Know What's Happening in Television
Know What's Happening in Television
China regulator cracks down on TV dramas obsessed with beauty
China’s National Radio and Television Administration warned that domestic TV dramas are overly fixated on physical beauty and traffic‑driven popularity, urging producers to prioritize stronger acting and storytelling. The directive was delivered at a conference attended by major streamers including iQIYI, Tencent Video, Mango TV and Youku.
Netflix co‑founder Reed Hastings and CFO Spencer Neumann sold a combined $48.1 million in Netflix shares, according to March 4 regulatory filings. Hastings disposed of $39.8 million worth of 410,550 shares at $96‑$97.50 each and simultaneously bought back the same number at $9.7 per share, leaving him with 21.16 million shares valued over $2 billion. Neumann sold $8.25 million of stock. The transactions come as Netflix’s share price has risen 18 percent after the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition fell through.
Netflix has set the release date for Season 4 of the Emmy‑winning docu‑reality series Love on the Spectrum, slated for April 1, 2026. The show continues to follow autistic individuals navigating dating, mixing returning participants with new faces. Executive producers Karina Holden and...
YouTube Live has added Net Insight’s Nimbra Edge software encoder and Nimbra 400 hardware appliance to its verified encoder list. The verification confirms compatibility with SRT and RTMP ingest, as well as sustained stability under fault conditions. Broadcasters can now stream...
March 2nd, 2026 was a big day for AI and media. The Supreme Court refused to say whether AI can own a copyright. Paramount $PSKY told investors that merging its tech stack is priority number one in a $101 billion...
SportsEngine Play will livestream the 2026 Endzone 7‑on‑7 National Football Recruiting Tournament on March 7‑8 from The Woodlands, Texas. The two‑day flag‑football event features more than 125 teams across six age groups, making it the nation’s largest youth recruiting showcase. The...
TeamTO, a veteran European animation studio, announced the creation of TeamTOKO Animation, an anime‑inspired production division dedicated to original 2D and 3D series and feature films. The new unit operates as a distinct, creator‑led creative hub while the studio maintains...
Veteran journalist Gayle King has signed a new multi‑year agreement with CBS News, confirming she will remain co‑anchor of the network’s flagship morning program, CBS Mornings. The contract, disclosed to The Wall Street Journal, comes after weeks of speculation about...
Gayle King, Nate Burleson will stay with CBS Mornings even as CBS News readies strategy to make the AM program more competitive.... https://t.co/7qgPNWm3pG via @variety
Mometu, a free ad‑supported streaming service for independent cinema, has launched the nine‑month Mometu Short Film Showdown. The competition curates up to 25 genre‑specific short films each month, streaming them for 30 days and returning 85% of generated ad revenue...
StreamGuys is rolling out major upgrades to its Ultra‑Low Latency Streaming (ULLS) platform, adding native iOS support and dynamic pre‑roll ad insertion. The enhancements let fans in stadiums hear synchronized play‑by‑play commentary on mobile apps without the traditional broadcast delay....
Lycamobile, a UK‑based MVNO, has launched a €19.99 prepaid 30‑day 5G plan in France aimed at football enthusiasts. The offer bundles 200 GB of data, unlimited calls and texts, and a Ligue 1+ streaming pass for one screen. It is available throughout...
Cosm will debut a reimagined "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone" on May 7 at its Los Angeles, Atlanta and Dallas shared‑reality venues, with tickets on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m. PT. The experience uses an 87‑foot curved screen capable of over 12K...
Paramount+ Canada and GameTV are launching the six‑part satirical series “Hate the Player: The Ben Johnson Story” on March 26, with the first two episodes debuting on GameTV and a day later on Paramount+. The show stars Shamier Anderson as the...
An extensive roundup details the renewal and cancellation status of cable and streaming series whose titles begin with letters S through Z. The list includes high‑profile titles such as "The Sandman," "Severance," "Succession," "The Witcher," and "Yellowjackets," noting which have...
Cartoon Saloon announced Anthony Leo, the Oscar‑nominated producer of The Breadwinner, as its new chief executive, succeeding Gerry Shirren after a twelve‑year tenure. Leo, co‑founder of Aircraft Pictures, brings a track record that includes Netflix hits and festival‑premiered series. The...
Storyoscopic Films and Thailand’s Indochina Productions have formed a Bangkok‑based joint venture called BKK Films. The partnership will produce genre‑driven movies starring Asian protagonists, leveraging Storyoscopic’s development expertise and Indochina’s production infrastructure. Its inaugural slate includes the gangster‑action film “7...
Creator‑led companies like Donut Media are reshaping digital video advertising by building an integrated, 360‑degree ad stack that spans long‑form YouTube, short‑form social, podcasts and real‑world activations. The firm sells custom‑branded segments, 45‑ to 60‑second host‑read pre‑rolls and official partnership...
Netflix’s documentary "The Perfect Neighbor" has crossed 50 million views since its October 2025 debut and saw streaming numbers more than triple in the two weeks following its Oscar nomination. The film also secured Best Documentary honors at the Independent Spirit Awards...
Netflix will add NBC’s mockumentary sitcom *St. Denis Medical* to its U.S. library on April 1, 2026, coinciding with the ongoing broadcast of season 2 and a confirmed renewal for season 3. The acquisition follows the earlier addition of *Happy’s Place*, highlighting Netflix’s strategy...
On March 2, 2026 the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear *Thaler v. Perlmutter*, leaving the requirement that a human author must be identified for copyright protection intact. The case centered on whether an AI system, DABUS, could be listed...
Walt Disney is turning the Super Bowl from a single‑day spectacle into a year‑long media franchise called “The Year of the Super Bowl.” The move leverages the $800 million advertising haul from one game to launch continuous ESPN features such as...
Time Warner FY17 10-K: "At December 31, 2017, Home Box Office had approximately 54 million domestic subscribers, including subscribers to HBO NOW and through Home Box Office’s digital distribution partners." https://t.co/4lw2HM9qU0
Netflix has secured U.S. streaming rights to the freshman NBC sitcom *Happy’s Place*, slated to debut on the platform on April 1, 2026. The series, created by Kevin Abbott and headlined by country star Reba McEntire, follows Bobbie inheriting a...
German public broadcasters ARD and ZDF will overhaul their linear TV portfolio under a reformed national broadcast treaty, shutting down ARD alpha, tagesschau24 and ONE by December 31 2026. The restructure consolidates remaining services into three jointly‑operated channels—phoenix for news, neo for...
New pod: Guggenheim's Michael Morris breaks down the NFL's upcoming media deals from a Wall St. perspective. https://t.co/0ipMqZmiL8
Ziggo Sport has secured a four‑year extension of its Dutch broadcast rights to UEFA’s flagship club competitions, keeping the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League through the 2030/31 season. The package will be delivered across six linear channels, 20...
HBO’s period drama *The Gilded Age* announced its fourth‑season lineup, promoting Kelley Curran, Jordan Donica and Ashlie Atkinson to series regulars. The show also added high‑profile guest stars, including Jim Gaffigan as President Grover Cleveland and Elizabeth Marvel as nurse...
ESPN’s ‘Women’s Sports Sundays’ Show the Limits of Legacy Media - Guest OpEd from @HaleyRosen 👇 https://t.co/aqNy6s6WqT via @sportico
Creative studio 3 Chillies has officially launched, appointing Nick Bell as co‑founder. The venture also secured former Dark Horses CEO Melissa Robertson as a non‑executive director. 3 Chillies aims to deliver end‑to‑end brand storytelling, blending creative production with data‑driven insights....
Elliot Millard, chief strategy officer at Thinkbox, warned that the advertising industry’s reliance on a maze of acronyms—CTV, OTT, AVOD and the like—obscures a clear view of television consumption. He advocated replacing this "acronym soup" with a single, unified metric...
NEP Europe has relaunched its OB unit as EU‑03, a software‑centric mobile production truck designed for 1080p HDR live events. The upgrade fully adopts SMPTE ST 2110, allowing broadcasters to run license‑based, scalable workflows that blend software and hardware. Based in...
Swiss media group CH Media will embed German streaming service RTL+ into its oneplus platform on 23 March 2026, creating a bundled offering that also includes Paramount+ and a slate of Swiss originals. The integration delivers selected RTL+ titles—reality, drama and family...
FreeWheel’s Voice of the Viewer study shows that 85% of European streaming users watch ad‑supported tiers, with 83% satisfied overall. Content choice drives satisfaction, cited by 73% of respondents, while 47% exclusively use ad‑supported plans and 49% deliberately chose them....
Lifetime announced new original‑movie agreements with Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit Entertainment and Taraji P. Henson’s TPH Entertainment. Latifah will executive‑produce three Lifetime films, while Henson will helm two projects in partnership with FOX Entertainment Studios. Both deals reinforce Lifetime’s focus on bold, female‑driven storytelling and...
The BBC has appointed Storm Fagan as its chief technology and product officer, tasking her with leading the newly created BBC Media Tech division. The unit will consolidate product and technology teams from the broadcaster and BBC Studios into a...
The Handball-Bundesliga has appointed Dyn Media to take over the technical development of its international streaming service, HBL TV, starting summer 2026. The league’s OTT platform, already available in over 80 countries, will expand to more than 100 markets where...
JioStar secured the removal of 36 high‑download IPTV apps from Google Play and the iOS App Store during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, cutting off over 26 million global downloads and disrupting a piracy ecosystem. The move, backed by...
A Madrid investigating court has summoned Cloudflare chief executive Matthew Prince to appear on April 7th over alleged non‑cooperation with Spain’s anti‑piracy efforts. LaLiga and Movistar Plus+ claim the U.S. firm ignored more than a hundred takedown requests, allowing roughly 38 percent of...
JioStar launched a massive anti‑piracy campaign during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, blocking 420 illicit sites and removing 36 illegal IPTV apps that had amassed over 26 million downloads. The Delhi High Court injunction enabled the suspension of 141 piracy...
At AIDC2026, a panel of SBS executives and producers debated the DNA of returnable documentary formats. They agreed that a bankable emotional hook is essential, while the narrative must stay unpredictable. A solid structural framework provides viewers with a familiar...
Creator talent agencies are abandoning the legacy deal‑brokering model in favor of multi‑platform operations that place creators at the core. Companies like Shorthand Studios and Night Media have demonstrated rapid audience growth and secured sizable funding, such as Night Media’s...
The U.S. Trade Representative released its 2025 Notorious Markets List, identifying 37 online and 32 physical venues that facilitate trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy. The report spotlights the surge in illegal streaming of live sports, especially as the United States...
The ABC crime drama RJ Decker premiered its first season starring Scott Speedman, adapting Carl Hiaasen’s Double Whammy novel. Nielsen’s live‑plus‑same‑day ratings, which include DVR playback, have been posted but show modest numbers compared with network peers. Viewer‑generated votes are...
The horror film "The Mortuary Assistant" will stream exclusively on Shudder starting March 27, 2026. Adapted from the best‑selling video game, it follows newly certified mortician Rebecca Owens (Willa Holland) as she confronts demonic rituals and personal trauma during a...
Versant CEO Mark Lazarus said the company will pursue new sports‑rights opportunities as NFL contracts are renegotiated, positioning USA Sports to fill gaps left by larger networks. NBC’s Bob Costas revealed that the Sunday Night Baseball pre‑game will be trimmed...
America’s Funniest Home Videos (AFV) aired its 36th season on ABC, delivering a 0.37 rating in the key 18‑49 demographic and attracting 3.85 million total viewers. Hosted by Alfonso Ribeiro, the user‑generated comedy‑clip series continues to reward weekly winners with $20,000...
Friday, February 27, 2026, TV ratings show a busy lineup with new episodes of 20/20, Sheriff Country, Fire Country, Boston Blue, Happy’s Place, Stumble and Dateline NBC, alongside an NBA matchup between the San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers. Reruns of The Greatest American, Masters of...
Dateline NBC’s 34th‑season ratings were released on March 4 2026, posting a 0.20 rating in the 18‑49 demographic and 2.21 million total viewers. The long‑running primetime newsmagazine remains a Friday‑night staple on the Peacock Network. NBC has not yet announced a renewal or...
The documentary "Timestamp," chronicling a generation of Ukrainians growing up during the war, will be released on DVD on March 10 through MVD Entertainment Group and Kimstim. Directed by Kateryna Gornostai, the film was shot over several years, capturing life before...
The television industry is moving from an advertising‑centric view of value to an upstream focus on intellectual property (IP) as a capital asset. While ad yield still matters, executives are now assessing financing structures, rights ownership, and extension potential before...
