Thompson on Hollywood

Fandango Hires EW Vet and Oscar Expert Dave Karger as Media Front Man

News

As the LA Times' Geoff Boucher joins ex-USA Today writer Anthony Breznican at weekly magazine EW, 17-year EW vet Dave Karger is moving on. He is heading away from print reporting to a career as a professional video pundit and media front man. He will now grow his media profile at NBCUniversal's Fandango as the online ticketseller's first "chief correspondent." The main lure is increased visibility across NBCUniversal's media outlets.

By Anne Thompson
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September 27, 2012 1:39 PM
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What Penske Could Do With Variety

News

The sands keep shifting under media professionals who thought they knew what they were doing.

By Anne Thompson
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September 25, 2012 6:18 PM
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Marketing Watch: 'Frankenweenie' E-Book Free on iTunes

News

Disney's promo materials on Tim Burton's "Frankenweenie" have been innovative and choice. Their latest offering is a content-rich e-book tie-in. "Frankenweenie: An Electrifying Book" provides a behind-the-scenes examination of the world of the original 1984 short film that inspired the upcoming feature length production. Here's our "Fantastic Fest" review of "Frankenweenie"; latest clips and featurette are here.

By Maggie Lange
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September 24, 2012 12:15 PM
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Netflix's Ted Sarandos Talks Original Programming

News

It is not news that chief content officer of Netflix Ted Sarandos is on the hunt for original programming for the content site, competing for content with the likes of HBO snd Showtime. That's why the DVD rental site, which has been making the transition to online streaming, chased down David Fincher's high-price series starring Kevin Spacey based on the British series "House of Cards."

By Anne Thompson and Maggie Lange
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September 20, 2012 5:59 PM
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Internet Lobby Forms in DC: Facebook, Google, Amazon Join Up

News

It was an inevitable alliance. Silicon Valley pillars will join together in Washington to form a lobbying group in order to oppose federal restrictions to their industry. A group like this is the first in the Web's history. Called 'The Internet Association,' the roster includes Facebook, Google, Yahoo, LinkedIn, Zynga, and Amazon.

By Maggie Lange
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September 20, 2012 2:13 PM
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IMDb and Kindle Partner on X-Ray for Movies

News

IMDb and Amazon's Kindle Fire proudly introduce a useful interruption during your feature presentation: "X-Ray for Movies." By tapping on the screen of a movie, the user will be able to see the names and filmographies of each of the actors. The X-Ray program, exclusive to Kindle Fire at the moment, is backed with over 100 million data items from IMDb's resources. What does IMDb's founder and CEO, Col Needham have to say about this? That it's a revolution, twenty years in the making. “X-Ray for Movies revolutionizes the way we watch movies," Needham stated in a press release, "This is the culmination of everything we’ve been working on for over twenty years and is the result of a combination of sophisticated technology and old-fashioned hard work. "

By Maggie Lange
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September 10, 2012 2:44 PM
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Check Out New IPad Magazine 'Backstory': Long, Gorgeous and Deep

Interviews

You've got to applaud the chutzpah of ex-Creative Screenwriting senior editor Jeff Goldsmith, who has plunked his life savings down on bimonthly iPad publishing experiment: "Backstory." The gorgeously mounted magazine champions scriptwriters by telling their behind-the-scenes stories. Airily designed for the iPad, which doesn't need to cram columns of print into a small space, "Backstory" is easy to read via free iPad app. The first double issue is still available for free, and starting this month with new issue Number Two, the newstand sale is $4.99. A year's subscription is $24.99. "It feels like an eBook on crack," says Goldsmith.

By Anne Thompson
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August 7, 2012 3:35 PM
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Allen & Co.'s Sun Valley Media Mogul Guest List Includes Buffet, Zuckerberg, Gates, Murdoch

News

Allen & Co.'s annual summer Sun Valley, Idaho event next week, where the world's top media moguls gather to talk shop and enjoy swanky outdoor family activities, has a guest list that includes billionaires Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg.

By Beth Hanna
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July 6, 2012 2:31 PM
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Fox Home Entertainment Debuts 'Own the Moments' App, Features Date-Specific Movie Trivia

News

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment is debuting new mobile app "Own the Moments," which allows fans to get a specific-to-the-day movie "moment" featuring trivia and a clip or photo from a film, ranging from classic to upcoming titles.

By Beth Hanna
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June 22, 2012 2:59 PM
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Elvis Lives! In the Digital Realm, Ageless Avatars Are the Future, from Pitt to Bridges

News

It was inevitable. Now that digital likenesses are so easy to accomplish, iconic figures will live on in the digital realm, making money for their estates. The latest news: Digital Domain Media Group and CORE Media are developing a series of "virtual" Elvis Presleys.