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Listen up, Potterheads: J.K. Rowling’s seven original Harry Potter books are getting a massive new audiobook series. Amazon’s Audible and Pottermore Publishing, the global digital publisher of Rowling’s Wizarding World, will co-produce a brand-new audiobook series for the original seven Harry Potter stories. The new audiobooks are scheduled to premiere in late 2025, with each […]
1 day ago
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The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to approve a bill that would ban TikTok nationwide unless Chinese parent company ByteDance sells its stake in the popular app. The development will likely result in a court battle between the U.S. and TikTok, which argues that the legislation violates the First Amendment — and if TikTok loses that […]
3 days ago
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As expected, TikTok said it will file a lawsuit seeking to block the U.S.’s legislation — signed into law Wednesday by President Biden — that will ban the app unless its Chinese parent company divests its ownership stake. In a video on TikTok, CEO Shou Zi Chew responded to the Senate’s passage of the bill […]
3 days ago
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Paris Hilton’s 11:11 Media has optioned Sarah Ditum’s book “Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s,” which examines pop-culture misogyny in the early 2000s through the stories of nine female celebrities of the era — including Hilton herself. The company plans to adapt the book as a docuseries. “Toxic” offers a deep dive into the […]
3 days ago
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Ari Emanuel, in his capacity as CEO of TKO Group Holdings — the parent company of UFC and WWE — had a compensation package last year that hit nearly $65 million. TKO granted Emanuel, who also is CEO of Endeavor, a base salary of $911,538, plus a $24 million cash bonus and stock awards worth […]
2 days ago
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Spotify reeled in fewer new users overall than it expected in the first quarter of 2024, but the audio-streaming giant touted “record strength” in profitability. Total monthly active users (free and paid) grew 19% year over year to 615 million, a gain of 13 million from the previous quarter — which missed its guidance by […]
4 days ago
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The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday issued a final rule banning noncompete clauses in employment contracts in the U.S. But experts in the field said the FTC‘s move will definitely be challenged in court. Under the FTC’s new rule, if it goes into effect, existing noncompete agreements for the “vast majority” of workers will no […]
3 days ago
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The three founders of Watcher Entertainment apologized to fans for their announcement that they were exiting YouTube and would put their new shows exclusively on a subscription-streaming service. In response to a torrent of negative comments, Watcher’s Steven Lim, Ryan Bergara and Shane Madej said they were making immediate changes to the plan — and […]
5 days ago
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Aaron LaBerge, president and CTO of Disney Entertainment and ESPN, will leave the company this summer after a cumulative total of more than 20 years, after which he will join casino and sports-betting operator Penn Entertainment as chief technology officer. In a note to Disney staff Monday, LaBerge said he made a personal decision to […]
5 days ago
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Watcher Entertainment has drawn millions of fans for their unscripted and comedic videos on YouTube — and now the studio’s three creators have drawn the ire of a significant number of them. On Friday, Watcher, formed in 2019 by former BuzzFeed hosts Steven Lim, Ryan Bergara and Shane Madej, announced that going forward, full seasons […]
6 days ago
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A media consultant sued Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, alleging he is owed “at least several million dollars” for work he did related to the company’s $370 million acquisition in 2022 of Redbox, the DVD kiosk and streaming company. Keith Knee, described in his legal complaint as an advisory and consulting services professional in […]
7 days ago
