Meta announces first results from its work with Blumhouse Productions on a pilot program seeking creative industry feedback on Meta's AI video model Movie Gen (Meta)

Mediagazer: Meta announces first results from its work with Blumhouse Productions on a pilot program seeking creative industry feedback on Meta's AI video model Movie Gen (Meta)

Top News:

The Hollywood Reporter:

FilmLA, which handles film permits in Los Angeles, reports Q3 production fell 5% YoY to 5,048 shoot days and reality TV production fell 56.3% to 946 shoot days— Amid the decline, some industry observers are calling for an expansion of the California film and TV tax credit program to compete …
Discussion: FilmLA, Los Angeles Business Journal, The Wrap, Variety, Deadline, Los Angeles Times and IndieWire

Discussion:

Isabel Sami /
Los Angeles Business Journal: Los Angeles filming activity sees slowest quarter of 2024

Lucas Manfredi /
The Wrap: LA TV and Film Production Sees 5% Drop in Q3, FilmLA Says

Erik Pedersen /
Deadline: Another Cruel Summer For L.A. Production As Shoot Days Fall Below Strike-Hit 2023 Levels

Christi Carras /
Los Angeles Times: Hollywood production falls below strike levels as reality TV takes massive hit

Wall Street Journal:

Sources: NBCUniversal plans to add its regional sports channels to Peacock as soon as early 2025, streaming Boston, Philadelphia, and Northern California teams— Regional channels carrying the Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics and other teams to be made available on the streaming service

Discussion:
Awful Announcing, Reuters, Sports Media Watch, The Streamable, @2xaught7.bsky.social, The Desk and Cord Cutters News

Discussion:

Ben Bowman /
The Streamable: Peacock Reportedly Set to Offer Local Sports in 2025 as Regional Sports Networks Collapse

Meta:

Meta announces first results from its work with Blumhouse Productions on a pilot program seeking creative industry feedback on Meta's AI video model Movie Gen— We recently introduced Meta Movie Gen—a suite of AI models that show how you can use simple text inputs to produce custom videos and sounds …

Discussion:

Brian Welk /
IndieWire: Blumhouse Convinced Casey Affleck and Other Filmmakers to Use Meta's New AI Tool

Sean Burch /
The Wrap: Blumhouse Partners With Meta to Make Short Films Using Facebook's New AI Tools

Todd Spangler /
Variety: Meta Teams With Blumhouse and Filmmakers Like Casey Affleck to Test Movie Gen AI Tool

Katie Paul /
Reuters: Meta partners with Hollywood's Blumhouse to test out its AI movie generation model

HoldtheFrontPage:

The National Union of Journalists calls the BBC's cuts “a damaging assault on journalism”; cuts include a net loss of 130 jobs and the end of tech show Click— The BBC has been accused of an “assault on journalism” after announcing a further raft of cuts to its services.

Discussion:
@laralewington: Big love to @spenley, and big thank you to everyone for the countless beautiful messages I've received. Great to know how much @BBCClick has been loved.

Spencer Kelly /
@spenley: The only technology news that I never wanted to have to bring you. From me and @LaraLewington, thank you so much for having us. [video]

Dave Lee /
@daveleebbg@threads.net: Trying to abolish the BBC would have been impossible. But when the product is weakened to the point people lose all affinity with it, it will quietly disappear, and the UK (and the world) will have lost a great thing. …

Dave Lee /
@daveleebbg@threads.net: When I was the BBC's Silicon Valley correspondent, I was commissioned to do a series informally called “why does the UK not have it's own Google?”. The BBC should have been the UK's Google! It was Google before Google, Netflix before Netflix. Whopping missed opportunities everywhere. …

Christopher Mims /
@technicallymims@threads.net: What a bummer. I've been a fan for years.

Dave Lee /
@daveleebbg@threads.net: The BBC has canceled its technology show, Click, after 25 years. Writing on the wall after the inexplicable decision to move the programme (as well as the rest of the tech news team) from London to Glasgow. Over the past five or so years, the BBC has abandoned all investment in technology news. …

Madison Burgess /
Daily Mail: Martin Lewis' wife Lara Lewington confirms her BBC show has been axed after 15 years on screens as she shares farewell post to fans - and is flooded with support

Bron Maher /
Press Gazette: BBC News to close Hardtalk, Click and Asian Network news service in latest round of 185 job cuts

Brad Pareso /
Adweek: BBC to Cut Net 130 Jobs

The Verge:

The US FTC adopts its final “click-to-cancel” rule requiring businesses to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up, after proposing the rule in 2023— The US Federal Trade Commission is taking action against subscriptions that are difficult to get rid of.

Discussion:
Federal Trade Commission, Nieman Lab, The Hollywood Reporter, UPI, Music Ally, Fortune, ZDNET, Adweek, Reuters, The Hill, Plain Dealer, @carnage4life@mas.to, 9to5Mac, SiliconANGLE, San Francisco Chronicle, @phil_lewis_, Los Angeles Times, TechCrunch, CBS News, @senwarren, @niemanlab, AV Club, Natalie Foster on LinkedIn, Cord Cutters News, Andrew on LinkedIn, CNN, Forbes, @blogdiva@mastodon.social, Business Insider, Bloomberg, Deadline, Okay fine I love this hellsite, Fast Company, The Register, Ars Technica, PlayStation LifeStyle, @scott.nover@threads.net, SlashFilm, Becky Frayer on LinkedIn, Slate, MPR News, Mashable, WTSP, BGR, @khthoniaa@pagan.plus, Engadget, MediaPost, Washington Examiner, @pbg@sfba.social, The Streamable, Quartz, Gizmodo and Semafor, more at Techmeme »

Discussion:
Federal Trade Commission: Federal Trade Commission Announces Final “Click-to-Cancel” Rule Making It Easier for Consumers to End Recurring Subscriptions and Memberships

Laura Hazard Owen /
Nieman Lab: The FTC puts an end to “click to subscribe, call to cancel”

Winston Cho /
The Hollywood Reporter: Federal Crackdown Begins On Streaming Services' Cancellation Policies

Clyde Hughes /
UPI: FTC approves final ‘click to cancel’ rule

Stuart Dredge /
Music Ally: US FTC finalises new ‘click-to-cancel’ rule for subscriptions

Dominick Mastrangelo /
The Hill: FTC announces rule to make it easier to cancel subscriptions

Cliff Pinckard /
Plain Dealer: Want to cancel a subscription or membership? FTC rule will make it easier

Dare Obasanjo /
@carnage4life@mas.to: The Biden administration has been crushing it this year when it comes to regulations addressing every day pain facing Americans from banning non-competes (sadly struck down by courts) to ordering airlines to give full refunds for cancellation or significant delays. — This is another great example of the trend. …

James Farrell /
SiliconANGLE: FTC makes canceling subscriptions less of a pain with ‘click to cancel’ rule

Jessica Roy /
San Francisco Chronicle: California and the FTC are making it easier for you to cancel your subscriptions

Philip Lewis /
@phil_lewis_: The FTC is finally making it easier to cancel your gym membership It has adopted a “click-to-cancel” rule requiring businesses to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up https://www.theverge.com/...

Jon Healey /
Los Angeles Times: FTC adopts ‘click to cancel’ rule to make it easier to end subscriptions, mirroring California law

Kyle Wiggers /
TechCrunch: The FTC makes it easier to cancel subscriptions like streaming services, memberships and Prime

Elizabeth Warren /
@senwarren: No more searching for how to cancel your subscriptions. Today, the FTC finalized a “Click-to-Cancel” rule to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it is to sign up for one. Thank you, @linakhanFTC! [image] @niemanlab: Our long nightmare is over, because you can finally unsubscribe from the long nightmare: The FTC puts an end to “click to subscribe, call to cancel” https://www.niemanlab.org/...

Natalie Foster /
Natalie Foster on LinkedIn: We've all found ourselves jumping through endless hoops to cancel a subscription. The Federal Trade Commission's new “Click to Cancel” …

Luke Bouma /
Cord Cutters News: The FTC Makes It Easier to Cancel Your Subscriptions Including Streaming Services With ‘Click-to-Cancel’

Andrew /
Andrew on LinkedIn: Big news for marketers today. The FTC announced a new rule about canceling subscriptions. You can't hide cancellations behind 87 clicks anymore. …

Lars Daniel /
Forbes: Click-To-Cancel: FTC Makes Cancelling Subscriptions Easier @blogdiva@mastodon.social: if you hate #techbros as much as i do, you would vote to have another 4 years of Lena Khan at the Federal Trade Commission. #Project2025 wants to do away with the whole agency, along with FDA, SEC and all other regulatory agencies at the federal level... to leave it to the states. …

Grace Eliza Goodwin /
Business Insider: The government steps in to make it easier to cancel your subscriptions

Jill Goldsmith /
Deadline: FTC Sets Final “Click-To-Cancel” Rule For Subscriptions, Including Streaming

Marithlizard /
Okay fine I love this hellsite: The FTC is finally making it easier to cancel your gym membership — WOOT. …

Sarah Bregel /
Fast Company: FTC tackles subscription frustration, makes canceling easier for consumers

Thomas Claburn /
The Register: FTC drops hammer on unwanted subscriptions with ‘click to cancel’ rule

Ashley Belanger /
Ars Technica: FTC “click to cancel” rule seeks to end free trial traps, sneaky auto-enrollments

Scott Nover /
@scott.nover@threads.net: The FTC just did something that's very good for consumers. You can call and speak to a representative to find out what it is. My latest for @Slate:

Jeremy Mathai /
SlashFilm: The FTC's Click-To-Cancel Rule Changes Everything For Streaming Services Like Netflix

Becky Frayer /
Becky Frayer on LinkedIn: 𝐀 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 “𝐄𝐧𝐝” 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 …

Alina Selyukh /
MPR News: Canceling subscriptions has to be as easy as signing up, FTC says in a new rule

Chase DiBenedetto /
Mashable: Canceling subscriptions with one click just got way easier

Haleluya Hadero /
WTSP: US agency adopts rule to make it easier for consumers to cancel unwanted subscriptions @khthoniaa@pagan.plus: Finally: Some good news! Businesses offering subscription services (gyms, video streaming, gaming, and more) will soon be required to make it much easier to cancel! — https://www.theverge.com/...

Igor Bonifacic /
Engadget: FTC ratifies ‘click-to-cancel’ rule, making it easier for consumers to end subscriptions

Wendy Davis /
MediaPost: FTC Requires Newspapers, Gyms And Others To Offer ‘Simple’ Cancellation Methods

Zach Halaschak /
Washington Examiner: ‘Click to cancel’: FTC finalizes rule aimed at making it easier to end subscriptions

Patrick B. Gibson /
@pbg@sfba.social: Government is good actually https://www.theverge.com/...

William Gavin /
Quartz: Canceling subscriptions is about to get easier

Tom Chivers /
Semafor: US subscriptions easier to cancel

Deadline:

In an email to staff, the BBC says it has abandoned the recruitment process for its first ever royal editor, a position announced in December 2023— Deadline revealed in August that the search had been thrown into doubt after Roya Nikkhah, The Sunday Times royal editor and CBS News contributor …

New York Times:

Social media users criticize TMZ for publishing a photo purportedly showing the body of ex-One Direction singer Liam Payne, who died in a fall; TMZ removed it— After a torrent of criticism, TMZ removed the image of a body without explanation. — TMZ, the Hollywood-obsessed news outlet known …

Discussion:
Washington Post, @shayan86, TMZ.com, Feed Me, PetaPixel, Consequence, Daily Press, News18, The Wrap, PinkNews, @journo_sophie, @youflrst, @ellkay_, @lexishaye_, @musicstruggles1, @hansmollman, @keyon, Daily Star, @seeitinmymind, The Mirror, @effoff1988, Ok - home, New York Post, The Hollywood Reporter, The Shade Room, Joe.My.God., UPROXX, British Vogue, Extra, Billboard, Deadline, Daily Mail and Stereogum

Discussion:

Shayan Sardarizadeh /
@shayan86: TMZ is trying to get clicks and ad money off of a young man's dead body just minutes after the news of his death. Imagine being a member of Liam Payne's family and seeing this.

Emily Sundberg /
Feed Me: Glossier and Ghia are selling throw blankets.

Jeremy Gray /
PetaPixel: TMZ Under Fire for ‘Indefensible’ Publication of Death Photo of Former One Direction Member Liam Payne

Benjamin Mullen /
Daily Press: TMZ criticized for image said to be of One Direction singer Liam Payne News18: TMZ Comes Under Fire For Posting Liam Payne's Pics, Fans Call It ‘Gross’ & ‘Insensitive’ I WATCH

Stephanie Kaloi /
The Wrap: TMZ Takes Down Photo of Liam Payne's Body After Backlash: ‘Sacrificing Ethics Just to Break the News’

Marcus Wratten /
PinkNews: TMZ removes images of Liam Payne's body after public outcry

Sophie /
@journo_sophie: TMZ didn't need to show any part of his body, arm, hand, abdomen or tattoo. It's not in the public interest. Liam Payne hasn't been dead for a few hours and this is how you treat him? Have some respect. His family and friends have just been told. What editor approved this?? [image]

Jay /
@youflrst: liam's family needs to sue tmz... posting a picture of his dead body not even an hour after he died is INSANE!

Luc /
@ellkay_: TMZ posting part of a photo of Liam Payne's dead body in an article announcing his death is beyond deplorable. I can't tell if I'm losing my mind lately or if society has always been this overtly morally decrepit @musicstruggles1: TMZ partially showed liam payne's deceased body in their article breaking the news. may that entire trashy “news” outlet be smashed to oblivion and may every “journalist” working for them rot in hell

Mollie Goodfellow /
@hansmollman: It should be illegal to do what tmz have done! Frankly! There is no justification or public interest that warrants it! @keyon: I know we complain about TMZ a lot but they really surprise me every time at how insensitive they can be

Chiara Fiorillo /
Daily Star: TMZ deletes Liam Payne death photos after being branded ‘disgrace’ in furious backlash

Delphine /
@seeitinmymind: TMZ being like “yeah we obtained a picture of liam payne's dead body” what the fuck is wrong with them literally [image]

Chiara Fiorillo /
The Mirror: TMZ removes Liam Payne's photos after being branded ‘gross’ and ‘disgrace’ in furious backlash @effoff1988: 1. TMZ needs to be deplatformed. 2. Leave Maya Henry alone. None of this is on her. His tragic death does not make her trauma any less real. 3. Any pap who sells a photo of that 8 year old grieving child and/or his mother, Cheryl Cole, in the next 10 days, should be arrested.

Jamie Downham /
Ok - home: Liam Payne fans slam ‘beyond deplorable’ TMZ for posting shots of star's body after he died

Eric Todisco /
New York Post: Liam Payne's body removed from Argentina hotel after fatally falling from balcony

Seth Abramovitch /
The Hollywood Reporter: TMZ Posts, Then Removes, Liam Payne Death Photos After Backlash

Ashley Rushford /
The Shade Room: Prayers Up! One Direction Member Liam Payne Passes Away At Age 31

Aaron Williams /
UPROXX: Liam Payne Has Reportedly Died At Age 31 After Falling From A Hotel Balcony

Emma Specter /
British Vogue: Liam Payne, Former One Direction Member, Is Dead At 31

Rania Aniftos /
Billboard: Alessia Cara Calls Out TMZ for Posting Liam Payne Death Photos

Glenn Garner /
Deadline: Liam Payne Fans Slam TMZ For Sharing Photos Of Singer's Dead Body: “You're Gross”

Olivia Christie /
Daily Mail: Showbiz website TMZ deletes photos of Liam Payne's dead body in wake of fans' fury

Tom Breihan /
Stereogum: Former One Direction Member Liam Payne Dead At 31

Associated Press:

A US judge sentences former elected official Robert Telles to at least 28 years in prison for killing Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German in 2022— A former Las Vegas-area Democratic elected official was sentenced Wednesday to serve at least 28 years in Nevada state prison …

Discussion:

Brad Pareso /
Adweek: Robert Telles Sentenced to at Least 28 Years in Murder of Las Vegas Journalist

Julia Reinstein /
ABC News: Nevada politician Robert Telles sentenced to life for killing journalist Jeff German

Katelyn Newberg /
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Former public official to be sentenced in hearing in reporter Jeff German's murder @pressfreedom: CPJ welcomes the 28-year sentence given to former politician Robert Telles for stabbing to death @reviewjournal veteran reporter Jeff German in 2022. Read more⤵️ https://cpj.org/...

Michael Bodley /
@michael_bodley: One of the good ones. Rest in peace. “Mr. German, who was 69 when he died, loved investigating corruption in Las Vegas and had no plans to retire, friends and co-workers said.” https://www.nytimes.com/... Channel 13 Las Vegas News KTNV: Judge adds 8 years to Robert Telles' prison sentence for murdering Jeff German

Brittany Sheehan /
RedState: Former Democrat Official Robert Telles Sentenced to 8 More Years for Murder of Las Vegas Journalist

Brooke Mallory /
One America News Network: Robert Telles, Disgraced Democrat Official Sentenced To At Least 28 Years After Murdering Reporter

Isabelle Taft /
New York Times: Judge Extends Sentence for Former County Official Convicted in Las Vegas Journalist's Murder

New York Times:

ByteDance's publishing imprint 8th Note Press is expanding into print and plans to release 10-15 books per year, after launching as an ebook publisher in 2023— ByteDance, the Chinese tech giant that owns TikTok, will focus its publisher, 8th Note Press, on popular genres such as romance, romantasy and young adult fiction.

Discussion:
Allison Moore on LinkedIn and Tubefilter

Discussion:

Allison Moore /
Allison Moore on LinkedIn: Big day for 8th Note Press, finally announcing our print publishing partnership with Zando Projects. I'm so excited to get into bookstores starting next February. …

Press Gazette:

The UK's Sun begins rolling out a registration wall asking users to create an account and seems to be applying it mainly to content by its best-known writers— The Sun has begun rolling out a registration wall asking users to sign up for free to read certain stories.

The Guardian:

An independent report finds Australia's Nine has systemic issues with abuse of power, discrimination, and sexual harassment; Nine pledges to make changes— Nine board commits to implementing all recommendations for a ‘reset of culture’ — Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Discussion:

Samantha Maiden /
news.com.au: ‘Sold a pup’: Nine stars lash bombshell report for refusing to name names

Sam Buckingham-Jones /
Australian Financial Review: Review finds Nine has systemic abuse, bullying and harassment issues Sydney Morning Herald: ‘Punishment Island’: Nine's culture of shaming, ghosting and belittling revealed

Nassim Khadem /
ABC: Nine's culture of bullying and sexual harassment revealed after review finds company ‘lacks accountability’

Stefanie Costi /
Stefanie Costi on LinkedIn: Workplace bullying and harassment will persist as long as we turn a blind eye, sweep it under the rug and cling to the toxic “nothing to see here” mentality. …

Victoria Buchan /
Nine for Brands: Nine Entertainment releases culture review findings

Nathan Jolly /
Mumbrella: ‘These behaviours come at a significant human cost’: Nine's abuse of power revealed in ‘distressing’ report

Tim Rose /
9News: ‘We are deeply sorry’: Report into Nine's workplace culture makes 22 recommendations

Matt Dennien /
@mattdennien: Nine's external cultural review is in. In past 5y, ~1/2 of almost 1000 staff responding to the related survey experienced or witnessed abuse of power or authority, & experienced bullying, discrimination & harassment, with 1/4 experiencing sexual harassment https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/ ... [image]

Bloomberg:

Publicis says it paid about $500M each for influencer marketing agency Influential in July 2024 and commerce marketing company Mars United Commerce in September— French advertising giant Publicis Groupe SA raised its annual organic revenue growth guidance for 2024, even as it warned …

Discussion:

Cameron Clarke /
The Drum: Arthur Sadoun on media masterplan and the role of creativity to Publicis today

Brian Bonilla /
Ad Age: Arthur Sadoun defends Publicis' media transparency after WPP CEO Mark Read's industry comments

Alison Weissbrot /
Adweek: ‘We Are Still Winning’: Publicis Ups Guidance Thanks to Major Media Account Gains

Steve McClellan /