Showbiz Sandbox 589: Should Music Be Produced and Sold Like Fine Art?

July 20, 2022

In an effort to make music valuable again, producer T Bone Burnett is getting behind a technology that allowed him and Bob Dylan to create a one-off re-recording of “Blowin’ In The Wind” and then auction it off for $1.8 million. But can recordings be treated the same way as paintings are in the art world? If musicians limit the reproduction of their work will it really become more valuable?

Meanwhile the Emmy Award nominations were announced last week with hit series from HBO and HBO Max helping the network garner 140 nods. Netflix made history with “Squid Game” becoming the first non-English language show to be nominated for Best Drama Series.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including why comedian Lewis Black is suing Pandora, the reason Shawn Mendes is pausing his world tour and how Iran is jailing its leading film directors.

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Showbiz Sandbox 588: Keeping Track of Ever-Shifting Streaming Strategies

July 5, 2022

Though the entertainment industry may be infatuated infatuated with streaming, the legacy media companies behind all the new subscription services haven’t quite found the right way to profit from them. NBC/Universal earned nearly a billion dollars in committed ad revenue with Peacock this year, causing them to take a hard look at all of their low-rated cable channels. And HBO Max is thinking twice about producing original programming in countries like Turkey and Sweden.

Meanwhile, the “Minions: The Rise Of Gru” is the lates blockbuster release that is proving the box office is back for everyone, even families. The worldwide gross of “Top Gun: Maverick” continues to soar, but will Paramount leave it in theatres long enough to fully capitalize.

Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment headlines including the Creative Artists Agency completes its acquisition of rival ICM, Disney renews CEO Bob Chapek and Alec Baldwin commiserates with Woody Allen.

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