Disney-ABC

Posted on April 21, 2014 by eamoomey

By Nicolas Claro

Company History

On January 4^th, 1996, Michael Eisner and the Walt Disney Company came to an agreement with Capital Cities/ABC on a merger between the two companies, forming what is known today as Disney-ABC TV [1]. In addition to ABC Television Network, Disney-ABC owns multiple cable channels including Disney Channel Disney XD, ABC Family and ABC News, as well as a controlling stake in ESPN and an equity holding in A+E Networks.

Corporate

ANNE SWEENEY

Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks
President, Disney/ABC Television Group (2005-2015)

KEVIN BROCKMAN

Executive Vice President, Global Communications, Disney/ABC Television Group

REBECCA CAMPBELL

President, ABC Owned Television Stations Group

PAUL LEE

President, ABC Entertainment Group

GARY MARSH

President and Chief Creative Officer, Disney Channels Worldwide

BEN SHERWOOD

Co-President, Disney/ABC Television Group (2010-2015),

Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks
President, Disney/ABC Television Group (2015-)

[2]

Q1 EARNINGS

The Walt Disney Company’s first quarter of the fiscal year ended on December 28, 2013. Since the first quarter of the 2013 fiscal year, The Walt Disney Company’s media networks have seen a 4% increase in revenue, and an operating income increase of nearly 20%. However, the company saw a decrease of almost $85 million in income, due in large part to contractual rate increases to Modern Family and other long-tenured shows on the network. [3]

PROGRAMMING

The cast and crew of Modern Family winning their fourth Emmy in four years. [4]

Disney-ABC has done a very fine job of diversifying their TV offerings, broadcasting programs for every sort of viewer imaginable. The company’s two most popular offerings are 4-time Emmy winner Modern Family [4] and the company’s longest running primetime drama, Grey’s Anatomy. In addition, ABC has created successful shows based on existing third-party content, such as Once Upon a Time and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. ABC also airs a large number of successful unscripted shows, such as The Bachelor and Dancing With The Stars, talk-shows in both the morning (The View) and late-night (Jimmy Kimmel Live!), live college football and NBA games, and national news shows such as Good Morning America.

Scandal creator Shonda Rhimes (left) and the show’s star Kerry Washington. Rhimes also created ABC’s long running Grey’s Anatomy. [5]

ABC Family and the various Disney channels offer popular youth-oriented series such as Pretty Little Liars and the cartoon Gravity Falls.

In this upcoming season, Disney-ABC plans to bolster its broadcast schedule even further by collaborating with well-respected directors and producers such as David O. Russell and Bryan Singer on the shows The Club [6] and Black Box [7] , respectively.

Director Bryan Singer, well known for his directorial work on the X-Men films, is bringing a show to ABC this year. [8]

New King of Late Night?

ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel (Left) and NBC’s Jimmy Fallon (Right) [9]

On April 3, 2014, Late Night host David Letterman announced his retirement from the show, and from late-night TV in 2015. Stephen Colbert will replace him on CBS in the same time slot after his departure. [10] With David Letterman’s retirement in 2015, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel will have the longest active run of late night hosting on broadcast TV with a consecutive 11 years on the air. Along with Colbert, Kimmel has already begun competing with the recently appointed Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon on NBC, who’s show shares a timeslot with Kimmel.

So far, among the two shows, The Tonight Show has dominated in TV ratings. However, Jimmy Kimmel Live is fast on Fallon’s heels in the digital department. After a stellar debut week (avg 6.2 million viewers), Fallon’s ratings have come back to Earth (avg 1.8 million viewers in its 2^nd week). A report from Nielsen “SocialGuide”’s data, the number of impressions on Twitter for each show are comparable, and Kimmel’s uptick in viewership means that the margin between the two shows is closer than you think. These two talk-show stalwarts look to be set to compete for years to come, and ready to take on all challengers. [11].

The End of an Era?

Will this Aereo antennae (left) be the end of TV as we know it? [12]

On February 14, 2012, a company called Aereo created a product that was designed, in their eyes, to be the future of television. Aereo created a mini-sized antennae that effectively replaced a cable box and allowed consumers to “break free” from cable companies [12], all for a very affordable price of $80 a year. However, by doing so, Aereo was breaking many rules by not paying retransmission fees to the networks it carried, something that the cable providers are required to do. As such, cable companies swarmed Aereo with suits and injunctions within months, but to no avail [13]. 2+ years later, Aereo is still operational, and now more faces have joined in the fight against them, including ABC.

Aereo founder Chet Kanojia [15]

Specifically, their case against Aereo is set to go to Supreme Court review on April 22, 2014, and will likely be resolved by the end of June. If they lose, Aereo could be a signal of what is to come, with other startups following suit, and ducking retransmission fees. However, even if the networks win this battle, has the issue gained enough traction that it has gone down an irreversible path? Many Aereo subscribers, and consumers fed up with their cable companies, are embracing this new technology and championing it as the next big thing. Nobody knows just how this case will play out, but everyone knows that the repercussions will be massive [15][14]

Fighting Fire with Fire

: Scandal’s growing social media numbers

Scandal’s growing social media numbers [16]

Recent advances in broadcast technology have seriously hindered TV’s chances at remaining a top broadcast medium in the past few years. Internet piracy, DVR and online streaming services have all impeded on the television’s reign atop the media market. However, it seems that ABC has found a way to turn the tables and use these new developments to their advantage.

The best example of this is ABC’s smash hit show Scandal. ABC has allowed the show’s creator, Shonda Rhimes, to run rampant on social media, and she does so with finesse. Her constant involvement and interaction with fans throughout the show’s run has led to a massive social media following for everyone from Rhimes, to the show’s star, Kerry Washington, to Scandal’s official social media accounts.

To show just how astronomical its rise has been, take Scandal’s social media growth from its premiere up to the third season finale on April 17, 2014. At the former, Scandal had about 500,000 connections on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube combined. As of the third season finale, Scandal has 1.4 million views on its official Youtube page, 2.6 million followers on Twitter and almost 5 million fans on Facebook. As you would expect, Scandal’s most popular demographic is in the 18-49 range, who – not so coincidentally – are the demographic most present on social media networks [16].

Works Cited

[1] THE MEDIA BUSINESS;Disney and ABC Shareholders Solidly Approve Merger Deal

[2] All portraits courtesy of disneyabctv.com

[3] THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY REPORTS FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS FOR FISCAL 2014

[4] Modern Family – The Television Academy

[5] girltalkhq – ‘Scandal’ & ‘Greys Anatomy’ Creator Shonda Rhimes To Receive Diversity Award

[6] Deadline – Soapy Drama From David O. Russell & Susannah Grant Gets ABC Series Order

[7] Deadline – Bryan Singer To Direct & Exec Produce CBS Series ‘Battle Creek’ From Vince Gilligan & David Shore

[8] IMDB – Bryan Singer photos

[9] tvovermind – Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Agree To Play Nice

[10] CBSNews – Stephen Colbert to replace David Letterman on “Late Show”

[11] thewrap.com – Jimmy Fallon vs. Jimmy Kimmel: The New Late Night Fight, by the Numbers

[12] “Love is in the Aereo” – Aereo.com press release

[13] “Aereo Prevails” – Aereo.com press release

[14] USAToday – Supreme Court case could test future of broadcast TV

[15] Fortune – What happens if broadcasters lose the Aereo case?

[16] How Social Media Helps Drive ABC’s ‘Scandal’

Clear Channel

Image

By Billy Eisenberg

Overview:

Clear Channel Communications was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and B.J. McCombs. After initially purchasing their first station in San Antonio, the company’s explosive growth began when new rules for ownership were established in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. With a focus on local programming for talk and music, both integrated with syndicated programming, Clear Channel Radio is now a subsidiary of Clear Channel Media and Entertainment. Clear Channel remains headquartered in San Antonio, Texas and is the largest radio station conglomerate, with 850 stations nationwide and a reach of 110 million listeners weekly. Clear Channel employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide. Unlike Sirius, XM and many other broadcast companies, Clear Channel is committed to a policy of zero tolerance for indecency in their programming. For example, following the September 11th attacks, they strongly advised banning of numerous songs that had lyrics referencing bombs and burning buildings, including “Free Falling” by Tom Petty and “Live and Let Die” by Paul McCartney. Today, Clear Channel has sold their TV rights, but remains the largest privately owned radio station conglomerate globally. [1.]

Key Executives

Chairman and CEO – Bob Pittman

Bob Pittman came to Clear Channel in 2011, having been a key member of the team that helped get MTV launched. He has served as a CEO for MTV, AOL, SixFlags and Time Warner. With his earlier, extensive background in radio station programming, Pittman has been doing great work, helping Clear Channel reach more listeners weekly. He is a very influential figure in the world of Broadcast. [2.]

President and CFO – Richard J. Bressler

Richard Bressler was a partner at a private equity firm prior to joining the Clear Channel team in 2013. He brings extensive experience in managing financial business development and technology functions. With his impressive career, Bressler serves as an important voice in Clear Channel executive decision making. [3.]

Exec. VP and CCO – Wendy Goldberg

Wendy Goldberg is responsible for overseeing all external communications with brands and other marketing partners. Goldberg has years of experience giving counsel to senior leaders of companies on external relationships. She has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer since 2011. [4.]

Financials

Clear Channel Communications in 2008 was acquired by Bain Capital and Thomas H Lee Partners. In 2012, Ryan Seacrest Media agreed to partner with Clear Channel and its new ownership to bring new programming. This will cost THL and Bain $300 million to create this partnership. Clear Channel has the reach but has struggled financially recently and they believe this deal can potentially save the company. Clear Channel will receive a minority stake in RSM while Seacrest cannot have an affect on their business decisions. At the same time, Clear Channel will use Seacrest for new creative programming to reach a targeted audience and diversify their assets. [5]

Time Warner Cable

Link

By Gauraa Shekhar

The Time Warner Company logo

History

Time Warner Cable, Inc. was founded in 1990 when Time, Inc. merged with Warner Communications. Being the second largest cable provider in the United States, the company owns and manages cable systems in over 29 states as of date. Time Warner Cable offers a vast array of customer-friendly family oriented home entertainment, including high speed Internet, digital cable, on-demand video, and phone services. [1]

Key Executives

Being a massive corporation, Time Warner Cable has a staff of over 10,000 employees. In 2013, Glenn Britt, who had been with the company for twelve years, announced his plans to retire and was thereby replaced as chairman and CEO by the Chief Operating Officer, Robert D. Marcus for the year 2014. [2]

Robert D Marcus, courtesy of Time Warner Cable, Inc.

Marcus started working at Time Warner Cable in 2005 as the Senior Executive Vice President and gradually moved up the ladder by moving the company forward through its consumer centric focus. He carefully coordinated TWC’s move from a private company to a publicly traded one, and played a huge part in getting the company to where it is today.

Dinesh C. Jain, courtesy of Time Warner Cable

The current Chief Operating Officer is Dinesh C. Jain, who has been with the company since 2003. He held the position of Chief Financial Officer, where he closely monitored operations, and orchestrated product development, and content acquisition functions. As current COO, he holds the responsibility of overseeing the company’s sales, marketing, strategy and development marketing. [3]

Financials

Ever since the company went public in February 2007, it has delivered good results while making the investments needed for longer-term success in a competitive market. Currently, the largest segment is Cable TV which makes about 44.7% of the TWC business. Their second largest segment is Broadband Internet which constitutes of 33.8% of their stock price estimate. Though digital phone services, advertising and franchising also constitute as important segments of the company, the company generates majority of its revenue through subscription fees and pay-per-view programming. In the year of 2013 alone, Time Warner Cable Inc. generated over $22 billion in revenue, with a remarkably high market share. Their cash flow became drastically stronger, and the shares that they repurchased totaled approximately $2.7 billion. After their acquisition of Communications for $3 billion, they grew up in many key financial and operational metrics. The company also announced a merger with Comcast Corporation earlier this year. [4]

Recent Acquisitions and Activities

Acquisition of DukeNet Communications

DukeNet Communications, courtesy of DukeNet Communications

This year, TWC announced that it has acquired DukeNet Communications, LLC, a fiber optic network that enables cloud computing and high bandwidth applications for enterprise, data center, government entities, intended for wholesale carrier costumers. By this $600 million transaction, Time Warner was able to add over 8700 miles to its service network. This allows the company to target a large number of customers in the Southeast, particularly enabling them to tap into the markets in North and South Carolina. It will also enable the Time Warner Cable Business Class to put the additional fiber capacity that DukeNet offers to use by offering enterprises and commercial firms services like high speed Internet and cloud enabled hosting.[5]

Merger with Comcast Corporation

Comcast Time Warner Cable Merger, courtesy of The Wrap

Another activity that stirred a lot of controversy this year was Time Warner Cable’s merger with Comcast Corporation. Owning media companies like NBCUniversal, Universal Pictures and producer of multiple television channels including E! Entertainment Television, the Golf Channel, and NBCSL, Comcast is the largest Internet service provider and Cable Company in the United States, and the largest mass media and Communications Company in the world by revenue. The merger was a strategic win-win for both participants, as it would accelerate the delivery of Comcast’s Technologically Advanced Products and Services to Time Warner Cable’s Customers. The transaction, founded on the basis of future growth, will operate at a greater efficiency, creating multiple benefits for the two companies. They portmanteau company is looking forward to working with their team to adjust the operating cash flow levels.[6]

Sponsorship Deals:

In the past, Time Warner Cable did not have the healthiest relationship with Madison Square Garden. This was partly because they were competitors who successfully took a slice of the market share away from them by drawing fans in to switch cable companies so as to be able to watch Rangers and Islander games. However, in 2012, the two rival companies waved white flags and struck a multimillion dollar partnership instead. Time Warner agreed upon a long-term contract to become an official sponsor of MSG, replacing Absolut as a partner. [7]

Katy Perry Time Warner Concert Series, courtesy of Time Warner Cable

Time Warner Cable has since been a sponsoring company, not only to sports series but also to musical concerts, covering everything from Knicks games to Madonna shows. This year, they are the official sponsors to Katy Perry’s MSG shows. They further use this partnership opportunity to leverage their On Demand Movie service. In this case, they are also using the MSG concert series to promote the pop sensation’s documentary movie, “Part of Me”. [8] [9]

Upcoming Projects:

According to its Annual Investor’s Report, Time Warner Cable is positioning itself to continue generating strong operating results and financial results in the coming years. The company is aiming to improve its reliability, quality and customer service by revitalizing and scaling residential services, specifically video, phone, and HSD. Furthermore, TWC is emphasizing on rolling out next generation products such as DVRs with an improved video on demand capacity of 75,000 hours. Since their IP video app was so successful on tablets universally, they are also looking into expanding community WiFi beyond the 200,000 hot spots that exist currently. [10]

Time Warner Cable’s New “Max”:

Additionally, TWC intends to re-brand its previous TWC City by City with TWC Max, starting with New York City and Los Angeles by the end of this year. The company will replace set top boxes with new boxes at no cost to the customer, plant certification programs, and carry all video in crystal clear digital format only. They will also implement significantly higher speeds and state-of-the-art in-home WiFis with its new acquisition of the nationwide fiber backbone. The company is also gearing its new technology towards other states to capitalize on future growth capacity.[11]

Sources:

[1] Time Warner Cable History RT: 4/13/14

[2] Time Warner Cable’s Key Executives RT: 4/13/14

[3] About Robert D. Marcus RT: 4/14/14

[4] About Dinesh C. Jain RT: 4/14/14

[5] Acquisition of DukeNet Communications RT: 4/17/14

[6] Comcast and Time Warner Cable Merger RT: 4/13/14

[7] Time Warner Cable’s Sponsorship Deal With Madison Square Garden RT: 4/13/14

[8] Time Warner Cable Sponsors Katy Perry at Madison Square Garden RT: 4/13/14

[9] Time Warner Leverages Brand Partnership to Promote On Demand Video Service RT: 4/14/14

[10] Time Warner Cable’s Investor’s Report RT: 4/15/14

[11] New “Max” Service RT: 4/21/14

Focus Features

Link

by Lizzie Kelleher

History

David Linde and James Schamus formed Focus Features in 2002, after the divisional merger of USA Films and Good Machine. Focus Features was created as the art cinema division of NBC Universal, typically producing, and distributing, their own independent films. With cult classics like Wet Hot American Summer and other successful films such as Brokeback Mountain, Focus Features gains a steady profit from it’s US and international branches. [1]

In 2013, Focus Features went through a merger with FilmDistrcit, and the company’s executive team was completely changed. Peter Schlessel replaced James Schamus as CEO, and Andrew Karpen, former co-CEO, decided not to return to the company.

Key Executives

Peter Schlessel- Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter

Peter Schlessel started at Sony, then became president of Columbia Pictures in 2000. He then moved on to run the independent film distribution company FilmDistrict. Schlessel joined from FilmDistrict, which was absorbed by Focus Features in 2013. He now acts as CEO, and has created a new management team. [2]

Adrian Aplerovich- Photo courtesy of Home Media Magazine

Adrian Alperovich was named Focus Features’ new Chief Operating Officer in 2013, also joining from FilmDistrict. [3]

Financials

As of Apirl 2014, Focus Features has a total gross of $44.9 million with only four movies. Acting as a private company, in 2013 Focus Features finished with annual gross of $37.3 million, up from $21.8 million is 2012. Two of Focus Features’ films did appear on the top 100 List for all movie grosses in 2013, with Dallas Buyers Club and The World’s End. Dallas Buyers Club’s critical acclaim helped the studio climb the list thanks to its high gross. However, there is speculation that Focus failed to turn an overall profit last year, which possibly led to the remolding of the company. Top competitors include DreamWorks, Lions Gate, and IFC Films. [4] [5] [6]

Recent Film Releases

Photo courtesy of IMDb

Jean-Marc Vallée’s Dallas Buyers Club, is the story inspired by true events of Ron Woodroof’s refusal to accept his death. After being diagnosed as H.I.V positive, Ron is given 30 days to live. In search of better medication than the U.S can offer, Ron goes to Mexico and begins smuggling in different treatments. After befriending Rayon, who also is suffering from AIDS, the two form an underground “buyers club” to defy the scientific community, by providing H.I.V –positive people with non-approved medicine, and most importantly, hope. [7]

Dallas Buyers Club began its theatrical run in a limited release in only 9 theaters, but would eventually spread across the country to play in more than 1,100 theaters in its thirteenth week. The film has made a total domestic gross of more than $27 million, on a production budget of only $5 million. [8]

After its premiere at the 2013 Toronto Film Festival, Dallas Buyers Club received high critical acclaim, and the film went on to receive six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won lead actor Matthew McConaughey Best Actor. [7] [8] [9]

Current Film Releases

Photo courtesy of IMDb

Bad Words is a dark comedy staring, and directed by, Jason Bateman. Guy Trilby is a 40-year old spelling bee loser, who fights his way back into the National Quill Spelling Bee to win as an adult. Outraging parents and their 8^th grade children alike, Guy befriends a 10-year old named Chaitanya, whom he shows the crazier side of living, while also changing his own life. [10]

Bad Words opened with limited release on March 14^th, than expanded wide on March 28^th, eventually to 1,074 theaters. On the weekend domestic chart for April 4^th, Bad Words ranked overall 11^th, with a weekend gross of almost $2 million. The comedy now has a cumulative box office of over $7 million (as of April 21, 2014). [11]

The R-rated comedy received a 7 out of 10 on IMDb, but a weaker 56% positive review on Metacritic. However, overall reviews for the film are positive, Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly praised Bad Words as “Grade A-Hilarious.” [12] [13] [10] [11]

Upcoming Projects

In the process of production-

Courtesy of Indiewire

Focus Features is looking to take the place of The Weinstein Company to handle the domestic distribution of Passengers, a 2007 Black-List approved project staring Keanu Reeves. On his way to a distant planet, Reeves is a passenger, who wakes up from his sleep chamber years before anyone else. He decides to wake up a fellow female traveler for company, and the two fall in love, making Passengers a sci-fi romance. Game of Thrones director Brian Kirk is set to direct the film.

Reeves hired Jon Spaihts to write Passengers, and afterwards Reeves agreed to produce and star in the film. Spaihts is best known for co-writing Prometheus, another futuristic thriller that jump-started his career. While The Weinstein Company withdrew from the project after female lead Rachel McAdams left, Focus Features must see commercial potential in this high-value screenplay. [14] [15]

Courtesy of Focus Features

Focus Features has acquired rights to the 2014 Sundance Film Festival premiere Under the Electric Sky. The 3D film follows the Electric Daisy Carnival, and explores the phenomenon of electronic and dance music today.

The movie is interactive, with Focus Features encouraging audiences to use social media to spread word about the movie. Fans will also be able to create their own movie screening events. Under the Electric Sky is directed by Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz. [16]

Coming Soon

Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter

The Signal, set to release this June, is a sci-fi thriller directed by up-and-comer William Eubank. The film premiered at the Sun-Dance Film Festival. [17]

Courtesy of IMDb

The Boxtrolls is a 3D animated adventure coming alive next October. Based on the children’s novel Here Be Monsters by Alan Snow, is the story of a orphan boy, Eggs, who is raised underground by a group of ‘boxtrolls.’ The family film is created along with animation studio Laika.

Laika is known for their successful films like Coraline and ParaNorman, leaving The Boxtrolls set to have high expectations. [18]

Sources

[1] About Focus Features

[2] About Peter Schlessel

[3] About Adrian Alperovich

[4] Focus Features Yearly Comparisons- Box Office Mojo

[5] Focus Features “Failed Profit”- The Wrap

[6] Focus Features Competition- Hoovers

[7] About Dallas Buyers Club- Focus Features

[8] Dallas Buyers Club- Box Office Mojo

[9] Oscar Winners and Nominees

[10] About Bad Words- Focus Features

[11] Bad Words Box Office- The Numbers

[12] Bad Words Rating- IMDb

[13] Bad Words Rating- Metacritic

[14] Passengers heads to Focus Features- The Wrap

[15] Jon Spaihts Passengers on The Black List- The New York Times

[16] Under The Electric Sky– Focus Features

[17] The Signal- The Hollywood Reporter

[18] The Boxtrolls- Deadline

Hulu

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Caroline Soss

By Caroline Soss

Photo courtesy of: [1] www.crunchbase.com

ADDRESS

12312 West Olympic Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90064 [2]

CONTACT

Phone (310) 570-4700
Website www.hulu.com
Twitter @hulu

PROFILE

Hulu is an over-the-top video service provider streaming on-demand programming from NBC, ABC, A&E, AMC, FOX, The CW, MTV and more.

Hulu offers advertisement-supported free programming with limited commercial interruption on its website Hulu.com. Regular advertisers include Johnson & Johnson, McDonald’s, Microsoft, GEICO and Target.

Photo courtesy of: [4] www.vulture.com

For a monthly fee of $7.99, Hulu Plus subscribers can stream unlimited premium and exclusive content from any Hulu+ enabled device. These devices include smart televisions, game consoles, smartphones/tablets and media players like Apple TV and Roku [3].

Hulu delivers over 70,400 hours of video from 514 different content partners [5]. Hulu streams popular TV shows such as FAMILY GUY, SCANDAL, THE VOICE, PARKS AND RECREATION, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART [6] and more than 800 films from The Criterion Collection [7].

Photo courtesy of: [6] www.hulu.com

Hulu also produces its own original content like DEADBEAT, EAST LOS HIGH, THE AWESOMES and THE HOTWIVES OF ORLANDO [8].

Watch Hulu’s promo for their 2014 Originals here. Video courtesy of: [9] www.hulu.com.

Hulu.com was launched in 2008 as a joint venture between Comcast’s NBCUniversal and News Corporation [10]. Today, NBCUniversal, The Walt Disney Company’s Disney-ABC Television Group and 21st Century Fox’s Fox Broadcasting Company together own Hulu’s online subscription service [11].

As of February 2014, Hulu reported more than five million Hulu+ subscribers and thirty million monthly free service users [12] with over four billion videos streamed in 2013 [13].

KEY EXECUTIVES

CEO Mike Hopkins, photo courtesy of: [14] www.engadget.com

Last October, Hulu replaced its acting CEO with Mike Hopkins, former President of Distribution at Fox for five years [14]. Within weeks of joining the company, Hopkins hired Disney’s Elaine Paul as CFO [11]. In February 2014, Hopkins hired NBC’s Peter Naylor as SVP of Advertising Sales [13] and Sony’s Tiam Lim as Chief Technology Officer [12]. In March 2014, Disney’s Tim Connolly joined the company as Head of Distribution [15]. In April 2014, Warner Bros.’ Craig Erwich was hired as Hulu’s SVP and Head of Content [16].

FINANCIALS

Hulu is a privately held company and not required to publicly release its financial information. However, CEO Mike Hopkins reported Hulu earning one billion dollars in annual revenue at the end of last year [17]. In 2013, Hulu’s owners (Comcast, Disney and 21st Century Fox) also dropped offers to sell Hulu and instead invested $750 million dollars into the company [11].

Photo courtesy of: [18] www.techcrunch.com

FOCUS IN THE U.S.

In February 2014, Hulu sold its Japanese subsidiary to Tokyo-based Nippon Television Network Corporation. Since 2011, Hulu had streamed 13,000+ videos from fifty different American and European content providers to Japan. While Hulu will continue to make its content and brand available for use by Nippon TV as well as provide infrastructure service to the Japanese company, Hulu will focus on the U.S. rather than internationally [19].

MULTI-PLATFORM

Hulu aims to operate on all types of platforms with 50% of Hulu+ subscribers streaming solely on devices [17].

Photo courtesy of: [21] blog.hulu.com

In April 2014, Amazon.com launched Amazon Fire TV – the company’s new set-top box/game console hybrid positioned to replace media players like Apple TV, Roku and Xbox [20].

Amazon Fire TV streams not only Amazon’s own online video subscription service (Amazon Prime) but also partner on-demand services, including Hulu Plus. Hulu promises the “most enhanced and updated version of the Hulu Plus Living Room experience on Amazon Fire TV” [21]. Further, Amazon added Hulu Plus to the list of services available through voice search by speaking into the Fire TV remote – making Hulu even easier to utilize on this new platform [22].

NEW CONTENT

Hulu is continuing to grow its content library with both current season television and original programming [17].

Photo courtesy of: [23] blog.hulu.com

In April 2014, CEO Mike Hopkins announced Hulu will be exclusively streaming NBCUniversal-produced THE MINDY PROJECT and Golden Globe-winning comedy BROOKLYN NINE-NINE as well as popular series like KEEPING UP WITH THE KARDASHIANS and TOP CHEF. These high-in-demand hit programs will not be available to competitors Netflix or Amazon Prime, ultimately giving Hulu monopoly control over more content [23].

Hulu also recently acquired the rights to stream ELEMENTARY, the highly rated CBS drama starring Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu [24], and popular CBS classics like THE BRADY BRUNCH and CHEERS.

Photo courtesy of: [25] blog.hulu.com

Hulu is expanding its library of popular TV shows from past decades [25]. This may be a tactic to keep fairly older viewers, who grew up with this content, entertained; 60% of Hulu subscribers fall between the ages of 18 and 49 years old with an average age of 39 [26].

Photo courtesy of: [26] www.hulu.com/advertising

However, the Nielsen Company will continue excluding broadband-only households, a large total of Hulu Plus viewership, in the ratings for the 2014-2015 television season [27].

ORIGINAL CONTENT

Hulu developed twenty original series in 2013 and plans to launch twenty more this year [28]. Hulu’s original shows THE AWESOMES, BEHIND THE MASK and THE WRONG MANS were among the top ten weekly shows watched on Hulu when they aired in 2013 and were all recently renewed for another season in 2014 [17].

New in 2014, Hulu’s original comedy series DEADBEAT, starring Tyler Labine, is receiving strong reviews from Variety, the New York Post and the Philadelphia Inquirer since its premiere [29]. All ten episodes of the show’s first season were uploaded to Hulu on April 9th, 2014, and only hours later DEADBEAT as dubbed “Hulu’s best show yet” [30].

Photo courtesy of: [29] www.hulu.com

DEADBEAT follows Kevin Pacalioglu (Tyler Labine), a lazy stoner who can see the dead and becomes a freelance medium to pay his rent, helping ghosts move on to the afterlife by competing in eating contests and proposition their ex-girlfriends.

Watch the DEADBEAT series trailer here. Video courtesy of: [31] www.hulu.com.

Critics, however, argue that Hulu being owned by television companies may explain why competitor Netflix is still spending so much more than Hulu on original programming [32].

TV EVERYWHERE

In the past year, Hulu has hired 260 new employees to complete a staff of more than 725 members with plans to continue growing the company [17].

As public interest in more convenient Internet TV Everywhere services grows, analysts predict subscribers may more easily authenticate their pay services through a social media account like Facebook or Twitter – a business tactic that may be in Hulu’s near future [33].

SOURCES

[1] Hulu CrunchBase Profile. CrunchBase. RT: 4/18/14

[2] Company Overview of Hulu, LLC. Bloomberg BusinessWeek. RT: 4/18/14

[3] Hulu – About. Hulu.com. RT: 4/18/14

[4] “Streaming Scorecard: Is Hulu Plus Still the TV King?” Vulture. RT: 4/19/14

[5] “Hulu Names Warner Bros. TV’s Craig Erwich Head of Content.” Variety. RT: 4/18/14

[6] Hulu Popular TV Shows. Hulu.com. RT: 4/20/14

[7] “‘The Great Beauty’ Debuts Only on Hulu Plus.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/19/14

[8] “A New Year With New Hulu Originals.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/19/14

[9] Hulu Promos 2014 Hulu Originals. Hulu.com. RT: 4/20/14

[10] “Hulu Opens to Public.” Hulu.com. RT: 4/18/14

[11] “Hulu Hires Disney’s Elaine Paul as CFO.” Variety. RT: 4/18/14

[12] “A World-Class Builder Joins the Hulu Ranks.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/18/14

[13] “A Big Sales Win – Welcome Peter Naylor.” Blog.hulu.com RT: 4/18/14

[14] “Hulu officially announces its new CEO, former Fox exec Mike Hopkins.” Engadget. RT: 4/18/14

[15] “Hulu Hires Disney’s Tim Connolly as Head of Distribution.” Variety. RT: 4/18/14

[16] “Hulu Original Series Chief Departs Amid New Programming Push.” The Hollywood Reporter. RT: 4/18/14

[17] “A Strong 2013.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/18/14

[18] “The Second Screen Becomes The First Screen: Hulu Says 50% Of Its 5M Subscribers Use Devices Exclusively.” TechCrunch. RT: 4/18/14

[19] “Hulu Says Sayonara, Sells Off Japanese Unit to Nippon TV.” TechCrunch. RT: 4/18/14

[20] “Amazon Fire TV review: the set-top that tries to do everything.” Engadget. RT: 4/19/14

[21] “Hulu Plus on Amazon Fire TV.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/19/14

[22] “Amazon Fire TV’s voice search expands to cover Hulu Plus and Showtime, but not Netflix.” Engadget. RT: 4/19/14

[23] “We’re Flipping Out for NBCU Library Shows Only on Hulu Plus.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/19/14

[24] “Hulu Plus Acquires Subscription Video on Demand Rights for Popular CBS Drama ‘ELEMENTARY.’” Business Wire. RT: 4/19/14

[25] “More CBS Shows Coming to a Hulu Plus Screen Near You.” Blog.hulu.com. RT: 4/19/14

[26] Hulu Advertising. Hulu.com. RT: 4/18/14

[27] “Nielsen Capitulates, Agrees to Withhold Broadband Households from Local Ratings – For Now.” MediaPost. RT: 4/19/14

[28] Hulu Exclusive Series. HuluMovies. RT: 4/20/14

[29] Deadbeat. Hulu.com. RT: 4/20/14

[30] “‘Deadbeat’ Is Hulu’s Best Show Yet.” Flavorwire. RT: 4/19/14

[31] Deadbeat Series Trailer. Hulu.com. RT: 4/21/14

[32] “Netflix has nothing to fear from Hulu’s sad little content expansion.” BGR. RT: 4/20/14

[33] “Hulu’s Original Content Strategy Continues to Progress Steadily.” Adweek. RT: 4/20/14

Paramount Pictures

Link

By Rachel Heffler

Paramount Pictures logo [1]

PARAMOUNT PICTURES

5555 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA

www.paramount.com

KEY EXECUTIVES

Brad Grey

Brad Grey, CEO [2]

Since 2005, Brad Grey has held the position of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Paramount Pictures. Grey is responsible for all development and production for the Paramount Motion Picture Group. Under Grey’s leadership, Paramount has seen the successes of hits including “Transformers Dark of the Moon“, “Mission Impossible“, “Star Trek“, “Paranormal Activity“, as well as many other top grossing films. [2]

Rob Moore

Rob Moore, Vice Chairman [3]

Rob Moore was named the Vice Chairman of Paramount Pictures in 2008, making him responsible for overseeing several divisions of the studio. He has been involved with Paramount since 2005. [3]

Frederick Huntsberry

Frederick Huntsberry, Chief Operating Officer [4]

In 2006, Huntsberry took on the position of Chief Operating Officer for Paramount Pictures. With this title, he manages the worldwide strategic planning and operations for the studio, with a focus on IT, human resources, and studio operations. [4]

Adam Goodman

Adam Goodman, President of Paramount Film Group [5]

Adam Goodman has held the position of the President of Paramount Film Group since 2009, after serving as the President of Production for a year. Before joining Paramount, Goodman was the President of Production at DreamWorks Studios. [5]

Paramount – 100 years [6]

BRIEF OVERVIEW

Paramount Pictures Corporation is the longest operating major studio in Hollywood, having just celebrated its 100th year in show business in 2012. This corporation is a subsidiary of Viacom, a global mass media firm. Adolph Zukor founded Paramount Pictures in 1912 under the name Famous Players Film Company. Paramount took home its first Academy Award for Best Picture in 1927 and has only grown from there, evident in its success of the highest grossing blockbuster of all time, “Titanic“. In the past 100 years, this company has emerged as an international leader and a front-runner of film and television entertainment production. [7] [8]

RECENT RELEASES

In the past four months, Paramount has released five films, including Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues; The Wolf of Wall Street; Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones; Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit; and Noah. [9]

http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=anchorman2.htm

– box office mojo [10]

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues was released on December 18, 2013 and is a comedy film. It had a production budget of $50 million and a total lifetime gross of $172,952,707 worldwide, sitting at the number 2 rank on its opening weekend behind The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. This film almost doubled its total gross from the release of the first Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, which was distributed by DreamWorks. Anchorman 2 thrived on a domestic audience, accounting for 73.6% of its viewers. This film was the last one that Paramount distributed to theaters traditionally, using a 35 mm film. [10] [11] [12]

– box office mojo [13]

The Wolf of Wall Street was released on December 25, 2013, and this black comedy saw huge successes for Paramount, as seen by its nomination for five Academy Awards. This film features big name actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, and Matthew McConaughey. It had a production budget of $100 million and a worldwide lifetime gross of 389,600,694, being the number 5 rank in theaters on its opening weekend, behind The Hobbit, Frozen, Anchorman 2, and American Hustle. This film had a much higher foreign audience than it did domestic, with international revenues accounting for 70% of its total gross. Independent of its acclaim, this film is also monumental as it is the first major film to ever have been released to theaters through digital distribution, a major accomplishment for Paramount. [13] [14]

– box office mojo [15]

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones was released on January 3, 2014 and brought in a worldwide total gross of $86,362,372. The production budget for this horror film was $5 million. This film obtained the number 2 rank on its opening weekend, behind Frozen, and appealed primarily to international audiences, who make up 62.4% of the lifetime gross of the movie. In comparison to the other Paranormal Activity films, the newest release had the lowest box office sales. This may be attributed to the fact that this was the first one in the series to offer a completely new cast and functions as more of a spinoff than a sequel, or the Paranormal series is becoming less of a commodity than it had been in the past. [15] [16]

– box office mojo [17]

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is an action thriller starring Chris Pine, and was released on January 17, 2014. After spending $60 million in production, this film brought in $134,277,412 worldwide. It ranked number 4 in theaters on its opening weekend. The release date of this film was planned in order to correspond with the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. According to CinemaScore, more than 1/3 of the film’s opening weekend audience consisted of individuals over the age of 50 despite the casting of a young attractive male lead. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit was the first film of 2014 to reach over $100 million worldwide. International audiences account for 62.3% of this film’s total lifetime gross. [17] [18] [19]

– box office mojo [20]

Noah was released on March 28, 2014 and is a biblically-inspired film based on the story of Noah’s Ark. It grossed $290,674,000 worldwide and held the number 1 rank in theaters in its opening weekend. The production budget of this film was $125 million. Noah had an extremely large international audience, contributing to 67.9% of its total lifetime gross. As it takes on a biblical perspective, this film has faced some controversy. Prior to its release, Noah was banned in Pakistan, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Malaysia, Indonesia, Middle Eastern and North African countries as the film is thought to be contradicting to Islamic teachings. [20] [21]

WHAT’S NEXT?

Paramount is set to release multiple films in the next year, including Transformers: Age of Extinction; Hercules (2014); Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014); Paranormal Activity 5; Interstellar; Hot Tub Time Machine 2; Project Almanac; Spongebob Squarepants 2; and Friday the 13th (2015). [22]

Of the nine films listed above, it is noteworthy that only two of these films are neither sequels nor remakes. This is telling of today’s film industry and the newest trends that are developing. In recent years, the number of sequels and remakes that have been made has skyrocketed.

An explanation for Paramount’s numerous sequels and remakes can be explained by this company’s strategy when it comes to choosing films to release. Paramount takes on films that portray a mix of primary branded and franchise films and smaller productions, purchased films and distribution arrangements. In order to appeal to both worldwide and smaller audiences, Paramount is interested in a variety of genres and levels of investment. [23]

Spongebob Squarepants 2 [25]

Until their contract ended in 2012, Paramount Pictures had relied on DreamWorks Animation to head any animated films they released. DreamWork Animation’s Rango, which was released in 2011, came with huge successes and inspired Paramount to generate its own animation film division. Spongebob Squarepants 2, scheduled to be released on February 13, 2015, will be this new division of Paramount’s first animated film. The budget for the animated films will be around $100 million per picture and the studio has high hopes for this new division. [24]

Another thing that Paramount is working on is coming up with innovative promotion and marketing techniques for its films. Paramount has been a front-running film company since the beginning, and it does not seem like its accomplishments will be slowing down any time soon. [23]

Works Cited

[1] Paramount Pictures logo Retrieved 4/16

[2] Key Executive Brad Grey Retrieved 4/16

[3] Key Executive Rob Moore Retrieved 4/16

[4] Key Executive Frederick Huntsberry Retrieved 4/16

[5] Key Executive Adam Goodman Retrieved 4/16

[6] New Paramount logo Retrieved 4/16

[7] 100 Years of Paramount Retrieved 4/16

[8] History of Paramount Retrieved 4/16

[9] Paramount past projects Retrieved 4/16

[10] Anchorman 2 Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[11] Anchorman Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[12] New form of distribution Retrieved 4/18

[13] Wolf of Wall Street Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[14] December 26 Box Office Details Retrieved 4/18

[15] Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[16] Paranormal Activity Series Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[17] Jack Ryan Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[18] CinemaScore Retrieved 4/18

[19] Jack Ryan demographics Retrieved 4/18

[20] Noah Box Office Retrieved 4/18

[21] Noah faces ban in Arab world Retrieved 4/18

[22] Paramount upcoming releases Retrieved 4/19

[23] Paramount’s strategies Retrieved 4/19

[24] Paramount launching in-house animation division Retrieved 4/19

[25] Spongebob Squarepants 2 picture Retrieved 4/19

Columbia Pictures

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Alexander Hill

By Alexander Hill

10202 West Washington Boulevard,

Culver City, California 90232

Key Executives [1]

Michael Lynton
Chairmen and CEO

Amy Pascal
Co-Chairmen

David Hendler
Senior Executive Vice President and CFO

Michael Deluca
President, Production
Columbia Pictures

Charles Sipkins
Executive Vice President and CCO

History:

Two brothers, Jack and Harry Cohn, and their partner Joe Brandt founded Columbia Pictures in 1918. The studio was originally named Cohn-Brandt-Cohn Film Sales, before officially becoming Columbia Pictures in 1925. Over the following decades the film company would be propelled into the Hollywood spotlight, developing a national following and becoming one of the major film studios in America. The company would be sold to the Coca-Cola Company in 1982, before becoming an individual entity known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment under Tri-Star in 1987. In 1989 for a reported $3.4 billion [2], the Sony Corporation of Japan and its board approved the purchase of Columbia Pictures Entertainment, a move that would have a long-lasting impact on the future of the company. [3]

Financials:

Columbia Pictures, and Sony Pictures Entertainment are both privately traded companies. After the initial purchase of Columbia, there were some financial woes for Sony after a series of poor box office results during the early 90’s. More recently the studio has had a number of successes with the Spiderman and James Bond franchises, Hitch, and Hancock just to name a few. Columbia Pictures operates under the much broader Sony Pictures Entertainment and Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, and often works with other studios when producing films. This upcoming year Columbia plans to release two sequels (The Amazing Spiderman 2, and 22 Jump Street), whose predecessors grossed over $900,000,000 combined worldwide. [4][5]

Recent Releases:

American Hustle (2013)
Budget: $40,000,000
Worldwide Gross: $251,171,807 [6]

By far the biggest success recently for the studio is critically acclaimed film “American Hustle”. The film racked up 10 Academy Award Nominations, although it failed to bring home a single award against a stacked field that included “12 Years a Slave”, “Wolf of Wall Street”, and “Gravity” just to name a few. The plot follows con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), and his redheaded girlfriend (Amy Adams), as they work with an FBI agent (Bradley Cooper) to fool a group of politicians, and mafia members. The star-studded cast, and clever script made American Hustle extremely profitable for the studio, garnering over $150 million domestically. [7]

The Monuments Men (2014)
Budget: $70,000,000
Worldwide Gross: $155,118,847 [8]

Part of the 2014 slate of movies for Columbia Pictures, “The Monuments Men” follows a group of American soldiers penetrating Nazi lines to recover precious artwork. The film is based on an actual group of soldiers and was developed in large part by George Clooney who was extremely invested in the production, in which he wrote, directed, and starred. Originally planned to release in 2013, the film was pushed back to 2014 due to a number of technically difficulties. It was greeted by mediocre reviews, and fairly lackluster box office results. [9][10]

RoboCop (2014)
Budget: $100,000,000
Worldwide Gross: $241,279,202 [11]

A reboot of the 1987 franchise, RoboCop returned in 2014 with actor Joel Kinnaman behind the robotic mask. With an enormous budget of $100 million the film failed to impress in the United States, bringing in a very low $57 million. This number may have come as a surprise to the studio who expected to see many old fans of the franchise return for the remake. The film opened just one week after the “Lego Movie”, and the stiff competition may have impacted the films earnings. Despite disappointing domestic totals, the film did manage to gain some traction overseas and was extremely popular in the UK and other parts of Europe. It is till unclear whether or not a sequel will be produced, but with the films international success it is certainly a possibility. [12][13]

Upcoming Releases

The Amazing Spider Man 2
Release Date: May 2nd, 2014
Trailer

In 2012, the studio released “The Amazing Spider Man” which drew in over $700 million worldwide. After the huge success of the Spider Man trilogy which featured Tobey Maguire, the franchise returned with Andrew Garfield in the title role. In just under 2 weeks Spidey will return to the United States, and should be the years largest draw for the studio. The film was already released internationally in some areas, and grossed $47 million in its first weekend; a number which is higher than the “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” opening in similar regions. Captain America currently sits atop the box office rankings for the second straight week, but Spider Man is looking poised to make a run at that position upon release. [14][15]

22 Jump Street
Release Date: July 13th, 2014
Trailer

In addition to doing a second Spider Man, Columbia Pictures is slated to release the sequel to “21 Jump Street” in 2014. “22 Jump Street” will see the duo of Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum return in hopes of topping their $200 million dollar success back in 2012. The last film had Hill and Tatum attending high school, but they’ve moved on to college for the sequel which is sure to draw back the young audience they targeted the first time around who may have moved on to college themselves. [16][17]

Future of Columbia Pictures

As Columbia Pictures enters 2014 they seem to be focused on recreating and building upon already established brands. With two sequels headlining their summer release schedule,and reboots continuously showing large profits for the studio don’t expect their formula to change anytime soon. Also noteworthy is Sony Picture Entertainments recent interest in turning its existing video game titles into movies. Rumors have been circulation around the internet that a Sonic the Hedgehog movie could be in the works from Columbia, and this could be the first of many video games Sony sends to the production company as they continue to be one of the industries most vertically integrated corporations.

Sources

[1] Sony Pictures Entertainment Executives – Sony Pictures
[2] 1989 Article on Sony Purchase of Columbia – The New York Times
[3] History of Columbia – Sony Pictutes
[4] Google Finance: Columbia Pictures – google.com/finance
[5] Columbia Pictures – Box Office Mojo
[6] American Hustle – Box Office Mojo
[7] American Hustle – IMDB
[8] Monuments Men – Box Office Mojo
[9] Push Back of Monuments Men – Grantland
[10] Monuments Men – IMDB
[11] RoboCop – Box Office Mojo
[12] RoboCop Opening Weekend – Variety
[13] RoboCop – IMDB
[14] The Amazing Spider Man 2 Opening Weekend – Forbes
[15] The Amazing Spider Man 2 – IMDB
[16] 21 Jump Street – Box Office Mojo
[17] 22 Jump Street – IMDB

Photo Sources

Columbia Logo (courtesy truthcontrol.com)
Michael Lynton (courtesy sonypictures.com)
Amy Pascal (courtesy sonypictures.com)
David Hendler (courtesy sonypictures.com)
Michael Deluca (courtesy sonypictures.com)
Charles Sipkuns (courtesy sonypictures.com)
American Hustle Poster – (courtesy boxofficemojo.com)
Monuments Men Poster – (courtesy boxofficemojo.com)
RoboCop Poster – (courtesy boxofficemojo.com)
The Amazing Spider Man 2 Poster – (courtesy sonypictures.com)
22 Jump Street Poster – (courtesy sonypictures.com)

Buenavista/Disney Pictures

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Ahmed Sabih

By Ahmed Sabih

Image courtesy of thewaltdisneystudios.com

Company History

The Walt Disney Studios was founded in 1923 under the moniker “The Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio”. The company built its early success on its slate of animated classics such as Alice in Wonderland and Snow White and maintaining success with these animated pictures with hits like The Lion King and Aladdin. [1] Buena Vista is the company, owned by Disney, which distributes the content from the divisions under Disney. These divisions include Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Marvel Studios, Touchstone Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and others. Disney also has subsidiaries in Pixar Animation Studios and recently acquired Lucasfilm. [2] [3]

Key Executives

Robert A. Iger – Chairman and CEO, The Walt Disney Company

Bob Iger – Photo courtesy of thewaltdisneycompany.com

Alan F. Horn – Chairman, The Walt Disney Studios

Alan Horn – Photo courtesy of thewaltdisneycompany.com

Alan Bergman – President, The Walt Disney Studios

Alan Bergman – Photo courtesy of waltdisneystudios.com

Financials

Disney has begun its fiscal 2014 (Oct-Dec) strong, with revenues hitting just above $12.3 billion, an increase from fourth quarter fiscal 2013 revenues of $11.5 billion. Highlights of the past fiscal year include Earnings Per Share (EPS) values increasing 8 percent to a record $3.38. Disney also set records for Net Income, which increased rose 8 percent to $6.1 billion. [4] [5]

Current Slate

Frozen

Image courtesy of imdb.com

Frozen, Disney’s big animated hit of the holiday season, released on November 27th, 2013. Led by the voices of Kirsten Bell and Idina Menzel, Frozen is the tale of Anna and Elsa, two sisters whose lives change when Elsa’s magical wintery powers accidentally set off an eternal winter. Elsa retreats to the mountains and it is up to Anna, her friend Kristoff with his reindeer Sven, and childhood snowman come-alive Olaf to help Elsa tame her powers and rescue the village. [6] [7]

Much of Disney’s success during the past quarter can be attributed to Frozen, which saw record-breaking numbers. With a production budget of $150 million, Frozen‘s opening weekend saw domestic totals of $67.3 million. However, as of April 20th, Frozen is about to eclipse a whopping $400 million domestic total. Worldwide, Frozen has reached over $1.1 billion, which is the highest ever gross for an animated film. [8] With further windows opening later down the road, DVD sales, merchandise and soundtrack sales should help Disney cash in fully on the success of Frozen.

The film did well with regards to reviews. Metacritic gave it 74 out of 100 based on 43 critic reviews. [9] Many critics lauded Frozen as a return to the excellence of Disney’s pedigree. Certainly the numbers can back that statement. In addition, reviews praised the technical aspect of the film, citing the 3-D Animation to be top notch. Frozen won two Academy Awards — Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song (“Let It Go”).

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Image courtesy of imdb.com

Kicking off the blockbuster season, Disney continued the big-time Marvel franchise starting on April 4th. With big name stars such as Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson, the film follows the story of Steve Rogers, Captain America, as he must adapt to modern times and modern crimes. When a colleague at S.H.I.E.L.D is attacked, a conspiracy web is revealed, the consequences of which are dire. Captain America teams up with the Black Widow and Falcon in order to put an end to the plot, but they are met by unexpected foes. [10]

As the summer season is starting up, Captain America started strong on its opening weekend, grossing $95 million domestically. Its budget is estimated at $170 million, and as of April 20th, The Winter Soldier has grossed over $201 million domestically, with a worldwide gross of over $586 million. As we get into the thick of the summer season, it should have the legs to gain more money for Disney and deliver on its blockbuster potential. [11] One way Disney is helping to promote its long-term success is by offering fans their own S.H.I.E.L.D badge through May 25th and spreading the word of the film into the midst of the summer. [12]

Review-wise, The Winter Soldier has done well, scoring a 70 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 44 critic reviews. Generally, the film is praised among critics for its acting, and special effects and ability to deliver as a sequel in the superhero genre. However, the general consensus is that the film isn’t truly remarkable enough to stay in the memories of audiences for too long. [13]

What Lies Ahead

Image courtesy of imdb.com

Disney’s summer slate looks to fill the summer with star power. Million Dollar Arm, set to release May 16th, stars Mad Men’s front man Jon Hamm. Inspired by true events, the story follows baseball scout JB Bernstein’s quest to find the next star pitcher. He travels to India to make a reality-show competition to find a cricket player that will sign a league contract as a pitcher. The film co-stars Slumdog Millionaire actor Madhur Mittal, and it will likely look to capitalize on his international presence. [14]

Image courtesy of imdb.com

Opposite Million Dollar Arm is Disney’s Maleficent, starring blockbuster specialist Angelina Jolie. An homage to Disney’s roots, the film is about the untold story of Maleficent, the villain from the 1959 classic, Sleeping Beauty, and her transformation of heart to stone, revealing her reasoning to curse the baby Aurora. Elle Fanning brings extra star power in a supporting role, as does Charlto Copley and Sam Riley. [15] The soundtrack will feature hit-artist Lana Del Rey, with early commercials featuring her re-imagining of the song, “Once Upon A Dream” from the 1959 film.

Image courtesy of imdb.com

Looking even further ahead, Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm brings the biggest blockbuster of them all, Star Wars, to the horizon of Disney. Buzz is already being generated for the films, bringing out the big guns by signing J.J. Abrams as the director for the new trilogy. As of now, the first of the trilogy is set to release around December 2015. [16]

Sources

[1] The Walt Disney Studios Company History

[2] The Studios of Disney

[3] Disney acquires Lucasfilm Ltd

[4] Disney First Quarter Earnings 2014

[5] Disney Fourth Quarter Earnings 2014

[6] IMDB – Frozen

[7] Box Office Mojo – Frozen

[8] Deadline: Frozen Highest International Grossing Animated Picture of All Time

[9] Metacritic – Frozen

[10] IMDB – Captain America: The Winter Soldier

[11] Box Office Mojo – Captain America

[12] SHIELD Badge Promotion

[13] Metacritic – Captain America

[14] IMDB – Million Dollar Arm

[15] IMDB – Maleficent

[16] IMDB – Star Wars (2015)

Viacom

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Samantha Mackoff

By Sam Mackoff

[1] Viacom Logo

ABOUT VIACOM

Viacom, short for Video and Audio Communications, is a mass media company that produces content globally across television, movies, online and mobile platforms. Viacom’s media networks reach about 700 million global subscribers, making it one of the world’s largest media conglomerate [2]. Viacom operates about 170 leading entertainment brands including MTV Networks, VH1, BET Networks, Comedy Central, CMT, SPIKE, Nickelodeon Networks, Paramount Pictures and more [3].

Television Networks

[4] Viacom’s Media Brands

Viacom has a large variety of networks that represent a diverse collection of programming. From Nickelodeon, the leading brand in children’s entertainment, to Comedy Central, the number one brand in comedic television, Viacom continues to produce original content that is relevant to all different audience members [4]. Some of Viacom’s leading shows are Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants, MTV’s Teen Wolf and Awkward, Comedy Central’s South Park and many more [5].

Film

[6] Paramount Pictures Logo

Paramount Pictures Corporation is a production and distribution studio for film. It is a subsidiary of Viacom. Paramount distributes content from DreamWorks Animation, Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Marvel Studios, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies [4]. Paramount is ranked as the fourth highest grossing film distributor [7]. Some of Paramount’s notable films are, “Transformers”, “Indiana Jones”, “Star Trek”, “Titanic”, and “Forrest Gump” [8].

FINANCIALS

Viacom is a publicly held. This year, Viacom did well financially with its media networks revenue, but did not do well financially in film entertainment. The media networks revenue had a $462 million increase to $9.7 billion by the end of 2013 [9]. The film entertainment revenues had a $538 million decrease from the previous year to $4.3 billion by the end of 2013 [9]. Viacom’s net earnings still increased 2% from 2012 to 2013, from $2.3 billion in 2012 to $2.4 billion in 2013 [9].

KEY EXECUTIVES

[10] Philippe Dauman,
President and Chief Executive Officer

[11] Thomas E. Dooley,
Chief Operating Officer

RECENT NEWS
Viacom and Google Call a Truce

[12] Google Vs. Viacom

After seven years of battling in court, Viacom and Google have settled the copyright infringement lawsuit, in which neither company exchanged money to the other. Viacom filed a $1 billion lawsuit in 2007 against YouTube, which is owned by Google, stating that there were billions of dollars in damages for copyright infringement by uploading unauthorized clips from Viacom programming. After years of arguing, Viacom and YouTube released a settlement statement saying, “This settlement reflects the growing collaborative dialogue between our two companies on important opportunities, and we look forward to working more closely together” [13].

Viacom Teams Up with Tumblr

[14] Tumblr and Viacom Partnership

Viacom announced an exclusive partnership with the popular blogging website, Tumblr. The two companies together will offer co-branded campaigns and content for shows and events for Viacom’s networks through the 2014 Upfront Season. This partnership marks Viacom as the first television programmer to develop a marketing partnership with Tumblr. Viacom’s partnership with Tumblr creates a unique opportunity for Viacom to use this creative platform with its advertisers in order to reach a large audience because of its major social activity. On the consumer end, it allows users to view content in a fun and interactive way [15].

RELEASES

[16] “The Wolf of Wall Street”, directed by Martin Scorsese

The Wolf of Wall Street

The dark comedy, “The Wolf of Wall Street”, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, is based on the true story of Jordan Belfort’s life. The film takes you through the New York stockbroker’s journey from rags to riches, starting in penny stocks to running an extremely successful firm. This film has had major success worldwide. The high admiration has earned the film a Golden Globe and five Academy Award nominations [17]. Surpassing all Christmas sales in theaters on its holiday release date [18], the film made $10 million on its opening day and over $18 million on its opening weekend [19]. This film has accumulated grosses of $116.9 million domestically and $272.7 million in the foreign market [19].

[20] “Noah”, directed by Darren Aronofsky

Noah

The recent release of the biblical inspired film, “Noah”, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Russell Crowe, is inspired by the biblical story of Noah’s Ark. Noah is chosen by God to take on a mission to rescue the innocent before an apocalyptic flood hits the world. This film ranked #1 at the box office on its opening weekend on March 28^th [21]. “Noah” brought in a diverse audience including men and women of all ages that were Christian, Catholic Latino and African American [22]. “Noah” has faced a sizable decline with a 68% drop since its release [23]. Predictions say that this number will increase during the weekend of Easter because of the faith based audience [24]. “Noah” has made $93.3 million domestically and $197.4 million in the foreign market [21].

UPCOMING RELEASES

Nickelodeon Introduces a New Awards Show

8-Kids-Choice-Sports-Awards-2014-350x348

[25] Michael Strahan, Future Host of Kids Choice Sports

Nickelodeon announced a new award show called Kids Choice Sports, hosted by former football player, Michael Strahan, set to debut this summer. Kids Choice Sports give viewers the opportunity to have a voice in the show by voting for their favorite teams, players and sports moments as well as selecting the stars to get slimed. In additions to the awards, the event will also have a musical performance, competitions against athletes and slimed filled sports stunts [26]. Kids Choice Sports has the potential to bring in a whole new audience of parents and children who are interested in sports, as well as other viewers who want to be a part of the additional events of the awards show.

Candid Camera Returns After 66 Years

: [27] Allen Funt, the Original Host of Candid Camera

TV Land announced that it is bringing back a new version of the 1940’s show, Candid Camera. Candid Camera is a show that captures the reactions of people in unusual situations using hidden cameras. Peter Funt, the son of the host and creator of the original show, will be co-producing Candid Camera. There are 10 new episodes that are set to air this summer [28].

Transformers To Release Fourth Film

The fourth Transformers film called, “Transformers: Age of Extinction”, is hitting the theater this summer. This film was directed by Michael Bay and has notable actors staring in it such as Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz, and Jack Reynor [29]. This popular franchise has earned $2.6 billion in the global box office. The bar for this film was set very high after the last film, “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”, earning $1.1 billion globally. This film is set to release June 27^th [30].

Trailer [31]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Recreated in a Live Action Film

“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” is returning to the screen in a live action film this summer. Producer Michael Bay and director Jonathan Liesmasman, are working together to recreate the story that was originally based off of a comic series [32]. Rob Moore, vice chairman of Paramount said, “Michael Bay is committed to making sure young audiences have a reason to flock back to your theaters” [33]. This action comedy film is about four trained ninja turtles that work together to fight off evil. This summer blockbuster, starring Megan Fox, Noel Fisher, Will Arnet, Jeremy Howard and Alan Ritchso, is set to release August 8^th [32].

Trailer [34]

Sources

[1] Viacom’s Logo, Adweek.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[2] About Viacom, Viacom.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[3] “Viacom: Veteran Leading the Way”, Investing Daily, 12/31/2013, RT: 4/17/2014

[4] Viacom Brands, Viacom.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[5] Most Popular TV Shows, TV.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[6] Paramount Pictures Logo, Nickelodeon.Wikia.com, RT: 4/18/14

[7] Leading Distributors- 1995-2014, The-Numbers.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[8] Paramount All Time Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/18/2014

[9] Viacom Inc.- Annual Report, Viacom.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[10] Philippe Dauman, Trialx.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[11] Thomas E. Dooley, CNN.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[13] “Google and Viacom Settle Copyright-Infringement Lawsuit over YouTube”, Variety, 3/18/2014, RT: 4/19/2014

[14] Viacom and Tumblr, YourNewSticker.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[15] “Yahoo’s Tumblr First TV Ad Deal Is with Viacom”, Variety, 3/20/2014, RT: 4/19/2014

[16] Wolf of Wall Street Poster, UBCFilmSociety.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[17] Wolf of Wall Street Awards, IMDB.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[18] “‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Poised for No. 1 at Christmas Box Office with $10 Million”, Variety, 12/25/13, RT: 4/19/14

[19] Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[20] Noah Poster, MovieFanatic.com, RT: 4/19/2014

[21] Box Office Results, BoxOfficeMojo.com, RT: 4/19/14

[22] “‘Noah’ sails to estimated $44-Million Opening at Box Office”, Los Angeles Times, 3/30/2014, RT: 4/19/14

[23] “North America: ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Sets New April Record with $96.2M”, BoxOffice.com, 4/6/14, RT: 4/19/14

[24] “‘Heaven is for Real’ Posts Strong Opening Day Returns”, BoxOffice.com, 4/17/14, RT: 4/19/2014

[25] Kids Choice Sports Picture, TVByTheNumbers.zap2it.com, RT: 4/20/14

[26] “Nick Launching Sports Award Show”, BigStory.ap.org, 3/13/214, RT: 4/20/14

[27] Allen Funt, rtvfmediastudies.tcu.edu, RT: 4/20/14

[28] “Candid Camera: TV Land Reviving Classic Series for Summer”, TVSeriesFinale.com, 4/9/14, RT: 4/20/14

[29] Transformers Cast and Crew, IMDB.com, RT: 4/20/14

[30] “‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’ to Kick Start New Trilogy”, Variety, 4/11/14, RT: 4/20/14

[31] Transformers: Age of Extinction Trailer, Youtube, 3/5/2014, RT: 4/20/2014

[32] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Cast and Crew, IMDB.com, RT: 4/20/14

[33] “Paramount Kicks Off CinemaCon With ‘Ninja Turtles,’ ‘Transformers’ Footage”, Variety, 3/24/14, RT: 4/20/14

[34] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Trailer, Youtube, 3/27/2014, RT: 4/20/2014

Pandora Radio

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Andrew Saltman

By Andrew Saltman

Pandora [1]

History

Pandora Business Model [3]

Pandora Internet Radio is an online music streaming service that provides listeners with automated playlists based on their likes and listening habits among many other things. Founded by Will Glaser, Jon Kraft, and Tim Westergren in 2000, Pandora was designed to bring users individualized radio stations with great music and no “junk.” Westergren currently sits on the Board of Directors, and Brian McAndrews serves as the company’s CEO. The Music Genome Project is the sophisticated formula that analyzes each song using up to 450 distinct musical characteristics by trained music analysts. The analysts typically have four year degrees in music theory or composition and had to pass a selective screening process and complete an extensive training program in order to accurately analyze songs for the project. Pandora does not use any listening machines to analyze any song, as all analysis comes from the human analysts. [2]

Pandora users are able to create up to 100 unique stations (or playlists) based off an artist, genre or composer. Users are allowed to skip six songs per hour per station, and up to 24 skips across all stations per day. Pandora also allows users to refine their stations by liking or disliking each track they hear. Pandora continues to learn listening habits as users continue to listen and like songs. The more someone uses their Pandora account, the more personalized the stations become. [4]

Pandora 2013 Anual Report [3]

Financials

Pandora got it’s start with investments from both angel investors and venture capitalists, and in June of 2011 the company went public through an IPO. According to Pandora’s 2013 Annual Report, stock prices traded on the NYSE started at $16.00 per share on June 14th, 2011. At the end of the 4th quarter in January of 2013 the high stock price came in at $11.90 with the lowest price at $7.08. Revenue has increased dramatically in the five years that Pandora has been publicly traded. Pandora brought in $19,333,000 in advertising and subscription fees in 2009. In 2013, Pandora brought in almost half a billion dollars at $427,145,000 before expenses. [3] In 2010 Pandora had 16 million users listening to 1.8 billion hours of music. Three years later in 2013, 65.6 million users listened to over 14 billion hours of music. Pandora’s most recent audience metrics for March of 2014 were just released (graphic below). Pandora also announced that after June of 2014 they will no longer publicize its monthly key audience metrics. [5]

2014 Audience Metrics [6]

Pandora Stock Performance [7]

Current Endeavors

Peet’s Coffee

In March of 2014, Pandora announced a brand new partnership with Peet’s Coffee & Tea. “Peet’s Coffee & Tea, a premier specialty coffee and tea company, and Pandora, the leading internet radio service, announced a new partnership which marks the first time Pandora will feature partner branded radio stations in a brick-and-mortar environment nationwide” (Pandora) [7]. Peet’s coffee will now play its own customized radio stations in all of the stores across the United States. What makes these stations unique to Peet’s is that they will all be curated by a 25-year employee and music aficionado Patrick Main, not to mention the fact that the new Peet’s stations will be available to all Pandora listeners. Peet’s will have four personalized stations that are meant to pair well with their coffees using music outside what is played on mainstream radio. The stations include Peet’s Melodic Indie meant for bright and fresh coffees, Peet’s Jazz Giants reflecting Peet’s Italian Roast and espressos, Peet’s Origins which enhances Peet’s earthy African blends, and finally Peet’s Eclectic Classical station that should be paired with Peet’s French Roast. This partnership is quite the impressive business venture for both Peet’s and Pandora. Peet’s will be able to compete with the music in rivals like Starbucks that already has a partnership with Apple and iTunes. Pandora will also benefit as they are trying to compete with other streaming services like Spotify and Rdio. Peet’s customers hopefully will enjoy the musical selections in Peet’s coffee shops which will help Peet’s retain customers and help Pandora gain more subscribers. This partnership could be the first of many for Pandora as they attempt to gain more market share in the online streaming world.

Royalty Lawsuit

Although Pandora has been doing very well recently in terms of subscribers and partnerships, they have also gained a lot of negative press in regards to their catalog and royalty payments. In April of 2014, the three major labels Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music Entertainment, along with indie labels ABKCO and RIAA, filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in New York state court against Pandora. The suit on Pandora is for playing pre-February 15, 1972 recordings without making any royalty payments. “The labels say both digital music services (Pandora & SiriusXM) take advantage of a copyright loophole, since the master recording for copyright wasn’t created federally until 1972. But the labels claim that their master recordings are protected by individual state copyright laws and therefore deserve royalty payments” (Christman) [8]. Michael Huppe, the CEO and President of SoundExchange, a non-profit performance rights organization, estimated that artists and labels have lost 60 million dollars in royalty payments for pre-1972 songs in just 2013 alone.

Example Royalty Payment Sheet [9]

This lawsuit has come after many artists, like legendary guitarist and songwriter Steve Cropper, have complained about the lack of payments from streaming services, especially Pandora. Songwriters are asking to be compensated for their work due to the fact that Pandora and other streaming services are profiting off of their original content. The case filed against SiriusXM in February is very similar and further along in the legal process. We can expect to see some important rulings and clarity in this case shortly, which will directly affect the Pandora case and whether courts believe songwriters should be compensated for pre-1972 works. SiriusXM’s hearing is set for May 14th. These two cases are extremely important for the world of streaming, as many music industry experts believe streaming is the future of recorded music. A ruling in favor of songwriters and artists could potentially ease the tension between the two camps and have all artists begin to support streaming. Currently many artists are against streaming because they don’t feel they are being properly compensated; however, streaming is significantly more convenient for consumers and could notably help reduce illegal downloading. [8]

Upcoming

Music Submission Steps for Independent Artists [10]

Step 2

Pandora also recently announced that they will be taking open music submissions. This will now make it easier than ever for independent artists to get their music out to over 70 million active listeners on the site. This is an initiative that Pandora will continue to pursue in the coming year in hopes to give independent artists a chance to reach a bigger audience. All independent artists need to do is submit their material digitally online for consideration.

Pandora has a bright future in the online streaming world if they can solve their differences with record labels and songwriters. Their initiatives in the consumer space, like with Peet’s Coffee, and their goals to help independent artists will make them a more attractive destination for music listeners to go to for content.

Works Cited

[1] Pandora – Pandora Logo RT: March 25, 2014

[2] Pandora – About Pandora RT: March 25, 2014

[3] Pandora – 2013 Anual Report RT: April 15, 2014

[4] Pandora – Skip Policy RT: March 25, 2014

[5] Pandora – Corporate Overview RT: March 25, 2014

[6] Pandora – 2014 Audience Metrics RT: April 15, 2014

[7] Pandora – Peet’s Coffee Partnership RT: April 7, 2014

[8] Billboard Magazine – Pandora Lawsuit RT: April 18, 2014

[9] The Trichordist – SiriusXM Royalty Payment Sheet RT: April 15, 2014

[10] Pandora – Music Submission for Independent Artists RT: March 25, 2014

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