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China will allow UK and Canadian passport holders to enter visa‑free for up to 30 days. The waiver runs from 17 February to 31 December 2026 and covers business, tourism, family visits, exchanges and transit. It is expected to speed up project development, trade‑show attendance and cultural‑tourism collaborations in the visitor‑attractions sector. The policy signals Beijing’s intent to deepen cross‑border cultural and commercial ties with the UK and Canada.
PRS for Music announced a comprehensive digital‑first overhaul, redesigning its website and member tools to be mobile‑first and self‑service. The new platform reduces navigation steps, uses plain language, and treats data as a product, enabling faster royalty insights and payments....
Bouygues Telecom has added the premium classical music channel Allegro Spatial to its French TV lineup, delivering native 4K UHD video at 50 fps with Dolby Atmos immersive audio. The service, positioned on channel 164, offers concerts, ballets and operas alongside contextual...
X has struck an exclusive deal with Real Madrid to launch “Real talks,” a 10‑episode, player‑driven X Original series. The episodes will roll out throughout the 2025/26 season, aligning with the club’s key fixtures and allowing fans to submit questions...
Rebecca Attard‑Phillips, co‑founder of Boost, offers indie studios a practical communications roadmap that replaces noisy, omnichannel marketing with a realistic focus on clarity, consistency, and connection. The guide introduces three messaging pillars—emotional fantasy, signature mechanic, and world tone—and shows how...
Mewgenics, the tactical cat‑breeding roguelite that recently topped Steam's most‑popular premium games chart, is being eyed for a multi‑platform launch. Co‑developer Edmund McMillen hinted the title could enter development for "all systems," including the current‑gen consoles such as Xbox Series...
New South Wales has introduced the Music Bill 2026, a pioneering legislative package aimed at safeguarding grassroots music venues. The bill establishes a Sound NSW advisory board and an accreditation system that classifies venues as dedicated, significant or live‑music spaces....
Zillow has teamed up with Blizzard Entertainment to launch "Zillow for Warcraft," a dedicated microsite that showcases a curated collection of player‑owned homes in World of Warcraft. The launch coincides with the long‑awaited player housing feature going live in the...
Harbor Fund, a Utah‑based nonprofit, has raised $15 million from 82 high‑net‑worth donors and deployed $10 million into 22 socially conscious film and documentary projects, including Chris Pine’s upcoming documentary based on Matthew Desmond’s book *Evicted*. Pine, motivated by his own experience...
MLS franchise values have surged to an average of $767 million, driven by Inter Miami’s $1.45 billion valuation and LAFC’s $1.4 billion mark. At the lower end, clubs like CF Montréal sit at $430 million, with San Jose Earthquakes and Vancouver Whitecaps seeing year‑over‑year declines. The...
Deutsche Telekom has expanded its MagentaTV platform with seven new FAST (free‑ad‑supported streaming) channels, covering true‑crime, wildlife, political analysis, royalty, sci‑fi, anime and western genres. The rollout follows an initial launch of four FAST channels in December 2025 and a...
Barb contributed to VideoWeek’s February 2026 piece outlining Europe’s TV Joint‑Innovation Centers (JICs) focus areas. The report highlights a surge in cross‑channel collaboration, new data partnership models, and advanced analytics integration across broadcasters. JICs are deploying AI‑driven tools and cloud...
AMC Networks International announced Tom Keaveney as executive vice president and managing director of AMCNI‑UK, effective immediately. Based in London, he will oversee programming, marketing, and the company’s fast‑growing FAST (Free‑Ad‑Supported Television) strategy. Keaveney reports to AMCNI president Eduardo Zulueta...
Streaming operators are moving from growth‑focused strategies to strict cost discipline as subscriber acquisition slows and infrastructure expenses rise. Igor Oreper argues that profitability now depends on tightly controlled workflows, AI‑driven automation, and smarter cloud‑native architectures. He highlights concrete levers...
Telenet has become the first Belgian telecom to embed YouTube Premium directly into its TV platform, allowing customers to add the service for €13.99 per month. The subscription is billed through Telenet, giving users a single payment point via the MyTelenet...
King has launched Candy Crush Crushable, a daily bite‑sized puzzle exclusive to Yahoo Games in the United States, while international players can access it via a dedicated website. The game is designed around a single‑puzzle‑per‑day format that emphasizes clarity, fairness...
Ideastream Public Media has placed an order for four new Nautel transmitters to replace or augment equipment at its three full‑power FM stations and an FM translator in Northeast Ohio. The package includes two GV2‑30ND high‑power units, a GV2‑3.5 medium‑power...
The FCC is set to reclaim at least 100 MHz of Upper C‑band spectrum, further shrinking the bandwidth available for satellite video delivery. Broadcasters are accelerating migration to managed IP distribution platforms that offer SLA‑backed performance, flexibility, and cost efficiencies. Leading...
The broadcast industry is shifting from hardware‑centric production to software‑based Dynamic Media Facility (DMF) architectures. In September 2025, AMWA and the EBU launched the JT‑DMF task force and the open‑source Media eXchange Layer (MXL) to define standards for containerised media processing...
The Film and TV Charity’s second Money Matters report, based on 2,000 industry workers, reveals that 74 % are contemplating leaving the sector because of financial pressure and 43 % have already taken concrete steps to exit. Sustained worklessness affects 22 % of...
Silverpush and agency Epitaph released the first attention study for YouTube ads, partnering with Lumen Research. Analyzing over 60 million impressions across more than 30 campaigns, the study found contextual video ads delivered via Silverpush generated 37% higher attention per mille,...
Fuse Media has teamed with youth‑culture leader Complex to launch Complex TV, a free‑ad‑supported streaming (FAST) channel debuting on April 1, 2026. The service will roll out on Amazon Prime, Plex, Roku, Samsung TV Plus, TCL TV+, TiVo, Vizio and Xumo, blending Fuse’s proven monetization engine with...
Future Media has launched Future Optic, a generative AI optimisation (GEO) service that packages LLM visibility as a commercial offering across its portfolio. The move builds on research showing Future’s TechRadar is the most cited domain on ChatGPT, and a...
ByteDance announced tighter safeguards for its AI video generator Seedance after Disney served a cease‑and‑desist alleging unauthorized use of Marvel and Star Wars characters. The move follows a surge of hyper‑realistic clips that raised copyright concerns across Hollywood. Meanwhile, the...
Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has trimmed its workforce by more than 100 employees, roughly ten percent of its staff, as part of a broader restructuring effort. The cuts span multiple functions, including middle‑ and senior‑management roles in distribution and...
At Streaming Media Connect, a panel titled “Finder’s Feat: Optimizing Search & Discovery With Metadata & Machine Learning” will examine how structured metadata and AI‑driven tools transform content discovery into a revenue engine. Panelists include Tom Gennari (Fabric), Jamie Mackinlay...
Publishers face mounting pressure as AI developers scrape copyrighted material to train large language models. At the Definitive AI Forum in London, leaders from The Guardian, Alvarez & Marsal, and the PPA argued that no single solution exists, but collective action,...
Comcast Business is again partnering with NBCUniversal to provide the backbone network for three marquee February events: Super Bowl LVII, the 2026 Milan‑Cortina Winter Olympics, and the 2026 NBA All‑Star Game. The company will deliver dedicated, high‑capacity fiber connections linking...
Rain the Growth partnered with Spectrum Reach to leverage show‑level metadata for CTV placements during March Madness, delivering the agency’s highest response rate of the quarter. Using Nielsen Gracenote’s TMS IDs, the partnership identified exact game, recap and related content...
Michael Kassan’s 3C Ventures (3CV) posted $50 million in revenue within its first 15 months, surpassing early targets. About 35% of that income stems from multi‑stage, seven‑figure transformation projects for Fortune 500 clients such as Delta, JPMorgan Chase, AutoNation and Qualcomm. The firm...
LALIGA and Telefónica Audiovisual Digital secured precautionary court orders from Spain’s Commercial Court No. 1 in Córdoba against NordVPN and ProtonVPN. The rulings compel the VPN providers to block IP addresses linked to illegal streaming of protected football matches within Spain,...
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has struck a partnership with Warner Bros Discovery to apply official BBFC age ratings and content advice to every title on HBO Max when the service launches in the UK on 26 March 2026. The BBFC will produce...
More than half of Portugal’s adult population (53.3%, 4.6 million people) streamed video between September and December 2025, setting a new national record and adding 107 000 users year‑over‑year. Daily or near‑daily usage rose to 41.7% of viewers, while subscription penetration climbed to...
Warner Bros. Discovery announced that HBO Max will launch as a direct‑to‑consumer streaming service in New Zealand in mid‑2026. The rollout follows the service’s 2025 debut in Australia and recent launches in Germany, Italy, and the upcoming UK/Ireland launch. HBO Max...
The Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has created a new Head of Commercial Strategy role and hired Nine’s Director of Growth and Retention, Helena O’Dowd, to fill it. O’Dowd will steer industry‑wide initiatives under CRA’s 2030 Strategic Plan, aiming to expand...
Round is hiring an Account Manager for its Influencer Marketing team in London, targeting music and entertainment clients. The role involves leading creator campaigns on TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts while managing client relationships and presenting strategic decks. Candidates...
Anchor Point Studios, the Barcelona‑Seattle action‑adventure outfit founded by NetEase, announced it will spin out and operate as an independent studio. CEO Paul Ehreth thanked NetEase for resources and said the team will now seek investors and publishing partners to...
Independent Franchise Partners (IFP) has acquired a 3.01% stake in Universal Music Group (UMG), valued at roughly €1.09 billion ($1.29 bn). The holding makes IFP the sixth‑largest shareholder and adds to its existing positions in Vivendi, Rightmove and Warner Music, signalling a...
iSpot launched iSpot SAGE, an agentic AI platform that leverages its proprietary TV ad measurement data to deliver actionable insights. The system runs on NVIDIA AI servers and was built over two years with input from brands like General Motors...
CP Communications supplied the full‑scale broadcast communications backbone for NBC and Telemundo’s Super Bowl LX coverage, deploying an HD21 mobile unit, a private wireless network, and extensive intercom infrastructure. The company positioned nine radios across Levi’s Stadium, linked 64 Dante and...
Alexander Group, a revenue‑growth management consultancy, argues that attracting top talent in media sales requires a purpose‑driven culture. The firm highlights that the modern account executive must possess advanced technological skills that younger professionals naturally bring. By linking mission‑focused values...
The guide outlines how mobile game developers can monetize free titles through ads, emphasizing early design decisions. It breaks down three primary ad formats—banners, interstitials, and rewarded videos—and provides placement and frequency best practices. It explains mediation platforms such as...
Adam R. Jacobson, editor‑in‑chief of RBR+TVBR, visited the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) headquarters on February 11, a day after the Senate Commerce Committee hearing on the national TV‑ownership reach cap. In the InFOCUS Video Podcast, he recaps key moments from...
Duolingo disclosed that more than 10 million users have logged into the app every day for a full year, representing roughly 20 % of its 50 million daily active base. The language‑learning platform posted a record $88.9 million in gross user spending in January...
A broadcast group based in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, led by Bill Curtis (legal name William C. Gleich) and Tim Sabean, has operated 11 radio stations acquired from Northern Star Broadcasting for more than 15 years. The duo now confronts...
Tamar Riley is leaving the Evening Standard after just eight months to become portfolio managing director at Immediate, a media group that owns Good Food and other lifestyle brands. Riley, who previously spent nine years at Refinery29 driving audience‑first revenue...
The UK Parliament’s Women & Equalities Committee is pressing the government to extend the Employment Rights Act’s ban on non‑disclosure agreements (NDAs) to freelancers in the music sector. While the Act now voids NDAs that silence employees reporting harassment, it...
PC Building Simulator 2, originally released for PC in October 2022, will launch on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles on February 26, 2026. The announcement comes from Epic Games Publishing and developer Spiral House. The game brings its detailed PC‑building career and free‑build modes...
TikTok and Apple Music have launched a beta “Play Full Song” feature that lets Apple Music subscribers stream entire tracks inside the TikTok app, generating standard royalties. The button opens a full‑screen player powered by Apple’s MusicKit APIs and is...
The Federal Communications Commission will discuss a Media Bureau proposal at its February open meeting to create new non‑commercial FM translator authorizations. Translators rebroadcast existing stations, extending coverage into underserved areas. The agenda item targets both religious and secular non‑commercial...
