Liberty Media Corp.'s reported first-quarter revenue rose in all three of its business units, which include QVC and Starz television channels and a stake in DirecTV. The company, controlled by cable magnate John Malone, did not provide net income, but reported a 24% boost in consolidated cash to $3.9 billion. Liberty Interactive Group, including QVC Shopping Network, reported a 10% increase in revenue. As one analyst notes "QVC's results were essentially flat, but in today's economic times, flat's pretty good." Liberty Capital, which includes the Atlanta Braves and interests in Time Warner Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp., …

The news is all bad for the Sun-Times Media Group. It said Thursday it had a dramatic first-quarter net loss of $35.8 million due to "continued steep declines in advertising revenue and circulation." A sale could come soon. CEO Cyrus Freidheim says the company has been informally contacted by potential buyers, and he expects formal negotiations to start in late May. Despite heavy cost cuts, the parent of the Chicago Sun-Times and smaller area newspapers couldn't stop the mass defection of readers and advertisers to the Internet. "We expect the secular move from print to the Internet to continue probably …

The Walt Disney Co. signed the president of ABC, Stephen McPherson, to a new contract after months of talks. It is relying on him to generate new hits despite a possible actors strike this summer and other industry woes. Because McPherson has sometimes had a testy relationship with colleagues, his contract renewal had not been a sure thing. Since McPherson took over, ABC has risen to second place from last among the four major broadcast networks in the valued 18-49 demo group. He was also involved in some of TV's biggest hits recently, including "Grey's Anatomy" and "Dancing …

While DVR owners watch more TV programming offline and online, they tend to ignore commercials on both venues. Only about 35% of DVR owners pay attention at least occasionally when watching ads on TV, according to a new study by Google's DoubleClick. The study found that that many DVR viewers also watch TV programs online--but only 9% pay attention to the online ads. The study also confirmed that more than half the DVR owners say they "always" fast-forward through commercials. The sobering findings are enough any make mass marketer reevaluate its marketing mix, says Stuart Larkin, …

Cablevision announced Wednesday it will buy the Sundance Channel from CBS Corp., NBC Universal and actor-director Robert Redford for $496 million. The purchase gives Cablevision's Rainbow Media another movie channel to complement its Independent Film Channel, AMC and Women's Entertainment networks. Supported mostly by fees paid by cable systems, Sundance garnered only $3.5 million in ad revenue last year, far less than IFC's $15.5 million. "They could get another $10 million in ad revenue at Sundance, and most of it would go straight to the bottom line," says SNL analyst Derek Baine. "It could be huge." The deal …

NBC Universal will start a 24-hour local news channel in November similar to cable's New York One and will position it as part of a larger local media effort. John Wallace, NBC president of local media, says if the channel works out in New York, NBC will take the same approach with its stations in Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and other cities. The move comes as audiences for local stations are "eroding and aging," and local stations average only 1% to 3% annual revenue growth, says Wallace. Also, with upcoming expansion of digital capacity for local broadcasters, stations will soon …

Media Rights Capital and the Second City improv troupe are partnering in an online comedy program featuring Second City alums, including Tina Fey, Steve Carell and Bob Odenkirk. "The Second City's Quarantine," will be made of six or seven "mini-shows" and is due to launch this year, per MRC digital media president Dan Goodman. The venture will have a standalone site and be syndicated through the Web. Goodman promises "many interesting and innovative" opportunities for marketers, and has plans to "bring brands into the stories." Second City operates touring companies, theaters, and a TV, film and new-media division.

In one of the largest fines in copyright history, a federal judge slapped the shuttered TorrentSpy file-sharing service with a $111 million penalty for infringing on thousands of copyrighted works. The case, which was brought by the Motion Picture Association of America, was bolstered when the MPAA allegedly paid a hacker $15,000 for internal TorrentSpy e-mails and correspondence. The MPAA sued the site last year because it allowed users to purloin copyrighted movies and other material. As a result, Torrentspy shut down its service in March 2008. "This substantial money judgment sends a strong message about the …