | by ( Samantha Grindell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Elon Musk criticized Amazon's "The Lord of The Rings: Rings of Power" on Twitter. The billionaire took issue with the show's male characters, saying they were "cowards." In another tweet, Musk went on to write that he disliked the show's male characters in particular. Amazon has invested $1 billion in "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" series inspired by the world of J.R.R. Tolkien, and former company executives told Insider the company will use the show to determine if Amazon Studios is a worthwhile venture for the company.

☆ 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' was watched by more than 25 million globally, Amazon says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-03 | by ( Hanna Howard | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Amazon Studios shared its first image of its upcoming untitled "Lord of the Rings" series, due on its streaming service Sept. 2, 2022. Amazon said Saturday that the first episode of its "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" series attracted over 25 million viewers globally in its first day, making it the biggest ever debut for a show on its Prime Video streaming service. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" books and is the most expensive television series of all time. Earlier this month, HBO said its "House of the Dragon," a "Game of Thrones" prequel series, was the biggest series premiere in its history. Clarification: This story was updated to reflect that "The Rings of Power" is based on the appendices to "The Lord of the Rings."

☆ (видео) Кадр c протестов в Площади Великого Национального Собрания попал в американский фильм о борьбе с инопланетянами
▼ + stars: | 2021-07-03 | by ( ) ru.diez.md time to read: +1 min

(видео) Кадр c протестов в Площади Великого Национального Собрания попал в американский фильм о борьбе с инопланетянамиКадр c протеста в Площади Великого Национального Собрания (ПВНС) появился в фильме «Война завтрашнего дня», выпущенный 2 июля на платформе Amazon Prime Video, пишет diez. Фильм рассказывает о будущем, в котором человечество сражается в кровопролитной войне с инопланетянами. И теперь судьба планеты зависит от того, сможет ли один из них (Крис Пратт) разобраться с ошибками минувших дней. Но из-за пандемии COVID-19 релиз был отложен на 23 июля 2021 года, после чего вновь перенесён на неопределённый срок. Фильм вышел 2 июля 2021 года на сервисе Prime Video.

Persons: diez, Крис Пратт Organizations: Amazon, Paramount Pictures, Площадь Великого Национального Собрания, инопланетянамиКадр, Площадь Великое Национальное Собрания (ПВНС) Locations: Атланта, Исландия, США

☆ Gigantul Amazon va cumpăra celebrul studio hollywoodian, Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Care este motivul
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-27 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +1 min

Gigantul Amazon va cumpăra celebrul studio hollywoodian Metro Goldwyn Mayer cu suma de 8,45 miliarde de dolari. Motivul achiziției ar putea fi celebra serie de filme "James Bond". MGM are în spate aproape un secol de istorie cinematografică, cu peste 4.000 de filme și 17.000 de emisiuni TV în catalogul său. Acesta va completa activitatea Amazon Studios, care se concentrează în principal pe producţia de programe şi emisiuni de televiziune. Amazon a adăugat că va contribui astfel la conservarea moştenirii şi a catalogului de filme şi va oferi clienţilor "un acces mai bun la aceste opere existente".

Persons: Metro Goldwyn Mayer, James, . Organizations: Metro, . MGM, Amazon, Foods, MGM, Amazon Studios Locations: ranzacție

☆ (video) Recomandări de la Mircea, fără spoilere: cinci filme care șochează prin diferențele de cultură
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-22 | by ( Onixmedia Srl | ) diez.md time to read: +9 min

Chiar și azi îmi amintesc vocea copilului care s-a uitat pe geam și a strigat „Mama, se Roma!”. M-am pomenit dintr-o dată într-o lume a lui Fellini, plină de impulsivitate, mult suflet și aviație. De data aceasta, am selectat cinci filme care, pe lângă narațiunea captivantă pe care o au la bază, vin să ne prezinte o lume diferită de cea pe care ne-am obișnuit s-o vedem. Încă din primele minute, ești atras într-o lume nemiloasă încât uiți îndată că privești un desen animat. E vorba de o lume a tabuurilor pe care o cunoaștem doar din știri sau interviuri.

Persons: montez, Fellini, Aravind, Ashok, Netflix, Asghar, Emad, Ranaa, Andrei Zveaghințev, Andrei, Dimitri, Kolea, Anwar, Meryem Organizations: The, Booker, HBO GO, Amazon Studios, iTunes Locations: Roma, Barlam, Indiei, India, Kabul, Teheran, Veneția, Medan, Indonezia, Turciei

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