What sets Pixar apart from virtually every other studio in Hollywood? It's dedicated to doing business differently, defying industry conventions. Pixar is a "tightknit community of long-term collaborators who stick together, who learn from one another and strive to improve with every production," write William C. Taylor and Polly LaBarre in The New York Times.  Unlike the free agents who populate Hollywood's idiosyncratic film-making culture, Pixarians share a common alternative culture, which they learn by attending the required courses at Pixar University.  The Times notes that the Pixar U. crest bears the inscription "Alone No Longer."  (A second inscripton …

The industry's fascination with the Disney-Pixar tie-up is secure for months to come. Of special interest: Steve Jobs' role at Disney. How will he work his magic at the Kingdom? Business Week has produced a long takeout on the subject, concluding that Jobs has the ability to transform not just the Walt Disney Company but the entertainment industry as a whole. Some particulars: Apple may build an all-in-one box that would serve as a comprehensive entertainment center, taking the place of a CD rack, DVD player, TiVo, and stereo. Apple will probably introduce a mobile phone that will download music …

Citing a report by IBM Business Consulting Services--"The End of Television as We Know It"--Broadcasting & Cable says technology is rapidly dividing the TV audience into two distinct groups. One will be the traditional couch-potato crowd that sits back and views TV in the living room. The other will insist on "anytime, anywhere content through multiple channels." What this means for advertisers: overall advertising will increase, partly because DVRs "will increase content consumption." But DVRs will also "decrease demand for traditional spots, as will video-on-demand." The IBM survey suggests media executives take action to minimize disruption during this transition phase …

In a survey conducted by Media Life, many media folk said they believe Fox could win the TV season. "American Idol" "has given the network an aura of invincibility among media planners and buyers. That's so even when the network's competitive standing [at midseason] may not justify it," writes Gene Ely, Media Life's editor. Almost half of the media people who responded to the poll said they believe Fox can win the season among 18-49-year-olds. Forty-eight percent agreed with the statement, "Yes, Fox may be starting from farther back, but with '24' off to a great start, 'Prison Break' poised …

The Southern California Broadcasters Association reports that the L.A. radio market, which is comprised of 59 commercial stations, "reaped more than $1 billion in 2005." Radio was the only L.A. medium last year to post revenue gains, says the broadcasters group. "Radio is growing," says a report from the association, "because more advertisers understand how consumers use different media. Working people in Los Angeles spend 3-1/2 hours each workday with radio.... Because we're not home, we look for companionship and connection. We don't use radio just as a music-delivery system. We look for emotional connection, for virtual neighborhoods." Billboard Radio …

It used to be easy: Big-brand rock bands would periodically release the CD, radio stations would place it into heavy rotation, revenues would flow, and all was right with the music world. No longer. Technology has helped change the way the industry operates, and Jon Fine, Business Week's media columnist, seems not entirely thrilled with the result, although he appreciates its meaning. "Today's key entry points for music consumers are iTunes and ringtones," he writes. "The former favors singles over albums and thus further unbundles rockers' preferred medium, and the latter is peculiarly inhospitable.... Rock hasn't minted a star with …

"Bubble," a new film from director Steven Soderbergh, will be released today in theaters and on cable, and it will be available on DVD within days. It is the first high-profile film to get the simultaneous-distribution treatment. The experiment will be carefully watched by the motion-picture industry; if it shows signs of success, the traditional distribution chain for movies might be forever altered. The two maverick figures behind "Bubble" are Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner. They own Landmark Theaters, Magnolia Studios and HDNet, and thus are ideally positioned for this first-ever simultaneous rollout. "The distribution of 'Bubble' is disruptive," observes …

It was a day for the record books: Two struggling television networks evaporated to make way for a new one, and the giant Walt Disney Company acquired the animation studio that had made its own once-iconic animation division look second-rate. Publications everywhere struggled to make sense of the rearrangement of the deck chairs. Were these seemingly momentous happenings good news or bad? A sign of industry strength or weakness? Who could be read as winners, who as losers? It will take a while to sort out, although most observers appeared to believe the companies that emerged from the action--The CW …

There's no question that by joining Disney's board of directors, Steve Jobs raises his profile in the entertainment industry. But to what extent, and for what purpose? The head of both Apple Computer and Pixar Animation Studios, Jobs is already one of the most dynamic figures in the business. Will he eventually want to run a diversified entertainment company as well, as some have wondered? "I see him more as a king maker at Disney than a king," analyst Rob Enderle, of The Enderle Group, tells Associated Press technology reporter May Wong. "However, he could easily become the power behind …

Ford Motor Company is not winning unanimous praise for a bold television commercial that began airing in selected markets yesterday.  Just two days after announcing that it was planning to shutter 14 U.S. factories and lay off up to 30,000 employees over the next six years, the ad, featuring company CEO Bill Ford, acknowledges that Ford Motor has faced economic challenges.  In the 30-second spot, Bill Ford vaguely acknowledges his company's troubles and asserts that the automaker "is determined to retake the American roadway."  Clive Cajet, the brand-image consultant, says of the commercial, "I don't think people care about …