Showbiz Sandbox 600: The Return of Bob Iger at Disney
November 29, 2022
We were just as surprised as everyone else to hear that The Walt Disney Company was firing their CEO Bob Chapek and replacing him with their longtime former head, Bob Iger. Iger is returning to a markedly different media company than the one he left less than a year ago and his second stint as CEO will be measured by how he sets up Disney to survive into the future. Finding the right successor will be one of his top priorities.
Meanwhile, we try to unravel how Ticketmaster fumbled the sale of tickets to Taylor Swift’s upcoming concert tour. The company is claiming verified fans were unable to get tickets due to unprecedented demand and automated ticket-buying bots. The incident caused such a stir it even attracted the attention of politicians eager to hold hearings about it.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why a big book publishing merger is called off, Amazon gets serious about film distribution and Agatha Christie’s “Mousetrap” heads to Broadway.
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Showbiz Sandbox 598: Streaming Growth Goes International
November 9, 2022
It’s no secret that streaming services have been affecting every part of the entertainment business in one way or another, from movies and television to music sales and book publishing. After the latest round of earnings announcements from major media conglomerates a few realities become clear; producing original content for direct-to-consumer streaming offerings is costing a fortune and any significant subscriber growth is going to come from overseas territories.
Meanwhile, Taylor Swift’s latest album, “Midnights” might be topping the sales and Billboard charts, however it won’t be eligible for a Grammy in 2023 because it was released after September 30th of this year. The same goes for Bruce Springsteen, Charlie Puth, Gorillaz, Red Hot Chili Peppers, 1975, Carly Rae Jepsen, Arctic Monkeys and Smashing Pumpkins. On the other hand, Silk Sonic have decided not to have their debut album compete for an Album of the Year Grammy.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why K-Pop phenoms BTS are headed to the army, how the performing rights organization BMI is becoming a for-profit entity and embattled actor Kevin Spacey is found not liable in a sex abuse lawsuit.
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Showbiz Sandbox 561: After “Squid Game,” Korea Wants Netflix to Pay Up
November 9, 2021
Though Netflix’s expensive blockbuster “Red Notice” is getting little notice in movie theatres, the company’s signature streaming service is thriving. In fact, its series “Squid Game” is so popular around the world that in Korea Netflix is being barraged with questions about paying for the cost of the increased streaming traffic it continues to generate.
Meanwhile, a music festival in Houston headlined by Travis Scott left at least eight concertgoers dead and scores injured after they were crushed when the audience surged toward the stage. We’ll explore the poor choices made by Astroworld’s promoters that lead to the tragedy.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why the BBC may lose funding, Netflix launches its mobile games and the Justice Department wants to stop two of the world’s largest book publishers from merging.
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Showbiz Sandbox 519: A Year Without A Blockbuster Comic Book Movie
December 1, 2020
Though 2020 saw DC Films launch a Harley Quinn vehicle and Marvel finally released an X-Men spin-off “The New Mutants,” neither film set the world on fire. As “Wonder Woman 1984” heads to a hybrid streaming and theatrical release, it’s the final gasp of almost an entire year without any big comic book movies.
We ask veteran entertainment journalist Geoff Boucher whether we needed a break from all the cinematic heroics. As someone who has hosted countless CinemaCon panels, Boucher explains whether, after an endless stream of blockbuster Marvel and DC films, a year without a major comic book movie is such a bad thing.
Of course we also cover some of the week’s top entertainment headlines including this year’s Grammy Award nominations, Conan O’Brien is ending his late night talk show and why Quentin Tarantino’s next release may be headed straight to libraries.
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Showbiz Sandbox 423: After New Allegations Time Was Up For Les Moonves at CBS
September 10, 2018
When CBS head Les Moonves was accused of sexual misconduct this past summer his firing seemed inevitable. Instead he over the weekend after six additional women came forward with allegations dating back decades. Now the question is not how much severance Moonves will get but how much money can CBS pay him to go away and avoid a drawn-out lawsuit without angering activists .
Ultimately Moonves may have lost the battle but won the war. His stepping aside allowed for the settlement of an ownership lawsuit which prevents National Amusements, the network’s parent company, from trying to merge CBS and Viacom for at least two years.
Meanwhile Netflix scored big at the Venice Film Festival when their movie “Roma” picked up the Golden Lion, the festival’s top prize. Director Alfonso Cuarón’s film seems like just the type the Academy might fall for come Oscar time, but first it has to find a movie theater willing to show it.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including why there won’t be a Best Popular Film category at next year’s Oscars, a new “Law & Order” series and all the history made at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
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Showbiz Sandbox 358: The Skinny on YouTube’s New Live TV Service
March 6, 2017
With YouTube becoming the latest player to offer an over-the-top subscription streaming service it’s safe to say the the skinny television bundle has officially arrived. For $35 per month, subscribers can now get 40 channels of live TV including major networks and ESPN. YouTube TV also has a virtual DVR with no recording limits.
YouTube is entering an increasingly crowded market with competitors such as Dish Network’s Sling TV, AT&T’s DirecTV Now, Hulu and many others. But YouTube may have an advantage thanks to some powerful artificial intelligence that has helped increase worldwide viewing to over one billion hours per day, nearly as much as traditional television in the United States.
Now normally, two weeks after the Academy Awards we’d already be struggling to remember who won Best Score. But thanks to the most notorious screwup in Oscar history, we’re still talking about the broadcast and its fallout. We’ll explain why.
Of course, we also cover the week’s top entertainment news stories including the absurd controversy over Disney’s first gay character, Harry Potter tops the Olivier Awards with a record 11 nominations and Spotify reaches the 50 million subscriber mark.
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Showbiz Sandbox 349: How the 2016 Box Office Defied the Odds
January 3, 2017
Apparently political pollsters aren’t the only forecasters whose predictions can be wrong. With fewer high profile blockbusters than 2015, some in Hollywood believed that the 2016 North American box office could surpass the previous year. However, a number of unexpected hits like “The Jungle Book” and “Deadpool” helped box office climb to a record high of $11.4 billion.
Meanwhile in China, the rapid box office growth that saw a 50% rise in 2015 slowed dramatically. In fact, the country’s box office actually fell in the last half of 2016, causing a modest 3% gain, year-over-year. We’ll explain what caused the Chinese box office to cool off so quickly and why there may be some good news buried in the financials.
Our resident theatre expert Michael Giltz will brief us on all the new productions opening on Broadway this spring. He’ll tell us which shows he would invest in (if he had the money) and which might be headed to a town near you when they go out on tour.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, a banner year for cable news networks and how record labels are finally seeing some profits from streaming music revenue.
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Showbiz Sandbox 317: Bundling Cable Networks May Work For Advertisers, But Not For Cable Customers
April 4, 2016
In yet another sign that the difference between broadcast and cable networks is eroding, NBCUniversal announced that it would include all of its cable outlets in their traditional upfront presentation to advertisers for NBC. By combining shows from networks such as Bravo, Telemundo and Oxygen with the big primetime hits on NBC, the Comcast owned media giant is signaling that the best way for advertisers to reach viewers is through aggregating audiences.
Time Warner Cable, on the other hand, is struggling to distribute its own content through different cable providers. Specifically, none of the other pay-TV companies is willing to force their customers to pay for SportsNet LA, the regional sports network owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Could this be an indication that cable operators finally understand that technology will force them to unbundle their basic cable offering?
Meanwhile, short, cheap and entertaining books – once called dime store novels or pulp fiction – are making a comeback. As are serialized novels, short stories and lots of things that don’t fit into the 250 pages or more standard of most books today. Technology and the need to hold the attention of readers are the reasons it’s happening.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including the controversial film pulled from the Tribeca Film Festival lineup, the death of comedian Gary Shandling and the porn industry gets into virtual reality.
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Showbiz Sandbox 219: The Business of Show Was Profitable In 2013
January 6, 2014
Almost every sector of the entertainment industry saw record grosses during 2013. North American movie ticket sales reached a record $10.9 billion. Television audiences are tuning in to more shows than ever, especially sporting events. The top 20 concert tours made a whopping $2.43 billion. It all helped contribute to the bottom lines of many entertainment companies causing their stock prices to end the year on a high note.
The only category in which revenue declined was the music. Even sales of digital music declined for the first time since iTunes was launched back in 2003. Album sales were down 8.4% overall and some industry insiders concede this might be due to streaming services such as Pandora and Spotify.
And financial numbers aren’t the only ones increasing in entertainment. So are the sizes of televisions. They’re not only getting bigger, but the consumer electronics industry is pushing Ultra HD with 4K resolution, which is twice that of current HD televisions.
Of course, we also cover the week’s top entertainment news stories including the death of singer Phil Everly, the expansion and increased usage of UltraViolet and the manufactured controversy behind Martin Scorsese’s latest film, “The Wolf of Wall Street”.
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