Friday, November 7, 2014

11.7.14

Entertainment:      
·         3BLACKDOT, which was co-founded by former Machinima executives Angelo Pullen and Luke Stepleton, along with Adam Montoya and Tom Cassell, has launched a new MCN on YouTube called JETPAK
·         Lionsgate formed a partnership with live production company Imagine Nation and Triangular Entertainment to bring “The Hunger Games” to the stage
·         Oliver Stone’s film about Edward Snowden has been acquired by Open Road
·         John Lasseter will direct “Toy Story 4” and it will be released on June 16, 2017
·         The Weinstein Company has finalized the cast for Quentin Tarantino's “The Hateful Eight”
·         Lionsgate’s stock has risen, as a 37% stake is reportedly being shopped to Chinese e-commerce giant Jack Ma
·         Haim Saban raised $34MM to support Israeli Defense Forces
·         AwesomenessTV will debut a high-school comedy film “Expelled” with Vine star Cameron Dallas in the lead role in cinemas next month
·         Madison Square Garden has announced a record-breaking 13th show in the ongoing Billy Joel "franchise" residency at the arena, breaking his own record of 12 shows in a series from 2006
·         Australia-based music streaming service Guvera has officially launched in India
·         Tim McGraw has left Red Light Management
·         12 people have been laid off from Capitol Records
·         Facebook Videos is trumping YouTube in a recent ad from UK retailer John Lewis
·         Please see below for an interesting article on movie attendance rates
·         Vlogbrothers, John and Hank Green, bring “Crash Course” Videos to PBS Digital Studios
·         Despite skyrocketing consumer activity, a survey from Futuresource has indicated that the smart TV industry may be re-assessing its focus due to limited direct ROI and a shift to UltraHD
Tech:
·         Europol along with the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security announced that “Operation Onymous” has arrested 17 people and seized hundreds of Dark Web domains associated with well over a dozen black market websites
·         Verizon and AT&T have embraced ‘perma-cookies’, a privacy-busting digital marker, which could give marketers a way to track what you do online whether you want to be tracked or not
·         Splice is a tool that can back up musicians' files to the cloud and can be accessed for their concerts
·         Vainglory, the multiplayer online battle arena, just got solid release dates in every region but China, Japan and Korea
·         Tripda is a new ride-sharing marketplace that Rocket Internet has decided to bring to the US
·         Spotify now allows users to use their phone or tablet as a remote for their desktop music
·         Microsoft now lets Windows Phone developers swap ad networks
·         Please see below for highlights of Mark Zuckerberg’s Q&A
Deals:
·         Vonage has reached a deal to acquire communications-as-a-service provider Telesphere Networks for $114MM in its ongoing mission to take a larger piece of the growing small to medium business (SMB) sector
·         Freshpet, a maker of healthy pet food, raised about $156MM in its IPO after pricing its shares at $15 each
Business:
·         Please see below for today’s top tech funding stories
·         Private equity firms including BC Partners, Apollo Global Management, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Clayton, Dubilier & Rice are said to have been asked to submit second-round bids and meet with PetSmart’s management
·         Morgan Stanley announced that Uber is officially included in their corporate travel policy as a recommended transportation option for all employees
·         Home Depot has disclosed that 53 million email addresses were taken along with the information of 56 million payments cards during its data breach earlier this year
·         Nike has severed ties with Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson after his plea agreement to a misdemeanor assault charge over striking his 4-year-old son
·         The Walt Disney Co. ended its fiscal year on a significant high note, reporting a record $48.8B in sales, up 8%, and 22% improvement in net income of $7.5B, beating analysts’ expectations
Exec Moves:
·         Amit Kumar, Yahoo!’s GM and VP running its small business division, has left the company
·         Ali Rowghani, ex-Pixar and Twitter exec, has joined Y Combinator as a part-time partner
·         PepsiCo President Zein Abdalla, widely viewed as a potential successor to Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi, is leaving the company Dec. 31
Retail:
·         Please see below for an interesting article on how retailers are staying ahead through unique in-store experiences that inspire shoppers through social lifestyles
·         Sears disclosed in a regulatory filing that it was considering selling 200 to 300 stores to a real estate investment trust and then leasing back those sites
Startups:
Government:
Other:
·         The LGBT magazine “The Advocate” has just named Vladimir Putin as its person of the year

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