Category: media

“YouTube, owned by Google Inc., plans to introduce technology to help media companies identify pirated videos uploaded by users. But the tools are currently being offered as part of broader negotiations on licensing deals, they said. The move contrasts with YouTube’s biggest rival, News Corp.’s, popular Internet social network, MySpace, which said Monday it would offer its own version of copyright protection services for free.”

Illegal music and video piracy may be down overall, but it continues to flourish on college campuses, where in-house networks designed to share information are a virtual clearinghouse for freely traded material. “Under federal law, universities that receive complaints about students illegally distributing copyrighted songs generally must act to stop repeat offenders or else the schools can be sued… Some schools aggressively warn students after they receive complaints. Others don’t.”

As Hollywood gears up for the Oscars, a smaller but ever more visible segment of the film industry is preparing for the Spirit Awards, which will honor the best in independent film the night before the Academy hands out its statuettes. But in a business which seems increasingly to be blurring the lines between indie and studio films, does the phrase “independent film” mean anything anymore?

“If a screenwriter turns out a brilliant screenplay and there’s no publicist to flog it, does it still make a sound at awards time? Of course, we’d like to think that artistic excellence always rises to the top but it certainly doesn’t hurt to have someone reminding people that, as the writer, you actually contributed something of note to the film.”

“Shaw Communications Inc. vowed Tuesday to resume making monthly payments to the beleaguered Canadian television Fund although the company continued its volley of criticisms against the production fund… The CTF, a key source of funds for Canadian-made programming, has an annual budget of about $250-million, about $150-million of which comes from the country’s key cable and satellite TV companies.”

Warner Music, the world’s fourth-largest recording company, is preparing a takeover bid for British music giant EMI, and says that the offer will likely be cash only. Warner and EMI have danced around each other for the better part of a decade, with each attempting to acquire the other at various times. “A merger of the firms would create a firm with about 25% of the global recorded music market,” and regulatory concerns could derail any attempt at joining the companies.

Making a deal with Canadian actors to end their strike has hit snags with Hollywood producers who worry about setting precedents. “Canadian studio operators and equipment suppliers servicing U.S. shoots grew increasingly alarmed in recent weeks at the loss of work from south of the border. That put ACTRA and CFTPA bargainers under intense pressure to reach a settlement or see their respective members suffer for lack of work as the Americans continued to shift production elsewhere.”

“The two companies, which report close to 14 million subscribers, hoped to revolutionize the radio industry with a bevy of niche channels offering everything from fishing tips to salsa music, and media personalities like Howard Stern and Oprah Winfrey, with few commercials. But neither has yet turned an annual profit and both have had billions in losses.”

“Deregulation by the government, rising consumer affluence and a growing youth culture have Indians tuning in to the airwaves in greater numbers than ever. They are drawn to a more traditional medium that is expanding even as other, newer forms of entertainment, such as cable TV and the Internet, are also reaching bigger markets. Against those options, radio continues to hold one clear advantage: It’s free.”

The Indian film “Parzania,” about the 2002 religious riots in Gujarat that killed 1,100 people, is showing in theaters around the country — but not in Gujarat. “India maintains a storied and constantly replenished dustbin of cannot-be-seen movies. … ‘Parzania’ stands out, though, because theater owners are refusing to screen the film even after it was approved by the censor board.”