AT&T will spend $400 million upgrading its fiber-optic lines in Alabama in an effort to expand its U-verse television service there, Multichannel News reports. The telecommunications giant said this week that it has about 550,000 subscribers for its U-verse service,…
Shawnee Smith, who appeared in Lionsgate’s “Saw” films, will be one of the judges on VH1’s new reality show “Scream Queen,” the Hollywood Reporter says. Joining Ms. Smith are director-producer James Gunn, who’s worked on “Dawn of the Dead,” and…
About three out of four consumers are willing to watch online advertisements in exchange for free video content, Advertising Week says, citing a survey from Ipsos MediaCT’s Motion unit. Only about half of the consumers are willing to sit through…
Mars pulled a Snickers television ad in the U.K. featuring Mr. T because of complaints that the spot was homophobic, Advertising Week reports. The spot featured Mr. T blasting a speed-walker with a Snickers gun and telling him to “get…
Time Warner Cable profits will fall after Univision switches from being a free channel to a fee-based network because of the cable operator’s large Latino customer base, Broadcasting & Cable says, citing Pali Research analyst Richard Greenfield. Latino programming is…
Belo, which owns 20 television stations, said second-quarter revenue fell 4.7% largely on a drop in automotive-related advertising, Broadcasting & Cable reports. Third-quarter advertising revenue is likely to improve thanks to advertising related to the Summer Olympics because Belo owns…
“Dirty Sexy Money” executive producer Matthew Gross has signed a three-year, seven-figure agreement with ABC, the Hollywood Reporter says. Mr. Gross, who has helped produce shows including “Day Break” and pilots “Twenty Questions” and “Neighbors,” will continue to run day-to-day…
Shareholders of radio and billboard giant Clear Channel Communications approved the company’s $17.9 billion sale to private equity firms Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, the New York Times reports. Clear Channel, which started the process of going private…
The release in Beijing of the last 250,000 Olympics tickets available to the public started a stampede after people waiting in line all night rushed ticket windows around the city, the Associated Press reports. Police restricted the public from many…