DISTRIBUTION
Comcast and Verizon Fios have dropped multicultural-focused network Fuse. Fuse President and CEO Michael Schwimmer called the Comcast decision “both surprising and troubling considering that Fuse met Comcast’s financial demands and no other requirements were ever communicated to us.” Comcast said in a statement that much of the content carried by Fuse is similar to other networks, like BET and TV One, and that it is launching two new African-American minority-owned networks, Afro and Cleo TV. As for Verizon Fios, Fuse said the telecommunications company’s final offer “contained terms Verizon Fios understood were unacceptable.” Fuse noted it is one of the few networks experiencing viewership growth, with ratings among P18-34 up 50% since 2015.
Unable to reach a new agreement with Verizon Fios, TEGNA stations went dark on Fios. While TEGNA said they “remain hopeful this will get resolved quickly,” the company reminded customers their channels were available on other service and OTT providers.
Tribune Media and Charter’s Spectrum cable system avoided a New Year’s Day blackout by extending their contract to Wednesday at 5p. Thirty-three stations carried by Spectrum, as well as Tribune’s WGN America, are affected.
Top 10 Weekend Domestic Box Office Estimates: December 28-30, 2018
Aquaman (Warner Bros.) $51.6 million (week 2), cume revenue $188.8 million
Mary Poppins Returns (Buena Vista) $28.0 million (week 2), cume revenue $98.9 million
Bumblebee (Paramount) $20.5 million (week 2), cume revenue $66.8 million
Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse (Sony) $18.3 million (week 3), cume revenue $103.6 million
The Mule (Warner Bros.) $11.8 million (week 3), cume revenue $60.7 million
Vice (Annapurna) $8.0 million, opening weekend
Holmes & Watson (Sony) $7.3 million, opening weekend
Second Act (STX) $7.2 million (week 2), cume revenue $21.8 million
Ralph Breaks the Internet (Buena Vista) $6.5 million (week 6), cume revenue $175.7 million
Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch (Universal) $4.2 million (week 8), cume revenue $265.5 million
Source: comScore
NEW AND RETURNING SERIES
Victims’ rights advocate John Walsh and Investigation Discovery team to track down fugitives on the run and find missing children in In Pursuit with John Walsh, premiering Wednesday, January 16, at 10p. “This is certainly one of the most important active investigation series we’ve created on ID because just a single break in a case could help law enforcement solve these crimes once and for all and, possibly, prevent further tragedy in the lives of families, across America,” said Henry Schleiff, Group President of Investigation Discovery and Travel Channel.
Oxygen’s Smiley Face Killers: The Hunt for Justice debuts Saturday, January 19, at 7p. True crime series follows an active private investigation into a notorious string of mysterious, accidental drownings that may not have been accidents. The following night comes the premiere of Mark of a Killer at 7p, examining the behavior and rituals of serial killers.
Snap original #VanLife drops Monday, January 14, and will run weekdays through January 23. Romantic comedy focuses on a young couple who give up the rat race to start a new life in a 2004 Dodge Sprinter. On Friday, January 25, comes the premiere of family lie detector series Fess Up, set to air Tuesdays and Fridays.
Season three of Netflix’s Stranger Things will launch July 4, 2019. The streamer shared the news in a New Year’s Eve-themed video that included footage from Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve: 1985.
COMING UP
TV One original film Three’s Complicated premieres Sunday, January 13, at 7p, exec-produced by and starring Shanola Hampton (Shameless) as a divorcee dating a man who might be hooking up with her daughter.
Companies are making a major impact with socially responsible content and campaigns that address issues from addiction to female empowerment to the environment. Cynopsis celebrates these outstanding efforts with our Social Good Awards – have you submitted your group’s inspiring work? The deadline to submit is quickly approaching (Friday, January 4), so start the entry process today!
The IFC Center is offering a weeklong tribute to The Sopranos from January 9-14 with classic films as well as episodes of the groundbreaking HBO series. The Center also announced that the third annual Split Screens Festival will take place in NYC May 29-June 2, spotlighting contemporary TV and the next generation of visionaries.
DIGITAL DATA
Snapchat is offering augmented reality lenses for users’ dogs or “a new treat for you and your best friend.” The lenses were launched in partnership with animal advocacy group Wags & Walks.
With measurement efforts unable to keep pace with growing streaming video consumption, advertising fraud will grow, too, according to Pixalate’s new OTT Ad Fraud Guide. The fraud intelligence company projects that with OTT ad spend rising over 60% to $13.3 billion in 2019, “There is a perfect fraud and security storm happening in OTT today,” according to the report. “This reality is driven by the increased demand for OTT advertising and is accompanied by the misconception that OTT channels are free from ad fraud.”
Offering over 150 networks from big streamers like HBO Now and CBS All Access to niche content, Amazon Channels’ revenue grew from about $700 million in 2017 to $1.7 billion on 2018, according to BMO Capital Markets. Amazon keeps a portion of the subscription fees from the services.
In what was “supposed to be a very small test that went broad by accident,” head of Instagram Adam Mosseri told a user on Twitter, Instagram temporarily changed its scrolling interface to swiping and tapping. During the few hours the test was live, users saw one post at a time and needed to swipe or tap to see others.
GOING GLOBAL
Angelina Jolie will executive-produce kids’ current affairs show Our World for the BBC. Ten-parter will promote global media literacy.
