Time magazine will announce next week that it will slash its rate base by 750,000, or 19%, to 3.25 million. The move will still allow it to maintain its spot atop the newsweeklies. Rival Newsweek has a rate base of 3.1 million. Time's new guaranteed circulation would likely take effect in January, which works with its previously announced move to change its on-sale date to Friday from Monday. Time plans to harness its growing Web audience--which it claims to have grown 90 percent over the last year--by developing and supporting research that measures both the print and online …

Insiders confirm that billionaire businessman Eli Broad and supermarket magnate Ron Burkle have teamed up to submit a bid for the Tribune Co. And at the same time, another mogul--David Geffen--remains interested in making his own bid. Details of the offer by the two businessmen and their companies were not disclosed, but the Los Angeles Times reports today that the bid was "competitive" with at least four offers made for Tribune last week, according to a person who was familiar with the proposal. Broad and Burkle had been expected to bid for the Los Angeles Times, the Tribune's largest property. …

Singapore's Tiger beer has come up with a movie-like campaign to boost its image as a world-leading brand. It coincides with the brew's 75th anniversary and also parent Asia Pacific Breweries' new ranking as fourth-most-valuable brand in Singapore. Says Les Buckley, Director (Group Commercial), Asia Pacific Breweries and Brand Champion for Tiger. "We do an awful lot of trend research and we've identified retro as being a key trend," he adds. Tiger has collaborated with film-making gurus Derin Seale, John Seale, Oscar winner for cinematography for "The English Patient" and Gold Cannes Lion winner, and creative …

Married 25 years ago in a ceremony that drew 30 million viewers--the biggest ever for a daytime show--the past two decades have been rough on Luke and Laura Spencer. She was kidnapped, he got caught up in organized crime, each was accused of murder, and their daughter became deathly ill. The two divorced, and Laura went into a catatonic state after killing her stepfather. But two weeks ago, a new doctor found a cure, and she and Luke have reunited. That is what's happening on ABC's "General Hospital," and it's driving big ratings increases. The return of Genie Francis--the actress …

With Democrats gaining control of the U.S. Senate along with the House, marketing issues such as prescription drugs and kids' food ads could get far more attention from Congress. Prescription-drug advertising has been an issue for Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and he has co-sponsored legislation that would impose a two-year moratorium on advertising a drug after its approval. Kennedy has also criticized the FDA for not giving direct-to-consumer drug ads sufficient scrutiny. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who has been critical of food advertising, will be chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. In the House, the changes became …

In the past, James Murdoch, son of billionaire media mogul Rupert, always seemed slightly uncomfortable as the chief executive of British Sky Broadcasting. Known for his verbal sparring with other media executives at industry conferences, he earned himself a reputation as the angry man of British TV. Those who know him say he has talent and intelligence, and he seems to have come into his own thanks to the era of media convergence--the merging of broadcasting, telecommunication and the Internet. For the last few years, shareholders talked about the "Murdoch discount" on the stock, despite healthy growth in profit …

A recent ad campaign in Singapore, run entirely in mainstream newspapers, shows that print can still be effective in building up a company's brand and boosting its sales. The two-week campaign for Bio-essence's new anti-freckle skin-care range was a daring experiment. The company behind it had always used a mix of TV and print for product launches. But for its "Freckles Fading" products, it teamed with media giant Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) in a test of print media's power. Cutting TV advertising spending to zero, the $420,000 campaign consisted entirely of 21 print ads in August. The gamble paid …

Local Australian television has produced a record number of flops so far this year, and the networks believe that's because more viewers are demanding instant satisfaction from programs. "The market believes that the viewer has attention deficit disorder this year," says media analyst Peter Cox. "They can't stick with anything for too long--hence the demise of the movie on TV, because people can only handle an hour." And in a tight ratings race, with the Nine network expected to win the year against the Seven network by a small margin, nets are forced to get rid of shows that …

Heineken International has launched a new global ad effort starring Eva Green as Vesper Lynd in the new James Bond film "Casino Royale," set for a worldwide premiere in London on Nov. 14. The campaign features the commercial--titled "Waiter"--for TV, Internet and cinema, while Green features in print and outdoor advertising and consumer competitions to win exclusive James Bond prizes. The campaign is set for more than 40 markets from October through February 2007. The beer is the first in the history of the Bond franchise to shoot its spots using the actual film set. It is also the …

ABC has a deal with DreamWorks Animation to produce a new "Shrek"-themed special. "Shrek the Halls" is set to debut in December 2007, picking up where the story line to next summer's "Shrek the Third" leaves off. The half-hour special revolves around Christmas at the swamp, as Shrek and company prepare for the holidays. Regular voices--including Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy--have all signed on. DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg says the idea came out of a conversation he had with ABC Entertainment chief Steve McPherson. "Steve and I were together one day, and he mentioned to …