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Thursday May 6, 2021

Today’s Finale
WE tv: “Waka & Tammy” at 9p

IN THE NEWS

NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises is launching Telemundo Streaming Studios, a Miami-based production unit whose mission is to create original scripted content for direct-to-consumer platforms. At launch, 35 projects are in development, including Peacock dramedy “Armas de Mujer,” seasons 4 and 5 of Netflix’s “El Marginal,” and the remake of “Historia de un Clan.” The studio will offer production services to other direct-to-consumer platforms, in addition to developing and producing its own IP.

Leland Vittert, who exited Fox News last week after 11 years at the network, has found a new cable news home at NewsNation. The former FNC anchor, who hadn’t been seen on air since January but whose departure was “mutual and amicable,” according to Fox News, will cover national affairs and anchor his own show later this year. Nextstar’s WGN America was rebranded as NewsNation in March.

Facebook’s Oversight Board ruled the company can continue to block former President Trump from using its platform, but must review the decision within six months. Calling Facebook’s penalty, imposed the day after the January 6 attack on the Capitol, “arbitrary,” the board said the penalty must be “consistent with Facebook’s rules for severe violations, which must, in turn, be clear, necessary and proportionate.” Facebook was criticized for “applying a vague, standardless penalty” by the oversight board, which was established to review content policy decisions.

Blocked from social media, Trump has launched a new “communications” web site. “From the Desk of Donald Trump” includes videos and images of Trump, but does not allow interaction with users. Information about a new social platform will come “in the very near future,” tweeted Trump spokesperson Jason Miller.

Fox Corp. beat analysts’ expectations for the first quarter of 2021. Revenue was $3.22 billion, down from $3.44 billion in 1Q20 when the network had the Super Bowl and a revved-up political climate, but affiliate revenues increased 6%, to $62 million. “The company continues to deliver operationally and financially with our year-to-date Revenues and EBITDA pacing well ahead of last year, despite the impact of COVID and the comparison against a Super Bowl year,” said Fox Corp. CEO and executive chairman Lachlan Murdoch. “Consistent with our expectations, Fox News reclaimed its leadership position as America’s number one cable news network and the most watched cable network in primetime, while Fox Sports reached a landmark agreement with the NFL to extend our Sunday NFC rights package with expanded digital rights. These strategic milestones, coupled with a slate of complementary, high-growth, digital-focused assets, led by continued record growth at Tubi, provide a powerful platform to grow our business for the long-term.”

Comcast posted a blog noting three trends that shaped viewing in 2020, with customers watching 3 hours more per week than before the pandemic:
· Streaming Surges to New Levels
Streaming saw the biggest viewing gains on Xfinity platforms in 2020, fueled in part by the launch of more than 70 new streaming apps and channels. Overall, OTT viewing was up 73% year-over-year on X1 and Flex. .
· Content-Centered Curation Drives Engagement
With the addition of Peacock Premium at no additional cost and enhancements to make all ad-supported programming more discoverable with the experience, free/ad-supported programming accounts for more than 50% of total viewing on Flex, with Peacock, Xumo, Pluto and Tubi routinely being among the most viewed apps on the platform.
· Appointment TV Still Matters
Despite a significant decrease in the number of live sports and other events during the pandemic, there was still an increase in traditional linear programming year-over-year. Data indicates streamers value the lean-back experience of linear TV – the live guide on Flexbis the second most-viewed destination on Flex behind the home screen.

The Entertainment Industry Foundation has launched an initiative aimed at creating a more diverse pipeline to careers in film and television. The EIF Careers Program sources candidates from career pathway programs; upon completion of their training, candidates can upload their profiles on a jobs platform, and EIF coordinators will share their credentials with hiring teams staffing for film and TV production.

Sixty shows were selected as Peabody Awards nominees, released in broadcasting and streaming media during 2020. PBS scored the most nominations, with twelve, followed by Netflix (nine), HBO (five), Amazon and Showtime (three each), and Apple TV+ and CBS (two each). Thirty winners will be named during a virtual celebration in June. “During an incredibly turbulent and difficult year, these nominees rose to the occasion and delivered compelling and empowering stories,” said Martha Nelson, chair of the Peabody Board of Jurors. “From COVID-19 coverage to poignant explorations of identity, each nominee not only told a powerful story but also made a significant impact on media programming and the cultural landscape.”

Charter has significantly expanded the distribution of The Africa Channel by making it available to Spectrum TV subscribers throughout the company’s 41 state footprint. This move extends TAC beyond Charter’s biggest markets NY and LA, to now include Birmingham, AL, Charlotte, NC, Columbus, OH, St. Louis, MO, and Tampa FL and more.

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Claire Foy (“The Crown”) will star in BritBox thriller “Marlow,” as a woman seeking revenge for the death of her father. The series, from Motive Pictures and Endeavor Content, comes from Tony Grisoni (“Southcliffe”) and Simon Maxwell (“Deep State”).

Ken Jeong (“The Masked Singer”) is set to star in “Shoot the Moon,” a dramedy project for Amazon about a man reevaluating and rebuilding his life. The show is being produced by Daniel Dae Kim’s 3AD in association with Amazon Studios.

Aida Osman (podcast “Keep It”), KaMillion (“Love and Hip Hop: Miami”) and Jonica Booth (“Bad Girls Club”) have joined the cast of HBO Max comedy “Rap Sh*t” (wt), from Issa Rae. The series follows estranged high school friends who reunite to form a rap group.

More casting notes: Adrian Brody (“The Pianist”) guest stars as a billionaire activist on season three of HBO drama “Succession”…Janeane Garofalo (“The Larry Sanders Show”) will recur on “Billions” when the Showtime drama returns for the remaining episodes of season five…Brian Thomas Smith (“The Big Bang Theory”) will recur on CBS’s “United States of Al”…Jason Ralph (“The Magicians”) landed a multi-episode role on season four of Amazon’s “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

NEWFRONTS

VICE Media Group launched a new brand identity, with the tagline, “What Happens Now.” “We created a visual expression of our new brand strategy by interweaving the brand proposition into all of the design elements,” said Julie Ruiz, VP Creative Director Design. “We were inspired by the idea of a forever-evolving logo, constantly moving forward and representing the global content we create. The new visual identity also represents VICE Media Group’s unique lens of culture that navigates what’s happening in the world and highlights the spectrum of content we create.”

VMG also used some of its NewFront space to call upon the industry to end data discrimination. “The advertising industry takes a person’s gender, age, and ethnicity, to decide, on the individual’s behalf, what messages they receive, all while making false assumptions and vast generalizations about their identity,” said Chief People Officer Daisy Auger-Dominguez. “VICE Media Group has taken a stand to say this archaic practice is unethical and is a diminishing and shallow way of grouping human beings.” To that end, the company introduced a new contextual targeting solution that enables advertisers to go beyond solely targeting top line subject matters, and reach audiences according to sub topics, sentiment, emotion, and predictive models. VMG also developed an activation methodology centered around populating a first party seed set based on live creative testing in order to eschew bias and let the data drive decisioning.

A new partnership brings Google’s Web Stories to VMG’s platforms, and the company announced upcoming experiences, including Refinery29’s multi-day event, All Black Everything from Unbothered, and multi-platform music tent-pole “Noisey Residency.”

Among new original shows headed for Snapchat are interview series “Off Thee Leash with Megan Thee Stallion” and competition series “Charli vs. Dixie,” with influencers Charli and Dixie D’Amelio, both from Will Smith’s Westbrook Media. “The Me and You Show” will use AR to make Snapchat’s users sketch comedy stars, and unscripted “Coming Out” follows people as they come out to their friends and family.

On the ad front, Snapchat has announced the new Creator Marketplace, which integrates Creators directly into the advertising ecosystem by enabling brands to connect with Lens Creators, Lens Developers, Lens Partners, and eventually Snap Stars to help elevate their marketing presence on the platform. The Creator Marketplace will open later this month for AR Creators and select brands through 2021.

Twitter showcased an expanded lineup of new live and on demand premium video content, with new collaborations and renewals across entertainment, gaming, lifestyle, news and sports. “Twitter is home to the most vibrant, diverse communities and the place where fandom thrives. The premium content we’re collaborating on with our partners is igniting passion and enabling marketers to tap into the excitement of those communities and be a part of what’s happening,” said Jennifer Prince, Twitter’s Global VP and Head of Content Partnerships.

Among the programming announced on the virtual stage were “The Billboard Hot Trending powered by Twitter,” a real-time Billboard Chart; “Verified,” a space for artists to break down the meanings of their songs; two new food franchises from Tastemade; content around the MLB, NBA, WNBA, Olympics, NHL, and Riot Games; and an expanded partnership with NBCUniversal News.

“The video content from these partners will bolster our library of brand safe content that gives advertisers the reach they’re looking for,” said JP Maheu, Twitter’s VP, US Client Services.

Estrella Media shared new digital initiatives in its presentation, including the launch of the EstrellaTV and Estrella News channels on Pluto TV en español. In addition, Estrella News will now be a live channel available 24/7 on Amazon News through Amazon Fire TV, and the company announced the launch of its newest FAST channel, Estrella Games, the first 24/7 Spanish-language game show channel, now live on Vizio with additional platforms to be announced soon. Estrella Games will be programmed for multi-generational families.

Estrella Media’s new AVOD APP, EstrellaTV,will be available this summer on Roku and Apple iOS and will feature on-demand content from Estrella Media’s library of over 20,000 hours of programming as well as live Estrella Media channels. EstrellaTV will continue to offer its programming on-demand through YouTube and has chosen Google Ad Manager for monetizing its live and on-demand streaming TV platforms.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

Season three of HGTV’s “Christina on the Coast” premieres Thursday, June 3 at 9p. The renovation show was a top five cable series among key demos its last season.

Following its run on streamers Sundance Now and Shudder earlier this year, season two of “A Discovery of Witches” begins a network television victory lap on AMC, with the first two episodes airing back-to-back on Sunday, June 27 at 7p. Subsequent episodes will air weekly on Sundays at 8p on AMC.

Design competition “Making the Cut” returns to Amazon for season two on July 16. Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum will be back as hosts.

E! reunites casts of TV shows in event series “Reunion Road Trip,” kicking off Thursday, June 10 at 9p. First up: a gathering of “All My Children” greats.

Marvel Studios’ “Loki” has a new premiere date on Disney+. The new series, taking place after the events of “Avengers: End Game,” debuts Wednesday, June 9, two days earlier than its original launch date.

“Drag Race España,” following the search for Spain’s first drag superstar, debuts Sunday, May 30 on WOW Presents Plus in the US, and internationally, day-and-date with ATRESplayer PREMIUM (Spain) local airings. The show airs in Castilian Spanish and will be available on WOW Presents Plus with subtitle translations in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean and Portuguese.

STREAMING

Game Show Network and Sony Pictures Television have launched two new game show offerings on XUMO’s streaming platform. Game Show Central, Game Show Network’s own digital ad supported network, and Sony Canal Competencias, SPT’s FAST destination for Spanish speaking viewers in the US, are now available to consumers via XUMO’s OTT service. “This partnership is pivotal for XUMO,” noted Stefan Van Engen, SVP of Programming and Partnerships at XUMO. “We are looking forward to further partnering with Sony to highlight these marquee channels on Sony Bravia devices while aligning with XUMO’s own ‘Game Show Week’.”

Online gambling advertising is a $154 million market in the local spot space, according to Nielsen, up from $10.7 million at the start of 2019. The largest share of online sports betting ads is currently allocated to news programming, notes Nielsen, due in part to the fact that local news stations have more control over their total ad inventory versus sports programming. The share of ads in news programming has increased to almost 40% over the past year, with news also offering significant reach and an opportunity to engage new spenders, growing the consumer base.

Music video streaming platform Qwest is launching its free linear channels in the US via a partnership with VIZIO. Channels include Jazz and Beyond (jazz, soul, funk, blues, global music), Classical (classical concerts, opera, ballet), and Mix (indie rock, electronic, hip hop, and other contemporary genres).

Brands’ ad spend on Snap increased 24% year-over-year, according to MediaRadar’s April data. Entertainment spend accounted for nearly 42% of ad spend in April 2021. Other top spending categories included Fashion, Pharmaceutical and Retail. Each made up roughly 10% of spend for the month.

IMPACT Wrestling announced an agreement with Samsung TV Plus, giving viewers access to IMPACT’s library of premium professional wrestling content through both a dedicated IMPACT Wrestling Channel and on VOD.

TECH TALK

Convergent TV advertising platform Beachfront announced the completion of a national addressable TV ad execution with VIZIO adhering to the technical specifications of Open Addressable Ready. The execution leveraged Beachfront’s Unified Decisioning product, and the inventory included locally and nationally syndicated broadcast programming. OAR’s watermark was placed within these programming feeds, which were distributed to stations in 125 broadcast DMAs across the country. The program ran across more than three million VIZIO TVs equipped with the OAR spec. “Widespread and continued support for the OAR spec has been important, and this marks further momentum as we’ve fully executed an addressable campaign at the glass level,” said Adam Gaynor, VP of Network Partnerships for VIZIO and steering lead for Project OAR.

Digital Trends Media Group announced the official launch of Rapport AI, a publishing platform to engage consumers at each key step through the total purchase journey. “We’re excited to be doing our part to evolve the data conversation,” says Nathan Bell, SVP of Data and Business Analytics at Digital Trends. “The industry has been wrapped up in a false narrative that suggests you can only have one – privacy or meaningful data. We knew that by completely rethinking the model we could create something that organically offers both.” Rapport AI uses advanced artificial intelligence to analyze more than 200 discreet behavioral data points attached to each individual consumer, for fully compliant and anonymous consumer targeting.

The online video platform formerly known as SendtoNews has changed its name. STN Video “more accurately reflects the company’s evolution into a full-service online video platform offering,” said the company. From Sports to News (STN), STN Video offers contextually relevant video content. “Everything we do is aimed at helping our publishing and content partners thrive in a digital environment,” said STN Video CEO Matthew Watson. “Our mission hasn’t changed, and we will continue to provide unmatched service and leadership in the industry. STN Video now accurately reflects our focus, offering and commitment to our partner’s goals.”

Snapchat “does not enjoy immunity” from a lawsuit alleging that Snapchat’s speed filter encouraged dangerous behavior that led to the deaths of two young people in a high-speed car crash. That ruling came from the 9th Circuit of Appeals, after Snapchat argued that the lawsuit should be dismissed because it didn’t cause the crash, and because it was immune form liability under section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects companies from legal action over users’ posts.

COMING UP

BET+ original film “Favorite Son” premieres today, May 6. Produced by Swirl Films, the book-to-screen adaptation of Tiffany L. Warren’s novel centers on two brothers who form a gospel group, and their father, a megachurch reverend.

Ginger Quiff Media and BroadwayHD, the streaming service for live theater, are partnering to bring “Closer Than Ever” to the platform. The filmed production will feature “X Factor “(UK) winner Dalton Harris, along with West End stars, and be available on BroadwayHD to subscribers this September.

GOING GLOBAL

Emoji company GmbH and WildBrain have struck a content and licensing partnership to co-develop and co-produce “emojitown,” a series targeting teens and young adults.

Zodiak Kids Studios has secured a co-production with CBBC and ZDF Enterprises for “Silverpoint,” a sci-fi mystery adventure series about kids at summer camp.

ZigZag Productions has partnered with The R&A and Egoli Media to create a documentary film charting the life of Severiano Ballesteros Sota. “Seve” explores the life of the celebrated golfer.

Channel 4 has commissioned a documentary from Caravan and Quicksilver Media exploring the origins and growth of the anti-vaccination movement, and its impact on global efforts to defeat the Covid-19 pandemic. “The Rise of the Anti-Vaxx Movement” (wt) includes interviews with experts on the anti-vaccination movement, and some of its leading proponents, as well as parents on both sides of the battle.

All3Media International has signed a raft of new deals for psychological thriller “Too Close,” from Snowed-In Productions. The three-parter is set to air in NPO (Netherlands), YLE (Finland), DR (Denmark), VRT (Flemish Belgium) and Nova TV (Greece and Cyprus), whileBBC Studios ANZ has secured rights for Australia and New Zealand. HBO Central Europe nabbed rights for countries in central Europe and the Balkans, and BBC Studios Asia secured rights across Asia for BBC First, BBC’s premium drama SVOD service.

Abacus Media Rights has sold BBC Two-commissioned documentary feature “The Battle for Britney: Fans, Cash and a Conservatorship” to broadcasters including RTE (Ireland), BBC SELECT (US & Canada), Mediengruppe RTL (Germany), Network 10 (Australia), Canal+ (France), Three, Discovery NZ (New Zealand), RTL (The Netherlands & Luxembourg), VRT (Belgium), NRK (Norway), DR (Denmark), CANAL+ Polska (Poland), SVT (Sweden), MNET (Africa), Stod 2 (Iceland), TV+ (Turkey), OSN (Middle East), DBS (Israel), Go3 (The Baltics) and DIRECTV (Latin America) – for their exclusive OnDIRECTV channel, DIRECTV GO in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay, SKY Play Brazil.

Banijay Productions Germany GmbH has expanded its portfolio into documentary series with new label, Doc.Banijay. The new entity is set to be led by Executive Producer Marc Schlömer.

Keshet International has completed its integration of its UK interests with Keshet Productions’ non-scripted arm, re-launching as new indie Interstellar under Greenbird. Interstellar will be led by Managing Director David Williams, with Jamie Ormerod promoted to Creative Director and Marisa Guagenti as Head of Production.

Entertainment One (eOne) and Clan TV have inked a deal to bring seasons one and two of “PJ Masks “ to young audiences in Spain.

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EXECUTIVE MOVES

Craig Hunegs, President of Entertainment at Walt Disney Television, has decided to step down. In a note to staff, Dana Walden, Chairman of Entertainment, Walt Disney Television, wrote, “With the reorganization at our company, his responsibilities have changed and his new role is no longer the one he joined The Walt Disney Company to pursue.”

Kantar named Jed Meyer as Media Domain Leader and Susan Lauinger as Content Domain Leader for North America. Meyer joins Kantar from Ebiquity, where he served as Managing Director, North America; Lauinger was most recently SVP, Global Advertiser Solutions at Nielsen.

Extreme Reach promoted Gaurav Agarwal from Corporate Development Officer to Chief Operating Officer. Gaurav joined ER in 2018.

LaTasha Ezell has been promoted to VP, Creative Services, for UP Entertainment. Ezell was most recently Senior Director of Creative Services for AspireTV.

Happy Prince, the ITV Studios drama label, named Alexander Lamb as Executive Producer. Lamb joins from BBC Studios Drama.

The Cartel has named Kimberley Mooney as its newest manager in their kids and family department. Mooney joins from Nickelodeon, where she served as the Senior Director of Animation Development.

CHEQ hired Nitzan Yaniv as SVP of Channels, Partners and Corporate Development. Most recently, Nitzan served as SVP Global Partnerships & Biz Dev at Salesforce Datorama.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Which series focused on a TV priest who had an identical twin brother who was a con artist? “Father Dowling Mysteries” (1989-91). Kudos to: Sandy Spiegel-WTTW/Chicago; Gerry Bixenspan-TV Marketing Inc./NYC; Charles Lore/NYC; Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/LA; Paul Blutter-Walk and Talk Production Rentals/LA; Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton, FL; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Credit Untion/Burbank; Lorrie Shilling/El Segundo, CA

Today’s Trivia Question
Which 1970s sitcom centered on a detective and his android partner? Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.)