The threat of a work stoppage by actors has studios and nets worried. They are putting the brakes on production starts for features and TV pilots for fear that the Screen Actors Guild will call a strike following the June 30 expiration date of its feature-prime time deal. The next batch of features, including "2012," "Prince of Persia" and "Nottingham," won't start until late summer as a hedge against the labor strife likely to play out in July. The key date for studio decision-making has now become July 7, when AFTRA should announce the results of its ratification …

Increasingly, cars makers are spending big bucks promoting movies and lending the movie studios cars. In exchange, moviemakers promise prominent product placement in the films. For Audi and the "Iron Man" movie, the deal included a drawn-out shot of an Audi Q7 sport utility vehicle being saved by the Iron Man, with a lingering view of the logo. The tango between car companies and Hollywood has gotten intimate. Most big films and some TV shows have significant car placements. Nearly all car makers have their own product placement firms, keep fleets of cars available for productions and wine and …

John de Mol, the man who brought the world "Big Brother" and "Fear Factor," is recruiting TV fans to pitch ideas for the next big TV reality hit. Users must register on his new site TalpaCreative.com. to submit ideas, as well as respond to assignments posted by de Mol's media company Talpa. Contributors will be compensated on a scale depending on how far their idea goes. Some people may be asked to join the production of their idea, depending on their TV expertise, according to de Mol. Stefanie Gelinas, U.S. managing director for Talpa Media Group, will take …

Some communication pundits would say that if you have to ask if your event matters, it probably doesn't. But this week, the buzz is whether the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival is an anachronism. The truth is complicated. The conundrum for Cannes is the same for the industry--they both need new blood, says Ty Montague, chief creative at JWT. "Our business is upside down these days. The people with the most experience and seniority are the people least qualified to lead the business forward." Story-telling through "every conceivable medium and through the experience of using the product …

Digital editions of consumer magazines never caught on, and now leading e-publishing company Texterity is scrapping its paid subscription model. Texterity had been selling digital subscriptions separate from print subs, but since only 1% of print subscribers opted to pay extra for the digital version, it will offer subscribers the digital issues for free. Martin Hensel, president of Texterity, says the free service gives publishers a way to encourage trial, email subscribers and lower renewal costs. "Digital is a way to have low-cost sampling," he says. The company also launched a new site, Coverleaf.com, where readers can …

NBC Sports and World Championship Sports Network are uniting to create Universal Sports, a multiplatform destination for athletes and fans. The effort is designed to bring NBC TV's programming to WCSN's established online Olympics audience. Universal Sports content will be available on television and online platforms. It will premiere with diving and gymnastic events June 19 and 20, offering live early-round coverage of the Olympic Trials for the first time. "Universal Sports will provide a year-round home to almost all Olympic sports and the athletes who give our viewers such compelling stories," says Dick Ebersol, chairman of …