Thompson on Hollywood

President Obama, Lena Dunham, Tom Hanks All Nab 2013 Webby Nominations

Awards

The nominees for the 17th annual Webby Awards have been unveiled, and this year include President Barack Obama, Lena Dunham, Justin Bieber, Tom Hanks and Yahoo's "Burning Love" among the nominated pop-culture and internet superstars.

By Beth Hanna
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April 9, 2013 1:57 PM
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Media Watch: Google Opens Digital Music Shop

News

In order to compete with iTunes and Amazon, Google has boldly launched a series of music features, including a digital music downloads store, reports NYT's Media Decoder. This marks Google's intention to expand as a social network and entertainment source.

By Maggie Lange
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November 18, 2011 2:56 AM
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Media Watch: Huffington Post's Worth Exceeds AOL, More on Google YouTube, Madoffs on 60 Minutes

- Chalk one up to Arianna Huffington. A study from General Sentiment shows that in 2011 The Huffington Post brand is worth $358 million versus AOL's $156 million in terms of "Impact Media Value," reports Forbes. "Impact Media Value" is the exposure, both positive, negative, and neutral, of a media brand.

By Maggie Lange
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November 1, 2011 4:16 AM
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Media Watch: Amazon Prime Instant vs. Netflix, Selling YouTube at Denny's, Zuckerberg's Regrets

Able to report some much-needed good news, Netflix renewed its contract with ABC, adding more shows including Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy. After losing 800,000 domestic subscribers after its recent price increase and the controversial fissure between streaming and sending DVDs, the company is doing its best to please their remaining consumers. However, Netflix's primary rival Amazon is making its own moves as Netflix’s primary competition with Prime Instant, a video library that will include over 800 titles from Disney-ABC including Lost, Grey’s Anatomy, and Felicity. Prime has also secured licensing deals with CBS, Fox, NBCUniversal, PBS, Sony and Warner Brothers.

By Maggie Lange
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October 31, 2011 4:28 AM
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First Look: REM Remix The End of TV As We Know It

This YouTube REM Remix captures the frenetic pace of obsessive screen-watchers. Like me.

By Anne Thompson
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September 22, 2011 12:09 PM
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Weekly Wrap: TIFF: Moneyball, Descendants, Deep Blue Sea; Reviews Kevin, The Lady; Media Watch

Box Office:

By Maggie Lange
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September 16, 2011 5:20 AM
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Media Watch: Netflix Takes a Tumble, Google's Propeller, Viki to 10M International Users

Google has a social and news reader in its works, according to sources close to the project. Now called The Propeller, the reader doesn't have a launch date planned yet. [Via Media Bistro]

By Maggie Lange
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September 16, 2011 3:59 AM
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Media Watch: LATimes.com Traffic Rises, Facebook Hides Google+ Invites, Netflix targets Kids & Asia

Netflix is creating a Just-for-Kids streaming option, the company reported yesterday. Aimed at the 12-and-unders, it offers content like Dora the Explorer or SpongeBob SquarePants, and groups its elements into categories that operate with total child-logic: "Dinosaurs," "Girl Power," "Princesses," and "Superheroes." Meanwhile, Netflix is also aiming to distribute in select Asian locations, like Japan or South Korea, by the end of 2012.

By Maggie Lange
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August 17, 2011 11:45 AM
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Media Watch: Fox Sets Up Sub Paywall, Time's High Digital IQ, Facebook vs. Nirvana, Google+

On Tuesday, Fox announced that it will stop free next-day streaming of its TV shows on Fox.com and Hulu.com, unless viewers subscribe to the services. Cable and satellite users will need to submit a user name and password; the shows will be available for free viewing eight days after their initial release date.

By Maggie Lange
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July 27, 2011 4:03 AM
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Social Media Watch: Facebook Employees Sign Up for Google+, Most Active Users at Twitter or Facebook

While Google+ hopes to replace Facebook as a social media site that allows you to compartmentalize your image, high-ups at Facebook have been signing up in droves for Google's new platform. See the complete list of Facebook employees using Google Plus at All Facebook, including founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, vice president Christopher Cox and vice president of human resources, Lori Goler. So far, Google+ has accumulated 10 million users in just two weeks, good progress but nowhere close to Facebook's 750 million. Perhaps Facebook's principals are conducting some competitive research at Google+ or maybe this is a friendly gesture to say that all social media can coexist together?