• Fight Brews Over Cable Content Going Online
    In recent months, a smattering of made-for-cable programs have started to become available in full over the Internet. Last week, "The Daily Show" and other Comedy Central offerings were added to the list, even though Comedy Central once vowed it would never Webcast its entire programs. This Vebcasting trend annoys cable operators. Glenn Britt, chief of Time Warner Cable, recently said that Webcasting a program the same day it is broadcast, "erodes your business model" and cable operators "have to intervene at some point." Regarding the new Webcasts of "The Daily Show," a Time Warner Cable exec …
  • TV Soap to Launch Internet Mag
    Is it a TV show, a Web site or print publication? "The Young and the Restless," the TV soap opera, is rolling out a new fashion magazine with a twist. The magazine is online only, and it coincides with the launch of a fictional print version of the magazine on the show. Called restlessstyle.com, the new entity will offer celebrities, fashion shows, beauty tips and all the content that is part of the fictional print magazine created by characters in the TV series. Executive producer Josh Griffin calls the project "an innovative extension of the TV show …
  • Netflix Inks Deal For Gay TV Shows
    Netflix has agreed to be the exclusive distributor of TV series from Logo, the gay- and lesbian-themed cable channel. The arrangement leaves open the possibility that future titles from MTV Networks-owned Logo will be distributed the same way. In exchange, Logo will promote the Netflix-enabled shows on air and on Logo-owned Web sites: 365gay.com and NewNowNext.com. The deal says future programs will premiere on TV via the Logo network and then be acquired, cross-promoted and rented to viewers on Netflix.
  • Parenting Mag Hosts Online Discount Program
    Bonnier Corp.'s Parenting is launching a loyalty program that gives its readers cash back on online purchases and uses the spending patterns to compile data for advertisers. The loyalty program required readers to register, and then they are rebated a percentage of what they spend on participating retailers' sites, including ToysRUs.com, Target.com and Diapers.com. Parenting plans to collect and identify trends from the purchase data, which it hopes will give it an edge with advertisers. Parenting hopes the program will help it catch up with rival Meredith Corp.'s Parents, which grew ad pages 12.4% in the first …
  • Local Web Ads Are Sizzling For Newspapers
    Newspaper-owned Web sites are taking the biggest slice of an online local ad pie that is rapidly getting bigger, says a new study by Borrell Associates. In 2007, newspaper online local ads for the first time topped more than $2 billion. Overall, newspaper sites captured about 25% of the local online ad spend -- and in some markets, they got half the pie. It's a lot, say researchers, but not as much as a few years, when newspapers overall attracted 44% of the total spend. Other media are not close. Broadcast TV got a 6.9% share of …
  • Tribune May Sell Media Services Unit
  • Viacom Hits 52-Week Low On Ad Concerns
  • Agreement May Put End To Set-Top Boxes
    Television manufacturer Sony and the National Cable and Telecommunications Association signed an agreement this week that will allow viewers to rid themselves of set-top boxes, yet still receive advanced "two-way" cable services using their TV remote control. The cable companies and consumer electronics firms have feuded for a decade about how to deliver cable service, while allowing customers to buy their own cable equipment. The agreement involves the nation's six largest cable companies serving more than 82% of cable subscribers. Previously, those subscribers needed cable set-top boxes to enjoy video on demand, on-screen channel guides …
  • Networks Trim Reality Show Costs
    Long considered the cheapest type of programming, reality shows are now being asked to make additional cuts to their costs. Mark Cronin, producer of VH1's "Rock of Love," says, "Every network is having its budgetary problems, and that's being pushed back toward all content." New reality shows are now shot in the vein of Fox's "The Moment of Truth" -- studio-based shows hosted by lesser-known talent and touting modest prizes. Tighter costs also mean productions are taking less time to shoot and edit a show. While the rapid pace can affect a show's quality, it's unclear …
  • Revenue Slump Hurts Gannett's S&P Ratings
    S&P lowered newspaper publisher Gannett's investment-grade ratings one notch, due to the company's deepening decline in year-over-year ad revenue. "The slowing U.S. economy will continue to exacerbate operating weakness at Gannett, when the company and the newspaper industry have experienced prolonged operating weakness from a secular shift away from print advertising," S&P says. S&P had assumed newspaper industry revenue declines would be less than 6% in 2008, but by April, the 2008 decline was 10.3%. One ray of hope: Gannett's geographically diverse portfolio of media properties and its internal cash generation prompted S&P to still view the …
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