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What the TV Biz Could Learn from Amazon Studios
4 hours ago
Even robots can spin a good yarn.
When Amazon hatched an inhouse production unit in 2010 with the intent to create its own original programming, there was cause for skepticism. True to form, the retail giant went in with a Hal 9000 approach to creativity that seemed liked Silicon Valley hubris run amok.
Seeking to put a twist on the typical close-to-the-vest development process the entertainment business has made standard practice, Amazon has given its massive user base free access to samples of content including full-length TV pilots that Amazon Studios is considering greenlighting. The feedback would then inform the decision as to what content to choose.
That’s not how it’s typically done in Hollywood, of course. In this town, creative choices are more governed by hunches and intuition than calculation and algorithms. But now the gut is giving way to the gigabyte.
It’s a strategy perfectly in keeping with Amazon, »
- Andrew Wallenstein
Big Four TV Networks No Longer Sitting Out the Summer
4 hours ago
CBS’ ambitious series “Under the Dome” is leading the charge among the broadcasters to recapture viewers and advertising dollars that have fled to cable during the summer months. But with auds accustomed to the Big Four’s traditional off-season lineup of reality programming, series burn-offs and reruns — and many viewers forgoing the tube for sunshine — is this the start of a new wave or the beginnings of another washout?
If a small plane crashes into an invisible barrier during one of broadcast-tv’s most ratings-challenged times of year, does it make a sound?
The major broadcast networks certainly hope it does this summer. An airplane crash and the resulting havoc it creates will be front and center of CBS’ much-anticipated summer event-series “Under the Dome,” which bows June 24. The drama, based on the Stephen King tome about a small town that is suddenly trapped underneath an invisible barrier, represents the »
- Brian Steinberg
Reporter’s Notebook: TV’s Annual Upfront Circus
4 hours ago
I went to the upfronts so you didn’t have to.
I ate the BBQ sandwich at the Discovery Communications’ soiree (and fretted about having to work it off in the gym). I braved the crowds shrieking upon seeing their favorite E! reality stars on an ersatz red carpet. And I had a “Walking Dead” survivor creep the bejeezus out of me at a funhouse-type operation put into place by AMC.
If you’re not careful, that’s what the upfronts are — a series of glitzy, shrimp-cocktail showcases allowing Big TV to talk about the new programs set to swarm your screen over the next 12 months. Behind the scenes, however, billions of dollars are at stake as media companies seek ad support for those new shows. And lurking just below the surface are tacit signals of how consumer attitudes and American popular culture will evolve in the not-too-distant future.
Following »
- Brian Steinberg
Upfronts: CBS Chief Seeks Steep Price Hikes
4 hours ago
CBS topper Leslie Moonves unofficially opened the annual upfront haggle Wednesday by declaring CBS should be able to secure hikes for ad time prices that could be at least as high as 10%.
For weeks, analysts and ad buyers have projected mild price hikes for this year’s upfront, the annual mid-May session when the nation’s TV networks try to sell the bulk of their ad inventory for the coming TV season. But in a conference call with investors Wednesday, CBS Corp. CEO Leslie Moonves said in no uncertain terms that the price increases ought to be much higher.
“We will be very aggressive going into the upfront,” said Moonves, a touch of bravado in his voice. “I can say with absolute confidence that we will once again lead the marketplace in both pricing and volume. The pricing increases will look a lot like they did last year, form high single-digit to low double-digit. »
- Brian Steinberg
CBS’s First-Quarter Earnings Up On Super Bowl Ad Revenue
5 hours ago
CBS Corp. said net income rose in the first quarter, buoyed by higher ad rates its flagship network won for its broadcast of Super Bowl Xlvii. First-quarter revenue rose to about $4.04 billion, up from approximately 6 percent from the $3.8 billion it secured in the year-earlier period.
Net earnings for the first quarter running through March came to $463 million, up 22 percent from $394 million a year earlier, CBS said.
CBS said it notched an 8 percent increase in ad revenues thanks to the Super Bowl broadcast. Approximately two-thirds of the company’s revenue hinges on advertising, and there have been concerns among Wall Street analysts that all the media companies with broadcast-network holdings would see declines in ad revenue due to ratings declines that have affected all the broadcasters during the current TV season.
But CBS said revenue at its entertainment assets, which include the CBS network as well as CBS-owned local broadcast stations, »
- Brian Steinberg
HBO Renews ‘Veep’ for Third Season
7 hours ago
“Veep” will receive a third term on HBO, it was announced today.
Political comedy from Armando Iannucci returned to the paybler’s lineup on Sunday, April 14 for a second season, drawing over a million viewers in its 10 p.m. timeslot with help from strong lead-in “Game of Thrones.”
HBO has ordered a 10-episode third season of the Julie Louis-Dreyfus-starrer to bow next year.
Iannucci exec produces “Veep” with Christopher Godsick and Frank Rich. Simon Blackwell and Tony Roche are co-exec producers. Louis-Dreyfus and Stephanie Laing are producers. »
- AJ Marechal
Leftfield Entertainment, Nick Rigg Partner for Joint Reality Venture
7 hours ago
Reality producer Nick Rigg has teamed with Leftfield Entertainment on joint venture Loud TV.
Loud TV, an unscripted shingle under recently-established parent company Leftfield Entertainment, aims to create unscripted content across TV and digital platforms.
Loud is based in Gotham, with Julian Locke serving as exec veep and Laureen Deen as senior vice prez of lifestyle development. Pair of execs worked with Rigg previously at Leopard Films USA, where Rigg was prez from 2005 to 2013 and handled shows including “House Hunters International.”
“As a producer and executive for 15 years, it’s been my goal to create a new company that will produce original content across a range of genres, and to assemble a team of nimble, dedicated and highly talented people with the experience and guts to execute their creative visions,” said Rigg. “To form Loud TV with [Leftfield CEO] Brent Montgomery, a friend and colleague who has built a powerhouse operation in Leftfield Entertainment, »
- AJ Marechal
Oprah to Interview Jason Collins, Family
9 hours ago
The parade of interviews for NBA center Jason Collins will include a stop on “Oprah’s Next Chapter,” for which Oprah Winfrey will be the first to talk to Collins and his family together since he became the first active player in a major U.S. team sport to reveal he is gay.
The interview, scheduled to air in primetime Sunday on Own, will feature Collins, his twin brother Jarron, parents Portia and Paul Collins, sister-in-law Elsa Collins and aunt Teri Jackson, a San Francisco Superior Court judge and the first family member the Los Angeles native came out to.
After writing a first-person piece for Sports Illustrated that was published Monday, Collins gave his first follow-up interview to ABC’s “Good Morning America” and has also spoken with TNT’s “Inside the NBA” and Bill Simmons of Espn’s Grantland, among others. In addition, such figures as Collins’ former fiancee, »
- Jon Weisman
Lord, Miller Sign Pod Deal With 20th Century Fox TV
9 hours ago
Phil Lord and Chris Miller have inked a three-year pod deal with 20th Century Fox TV.
Pact calls for the pair to develop, write and direct both live action and toon comedies under their banner Lord Miller. 20th Century TV anticipates that projects will land at both broadcast nets and cablers. Duo will also develop and supervise other scribes’ projects at the studio.
Miller and Lord’s history with 20th Century Fox TV includes penning and producing for “How I Met Your Mother.” Pair co-helmed feature film “21 Jump Street,” and also co-wrote and directed “Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs.”
“They’re incredibly versatile and have had great success in the feature world,” said Gary Newman, chairman of the studio. “If you were to describe our studio at all, we try to think of ourselves as very artist-oriented. These guys are idea machines, and we expect them to be prolific. »
- AJ Marechal
Sundance Channel Renews ‘Rectify’
10 hours ago
Sundance Channel has ordered a second season of “Rectify,” the cabler’s first wholly owned original scripted series.
Drama, which bowed on Sundance on April 22, centers on a man released from prison after spending almost twenty years on death row. The Aden Young-starrer is from the producers of “Breaking Bad” and received positive response from critics.
“We feel as though this story has tapped into something truly unique, with both critics and audiences using their platforms to share such strong, personal reactions to this very distinctive TV series,” said Sarah Barnett, topper of the cable network. “There’s so much drama and character that’s been set up in the first season, it will be electrifying to see where ‘Rectify’ goes in season two.”
Sundance ordered 10 episodes for the program’s second run, and plans to bow them next year.
“Rectify’s” first season — a relatively short six episodes »
- AJ Marechal
NBC’s Two-Hour ‘Voice,’ CBS’ ‘NCIS’ Top Tuesday Ratings
10 hours ago
After wasting its “The Voice” lead-in on low-rated dating show “Ready for Love” the last few Tuesdays, NBC took no chances this week, expanding the music contest to two hours and winning the night in demos — with an assist from drama “Grimm,” which led primetime’s final hour.
CBS remained potent early with “NCIS” and won the night easily in total viewers, while ABC sunk further with “Splash.”
According to preliminary national estimates from Nielsen, “The Voice” averaged a 3.7 rating/11 share in adults 18-49 and 11.6 million viewers overall from 8 to 10 p.m., down a little from its hourlong demo average of last week (4.0 in the prelims and 4.1 in the nationals). It won each half-hour in 18-49 and seemed to take some of the wind out of competing shows in the 9 o’clock hour that weren’t used to the stiff competition.
And moving over from Friday, “Grimm” carried the 10 p. »
- Rick Kissell
Kcbs’ Tawdry Sweeps Tease: Baby Epidemic!
10 hours ago
Sweeps periods aren’t what they used to be, back in the old days when networks loaded up May with big miniseries, and stations resorted to the trashiest of come-ons seeking to entice viewers to watch.
Still, the remnants of the system haven’t been eradicated entirely, as demonstrated by the sleazy-as-dad-used-to-make-’em radio promo Kcbs in Los Angeles ran on Tuesday, promoting its 11 o’clock news.
After plugging its high-rated Tuesday primetime lineup, the station mentioned an unidentified “epidemic” that is afflicting newborns. “How to avoid the new epidemic impacting babies!” the announcer droned, offering no clue as to what that might be.
In demographic terms, it’s hard to think of a more cynical tease to attract viewers. After all, who do local TV stations desperately want to reach to boost their ad rates? Younger women. And who’s most likely to have a baby in the home? »
- Brian Lowry
CBS Leads Daytime Emmy Nominations
13 hours ago
With “The Young and the Restless” paving the way, CBS led all networks with 50 nominations Wednesday for the 40th annual Daytime Emmy Awards.
“Young” had 23 nominations for the Daytime Emmys, set for broadcast by Hln on June 16 from the Beverly Hilton, followed by ABC’s “General Hospital” with 19 and 17 apiece for NBC’s “Days of Our Lives” and PBS’ “Sesame Street.”
Among talkshows, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” was tops with 10 noms.
PBS was second among the networks with 44 nominations, while ABC was third with 38. Syndicated programs had 37 nominations.
Nickelodeon had 36 nominations, including four of the five nods for top children’s animated program, compared with 17 noms for the Hub (its most ever), 11 for Cartoon Network and 11 combined for Disney Channel and Disney Xd.
Nominated for top drama were “Young,” “Days,” “General,” CBS’ “The Bold and the Beautiful” (15 total noms) and ABC’s “One Life To Live” (three noms). “General” was »
- Jon Weisman
Fox, CBS Finish April as Primetime Leaders
30 April 2013 5:26 PM, PDT
NBC’s “The Voice” remained the top draw among young adults last week, but it was a more balanced Fox and CBS that emerged the network winners as April came to a close.
“American Idol” placed both of its nights among the week’s top 10 slots, and comedies “Family Guy” and “The Simpsons” joined rookie drama “The Following” in the lower half of the top 20. CBS, meanwhile, had more top 20 shows in adults 18-49 (seven) than any other network — even though it aired no scripted originals on Monday or Wednesday.
It was also a big week for cable hits “Duck Dynasty” on A&E and “Game of Thrones” on HBO, both of which surged to series highs and won their timeslots in the 18-49 demo opposite broadcast fare.
Overall for the April 22-28 frame, according to Nielsen, Fox led in adults 18-49 with a 1.9 rating/6 share, followed by CBS (1.7/5), NBC »
- Rick Kissell
‘Nip/Tuck’ Gets Latin American Redo
30 April 2013 4:51 PM, PDT
In a region where local TV content readily trumps foreign programming, Warner Channel is producing original content for the first time with the Latin American remake of its Emmy-winning plastic surgery skein “Nip/Tuck.”
“This is a very important project that marks a milestone in the history of the channel, to open new possibilities for us to continue growing and consolidating in the region,” said Vicky Zambrano, VP / Channel Manager of Warner Channel.
Colombia’s Caracol TV is leading the co-production with Warner Channel and Ecuador’s Teleamazonas as partners.
“It will be the first time we have adapted a U.S. format,” said Caracol TV Prods. head Felipe Boshell who has spearheaded Caracol’s mandate to develop more international co productions.
The “Nip/Tuck” Latino version will be titled “Mentiras Perfectas” (Perfect Lies) and run for 60 episodes, stripped Monday to Friday. Caracol and Teleamazona will air skein around the first quarter of 2014, per Boshell. »
- Anna Marie de La Fuente
NewFronts: CBS Crafts Internet Series Based on Primetime TV
30 April 2013 4:34 PM, PDT
CBS Interactive is introducing seven new online-only series, including two Internet shows based on the Eye’s primetime “Elementary” and “Person of Interest.”
New shows on CBS.com are “Baker Street Irregulars,” live-action skein based on net’s “Elementary,” which follows crew of characters assisting the modern-day Sherlock in solving crimes; and “Person of Interest: Animated,” Japanese anime-style skein produced by namesake series’ creator and exec producer Jonathan Nolan and exec producer Greg Plageman. Shows will debut online in the fall.
Broadcast net has produced digital shorts for primetime shows before, such as behind-the-scenes extras, but “Baker Street Irregulars” and “Person of Interest: Animated” are first original online programming tied to CBS shows, said Marc DeBevoise, exec veep and Gm entertainment, sports and news for CBS Interactive.
CBS announced new Internet video content at Digital Content NewFronts event Tuesday in New York. CBS Interactive prexy Jim Lanzone served as emcee for the evening. »
- Todd Spangler
NBC Salt Lake City Affiliate Yanks ‘Hannibal’ Due to Graphic Content
30 April 2013 2:57 PM, PDT
The Salt Lake City, Utah station that doesn’t bring you “New Normal” or “Saturday Night Live” is also opting out of NBC’s frosh serial killer drama “Hannibal.”
Ksl-tv cited the level of violence in the show, a TV spin on the “Silence of the Lambs” franchise.
On the NBC affiliate’s Facebook page, Ksl TV posted:
Programming Note: After viewing the past few episodes, as well as receiving numerous complaints from viewers, Ksl-tv will cancel the airing of the NBC show “Hannibal” on Thursday evenings. This decision was made due to the extensive graphic nature of this show. The time slot will be replaced with a special edition of Ksl 5 News at 9 p.m.
NBC remains a valued partner to Ksl-tv. Ksl is confident that with the proliferation of digital media, those who wish to view the program can easily do so.
Ksl TV, which has ties to the Mormon church, »
- AJ Marechal
Sinatra Doc, Helmed by Gibney, Targeted for HBO
30 April 2013 2:45 PM, PDT
HBO plans to air a Frank Sinatra documentary directed by helmer Alex Gibney and produced by Alcon Entertainment’s new TV division.
The untitled doc, a four-hour miniseries, intends to be a personal examination of Sinatra’s life and music and will feature previously unseen footage, including industry and home movies as well as private and professional performances.
Frank Marshall, Nancy Sinatra and Charles Pignone will exec produce with Alcon Television prexy Sharon Hall and co-CEOs Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove. Producing with Alcon are Frank Sinatra Enterprises (a joint venture between the Sinatra Family and Warner Music Group), the Kennedy-Marshall Co. and Jigsaw Prods.
“Alex’s vision for this unique documentary is an exciting one,” Hall said, “taking viewers into the singular and extraordinary world created by one of the greatest entertainers the world has ever known.”
Alcon Television was formed last year to retain domestic and international rights »
- Jon Weisman
April Primetime Ratings on the Rise for CNN, Fox News
30 April 2013 2:43 PM, PDT
A busy news month, including the Boston Marathon bombings and the Texas fertilizer warehouse explosion, sent more viewers to the cable news networks during primetime in April, with CNN surging and surpassing MSNBC but unable to top longtime leader Fox News.
Nielsen estimates that Fox News averaged 1.97 million viewers in primetime for the period of April 1-28, placing it third among all cable networks, behind only USA (2.51 million) and Disney Channel (2.37 million). The net was up 9% from April 2012, when it had placed seventh among cablers.
Rising considerably more (from its smaller base) was CNN, which grew 79% to 900,000; it ranked 20th among all cablers, up from 39th in April 2012. But MSNBC dropped 9% to 666,000 and ranked 29th.
CNN made it a competitive month in the key news demo of adults 25-54, placing 25th among all cable networks in April (330,000) — a spike of 128% from last year when it ranked 39th. Fnc, with 380,000 viewers »
- Rick Kissell
Obama to Nominate Tom Wheeler as FCC Chairman
30 April 2013 1:55 PM, PDT
President Obama on Wednesday will announce that he is nominating Tom Wheeler, former head of the cable and telecom industry trade associations, as the next chairman of the FCC, a White House official told Variety.
Wheeler would succeed Julius Genachowski, who announced last month that he was stepping down from the post after nearly four years in the job. Obama also will announce that Commissioner Mignon Clyburn will serve as acting chair until Wheeler is confirmed.
Wheeler, currently a managing director at venture capital firm Core Capital Partners, has been a leading candidate for the post. He was president of the National Cable Television Assn. from 1979 to 1984, and led the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Assn. in the 1992 and until 2004.
Broadcasting and Cable reported last week that Wheeler was being vetted for the position.
Speculation that he would be the choice already had drawn some criticism from public interest groups that »
- Ted Johnson
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company.