Gracenote, the content data business unit of Nielsen, announced the launch of Gracenote On Sports, a new solution that offers live sports discovery experiences like tailored recommendations, sports hubs and viewing options. Video services can use a single API to access Gracenote sports data covering 150+ leagues and competitions. “Sports programming has the unique ability to attract large and passionate audiences making it invaluable to video providers seeking to drive engagement and time spent with their services,” said Bill Michels, Chief Product Officer at Gracenote. “With Gracenote’s new solution, customers can now deliver innovative discovery experiences leveraging sports content and win the competition for viewers and their attention.”

The 97th Academy Awards ceremony will stream live on Hulu, in addition to its ABC broadcast, starting Sunday, March 2 at 7p. Nominations will be announced January 17.

Newsmax COO Elliot Jacobson instructed staff to “focus on the positive” when reporting on embattled secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth, reports Mediaite. The warning reportedly came on Friday, after Newsmax anchor Greg Kelly criticized Donald Trump’s pick for the position and sparked Trump’s anger. Jacobson reportedly told staff that if Hegseth comes up, hosts should explain that the claims against him are allegations and then “pivot,” warning, “any issues following this will result in termination,” sources told Mediaite. In a statement, Newsmax said Trump “never expressed dissatisfaction with Greg Kelly’s show in any way.”

Nexstar, which controls 200 owned or partner stations in 116 US, is making staff cuts – but it won’t be extensive. “While it is difficult to make these sorts of changes, they will impact less than 2% of our workforce and allow us to focus on areas of growth for our viewers, partners and customers,” said the company said in a statement. “We are committed to managing through this period of unprecedented change in the media industry so that Nexstar continues to thrive for years to come.”

Following the July launch of its sports business vertical, CNBC is creating a Strategic Verticals & Audience Development unit responsible for creating, growing and commercializing new and existing verticals centered around key content areas. In addition to sports, the new unit will expand CNBC’s coverage of wealth, serving ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and women’s leadership, and introduce more verticals in the coming year. CNBC veteran Max Meyers will lead the department as Vice President & Senior Executive Producer of Strategic Verticals & Audience Development.

Ovation TV and partner Spectrum announced the recipients of the 2024-2025 Stand For The Arts Awards, which recognizes local arts, cultural and educational organizations and programs. Since the initiative began in 2017, Ovation TV and Spectrum have given out 80 awards totaling $800,000 towards arts education.

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Peacock scored the much-bandied-about reboot of “Friday Night Lights,” from the original’s showrunner Jason Katims, director Peter Berg, and producer Brian Grazer, to be produced by Universal Television. The series is now in development.

Film and TV studio Fifth Season struck a multi-title deal with Hulu in the US across scripted and unscripted titles, including Roughcut TV comedy “Big Boys,” docuseries “Bad Host: Hunting the Couchsurfing Predator,” reality format “Hot Yachts,” and “Run the Burbs.”

“Sullivan’s Crossing” has been picked up for a third season at The CW. The drama, based on Robyn Carr’s book series, is currently in production for a new run, set to premiere in 2025.

JJ Abrams’ Bad Robot has inked a new first-look film and TV deal with Warner Bros. Television. The agreement follows a five-year exclusive deal signed in 2019.

Season five of adult animated series “Harley Quinn” debuts Thursday, January 16, followed by one new episode weekly through March 20 on Max. This season finds Harley (Kaley Cuoco) and Ivy (Lake Bell) in a new location: Metropolis, the home of all things Superman, Lois Lane, and the Daily Planet.

New History Channel investigative nonfiction series “Hunting History with Steven Rinella” makes its debut on Tuesday, January 28 at 10p. Hosted and executive produced by author and outdoorsman Rinella (“MeatEater”), the series dives into some of American history’s most perplexing mysteries through a new lens.

Bethesda Softworks has teamed up with Google TV to promote its newest game, “Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.” The campaign will incorporate Indiana Jones throughout Google TV’s “For You” page including trailers, gameplay snippets and interactive topic pages.

“American Masters – Brenda Lee: Rockin’ Around” premieres Monday, December 16 at 10p on PBS (check local listings). The film reveals the story behind Lee’s songs, including her Christmas classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” and explores how her early life in poverty and childhood stardom shaped her artistry.

Four teams – Denver, Vermont, Ohio State and Marshall – will compete in the 2024 NCAA Men’s College Cup beginning on Friday, December 13. The first semifinal at 5p features the Vermont Catamounts vs. the No. 3 Denver Pioneers, followed by the No. 13 Marshall (The Herd) against the first-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes at 7:30p. Both semifinal matches will be available on ESPN+ and ESPNU. The winners will advance to the championship game on Monday, December 16, at 8p on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

The Asian Football Confederation has announced the renewal of its media rights agreement with Sport 24, the dedicated live sports channel for the airline and cruise markets, through to 2028.

The Global Fight League, a new team-based MMA property, announced that it has successfully closed a multi-million-dollar seed round and is set to launch its first season in April 2025. The league will hold a virtual selection process to determine the fighters on each team on January 24.

Banijay Entertainment has acquired the worldwide format rights to “My Name Is Gabriel” (Mai Neim Ijeu Gabeuriel), from Korea’s TEO Corp. The original series was produced for JTBC and Disney+.

Corus Entertainment announced the official launch partners of Canada’s rebranded lifestyle channels, Flavour Network and Home Network. Hellmann’s Mayonnaise, Pandora, and Think Turkey for Flavour Network, and The Brick and Rust-Oleum for Home Network are confirmed as premiere sponsors ahead of the channel’s launch on December 30.

After seven days of viewing on ABC, Disney+, Hulu and digital platforms, the season 33 finale of “Dancing with the Stars” rose to 7.95 million Total Viewers and a 1.55 rating in A18-49, growing +25% in Total Viewers and +36% in the demo over the show’s Live+Same Day audience.

Lighthouse Pictures has promoted Trevor McWhinney to SVP of Content. McWhinney previously held the position of VP of Business Development and VP of Production.

Locality has appointed Brian Morse as VP of Collective. Morse joins Locality after six years at Ampersand, where he spearheaded the development of addressable TV solutions.

Mentalist The Amazing Kreskin, born George Kresge, died December 10. He was 89. In addition to dozens of talk show appearances, Kreskin starred in his own TV series, “The Amazing World of Kreskin,” from 1972-75.

Today’s Trivia Question
Which “Friends” actor starred in a spinoff of “Married…With Children” (1987-97)? (Email your answer to [email protected] and be sure to include your name, company, and city. A limit of four answers per time zone.)