Next year NBC will live-stream what's traditionally the highest-rated TV event of the year, the Super Bowl, with ads generally separate from those on the TV broadcast (which will also be available on one feed). This move is "a sign of a tipping point in viewing habits," writes Marisa Guthrie in The Hollywood Reporter. "But it also underscores the philosophical change at NBC Sports, which in recent years has been the target of criticism from diehard sports fans for tape delaying events, especially the Olympics." Still, NBC "feels totally comfortable with making a live stream of the Super Bowl …

The New York Times is in talks to sell its 15 regional newspapers to Daytona Beach, Fla.-based Halifax Media Group. Those newspapers, all dailies except for one, the weekly Petaluma [Calif.] Argus-Courier, are located  in the South and in California, including The Sarasota [Fla.] Herald-Tribune; the Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, Calif.); the Ledger (Lakeland, Fla.); and the Star-News (Wilmington, N.C.).

Magazine publishers are questioning the accuracy of the fall MRI report, which shows significant -- many double-digit -- audience declines from last year in 70% of the magazines surveyed. Lucia Moses presents the publishers' complaints,  along with MRI's statement that it stands behind its research. Some publishers say, for example, that their digital readership is underrepresented in the survey. And then there's the defensive posture taken by Howard Mittman, the publisher of Wired, whose audience allegedly declined by 22%: “Frankly, I believe any drops, or increases, are less a symbol of a magazine’s audience than they are a shining example …

It's unlikely that Apple's new TV product, still in very preliminary stages, will dominate the TV industry as the iPhone did the mobile biz, writes Ingrid Lundgren. "There are some key differences already today, most notably that players in the TV industry already have big, established businesses variously funded through pay-TV, advertising and device sales," she notes. "In mobile, the fruit was ripe for the picking, given the very low penetration in smartphones—and some would argue a lack of compelling products before the arrival of the iPhone—and relatively low usage of mobile content." Lundgren was analyzing the Wall Street Journal …

Rodale has tapped Anthony Astarita, a former Barnes & Noble senior vice president who worked on the Nook e-reader, as senior vice president and general manager for digital and brand development. Is this the first time a content creator hired someone so closely affiliated to content distribution through technology? We don't know. But Astarita did tell the New York Times "the focus should be on the content delivered through the tablet and not the device itself," writes Tanzine Vega, paraphrasing the source. And there are "no current plans" to develop a Rodale tablet device.

Readers' Digest Association made 150 cuts in jobs across all of its business groups worldwide -- half in the U.S., half abroad. The company failed to provide specifics about which divisions were affected, "though last week thirty positions were reportedly eliminated at the company’s Greendale, Wisconsin-based Reiman Publications," writes Ioanna Opidee. There could be more layoffs to follow, as this quote from a spokesperson hints: “Any smart company is continually looking at ways...  to effectively compete. As we continue to transform our company, we do expect that as a normal course of business, some positions will be eliminated and some …

Time magazine is bringing back Time Style & Design. Changes from its former iteration (which lived from 2003 to 2009) include its frequency -- now twice a year, down from what was an erratic bimonthly to quarterly pace -- and subject matter -- all manner of design and art rather than mostly fashion. The pub, which will debut in March, will have its own channel on Time's Web site.

A well-known writer's death usually brings a host of written tributes -- certainly true in the case of Christopher Hitchens, who died yesterday. Hitchens, often called "controversial" (one of his targets was, famously, Mother Teresa), is lauded by his editor at Vanity Fair, Graydon Carter, who writes, "With the exception of Dominick Dunne (who died in 2009), no  does writer has been more associated with Vanity Fair." And our favorite sort-of-Republican, humor writer Christopher Buckley likewise gives Hitchens a heartfelt sendoff. While there were reports earlier in the day that the New York Times stopped the presses to get …

Analysts of Janet Robinson's surprise resignation as CEO of The New York Times Company are using the d-word -- as in "digital" expertise -- as a good bet for what her successor will have. “I would assume that given the importance of digital and how much more significant that revenue is that they’d look in the digital arena to replace Janet,” Alexia S. Quadrani, a media analyst at JPMorgan Chase, tells the newspaper in its piece announcing the news. Meanwhile, All Things D's Peter Kafka reads between the lines of this article (which says that in the crucial …

"Sober Model House": Sounds like the perfect trashy reality show, right? And it will it be a reality, according to The Insider, which reports that former "Celebrity Rehab"ber and model Janice Dickinson will host the London-based show where a group of models attempt to get sober. Shooting will begin in January. If that tidbit starts you ranting about the low level of TV today, here's more evidence: "The possible ascendancy of Ryan Seacrest  to a plum network news assignment [-- the host of the 'Today' show -- ] marks another notable watershed," writes James Rainey. …