Wednesday January 31, 2024

IN THE NEWS

A+E Networks has ordered 278 new episodes of programming over the next two years from Rachael Ray’s Free Food Studios, part of a new joint venture with the culinary icon that will focus on producing, owning, and distributing “in the kitchen” content. The programming, featuring Ray and other talent, will air in A+E’s Home.Made.Nation lifestyle programming block, FYI and all other platforms, and will be distributed globally by A+E Networks. Initial series as part of the deal include “Rachael Ray’s Meals in Minutes” and “Rachael Ray’s Tuscany.” “This is just the beginning, so stay tuned,” said Ray.

With the addition of a dozen new services in 2023, the total number of FAST channels has tripled since 2019, according to a new report, “Decoding FAST: A comprehensive guide to the Free Ad-Supported Streaming Landscape,” from Samsung. Other key data points: There were 1,926 FAST channels available on one or more services in 2023, up 214% from November 2020; of the five main formats of FAST channels – TV Shows (57%), News and Opinion (18%), Movies (13%), Music (6%) and Sports (6%) – News and Opinion is the fastest growing with 333 FAST channels available as of November 2023.

Local video solutions provider Locality said it will act as Canela Media’s exclusive political ad sales arm, overseeing political campaign engagement strategies targeted toward Hispanic audiences this election year.

About 80% of consumers value a free and open internet as being important to democracy and free speech, according to IAB’s consumer privacy study, “The Free and Open Ad-Supported Internet: Consumers, Content and Assessing the Data Value Exchange.” Nearly 8 out of 10 consumers also said they would rather receive more ads than pay for digital content and services, and nearly all (91%) said they would react negatively if they had to pay for websites and apps they currently get for free.

Court TV has promoted attorney and investigative journalist Julia Jenaé to the network’s on-air anchor team, joining Vinnie Politan, Julie Grant, Ted Rowlands, Michael Ayala and Ashley Willcott. Jenaé has been a legal reporter and correspondent for Court TV since its relaunch in 2019.

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New Metric Media has partnered with Quebec’s Encore to co-produce an untitled, rom-com mini-series based on a concept created by the former’s founder and CEO Mark Montefiore.

Great Pacific Media, a Thunderbird Entertainment Group company, has partnered with the Word Boxing Council to produce docuseries, “Prizefighter,” interweaving the lives of current boxing champions and rising stars in and out of the ring. Filming is currently underway in Las Vegas.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

British drama “Call the Midwife” will return for its 13th season beginning March 17, and will be available to stream on all station-branded PBS platforms including PBS.org and the PBS app.

Prime Video released the trailer for its new adult animated series “The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy,” and announced guest stars for season one. Making appearances will be Bowen Yang and Andrew Dismukes (“Saturday Night Live”); Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish,” “American Fiction”); Abbi Jacobson (“Broad City”); Jay Ellis (“Top Gun,” “Insecure”); Lennon Parham (“Minx”); Gary Anthony Williams (“Night Court”); and John Waters (“Hairspray”), joining previously announced regulars Maya Rudolph, Natasha Lyonne, Keke Palmer, Stephanie Hsu, Kieran Culkin and Sam Smith. The series will premiere on Prime Video on February 23.

“The Weakest Link” returns to NBC April 2 at 9p with a “Days of Our Lives” special featuring cast members Lindsay Arnold, Bryan Dattilo, Galen Gering, Tina Huang, Victoria Konefal, Martha Madison, Eric Martsolf and Zach Tinker competing to earn money for charity.

Limited drama series “Apples Never Fall” debuts in Canada on March 21 at 9 p on W Network and StackTV.

BBC Studios has pre-sold comedy drama series “Douglas is Cancelled,” part of a new content slate it will unveil during its annual Showcase event before international buyers scheduled for February 26-27. New and returning series include four-part crime thriller “The Jetty”; dramas like “Kidnapped: The Chole Ayling Story”; “Sherwood” and “Blue Lights”; and comedies “Spent” and “Inside No. 9.” Factual programming includes returning series like “Mandy;” and new offerings “Asia,” “Big Cats 24/7,” “Solar System,” “Columbia: The Final Flight,” “Amanda and Alan’s Italian Job;, “Around the World in 80 Weighs,” and “Anton and Giovanni’s Adventures in Spain.” Rounding out the slate is Danish celebrity competition show “Bargain King.”

COMING UP

ABC Owned Television Stations will air the documentary special “Our America: In the Black,” beginning February 3. The show chronicles Microsoft Philanthropies specialist Darrell Booker’s efforts to raise awareness about building financial health and wellness in the Black community. “Our America: In the Black” will air on Hulu’s Black Stories Always hub and across the ABC Owned Television Stations’ streaming and digital platforms and linear between February 3-5 and February 10 and February 12.

In honor of Black History Month, Hulu will continue to highlight Black stories and storytellers through its offer its Black Stories Always hub through February and all year round. February highlights include the premiere of Hulu Original “Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez;” Nat Geo’s “Genius: MLK/X” and “The Space Race;” Andscape’s “Sacred Soil: The Piney Woods School Story,” and the season three premiere of “Abbott Elementary!”

SPORTS ROUNDUP

The CW inked a deal that will have Range Sports, a unit of management-production startup Range Media Partners, work with CW Sports on new sports-related programs and branded content. “With broadcast distribution available in all households across the country, Nexstar and The CW are building the foundation for the next great sports programming engine and we are excited about the opportunity to be a part of their outstanding team,” said Range Sports Co-Presidents Will Funk and Greg Luckman in a press release.

NFL team sponsorship revenue was up 15% this season to $2.35 billion from $2.05 billion last year, fueled by growth in the Ticketing, Gaming, Auto, and Healthcare categories, according to a report from SponsorUnited. Isaac Rochell and Travis Kelce garnered the most brand endorsements among athletes – 27 and 25, respectively – while the Dallas Cowboys clinched the top spot in team sponsorship revenue. The combined NFL spending of the top 10 categories surpassed the total sponsorship revenues of the MLB, NHL, MLS, and NBA respectively.

LIV Golf introduced its first expansion team, Legion XIII, its first since the league was created in 2022, captained by reigning Masters champion Jon Rahm. Legion XIII will begin competing at the league’s season-opening event, LIV Golf Mayakoba, February 2 at El Camaleon Golf Course in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Joining Rahm in Legion XIII are Tyrrell Hatton (England), Caleb Surratt (United States), and Kieran Vincent (Zimbabwe). LIV Golf League competition will air in the U.S. on The CW, The CW App and LIV Golf Plus, with Friday rounds carried on The CW App and LIV Golf Plus.

TECH

Dish Media has adopted the Unified ID 2.0 (UID2) identity solution across its suite of traditional satellite TV and OTT services. Pioneered by The Trade Desk, UID2 enables targeted advertising with greater precision and measurement across the open internet. By integrating UDI2 across its SlingTV and Dish Connected products, advertisers can build their media buys around Dish Media’s first-party data. Dish Connected was launched last spring and allows Dish TV’s live linear inventory to be executed in real-time, programmatically. In a statement, Dish Media SVP Kevin Arrix said the partnership “ushers in a new era of privacy-conscious, yet impactful, advertising experiences.”

WME has partnered with AI developer Vermilio to protect the talent agency’s clients from intellectual property (IP) theft and to help them monetize their image and likeness. Vermilio’s TraceID platform will store their current and future data, allowing them to track and authenticate the use of their IP, including their likenesses and voice.

GOING GLOBAL

SVT has commissioned the TV adaptation of Maria Gripe’s classic children’s novel, “The Scarab Files at Dusk,” with filming scheduled to begin in May 2024. Nordic Drama Queens, a Fifth Season-backed company, will produce the family adventure series – originally created as a radio theater by Gripe and Kay Pollack – set to be broadcast by SVT and SVT Play in Sweden in 2025.

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Fox Sports said it delivered its best-ever NFL Playoffs average audience, with an average of 44.7 million viewers for the NFL Wild Card Game, the Divisional Round and NFC Championship Game.

January marked the 22nd consecutive year Fox News Channel was the No. 1 cable news network in total day and prime time, according to Nielsen. Fox Business Network closed out January as the highest rated business network during business hours (9:30a – 5p) with 209,000 viewers.

Basic Cable Top 10 for the week of January 22
P2+ AA (000)
Primetime
Fox News 2091
ESPN 2052
MSNBC 1085
HGTV 887
TBS 713
History 685
Hallmark Channel 679
TNT 623
INSP 583
CNN 542
Total Day
Fox News 1326
ESPN 970
MSNBC 745
HGTV 466
CNN 434
Hallmark Channel 400
TBS 376
INSP 352
History 344
TV Land 335
Source: Nielsen

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Greg Coleman, Former Yahoo, BuzzFeed, and Criteo President, has joined Cadent’s Board of Directors and will work with Cadent’s leadership team to build its global expansion into digital video and programmatic advertising.

Shaun Alperin has been named head of content at Prime Video Canada. He assumes the role from Nav Saini, who recently departed the company.

Nexxen has named Gretchen Johnson Chief People Officer, leading the company’s Human Resources and Talent Acquisition teams.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
The Shady Rest Hotel was the setting for which sitcom? “Petticoat Junction” (1963-70). Kudos to: Barbara Bevel/Staten Island, NY; Kathy Alexander/Northfield Center, OH; Shelly Schaeffer-JPMorgan/NYC; Joe Dai-Bo-XR/Extreme Reach/NYC; Charles Conner-Fox 23/Tulsa; John Kukla-KDFW Fox 4/Dallas; Art Salisch-WDRB-TV/Louisville, KY; Barry Wooley-Warner Bros./Chicago; Dory Petsrillo-Locality/Dallas; Kathy Carlson-Novus Next/Bloomington, MN; Beth Leverett-Katz Media/Duncan, OK; Tom Boyd-WGN/Chicago; Lisa Fikeys-Nissan United/Chicago; John W. Burshtan-Water Plant Productions/Denver; David Hauptman/Denver; Beth Tallent-TallentPR/Nashville; Jim Himmel-TCB Media/San Clemente, CA; Cathy Corda/Honolulu, HI; Adrienne Spitzer/Beverly Hills, CA; Steve Callahan-Screen Engine ASI/LA; Greg Stewart/LA

Today’s Trivia Question
Who played C.J.’s (David Spade) mother on “8 Simple Rules” (2002-05)? (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.)

Cynopsis Team