Category: media

“The European Union said Thursday that it would seek to extend copyright protection for singers and musicians to 95 years — rather than the current 50 — in a move intended to let performers receive royalty payments later in life.”

“Not so long ago, the documentary feature category was among the snooziest at the Oscars, the target of jokes that said you couldn’t lose by making a film about the Holocaust… This year all five nominees are politically charged, four are about war, and amazingly, only one feels like homework.”

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences isn’t wasting any time getting ready for the Oscars, unveiling the list of presenters, performers and scripters only days after the end of the writers’ strike. The Academy is clearly thrilled to be able to present its usual glam-heavy show, and acknowledges that a show without writers or stars would have been tough to pull off.

The movie industry is “touting 3-D as its best shot at combating increasingly sophisticated home-theater systems. But the industry has to overcome some hiccups — including technical and distribution hurdles — before the technology meets its full potential.”

Four of Hollywood’s biggest stars have taken out adverts in US trade papers urging their leaders to start contract talks in a bid to avert a strike. The actors contract expires June 30 and the same issues the writers struck over are on the table.

“Some 92.5% of the 3,775 ballots cast were in favor of ending the 100-day strike, with 3,492 members voting yes and 283 die-hards ready to tilt at the windmill of continuing the work stoppage that began Nov. 5.”

“Viewership for the CBS telecast of Sunday’s Grammy Awards was the second lowest since figures began being complied in 1977, but it was still enough to be the week’s fourth most-watched program.” The ratings dropped 14% from last year’s telecast.

Following major crackdowns by Canadian authorities on illegal bootleg copies of feature films, the availability of such illicit material has apparently plunged. But the prosecution of some high-level offenders has sparked a debate over whether Canada should really be implementing US-style copyright laws.

Debate over what the writers’ strike will eventually mean for the television business are raging, but meanwhile, those who work in the business are ramping up for an unprecedented production push to make up for lost time and reestablish storylines. “For some series the immediate question will be whether they have any future beyond this season.”