A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM WARNER BROS. DOMESTIC CABLE DISTRIBUTION

Source: NTI Explorer, prime.  Week=11/27/06-12/03/06 L+SD US AA%.
Cyn opsis

12/11/06

Good morning. It’s Monday, December 11, 2006,  and this is your first early morning briefing. 

Time Warner Cable, Inc. has filed a lawsuit against DirecTV in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleging false advertising and deceptive business practices. The suit also seeks an injunction against certain types of ads in addition to damages and legal fees. TWC is upset over DirecTV newspaper and TV ads which claim viewers won’t be able to watch their local professional football teams play unless they subscribe to DirecTV’s services and therefore start receiving the NFL Network (which is carried on DirecTV and EchoStar’d Dish Network). The ads have run in the New York, Green Bay and Cincinnati markets as well as other cities. In the suit TWC points to the Thanksgiving Day game where ads ran in NYC saying the game could only be seen on NFL Network, when in actuality it also ran on WNBC/New York.  TWC is one of three cable operators that have refused to carry the NFL Network, citing the high monthly fees the league wants to charge for the channel. Furthermore, TWC says DirecTV falsely advertised in other TV and radio commercials, featuring William Shatner and Jessica Simpson, that DirecTV’s HDTV service has a better picture quality than TWC’s. So far, DirecTV has declined to comment on the lawsuit or the content of its commercials.

Tonight’s Premiere:
Bravo:  Inside the Actor’s Studio at 8p
Sci Fi: The Lost Room at 9p

ABC will show more Show Me the Money as the network has ordered six additional episodes. Hosted by William Shatner, the variety/game show now airing on Wednesdays at 8p most recently averaged a 1.9/6 among A18-49 and 7.1 million viewers, ranking second among Total Viewers in its 8p time period.

In two weeks, Nielsen Media Research will offer its clients raw data based on how many people watch broadcast commercials minute by minute. Additional information on cable commercials will be available in late April and syndication commercial data will roll out in late May. This newest development comes as Nielsen found itself in the middle of a disagreement between networks and ad buyers on how to set prices for commercials when DVRs are involved. Networks wanted pricing based on live viewers plus seven-day counts of viewers using DVRs. Ad buyers balked and wanted to stay with the live-plus one day standard. This all came to a head during the last upfront negotiations. Nielsen had previously offered up a live-plus 2-3 day compromise.   [Check out today’s Email to the Editor on this very topic.]

Trifecta Entertainment & Media will begin offering Ultimate Fighting Championship in syndication for the 2007-08 season, per Hollywood Reporter. The sixty minute show called UFC Wired will produce 22 original episodes, and will be hosted by Joe Rogan, of Fear Factor hosting fame.

The Tennis Channel is expected to announce today a significant investment made in the channel by the United States Tennis Association. While the amount of investment has not been revealed, reports indicate it’s in the millions, tho less than $10 million.  The investment will allow the USTA some say in how the channel operates, all with the goal of advancing the sport. The Tennis Channel currently is home to the French Open, but the current rights to the US Open – run by the USTA – are still with USA Network.  The Tennis Channel is currently available in 10 million homes.

Ronnie F. Lippin died December 4 at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, after a long battle. She was 59 years old. At the time of her death, Ronnie was President of The Lippin Group, the international entertainment marketing and public relations firm founded by her husband, Dick, who is Chairman/Chief Executive. During Ronnie’s 30-year career, she represented some of the biggest music artists in rock ‘n roll history, including co-managing Brian Wilson, and as a p.r. rep for Prince, Eric Clapton, Olivia Newton-John, Captain & Tennille and many more. She also represented the music division of Hallmark Cards and other companies. Ronnie fond of giving to charitable organizations and served on the board of Free Arts for Abused Children and she and her husband endowed many ethics programs at Penn State and Brandeis University. Ronnie is survived by her husband Dick and their daughter Alexandra, who are in the process of establishing a foundation in Ronnie’s name for the research of rare forms of cancer. A private ceremony honoring Ronnie will be held by the family.

Weekend Box Office Estimates: December 8-10, 2006
Apocalypto (Buena Vista)                  $14.2 million – opening weekend
The Holiday (Sony)                          $13.5 million – opening weekend
Happy Feet (Warner Bros)                 $12.7 million – 4 wk total $137.7m
Casino Royale (Sony)                        $8.8 million – 4 wk total $128.9m
Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)             $8.5 million – opening weekend
Unaccompanied Minors (Warner Bros.)  $6.2 million – opening weekend
Deja Vu (Buena Vista)                       $6.1 million – 3 wk total $53.0m
The Nativity Story (New Line)            $5.6 million – 2 wk total $15.8m
Deck the Halls (Fox)                         $3.9 million – 3 wk total $30.1m
Santa Clause 3 (Buena Vista)             $3.3 million – 6 wk total $77.2m
Source: Box Office Mojo

 
Four rival media companies – FOX, Viacom, CBS Corporation and NBC Universal – are discussing the possibility of creating a video web site which will compete head on with Google’s YouTube. And while these discussions continue, most reports contend the possibility of a real deal between these titans is pretty far off.  Walt Disney Company has declined to participate in the talks, saying it wants to “rely on the strength of its own brands.” Last month, Google purchased YouTube for almost $1.65 billion in stock. Even though much of YouTube’s content derives from home-made video clips, some of the content includes pirated copies of popular television shows. While the threat of a copyright infringement lawsuit has been made against YouTube, CBS and NBC have deals to run some content on YouTube.  Fox, CBS, NBC and ABC all currently offer their own programming on their own sites.

Fans of The CW’s America’s Next Top Model show will now have the chance to interact with virtual models inspired by the show. CBS Interactive and Artificial Life, Inc., a U.S. company located in Hong Kong that provides mobile technology, content, games and applications, will launch the first avatar (or virtual character)-based mobile game tied to ANTM, available to U.S. Cingular and Sprint customers. These consumers will be able to download the game for $5.99 by going to www.cwtv.com or www.botme.com or by responding via text message to the number provided in CW commercials. The game will launch later in Hong Kong and in other countries as well. The two companies have agreed to develop more mobile games during the next two years.

The Weinstein Co. and RHI Enterprises have signed a five-year agreement for a TV production and library deal, in which the pair will co-produce and co-finance a series of television projects including series, miniseries and made-fors. Additionally as part of the deal, Weinstein thru its Genius Products subsidiary, will distribute RHI’s home video library, both the physical videos and the digital distribution, which includes upwards of 600 titles.

Fox has two projects on tap, both from 20th Century Fox TV and Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks TV.  The first, an untitled project based in the fashion world and focused on those intrinsically involved including photographers, designers and models.  Attached to write this drama is Ed Burns and his wife Christy Turlington. The second is a time traveling drama with two brilliant scientists from the 1940s traveling back and forth between their current time and 2007, all in hope of helping the war effort of 1940.  The problem is they begin to futz with the space-time continuum, which anyone who knows anything about time travel is the one thing you don’t want to futz with. The writer attached to this project is Scott Gemmell.

Fox has a project before it which if it moves forward, has Sandra Bullock attached to star and produce, per Hollywood Reporter.  One of the Guys is about a group of guys who have a female friend, who has always been more “one of the guys” than a girl. However, when she begins acting more like a girl, the guys aren’t quite sure what to make of her anymore.

Today in Cynopsis Kids, or listen to the audio version here:

• Golden Compass movie site launched one-year out
• Who will play Shrek in the Broadway musical?
• Dragonlance movie one its way

Today in Cynopsis: Multicultural and International Edition, or listen to the audio version here:

• China says no to new foreign media investments
• ABC and Gurin Company betting on Wanna Bet?
• UEFA lends EURO 2008 to ABC and ESPN

Thursday – A18-49 Analysis:  CBS was the champ Thursday night at 5.9/15 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. NBC was #2 with 4.4/12, next was ABC 3.1/8, FOX 1.9/5, CW 1.5/4, UNIV 1.5/4 and TELE 0.4/1. Starting off, CBS won with Survivor at 8p with 5.5/15 and shut out the competition at 9p with a new episode of CSI at 7.9/19. NBC continued its 10p winning streak with ER in first at 5.4/14, with CBS’ Shark in second place with 4.3/12.
 
Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Thursday, December 7, 2006 – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

CBS       11.4/18      Survivor: Cook Islands 10.1/16, CSI 14.6/22, Shark 9.7/16

ABC       6.5/10        Ugly Betty [r] 6.1/10, Grey’s Anatomy [r] 7.3/11, Men in Trees 6.0/10

NBC       6.2/10         My Name Is Earl 5.9/9, My Name Is Earl 6.2/9, Scrubs 5.1/8, 30 Rock 4.2/6, ER 7.9/13

FOX       3.1/5          ‘Til Death 3.1/5, ‘Til Death [r] 3.1/5, The O.C. 3.0/5

CW        2.4/4          Smallville 2.7/4, Supernatural 2.0/3

UNIV      2.0/3          La Fea Más Bella 2.5/4, Mundo de Fieras 2.0/3, Aqui y Ahora 1.6/3

TELE      0.5/1          Marina 0.6/1, Amor mio 0.5/1, Amores 0.5/1, Decisiones 0.5/1

A18-49: CBS 5.9/15, NBC 4.4/12, ABC 3.1/8, FOX 1.9/5, CW 1.5/4, UNIV 1.5/4, TELE 0.4/1

Friday – A18-49 Analysis: CBS topped the list Friday night with 3.6/11 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. NBC came next at 2.8/9, and then ABC 2.3/7, UNIV 1.6/5, CW 1.4/4, FOX 1.3/4 and TELE 0.4/1. At 8p, CBS won with the holiday favorite Rudolph which delivered a 4.4/14, and again at 9p with back-to-back Frosty the Snowman episodes averaging a 4.1/12. NBC took over at 10p and did best with Law & Order at 3.2/10.
 
Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Friday, December 8, 2006 – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

NBC       6.4/11        1 vs. 100 5.9/10, Las Vegas 6.6/11, Law & Order 6.8/12

CBS       5.8/10         Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer 6.6/12, Frosty the Snowman [r] 6.4/11, Frosty Returns [r] 5.5/9, Numb3rs [r] 4.7/8

ABC       5.1/9          America’s Funniest Videos [r] 4.2/7, Primetime 5.2/9, 20/20 6.0/10

FOX       2.9/5         Justice 3.3/6, Trading Spouses: Meet Your New Mommy 2.6/4

CW        2.7/5         Friday Night Smackdown! 2.7/5

UNIV      2.0/4         La Fea Más Bella 2.5/4, Mundo de Fieras 1.9/3, Nuestra Navidad (Especial) 1.7/3

TELE     0.5/1         Marina 0.6/1, Amor Mio 0.5/1, Amores 0.5/1, Decisiones 0.4/1

A18-49: CBS 3.6/11, NBC 2.8/9, ABC 2.3/7, UNIV 1.6/5, CW 1.4/4, FOX 1.3/4, TELE 0.4/1

Saturday – A18-49 Analysis: FOX broke free to win Saturday night with 2.3/8 A18-49, according to fast affiliate ratings from Nielsen Media Research. ABC was #2 with 2.0/6, next was CBS 1.8/6, NBC 1.1/4, UNIV 1.0/3 and TELE 0.4/1. At 8p, FOX with its bevy of “bad boys” won with double Cops episodes averaging a 2.3/8. Then at 9p, ABC with its Grinch holiday movie and FOX with America’s Most Wanted tied for first at 2.3/7 apiece. ABC had a jolly end to the evening by winning at 10p with its movie at 2.5/8.
 
Live + Same Day Household Ratings: Saturday, December 9, 2006 – time period averages. Source: Nielsen Media Research

CBS      5.1/9          Criminal Minds [r] 4.2/8, 48 Hours Mystery (2 hrs) 5.6/10

FOX      4.2/8          Cops 4.0/7, Cops 4.4/8, America’s Most Wanted 4.2/8

ABC      3.2/6          Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn’t Happen 2.0/4, ABC Movie: Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas 3.8/7

NBC      2.7/5          Heroes [r] 2.0/4, Heroes [r] 2.3/4, Law & Order [r] 3.7/7

UNIV     1.4/3         Sábado Gigante 1.4/3

TELE     0.5/1         Cinemundo Sabado [7] 0.4/1, Cinemundo Sabado 0.5/1

A18-49: FOX 2.3/8, ABC 2.0/6, CBS 1.8/6, NBC 1.1/4, UNIV 1.0/3, TELE 0.4/1

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM MIRAMAX FILMS

The History Channel presents This Day in History:
1872-The nation’s first African American governor, Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback, took office in Louisiana. Elected as lieutenant governor, Pinchback served as acting governor following the impeachment of Governor Henry C. Warmouth. Though his assumption of these duties was contested, Pinchback maintained his status as a political figure and as a publisher of a popular New Orleans newspaper.

Answer to Yesterday’s Trivia Question: One of many holiday commercials from years ago was for coffee.  It included a little sister finding her brother home from college and making coffee in the early hours of Christmas morning.  What was the brother’s name?  PETER on the Folgers Coffee ad   Kudos to:  Brian Bair- National Cable Communications/NY; Beth Krinock-Zenith Media/NY; Amy Lynne Dickinson-Right Place Media/Lexington KY; Wendy Stone-The Golf Channel/Orlando; Nicole Edwards-KMBC/Kansas City; Jim Hall-True Media/Columbia MO; Holly Boyd-Charter Media/St Louis; John Wick-Mandible/Lozano TX; Kim Gauthier-TV Guide Affiliate Sales and Marketing/Hollywood; Jennifer Fink-NBC Universal/Universal City; Alison Shaw–KMIR 6 TV–NBC/Palm Springs; Cathy Korda-ABC/Burbank 

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM MUSIC CHOICE