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Fox agreed to a $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems on Tuesday. But a senior media executive told Insider that insurance typically handles these types of payments. Fox Corp. had nearly $4.1 billion of cash on hand, according to comments made in February by company CEO Lachlan Murdoch. Fox Corp., which also owns assets such as the broadcast network and streamer Tubi, has a market capitalization of $17.61 billion as of Tuesday. In 2017, Fox also agreed to a $90 million "derivatives" settlement against company officers over sexual harassment issues at Fox News, according to Reuters.

☆ Vox Media announces new hosts of iconic Code Conference after Kara Swisher’s departure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN —Vox Media is gearing up for its first Code Conference without Kara Swisher at the helm. The invite-only event, which attracts top technology executives and journalists, will be hosted by The Verge Editor-In-Chief Nilay Patel, Platformer founder Casey Newton and CNBC senior media and tech reporter Julia Boorstin, Vox Media told CNN on Wednesday. Swisher, the journalist who co-founded the news-making conference with reporter Walt Mossberg and hosted it for the past two decades, will still participate in the conference, albeit in a less outsized role. “This year, there will be more to discuss than ever,” Jim Bankoff, chief executive of Vox Media, told CNN. “Code will build on Kara’s legacy, and we’ll continue to evolve the conference to best serve its audience.

☆ Tech employees should expect more debloating even after 330,000 jobs got wiped
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Twitter have collectively chopped around 70,000 staff — but ongoing concerns about profitability and over-hiring means they could slim down more. Google and Amazon should cut more jobs: analystsAnalysts note that Google, for example, added around 71,000 employees in the past three years. They say Meta has seen "limited impact on its growth" after laying off around 25% of its workforce since November. The bank's analysts say that profitability per employee at Amazon excluding its warehouse workers — a measure of its efficiency — is "significantly below peers." With less cash available, cuts will likely persist and workers in tech should brace for more instability this year.

☆ More movies, more variety, more money: The box office is catching up to pre-Covid levels
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

For nearly three years, the domestic box office has been chasing the highs of the pre-pandemic era, hoping that blockbuster franchise films would fill seats and sell popcorn. It was the second-highest box office year with $11.4 billion." Since movie theaters reopened to the public in late 2020, the domestic box office has steadily recovered, generating significantly higher ticket sales each year. Last year, the box office reached $7.5 billion, up 64% from the $4.58 billion in ticket sales seen in 2021. Industry analysts attributed the smaller box office to a more limited inventory of theatrical releases, not a general disinterest by consumers to return to cinemas.

☆ UFC merger beefs up WWE's leverage in media rights negotiations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Networks and streaming services need to get ready for a media rights smackdown. UFC should also benefit ahead of 2025, when its U.S. media rights deals come up, including with Disney's ESPN. "I think everything is up for grabs with these media rights deals. During his time with CAA, he had formed a relationship with McMahon during a recent round of TV rights negotiations for WWE. It will also work for UFC negotiations, he noted.

☆ Apple's streaming service is starting to get serious, says Needham's Laura Martin
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailApple's streaming service is starting to get serious, says Needham's Laura MartinLaura Martin, senior media analyst at Needham joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss her thoughts on why the firm says there would be upside for Apple if it buys Disney using shares.

☆ It's wild that Western governments have decided that TikTok might spy for China. The app hasn't helped itself.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

TikTok denies it feeds user data to China, but the drip-drip of revelations hasn't helped. The suspicion is that TikTok's owner ByteDance is in cahoots with the Chinese Communist Party and shares data about Western users with China. TikTok has maintained the app doesn't spy on individuals, and has pointed to the steps it's taking to hive off user information. FCC commissioner Brendan Carr responded to Bertram asking if "any member of the CCP accessed non-public US or EU user data from inside China." US social-media services normalized the aggressive harvesting of user data, and routinely hand over information to international governments.

☆ Studio A24 captures Oscar spotlight with big wins for best picture, acting
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

LOS ANGELES, March 13 (Reuters) - Independent studio A24 was the big winner at Sunday's Academy Awards, taking nine awards out of its 18 nominations, including best picture and all four acting prizes. The studio's "Everything Everywhere All at Once" won seven Oscars, the most of the evening, including best picture. However, Brendan Fraser took the best actor prize for A24's "The Whale," which also won for best makeup and hairstyling. Not since the heyday of Miramax in the 1990s has an independent studio garnered such attention, talent and box office success, entertainment industry insiders say. EVERYTHING EVERYWHEREThe first film A24 produced and financed, together with Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, was “Moonlight,” which won the Oscar for best picture in 2017.

☆ ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ studio A24 captures Oscar spotlight
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

LOS ANGELES, March 10 (Reuters) - A24, the independent studio behind such films as “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and "The Whale," is poised to dominate this year’s Academy Awards, eclipsing Hollywood’s established studios and awards-hungry streamers that are spending millions on Oscar campaigns. Not since the heyday of Miramax in the 1990s has an independent studio garnered such attention, talent and box office success, entertainment industry insiders say. EVERYTHING EVERYWHEREThe first film A24 produced and financed, together with Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment, was “Moonlight,” which won the Oscar for best picture in 2017. The studio has garnered 53 Oscar nominations in less than a decade, including best picture nods for “Lady Bird, “Minari” and “Room.”A24's film slate has grown at the pace of its cash flow - starting with three movies in 2016 to 15 in 2022. This year, it’s on track to produce about 15 films for theatrical release, eight documentaries and 10 television shows.

☆ The Oscar box office bump is shrinking
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The winner of the best picture award at Sunday's Oscars may not get a box office bump for taking home the night's biggest prize. The result has been a smaller bump in box office at the time of nominations and a significant surge in streaming demand. For 2014's "American Sniper," 99% of its box office ticket sales came after its nomination, a whopping $346 million. This year, all of the best picture nominees saw less than 13% of revenue from post-nomination box office except for one. "For decades, we've seen contenders pick up extra box office ticket sales once the picture nominations were announced.

☆ MediaMath seemed destined for a $1B fairy-tale exit. Instead, most early investors got nothing.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

At its Halloween party in 2015, the adtech startup MediaMath seemed on the brink of greatness. The machine-learning revolution that took over the financial industry was finally happening in marketing, and many industry insiders considered MediaMath to be the hottest adtech company of the time. "We never came close to consummating such a deal with MediaMath nor entertained the purported valuation," said a representative for Singtel. The Trade Desk, the most comparable independent DSP company to MediaMath, was riding high after its 2016 initial public offering. The quasi-equity agreement was structured to protect Searchlight if MediaMath didn't perform to certain quotas or if things went south financially.

☆ 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' box office suffered steep decline in second week
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

That's the sentiment from box office analysts after the Marvel Cinematic Universe's latest film "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" saw the sharpest decline in ticket sales from opening weekend to second weekend in franchise history. To be sure, "Quantumania" is one of the worst reviewed Marvel films, with a 48% "rotten" critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes. "Thor: Love and Thunder," "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" and "Spider-Man: No Way Home," a co-production with Sony , all saw second week drops in excess of 67%. The film also has more counter-programming than other Marvel films released in the last few years. He pointed to "Violent Night" and "M3gan," in addition to "Cocaine Bear," as films that have outperformed expectations at the box office.

☆ It takes more than content to compete in streaming, says Needham's Laura Martin
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailIt takes more than content to compete in streaming, says Needham's Laura MartinLaura Martin, senior media analyst at Needham, joins 'The Exchange' to discuss Netflix expanding into sports, the bull case for Warner Brothers Discovery and valuation potentials in streaming.

☆ Marvel's 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' scores $104 million during domestic debut
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Paul Rudd is Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man, alongside Johnathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror in "Ant-Man and the Wasp in Quantumania." Disney and Marvel Studios' "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" scored an estimated $104 million at the domestic box office during its opening weekend. "Quantumania's" domestic haul is nearly double what the first standalone Ant-Man film opened to in 2015 and marks the 31st consecutive MCU release to debut at number one at the domestic box office. Internationally, "Quantumania" took in $121 million, bringing its estimated global haul for the three-day spread to $225 million. "'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' sets into motion what looks to be week after week of solid moviegoing and creates momentum for a solid summer movie season."

☆ AMC Theatres shouldn't be charging more for the best seats — it should be getting rid of the empty ones
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Travis Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AMC Theatres announced this week that it would charge more for the best seats in its auditoriums. Here's what it looks like on the AMC Theatres website for a screening at a New York City location:What the new seat pricing looks like on the AMC Theatres website. "This new initiative by AMC Theatres would essentially penalize people for lower income and reward for higher income." AMC's seat-pricing plan isn't going to help the theatrical business. Patrick Corcoran, spokesman for the National Association of Theatre Owners, told Insider in September.

☆ Iger may be looking for a partial investor in ESPN, says Needham's Laura Martin
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailIger may be looking for a partial investor in ESPN, says Needham's Laura MartinLaura Martin, Needham senior media analyst, joins 'The Exchange' to discuss Disney's restructuring and plan to reinstate its dividend.

☆ How Netflix leaders, including its new co-CEO, are thinking about a fast streaming service that could supercharge its ads business
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Netflix said it's open to adding a free, ad-supported streaming service. A FAST offering could help Netflix scale its nascent ads business, which has been slow to take off. Could Netflix launch a free, ad-supported service? A FAST channel — free, ad-supported television — is a linear stream, a model media companies are increasingly using to complement traditional TV and paid streaming services. For Netflix, a FAST could be a quick way to scale its ads business.

☆ Disney CEO Bob Iger has 'very little room for maneuver' as he tackles layoffs, budget cuts, a company reorg, and questions over the future of Hulu and ESPN
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Disney chief Bob Iger will speak Wednesday on his first quarterly earnings call since returning as CEO. Wall Street wants to see how Disney plans to boost profitability this year and whether it will trade ESPN or Hulu. Aside from a quick visit to Disney World in January, Bob Iger has been lying very low. Media investor Ross Gerber told Insider that Iger would get back to focusing on content rather than on the distribution mechanism. Iger tweeted a photo of himself at Disney World, dressed in a relaxed green cardigan and gray slacks as he posed with cast members on January 19.

☆ More than half of all 'Avatar: The Way of Water' tickets have been for 3D showings
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

For comparison, all other movies released in 2022 — not including "The Way of Water" — saw less than 14% of ticket sales from premium showings, averaging $15.76 a ticket. Bolstering box office numbers for the film is the push from Disney and Cameron for 3D showings. Since its release, the "Avatar" sequel has seen more than 56% of its tickets sold for 3D showings. The original 2009 "Avatar," which is the top grossing film of all time, also did well with 3D and premium tickets. To be sure, "The Way of Water" has not reached its historic box office just because of surcharges for 3D and premium format screenings.

☆ Publicis Reports 9.4% Organic Revenue Growth for Fourth Quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Megan Graham | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Publicis Groupe SA said Thursday that organic revenue grew 9.4% in the fourth quarter as its data and technology services continued to capture a shift in client spending. The growth in the quarter ending Dec. 31 brought Publicis’s full-year 2022 organic revenue growth to 10.1%. The results beat the average analyst estimate of 5.3% growth for the quarter and 8.8% for the year, according to FactSet. Publicis said it expects organic revenue growth of 3% to 5% in 2023. Organic growth refers to the change in net revenue excluding the impacts of acquisitions, disposals and currency fluctuations.

☆ Dotdash Meredith's CEO explains why its $2.7 billion acquisition of Meredith has been tough as the ad industry gets creamed
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Lauren Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

CEO Neil Vogel said an ad market slowdown and culture challenges have been hard. IAC-owned Dotdash Meredith is about a year into its $2.7 billion acquisition of magazine giant Meredith, and a rough ad market has made the transition to become a big player for advertisers tough. "The market is hard," said Neil Vogel, CEO of Dotdash Meredith. Dotdash Meredith owns more than 40 brands including People, The Spruce, and Food & Wine. At the same time, the ad market soured last year as advertisers reigned in spending.

☆ Netflix is thinking about a free streaming service to boost its ads business, insiders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

☆ 'Avatar: The Way of Water' is the third James Cameron movie to gross $2 billion
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Disney 's "Avatar: The Way of Water" has topped $2 billion at the global box office, making it the third James Cameron film to reach this benchmark. As of Sunday, "The Way of Water" had tallied $598 million from domestic ticket sales and $1.426 billion from foreign markets. "The film has now joined that very exclusive box office club and has made it look almost effortless," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. As the industry rebounds, films like "The Way of Water" have proven that moviegoers are eager to return for big blockbuster spectacles. Correction: This story was updated to reflect that "The Way of Water" is the third James Cameron movie to gross $2 billion at the global box office.

☆ Box office haul for 'Avatar: The Way of Water' tops $2 billion
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Lisa Richwine | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Director James Cameron arrives at the world premiere of 'Avatar: The Way of Water' in London, Britain December 6, 2022. "The Way of Water" debuted in late December, 13 years after the original "Avatar" introduced the lush world of Pandora and became a worldwide phenomenon. Box office sales for "The Way of Water" totaled $2.024 billion on Sunday, according to Disney estimates. Roughly $1.4 billion of ticket sales have come from international markets outside the United States and Canada. A third "Avatar" movie, which Cameron has already filmed, is scheduled to debut in December 2024.

☆ After Indiana Univ. stabbing, Asian American students say they haven’t received enough support from school
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kimmy Yam | Kimmy Yam Is A Reporter For Nbc Asian America. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Since the incident, a sense of shock has rippled through the school’s Asian community. The students say that conversations around the incident have been active among the Asian Americans on campus. Karen Cheng, a senior at the university and the president of the school’s Asian American Association, noted a similar sense of fear. As an Asian American woman, she said, public safety concerns predate the tragedy. But the community is also flanked by some areas with white supremacist activity, something many Asian American students are aware of, Cheng said.

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