CBS

CBS's Last.fm to Debut Video Service Last.TV

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 28, 2009 - 11:50am.
New York - CBS-owned (NYSE: CBS) social music discovery service Last.fm is planning to launch a new video service called Last.TV, Music Week reports. The service will reportedly initially cover music festivals in Europe, and is expected to launch in January.

Showtime to Debut "Dexter" Animated Webisode Series

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 8, 2009 - 11:27am.
Los Angeles - CBS-owned (NYSE: CBS) pay-TV channel Showtime Networks plans to launch an animated webisode series based on its Emmy-nominated series "Dexter." Set to premiere on Sho.com on Oct. 25, the twelve-part "Dexter: Early Cuts" series will be told four one-to-two-minute chapters.

tags: Video | TV | Showtime | CBS | Animation | Dexter |

CNET Wireless Coverage Maps Debut in Eight Cities

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 6, 2009 - 9:14am.
San Francisco - Technology media company CNET, a unit of CBS (NYSE: CBS), said on Tuesday that it has launched a beta test of the first-ever independent wireless service coverage map in eight cities.

CBS News Taps GlobalPost to Provide Foreign News

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 28, 2009 - 9:16am.
New York - CBS News (NYSE: CBS) has forged a partnership with GlobalPost to provide international news from 70 correspondents in 50 countries, The New York Times reported. Boston-based GlobalPost was founded by New England Cable News network creator Philip Balboni and Boston Globe foreign correspondent Charles Sennott, and averages about 400,000 unique monthly users. "Having a broadcast network partner was a high priority for us, and to be associated with CBS News is a great validation of what we are trying to build," Balboni told The Times. "We hope to become an important source of international news for Americans, and this partnership is a big step in that direction."

tags: Video | TV | CBS | News | GlobalPost |

Analysis: Jay Leno And The End Of The Mass Broadcasting Era

Authored by Rohit Bhargava on September 14, 2009 - 11:01am.

On September 14th at 10pm EST in the US (tonight), a new experiment in television will take place that is both a sign of the times, and a quiet revolution in the way that broadcast TV (and perhaps media itself) will work. The Jay Leno Show will debut at its new time slot of 10pm - a full hour and a half earlier than he used to be on when doing The Tonight Show - and aim to reach people "exhausted by kids, work and so on" as he has said more than once in interviews. The significance of this moment is not so much about the change in time - but in what types of programs he will be up against.

tags: Video | Marketing | Advertising | TV | TiVo | DVR | ABC | CBS | NBC | Jay Leno |

CBS to Launch Last.fm-Powered HD Radio Channels in 4 Cities

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 11, 2009 - 9:44am.
New York - CBS (NYSE: CBS) announced this week that its Last.fm social music discovery service will be used to "crowdsource" programming for new terrestrial HD radio channels in four top U.S. markets. The channels, which will be available as of Oct. 5 to HD radio owners in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco, will feature a mix of music from Last.fm's user-generated weekly charts, "combined with live performances and interviews from the Last.fm studios in New York, and event updates."

AT&T Debuts Entertainment Site with Free TV Shows, Movies

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 10, 2009 - 12:01pm.
Dallas - AT&T (NYSE: T) on Thursday announced the launch of AT&T Entertainment, a new Hulu-like website that offers thousands of streaming TV shows and movies from partners including ABC (NYSE: DIS), NBC Universal (NYSE: GE) and (NYSE: CBS)CBS. The free site is available to all consumers, not just subscribers to AT&T services. The company said it plans to add more programming from additional providers in the coming months.

tags: Video | TV | Movies | AT&T | ABC | CBS | NBC Universal | Hulu |

Broadcasters, Advertisers Team to Study Audience Ratings

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 10, 2009 - 9:06am.
New York - A consortium of 14 broadcasters, ad agencies and advertisers announced on Thursday that they are joining forces to explore new ways to measure audiences across traditional and new media. Founding members of the Council for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) include Time Warner (NYSE: TWX); News Corp. (NYSE: NWS); Viacom (NYSE: VIA); NBC Universal (NYSE: GE); Disney-ABC (NYSE: DIS); CBS (NYSE: CBS) Paramount; Discovery (NASD: DISCA); Starcom MediaVest; Mediabrands; WPP (NASD: WPPGY); Omnicom (NYSE: OMC); Unilever (NYSE: UL); AT&T (NYSE: T); and Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG).

USOpen.org Serves Up 6.4 Million Video Streams in Week One

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 9, 2009 - 9:47am.
New York - The U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) reports that its USOpen.org attracted 5.3 million unique users during its first week of live streaming video coverage of the tournament, up 60% from a year ago, PaidContent reported.
tags: Sports | Video | TV | CBS | ESPN | USTA | USOpen.org |

CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated to Share Print, Digital Content

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 31, 2009 - 10:38am.
New York - CBS-owned (NYSE: CBS) CBSSports.com and MaxPreps.com on Monday announced a partnership with The Sports Illustrated Group, that will see both parties share and distribute various digital and print assets. High school sports content from MaxPreps.com will now feature in SI.com's high school section. Several Sports Illustrated writers, including David Feherty and Seth Davis, will see their articles syndicated across CBSSports.com. SI.com will also promote live sports video featured on CBSSports.com.

CBS to Insert Video Ad Into Entertainment Weekly Magazine

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 19, 2009 - 12:19pm.
New York - CBS (NYSE: CBS) plans to integrate a video advertisement for its programs and PepsiCo products into an upcoming issue of the print edition of Entertainment Weekly, the Associated Press reported. The experimental ad will play on an insert with a two-inch video screen and embedded speaker, and will be inserted into some copies of the magazine's fall TV preview issue mailed to subscribers in New York and Los Angeles.

Showtime Plans Animated Webisode Prequel Series for "Dexter"

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 24, 2009 - 8:14am.
San Diego - CBS-owned (NYSE: CBS) cable TV network Showtime is creating a 12-episode animated Web series as a prequel to its "Dexter" series, according to a post on The Hollywood Reporter's blog. Set to launch in the fall, the "Earl Cuts" webisode series will feature the voice of star Michael C. Hall, and will explore how he became a serial killer.

tags: Video | TV | Showtime | CBS | Animation | Dexter |

Comcast Adds TV Network Partners to Web Video Trial

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 14, 2009 - 12:04pm.
Philadelphia - Cable TV provider Comcast (NASD: CMCSA) has added 17 new networks to the pilot test of its On Demand Online service, which will provide free online access to pay-TV television channels to its subscribers. CBS (NYSE: CBS) became the first broadcast network to sign-on for the trial, which now counts a total of 23 network partners. Other new additions include A&E, AMC, BBC America, Food Network, IFC, MGM Impact, Sundance Channel, E! and The Style Network.

Yahoo Drops NFL Players Assn. Suit Over Fantasy Game Rights

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 8, 2009 - 10:32am.
Los Angeles - Yahoo (NASD: YHOO) has settled a lawsuit it filed against the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), over the payment of licensing fees for use of players' names and statistics in online fantasy football games.

Jelli Introduces "Crowdsourced" Internet, Terrestrial Radio

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 17, 2009 - 12:16pm.
San Francisco - Jelli on Wednesday introduced a "crowdsourced" radio programming model, where Web users will help determine what songs are played both online, and over the air on a traditional radio station. Users can rate what songs are playing, determine what the next song will be "seconds before its plays," and "even vote to pull a song off-the-air, instantly." The company partnered with CBS Radio-owned (NYSE: CBS) Live 105 in San Francisco to launch the "Jelli" show, which debuts on Sunday, June 28 during the stations 10:00 P.M. - 12:00 Midnight programming block.

Digital Studio EQAL Postpones Self-Financed Productions

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 12, 2009 - 9:57am.
Los Angeles - Digital entertainment studio EQAL, creators of the "lonelygirl15" series, has halted development and funding of its own series in favor of producing content for brand partners, PaidContent reports. The company will instead work on Web content for CBS' "Harpers Island," a new project with Food Network involving Paula Deen called "Get Cookin'," and projects with "CSI" creator Anthony Zuiker and actress Alician Silverstone.

tags: Video | TV | CBS | Lonelygirl15 | Eqal |

Founders of CBS-Owned Web Music Service Last.fm Resign

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 10, 2009 - 10:57am.
London - The three founders of London-based social music discovery service Last.fm, which was acquired two years ago by CBS (NYSE: CBS) for $280 million, announced on Wednesday in a blog post that they are stepping down from the company.

"NCIS" Actor Bemoans Impostor Twitter, MySpace Accounts

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 9, 2009 - 9:46am.
Los Angeles - Actress Pauley Perrette, who plays Abby on the CBS (NYSE: CBS) primetime drama "NCIS," has posted a video on YouTube stating that she is in fact not on Twitter or MySpace, meaning that fans are interacting with impostor accounts.

CBS News to Syndicate Live Video on Ustream

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2009 - 12:37pm.
New York - CBS News (NYSE: CBS) has partnered with Internet video broadcasters Ustream to launch its own live video channel that will simulcast live CBS News broadcasts online.
tags: Video | TV | CBS | News | uStream |

Katalyst Media's "Blah Girls" Web Show Coming to CBS

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 13, 2009 - 11:11am.
Los Angeles - Katalyst Media, the digital production firm started by actor Ashton Kutcher, has signed a deal to distribute its animated Web series "Blah Girls" on television with CBS Television Distribution, TechCrunch reports. The series is slated to air as one-minute interstitials during the CBS (NYSE: CBS) entertainment news show "The Insider."