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☆ Twitter's ailing ad business offered a glimmer of hope as it lures big Super Bowl advertisers to platform on gameday weekend
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The Super Bowl could be the most lucrative day for Twitter's ad business since Elon Musk's takeover. A handful of Super Bowl advertisers are poised to spend on Twitter on gameday weekend later this month, handing the beleaguered social media giant's ad business a much-needed boost, according to industry sources. A promoted trend costs $700,000 during the Super Bowl, compared to $100,000 on an ordinary day, Ad Age first reported. Upfront Super Bowl bookings on Twitter are still lower than in previous years, according to people familiar with the matter. To be sure, many big Super Bowl advertisers have no plans to appear on Twitter this time around.

NFL Hall of Famer and NBC Sports analyst Tony Dungy is facing renewed criticism for his history of anti-LGBTQ statements after he tweeted an anti-transgender conspiracy theory last week. That’s the criteria for avoiding hell.”In another tweet from 2020, Dungy wrote that being “LGBTQ is a lifestyle,” a sentiment that suggests being queer is a choice. . . things will happen.’’Cyd Zeigler, an LGBTQ advocate and a co-founder of the LGBTQ sports site Outsports.com, has been raising the alarm bells on Dungy’s anti-LGBTQ sentiments for years. “I’ve never called for Tony Dungy to be fired or lose his job or his ability to provide for his family,” Zeigler said. Zeigler said he isn’t convinced that Dungy’s anti-LGBTQ rhetoric would stop anytime soon.

☆ A busier movie calendar will lead to a 15% jump in box office sales, JPMorgan predicts
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Slow and steady will win the race at the box office this year, according to JPMorgan analyst David Karnovsky. The first is tied to the depressed state of the box office last year . However, if additional movies are released, here's where there could be upside to his box office forecast. DIS 3M mountain Disney shares have gotten a boost from a proxy battle, but box office gains could be ahead. Paramount's "Top Gun: Maverick" topped the box office charts last year, while NBC Universal had new films in the Jurassic Park and Minions franchises.

☆ 'Real Housewife' Jen Shah should get 10 years in prison following guilty plea for wire fraud, feds say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

Smith also pleaded not guilty to the charges in April 2021, but later changed his plea to guilty in November 2021, court records show. Another victim with several serious health conditions said she became homeless after being pushed into nearly $30,000 debt through Shah’s scheme. Shah starred on the show since its first season, which premiered in 2020; the third season is currently airing. "For that, I am genuinely sorry, and I will work for the rest of my life to make it right." Shah also claimed in that statement that she joined "The Real Housewives" to "escape the coaching business" and "have a platform to launch my fashion and beauty business."

☆ 'One of my top picks for next year': Why Evercore's Mark Mahaney still loves Netflix
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Netflix is a "top pick" for next year, according to Evercore ISI, despite the streaming giant reportedly missing ad revenue targets. Netflix shares closed lower by over 8% on Thursday following a Digiday report that the company offered to return money to advertisers for missing viewership targets. Mark Mahaney, head of internet research at Evercore ISI, brushed aside the concerns, however, saying the long-term outlook for the company remained positive. Evercore ISI expects shares of Netflix to rise by more than 17% to $340 a share over the next 12 months. I think that benefits the incumbent, which is Netflix," Mahaney added.

☆ How FTX founder SBF and friends quietly donated to political groups and relatives
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is led by officers of the Royal Bahamas Police force following his arrest. The disgraced CEO donated to his brother Gabe Bankman-Fried's nonprofit organization, Guarding Against Pandemics. Alameda Research donated more than $12 million to Gabe Bankman-Fried's nonprofit since late last year, according to California state campaign finance records. California state campaign finance records show Alameda donated $5 million to Guarding Against Pandemics last year and $7.1 million this year. Guarding Against Pandemics also paid political communications and media company GMMB just over $690,000 last year for advertising and production, its tax form says.

Five women, including two actors who appeared on “The Cosby Show,” filed a lawsuit in New York on Monday, accusing disgraced comedy legend Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting them. The plaintiffs named the actor, Kaufman Astoria Studios Inc., The Carsey-Werner Company and NBCUniversal Media as defendants in the 34-page lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court. NBC News does not typically identify victims of sexual assault, but the five women in this civil action all named themselves in the complaint. When she relented, Cosby allegedly "touched her breasts and without her consent forcibly pressed his penis into" her back, according to the suit. She says she felt sluggish as Cosby allegedly sexually assaulted her with his finger and "ejaculated from the sexual encounter."

☆ Disney buys MLB's stake in streaming firm BAMTech for $900 mln
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 29 (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) disclosed on Tuesday that it has taken full control of BAMTech, a video-streaming firm spun off from Major League Baseball's digital media company MLB Advanced Media. Disney earlier this month purchased the remaining stake in BAMTech from Major League Baseball for $900 million, the company said in a SEC filing. Previous to the transaction, streaming technology services provider BAMTech was owned 85% by Disney and 15% by Major League Baseball (MLB). BAMTech provides the streaming platform for such entities as Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment and Warner Bros Discovery Inc's HBO. Streaming service provider Hulu is owned 67% by Disney and 33% by NBC Universal (NBCU).

☆ Horatio Sanz: Parties in lawsuit accusing former 'SNL' star of sexual assault agree to dismiss
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Michelle Watson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —The parties involved in a lawsuit brought by an undisclosed woman accusing former “Saturday Night Live” star Horatio Sanz of sexual assault two decades ago have agreed to dismiss the case, according to court records from the Supreme Court of New York. Both Sanz and NBC Universal, the parent company of “SNL,” had been named as defendants in the lawsuit. In her 2021 lawsuit, the woman said Sanz began grooming her when she was around 14 and sexually assaulted her when she was 17 years old, according to court documents. Sanz previously denied the allegations, with his attorney saying they were “categorically false.” CNN has reached out to NBC Universal for comment. Sanz was an “SNL” cast member from 1998 to 2006 and was the show’s first Latino cast member, according to IMDB.

☆ Deep cuts at AMC Networks signals turbulent time for media industry
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The cuts, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, will amount to 20% of its US workforce, which is roughly 1,700 employees, AMC said. “At the same time we have seen the rise of direct to consumer streaming apps including our own AMC+. It was our belief that cord cutting losses would be offset by gains in streaming,” Dolan wrote. And the havoc being wreaked upon AMC Networks could foreshadow what is yet to come for others. “We’ve already seen layoffs and restructuring for a handful of companies,” Insider Intelligence principal analyst Paul Verna told CNN on Tuesday.

☆ Kumail Nanjiani's parents prefer a masala-covered Thanksgiving turkey, he says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Sakshi Venkatraman | Sakshi Venkatraman Is A Reporter For Nbc Asian America. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Kumail Nanjiani doesn't understand why Americans eat turkey. His parents, recent immigrants and Thanksgiving enthusiasts, secretly feel the same way, he said. “They’re like, ‘We have to put a lot of masala on the turkey because we don’t like how it tastes,’” Nanjiani said to late night host Seth Meyers Tuesday night. “I’m like, ‘You don’t have to eat turkey!’ and they’re like, ‘It’s Thanksgiving!’”"Late Night with Seth Meyers" and NBC News both fall under the parent company NBC Universal. "Turkey tastes like chicken having a bad day," he said.

☆ For your consideration: Warner-Discovery part two
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O) boss has encountered a series of problems since his splashy merger in April. A giant pile of borrowed money used to help cover the cash outlay to AT&T (T.N) for Warner Media looms large. Warner Bros Discovery counts more than 90 million subscribers for services such as HBO Max, less than half as many as at Disney and Netflix. There might be another $3 billion in savings, using the same 20% of EBITDA targeted by Warner Media and Discovery. Its shares have fallen about 48%, to nearly $12 apiece, since the merger of Discovery with AT&T’s Warner Media on April 8.

Welcome back to Insider Weekly, a roundup of some of our top stories. The industry took a beating after Meta, Alphabet, Amazon, and Microsoft reported poorer-than-expected earnings, wiping nearly $1 trillion off their collective market caps. Microsoft and Amazon reported slower growth in their usually outperforming cloud divisions, with Amazon also warning of slower holiday sales. Stephen Lam/Getty ImagesAmid a streak of disappointing financial results, inflation, and global turmoil, companies like Meta, Microsoft, and Google are looking to rein in runaway costs. For years, Big Tech companies competed on pay and perks to lure workers in a tight labor market.

☆ Meta employees are bracing for possible layoffs as growth slows and spending on the metaverse soars
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In other news, Elon Musk visited Twitter HQ Wednesday holding an unexpected accessory and Meta employees are bracing for layoffs as metaverse spending soars. Social media is dividing us — just not in the way you'd think. The like-minded bubbles we live in on social media are the reason we're so divided, right? Maybe not, according to new research, which found that social media exposes us to people and ideas we wouldn't otherwise encounter, which leads to polarization. Company insiders say Netflix made some avoidable missteps with its kids shows and that an upcoming adult animated show has been canceled.

☆ Fact Check-Fabricated Jim Cramer tweet about likelihood of Russia using nuclear weapons
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-05 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Social media users are sharing an image of a fabricated tweet attributed to U.S. television host Jim Cramer about whether Russia is likely to use nuclear weapons. Examples can be seen (here ) and (here )The image of the purported tweet includes a photograph of Cramer and the text: “It is incredibly unlikely that Russia will use nuclear weapons.”Some versions of the fabricated tweet image (here ) include the Twitter handle “@poordart” alongside the photo of Cramer. Jennifer Dauble, a representative for NBC Universal, parent company of CNBC, where Cramer is an anchor, told Reuters via email: “This is not a real tweet from Jim Cramer.”VERDICTFALSE. There is no evidence that U.S. television host Jim Cramer posted a tweet about the likelihood of Russia using nuclear weapons and remarks accompanying the original fabricated tweet image suggest the post was intended as satire. This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team.

☆ Coolio, ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’ rapper, dies at 59
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Diana Dasrath | Phil Helsel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Rapper Coolio, known for hits including "Fantastic Voyage" and "Gangsta's Paradise," has died at age 59, his manager confirmed Wednesday evening. Coolio, whose real name was Artis Leon Ivey Jr., had a music career that spanned more than three decades. Coolio won a Grammy for "Gangsta's Paradise," which was released in 1995 and spent three weeks at the top of Billboard's Hot 100 list. Coolio was also known for hits including "Fantastic Voyage," "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" and "C U When U Get There," among others. He was nominated for five other Grammys, including for "Fantastic Voyage" and "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)."

☆ ESPN would help Disney and Comcast settle a score
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

NEW YORK, Sept 23 (Reuters Breakingviews) - When it comes to modern corporate sagas, few deliver the drama between Walt Disney (DIS.N) and Comcast (CMCSA.O). Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts is in position to let his counterpart squirm, but there’s a neat solution to help settle the score: ESPN. He feared Comcast “would have paid more later.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterBefore long, Comcast clashed again with Disney. To settle the matter, the two parent companies agreed that in January 2024 Comcast could force Disney to buy its stake or Disney could require Comcast to sell based on a minimum valuation of $27.5 billion. Disney owns two-thirds of Hulu and Comcast owns the rest.

Latinos are the second largest demographic population in the United States, but they are vastly underrepresented on corporate boards, according to a new report by the Latino Corporate Directors Association. "Sixty-five percent of Fortune 1000 companies lack Latinos, and Latinos are seeing the least growth of any other group," Esther Aguilera, CEO of LCDA, told CNBC at this week's L'Attitude Conference. This has to change," Elizabeth Oliver-Farrow, chair of the Latino Corporate Directors Association, said in a release. The Latino Corporate Directors Association, a membership-based organization of U.S. Latinos at the highest level of corporate leadership and corporate governance, was formed to increase U.S. Latino representation on corporate boards by raising visibility of the Hispanic talent primed for the boardroom. "These are extremely accomplished individuals, who have led and grown business on the corporate level internationally and they add additional value and insight into new markets," Aguilera said.

☆ Read the 11-page pitch deck AI startup Hour One used to raise a $20 million Series A
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Marta Biino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Israeli startup Hour One allows users to make avatars, or "virtual humans," using AI. In April 2022, Hour One announced it raised a $20 million Series A round led by Insight Partners. Here is the 11-page pitch deck they used to woo investors. They also used a pitch deck, which they sent investors after meeting them. Read through the 11-page pitch deck Hour One sent to investors to raise a $20 million Series A round:Note: The original pitch deck included videos within a PDF presentation.

☆ 'Queer Eye' star Karamo Brown debuts new talk show
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Marianne Garvey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

(CNN) Karamo Brown's new talk show, "Karamo," debuts Monday. Brown, known as one of the Fab Five on the hit Netflix series "Queer Eye," will still appear on the show giving people advice in their every day lives. He started filming the talk show in August with NBC Universal Syndication Studios. Brown will use personal experiences to address a variety of topics, including family dynamics, infidelity, race and complicated relationships, according to a description of the show." allowfullscreen>Producers posted upcoming topics to the show's official website that address those themes.

☆ "Форсаж 9" и "Босс-молокосос 2" вышли на первые места в прокате США
▼ + stars: | 2021-06-05 | by ( Mld Media Srl | ) noi.md time to read: +3 min

За период с пятницы по воскресенье фильм студии Universal освоил еще 24 млн долларов (еще около 8 млн долларов прогнозируют по итогам выходного понедельника). Первые выходные принесли этому проекту, ориентированному на детскую и семейную аудитории, 17,3 млн долларов. Правда, если бюджет оригинала составлял 125 млн долларов, то на сиквел Dreamworks Animation потратила уже около 80 млн долларов. Суммарно в США вторая часть киносерии освоила 145,8 млн долларов, первый фильм в общей сложности получил 188 млн долларов. Замыкает пятерку лидеров комедийный экшен "Телохранитель жены киллера", которому третьи выходные принесли 3 млн долларов.

Persons: Форсаж, Восход, Боссмолокосос, Судная, Тихое, Телохранитель Organizations: Dreamworks, Universal, NBC Universal, Paramount Locations: США, Тихое

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