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☆ How HBO's content chief plans to grow the audience for Warner Bros. Discovery's new mega-streamer with DC and Warner Bros. shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

HBO's Casey Bloys revealed his content strategy on "The Watch" podcast and in a talk with Parrot Analytics. Bloys also shared what's ahead for HBO Max once it combines with Warner Bros. Despite economic pressures on streaming, he's not worried that HBO content will suffer. "Euphoria" is second only to "Game of Thrones" in most-viewed HBO shows, but Bloys was hesitant at first to develop its hit 2022 prequel "House of the Dragon," he told "The Watch." And he pointed to more Batman spinoffs like "The Penguin" that's coming to HBO Max and will star Colin Farrell.

"Magic Mike's Last Dance" is now available to watch from the comfort of your living room. You can buy "Magic Mike's Last Dance" for $25 or rent it for $20 from digital retailers like Amazon. Check out the trailer for 'Magic Mike's Last Dance'"Magic Mike's Last Dance" stars Channing Tatum, Salma Hayek Pinault, Ayub Khan Din, Jemelia George, and Juliette Motamed. Where to watch 'Magic Mike's Last Dance'"Magic Mike's Last Dance" is now available to watch at home through streaming retailers like Prime Video, Vudu, and Apple TV. If you buy "Magic Mike's Last Dance," you can stream it whenever you like with no restrictions.

☆ ‘South Park’ lawsuit: Warner Bros. Discovery sues Paramount for $500 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Discovery filed a lawsuit against Paramount Friday, claiming the rival media company breached its half-billion-dollar exclusivity contract with HBO Max by airing “South Park” on its own streaming platform, Paramount+. Nearly all “South Park” episodes air first on Paramount-owned Comedy Central. Then came the pandemic, and WarnerMedia was told that the new production of “South Park” would be halted, according to the complaint. In March 2021, Paramount launched Paramount+, and Warner Bros. Warner Bros.

☆ Warner Bros. Finds One Cash Flow Story to Rule Them All
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Dan Gallagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Warner Bros. The media giant created from the ashes of AT&T ’s ill-fated foray into Hollywood didn’t have a great fourth quarter. That brought overall revenue for the period down 11% year over year to $11 billion, which also fell short of Wall Street’s estimates. The company saw little action in theaters during the quarter beyond the superhero flick “Black Adam,” which lagged behind expectations. And it didn’t exactly warm up the crowd at home either, adding only 1.1 million subscribers to its digital streaming services that include HBO Max.

☆ ‘South Park’ on Paramount+ Prompts Warner Bros. Discovery Lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Joseph Pisani | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Warner Bros. Discovery said it paid more than $500 million to exclusively stream ‘South Park’ episodes on its HBO Max platform until 2025. Warner Bros. In the lawsuit, filed Friday in New York State Supreme Court, Warner Bros. Discovery said it paid more than $500 million in 2019 to exclusively stream new and existing “South Park” episodes on its HBO Max platform until 2025.

☆ Warner Bros. Discovery sues Paramount over 'South Park' streaming rights
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Warner Bros. Discovery sued Paramount Global looking to enforce the streaming rights of "South Park," setting the stage for a legal battle between two media behemoths as the streaming wars intensify. Discovery filed a lawsuit against Paramount, South Park Digital Studios and MTV Entertainment seeking hundreds of millions of dollars for what it believes was a breach of contract. During the bidding process for the "South Park" rights, the filing said, Paramount allegedly asked whether Warner Bros. Discovery plans to launch a combined HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming service this spring.

REUTERS/Mario AnzuoniNEW YORK, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The rights to stream "South Park," the popular animated comedy featuring foul-mouthed children, is the subject of a new lawsuit where Warner Bros Discovery Inc is seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages from Paramount Global (PARA.O). The complaint said the defendants cemented their apostasy in August 2021 when Paramount's MTV unit announced an agreement to stream new "South Park" content on Paramount+, through season 30 in 2027. Warner said it now expects to receive only 14 of the 30 new "South Park" episodes it had been promised, including two "Pandemic Specials" that Paramount claims constitute season 24. The defendants also include MTV and South Park Digital Studios, a joint venture between Paramount, Parker and Stone. "South Park" was launched in August 1997 on Comedy Central, owned by Paramount.

☆ New 'Lord of the Rings' movies are coming after Warner Bros. Discovery secured the rights to J.R.R. Tolkien's books
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Samantha Delouya | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Warner Bros. The plan comes after Warner Bros. struck a deal with the video game company that owns the rights to Tolkien's books. Warner Bros. Warner Bros. On the direct-to-consumer front, Warner Bros.

☆ Digital video is set to top traditional TV this year. How Wall Street says to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

As of Thursday's close, Netflix shares were up 9% year to date, while Disney , Paramount and Warner Bros. NFLX YTD mountain Netflix shares since the start if 2023 During the pandemic, the streaming industry challenged cable TV as customers cut the cord. Shares of Netflix struggled Thursday following a report from The Wall Street Journal that the company was cutting prices in over 30 countries. Disney represents another clear-cut behemoth in the space, and boasts one of the higher number of buy ratings on Wall Street. The Trade Desk is another advertising stock Wall Street is bullish on, with more than 60% of analysts giving a buy rating on the stock.

☆ Warner Bros Discovery revenue misses as media giant posts big loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Pedestrians walk past a street commercial advertisement billboard from Warner Bros and DC comics character, The Batman, movie in Madrid. Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Warner Bros.

☆ Netflix plunges after the streaming giant launches a wave of price cuts in 100 countries in the face of stiff competition
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The price cuts come as Netflix faces a surge in competition from various streaming platforms. Netflix's price cuts buck its recent trend of hiking subscription prices in the US and Europe. Additionally, some price cuts will amount to a 50% reduction, depending on the streaming tier. Some countries that are impacted by the lower Netflix prices include Yemen, Libya, Kenya, Croatia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, among others. None of the price cuts are taking place in the US or Europe.

☆ Warner Bros Discovery posts quarterly loss after restructuring charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Feb 23 (Reuters) - Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O) Inc on Thursday posted a $2.1 billion loss in its fourth quarter, reflecting ongoing charges related to the restructuring of the merged media companies. Warner Bros Discovery reported a loss of 86 cents per share, versus expectations of a 21-cent-per-share loss. Warner Bros Discovery said the months-long merger-related restructuring, which resulted in thousands of layoffs and canceled film and television projects, is complete. Warner Bros Discovery also said it has paid down $7 billion in debt since April. Like other media companies, Warner Bros Discovery has yet to turn a profit on its HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming services, though the company has reduced losses from them.

☆ Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav faces complex challenges as a combined HBO Max-Discovery streamer preps to launch this spring and staffers fear more layoffs and cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Lucia Moses | Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

CEO David Zaslav is expected to provide an update of the company's financials and outlook for the year ahead. WBD also shed more than half its stock price since the merger deal closed April 8, before a more recent partial recovery. But optimism around the company seems to be based on the feeling that things can only go up from here. Discovery to $20 from $16, assuming the heaviest cost cutting is done and despite the fact that the near-term ad outlook is poor. Legacy Warner ad salespeople in particular are frustrated over this approach and worried it'll cost them in the form of a smaller annual bonus than they've come to expect in years past.

☆ 'The Last of Us' is based on real science: A fungus pandemic is unlikely, but not impossible
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

"The Last of Us" on HBO Max depicts a zombie apocalypse caused by a fungus pandemic. Here's the science fact and fiction behind the show, and the possibility of a fungal pandemic. The new scenario, first realized in the video game that the show is based on, is making viewers wonder whether a fungus pandemic can happen in real life. "A fungal pandemic is definitely possible," Norman Van Rhijn, a mycologist researching fungal infections at the University of Manchester, told Insider in an email. Still, fungal infections are on the rise worldwide, and researchers are concerned that more and more people are at risk.

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☆ Sony's movie chief talks China censorship, upcoming game adaptation 'Gran Turismo,' and how his studio is preparing for a potential Hollywood writers' strike
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

It was a long-term deal so I don't think we have to confront that yet, but it's gone terrifically for us, actually. If you don't want to compete, don't come in. Can you talk about the synergy with the Whitney Houston movie — she was a Sony Music artist — or "Gran Turismo," a Playstation game? Do you wish HBO Max's "The Last of Us," which is also based on a Sony Playstation game, had been a movie? A lot of big movies come out of it.

☆ Netflix Sunsets ‘Surprise Me’ Shuffle-Play Button
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Katie Deighton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix Inc. has removed its “Surprise Me” button, a feature introduced in 2021 to alleviate the modern burden of choosing something to watch from thousands of titles. Netflix in the past year has increased its emphasis on making money from its users instead of focusing only on adding them, Mr. Verna said. “Netflix tries a lot of things, iterates quickly, and kills things that aren’t working,” Mr. Greenfield said. The feature instantly started playing a television show or movie without making users scroll through Netflix’s library to find something to watch. Netflix shares last month rose to their highest since last April after the streaming company announced that it had added 7.7 million subscribers in the final quarter of 2022, topping its own projections.

☆ HBO's content chief reveals plans to build audiences for HBO Max and Warner Bros. Discovery's new mega-streamer with DC and Warner Bros. shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

HBO's Casey Bloys revealed his content strategy on "The Watch" podcast and in a talk with Parrot Analytics. Bloys also shared what's ahead for HBO Max once it combines with Warner Bros. Despite economic pressures on streaming, he's not worried that HBO content will suffer. And even after Bloys took on oversight of HBO Max Originals in 2020, "The idea is to do things that are not necessarily for HBO," he told "The Watch." And he pointed to more Batman spinoffs like "The Penguin" that's coming to HBO Max and will star Colin Farrell.

☆ Fox scores Super Bowl ratings touchdown with 113 million viewers, the third most-watched TV program ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —The Super Bowl delivered super ratings for Fox. That makes Super Bowl LVII the third most-watched television program of all-time. Fox Sports said that the Apple Music Halftime Show featuring Rihanna drew an average of 118.7 million viewers, making it the second most-watched performance in Super Bowl history. The numbers underscore yet again that while linear television might be in decline, live sports still command extraordinary audiences. Fox said Super Bowl LVII was the most-streamed Super Bowl in history, with an average of 7 million people watching via internet-based services.

☆ NBC Sports hopes to make an aggressive bid to bring back the NBA, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Discovery own the NBA rights until the end of the 2024-2025 season — more than two more years from now. Warner Bros. Warner Bros. NBC aired its last NBA games during the 2002 finals, when the Los Angeles Lakers swept the New Jersey Nets. Regular season NBA games across ABC, ESPN and TNT are averaging 1.6 million viewers this season.

"I'm not rolling in the dough right now and I probably will never be," Simmons tells CNBC Make It. "I don't spend a lot of money, if any, out of pocket on my wheelchair," Simmons says. 'It opened up the world for me, using my wheelchair'A New York native, Simmons wasn't born with her disability. Moving forwardThough the settlement money allowed Simmons to de-prioritize finding a job, she always wanted to work. Simmons had just begun applying to law schools when she found out her settlement money was gone.

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☆ Amazon Studios is growing fast and spending big on shows like 'Citadel,' but insiders say unclear creative direction, leadership shifts, and tech bureaucracy threaten to drive away staff and talent
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Lucia Moses | Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +20 min

The dust has been settling at Amazon Studios after a big reorg in the fall that solidified Jen Salke's power. Yet Amazon Studios faces major challenges. Amazon Studios' Head of Global Television Vernon Sanders told Insider that the goal is to deliver content with global cultural relevance. Amazon Prime VideoWhile spending on such big swings has soared, some insiders see far less budgetary support for underrepresented casts. "I do think people wonder what's the commitment to Amazon Studios," the current insider said.

☆ 'The Last of Us' is a critically acclaimed show based on the hit video game series — here's how to stream new episodes of the HBO drama
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Jordan Williams | Freelance Writer | Read More | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

"The Last of Us" premiered January 15 exclusively on HBO and HBO Max. The series is an adaptation of the 2013 post-apocalyptic video game of the same name. The series is based on the critically acclaimed post-apocalyptic video game series of the same name. How to watch 'The Last of Us'You can watch "The Last of Us" exclusively on HBO and HBO Max. Critics praise the HBO series' deep dive into the game's story, the cast's performances, and the writing.

☆ Fur flies as dogs like Tom Barky prepare for the Puppy Bowl
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Alicia Powell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 9 (Reuters) - Over 100 puppies from around the United States and Caribbean have suited up for the 19th annual Puppy Bowl that will air opposite of the Super Bowl on Sunday. This year Warner Bros Discovery's (WBD.O) the Animal Planet network worked with 67 shelters from 34 states and the Caribbean island of Dominica. “They've got Tom Brady, we've got Tom Barky, they've got Jalen Hurts, we got Taillon Hurts. And of course they have Josh Allen, we have Josh Allen Hounds,” said Schachner. The Puppy Bowl will be simulcast across Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, TBS, Discovery+ and HBO Max beginning at 2 p.m.

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