8.29.14

Entertainment:

·         The film festival community has come together to sign a statement of support for the Beijing Independent Film Festival against the Chinese government

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/film-statement-support-beijing-independent-festival-826083/

·         Johnny Knoxville signs a first look deal with ABC Studios

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/film-statement-support-beijing-independent-festival-826083/

·         Youku is launching a film production arm called Heyi Film

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/global-showbiz-briefs-chinese-web-giant-youku-launches-heyi-film-eone-acquires-seed-producer-force-four-more-826087/

·         2014 has been declared the ‘year of the megadeal’ in the media industry

o   http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/2014-declared-year-megadeal-media-728721

·         George Lucas’ THX is going to open a Beijing corporate office

o   http://variety.com/2014/film/news/thx-to-open-beijing-office-1201293757/

·         Philip Seymour Hoffman’s accused drug dealer was able to avoid jail time

o   http://www.thewrap.com/philip-seymour-hoffmans-accused-drug-dealer-avoids-jail-time/

·         Please see below for a list of films that will become available on Netflix this September

o   http://www.indiewire.com/article/silver-linings-playbook-all-is-lost-and-more-films-streaming-on-netflix-this-september-20140828

Tech:

·         Google X has been developing delivery drones, called ‘Project Wing’, and has been testing them for the past two years

o   http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/08/inside-googles-secret-drone-delivery-program/379306/

o   http://www.wired.com/2014/08/google-reveals-project-wing-its-two-year-effort-to-build-delivery-drones/

·         Apple is in the midst of launching a mobile wallet

o   http://www.wired.com/2014/08/will-apple-kill-off-the-credit-card/

·         Pomplamoose musician started Patreon to help pay artists for their work

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/28/a-chat-with-jack-conte-musician-and-entrepreneur/

·         CalPal makes it easier to set meetings/events and communicate through your calendar

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/28/calpal/

·         Ustream, live-streams red carpet events, could possibly be the next big acquisition for a media company

o   http://variety.com/2014/digital/news/twitch-ustream-next-billion-dollar-target-1201253157/

·         Apple’s wearable devices allegedly won’t be shipped until 2015

o   http://www.theverge.com/2014/8/29/6083075/apple-wearable-iwatch-reportedly-wont-ship-until-2015

·         Aziz Ansari is directing his Twitter followers to go to his site and input their phone numbers to enter a lottery to win tickets to surprise ‘pop-up’ shows in certain cities

o   http://recode.net/2014/08/28/want-to-see-aziz-ansaris-next-stand-up-show-check-twitter-then-give-him-your-phone-number/

Deals:           

Business:

·         Tencent, Baidu, and Wanda form an $814MM joint venture to take on Alibaba

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/28/tencent-baidu-and-wanda-form-814m-joint-venture-to-take-on-alibaba/

o   http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/08/29/to-compete-with-alibaba-a-chinese-e-commerce-company-is-born/?_php=true&_type=blogs&module=BlogPost-Title&version=Blog%20Main&contentCollection=Technology&action=Click&pgtype=Blogs&region=Body&_r=0

·         Microsoft is shutting down MSN Messenger

o   http://venturebeat.com/2014/08/29/microsoft-is-finally-shutting-down-msn-messenger-the-im-client-nobody-used/

·         Tesla shares reached an all-time high after news was released that they reached an agreement with China Unicom

o   http://www.marketwatch.com/story/tesla-shares-hit-record-high-after-china-unicom-deal-2014-08-29

Exec Moves:

·         Evite names new CEO – Victor Cho

o   http://www.socaltech.com/evite_names_new_ceo/s-0056693.html

·         TNT & TBS head of programming, Michael Wright, to exit

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/michael-wright-tnt-tbs-head-programming-to-depart-825402/

·         Chelsea Clinton to exit NBC News

o   http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/chelsea-clinton-to-exit-nbc-news-1201293928/

·         Rovio, the maker of Angry Birds, hired Pekka Rantala to be name their new CEO

o   http://recode.net/2014/08/29/angry-birds-maker-rovio-names-new-ceo/

Retail:

·         JustFab, an online subscription retailer, raises $85MM in a Series D round at a $1B valuation

o   http://www.socaltech.com/justfab_raises_8_m_at__billion_valuation/s-0056699.html

o   http://www.crunchbase.com/organization/justfabulous

Startups:

Government:

·         Barclays loans Detroit $275MM to help get the city out of bankruptcy

o http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/barclays-agrees-to-lend-detroit-275-million-to-exit-bankruptcy/?module=BlogPost-Title&version=Blog%20Main&contentCollection=Restructuring%20&%20Bankruptcy&action=Click&pgtype=Blogs&region=Body

·         UK terror threat level has been raised to ‘severe’

o http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2014/08/29/uk-terror-level-raised-to-severe.html

Other:

·         Malaysia Airlines to cut nearly a third of its workforce

o   http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/29/us-malaysia-airline-restructuring-idUSKBN0GT0KR20140829

8.28.14

Entertainment:

·         VHX rolls out new admin updates to make it easier for indie producers to self-distribute their films

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/28/vhx-admin-updates/

·         Netflix acquires ‘The Blacklist’ for $2MM an episode

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/the-blacklist-netflix-deal-2-million-825836/

·         Lionsgate to re-release ‘Saw’ for its tenth year anniversary

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/saw-re-release-10th-anniversary-lionsgate-825810/

·         Lebron James pulls out of a few of his Hollywood projects

o   http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/lebron-james-pulls-back-hollywood-728674

·         Netflix plans to launch its first original French series ‘Marseille’

o   http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/netflix-orders-first-french-original-728789

·         MipTV and Mipcom is launching MipCancun to target Latin America TV markets

o   http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/reed-midem-launches-mip-cancun-1201292855/

·         Rdio partners with Toronto Film Festival to announce a free Ellie Goulding show

o   http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/digital-and-mobile/6229453/rdio-partners-with-toronto-film-festival-announces-free

·         Please see below for a breakdown of how YouTube is going Hollywood

o   http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-08-28/youtube-hollywoods-hit-factory-for-teen-entertainment#r=hp-ls

Tech:

·         Twitter opens its analytics dashboard so everyone can track the performance of their tweet

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/how-many-people-see-your-tweets-twitter-opens-its-nifty-analytics-dashboard-to-everyone/

·         Google is allegedly searching for a new office space in Playa Vista

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/tech-bits-google-searching-for-huge-new-space-in-playa-vista-825723/

·         Vine rolls out a new suite of editing tools to compete against Instagram’s videos

o   http://variety.com/2014/digital/news/vine-fights-back-against-instagram-with-new-video-editing-tools-1201292070/

Deals:           

·         Vivendi is in exclusive talks to acquired Telefonica’s Brazilian unit for $9.8B

o   http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/telefonica-and-telecom-italia-competing-for-vivendis-brazilian-business/?_php=true&_type=blogs&module=BlogPost-Title&version=Blog%20Main&contentCollection=Mergers%20&%20Acquisitions&action=Click&pgtype=Blogs&region=Body&_r=0

·         Chapman University and HID Global pair up to create a new ‘Internet of Things’ incubator

o   http://www.socaltech.com/chapman_university_hid_global_tie_on_incubator_effort/s-0056679.html

Business:

·         Alibaba’s profits nearly tripled in its last quarter

o   http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/morning-agenda-hackers-hit-u-s-banks/?module=BlogPost-Title&version=Blog%20Main&contentCollection=Morning%20Agenda&action=Click&pgtype=Blogs&region=Body

·         HP is recalling six million laptop cords because they could start fires

o   http://www.theverge.com/2014/8/28/6078501/hp-laptop-power-cord-recall

Exec Moves:

Retail:

·         Heidi Klum partners with New Balance

o   http://www.wwd.com/footwear-news/retail/heidi-klum-for-new-balance-7851494?module=hp-fn

Startups:

·         Acorns has been dubbed the Tinder of investing, by investing a percentage of each transaction on Wall Street

o http://www.wired.com/2014/08/acorn-app/

·         SeatGeek, ‘the web’s largest ticket search engine’, raised $35MM in Series B from led by Accel along with Carmelo Anthony’s fund and Boston’s Celtics CEO’s fund

o http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/28/seatgeek-series-b/

o http://venturebeat.com/2014/08/28/seatgeek-nabs-35m-from-athletes-and-musicians-whose-tickets-it-helps-sell/

·         KKBOX, a Taiwanese music streaming service, raised $104MM to expand overseas

o http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/taiwan-based-streaming-music-service-kkbox-raises-104m-to-expand-overseas/

·         Wikia, a user-generated publishing site/content portal, raised $15MM to expand into the Japanese and Asian markets

o http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/user-generated-content-portal-wikia-raises-another-15m-to-crack-into-asia/

Government:

Other:

·         AIG’s CEO, Robert Benmosche, has roughly a year left to live

o   http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-28/benmosche-sped-up-aig-exit-amid-year-to-live-prognosis.html

·         Joan Rivers was rushed to NYC’s Mount Sinai hospital when she stopped breathing during throat surgery

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/joan-rivers-hospital-cardiac-arrest-826191/

·         Brad and Angelina got secretly married in France

o   http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/brad-pitt-angelina-jolie-are-728810

8.27.14

Entertainment:

·         Vimeo announces distribution partners for their VOD capabilities with BFS Entertainment & Multimedia Limited, Drafthouse Films, Gaiam, Gravitas Ventures, Inception Media Group, MarVista Digital Entertainment and X-Treme Video

o   http://www.thewrap.com/vimeo-announces-new-distribution-partners/

·         At an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences event, neuroscientists and cognitive psychologists determined that movies/filmmakers manipulate the viewer’s brain through the mechanisms of attention and perception

o   http://www.wired.com/2014/08/how-movies-manipulate-your-brain/

·         Disney files patents to use drones in their park shows

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/disney-files-patents-to-use-drones-in-park-shows/

·         A breakdown of how celebrities are founding and investing in apps

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/the-hollywood-ification-of-the-app-store/

·         eOne signs a first-look deal with Rumble Films

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/entertainment-one-david-lancaster-deal-whiplash-eye-in-the-sky-825494/

·         Napa Valley Film Festival to go on despite the major earthquake

o   http://deadline.com/2014/08/napa-valley-film-fest-says-the-show-must-go-on-despite-quakes-sets-lineup-825410/

·         Piers Morgan is allegedly the most hated UK personality on Twitter

o   http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/piers-morgan-hated-uk-personality-728398

·         Hulu acquires Starz’s cult comedy ‘Party Down’

o   http://variety.com/2014/digital/news/hulu-acquires-party-down-will-stream-entire-series-1201291861/

·         Tudou founder, Gary Wang, launches Light Chaser Animation to compete against Pixar and Dreamworks

o   http://www.fastcompany.com/3034905/the-recommender/meet-the-chinese-entrepreneur-gunning-for-pixar-and-dreamworks

Tech:

·         Apple to launch its largest iPad to consumers in early 2015, it will be 12.9 inches diagonally

o   http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-26/apple-said-to-prepare-new-12-9-inch-ipad-for-early-2015.html

·         Dropbox drops their prices as the cost of a gigabyte nears zero, now users can store a terabyte of data at their standard rate of $9.99 per month

o   http://www.wired.com/2014/08/dropboxs-plan-to-stay-relevant/

·         Spotify launches smart TV integration by signing deals with Phillips, Bose, and Panasonic

o   http://venturebeat.com/2014/08/27/spotify-launches-smart-tv-integration-signs-deals-with-phillips-bose-and-panasonic/

·         Facebook announces a new option for international ads that will allow marketers to target certain types of smartphone network connections

o   http://mashable.com/2014/08/27/facebook-international-ads/

Deals:           

·         Kleiner Perkins invests in Snapchat, valuing the company at $10B

o   http://online.wsj.com/articles/snapchat-fetches-10-billion-valuation-1409088794?tesla=y

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/26/snapchat-raising-a-new-round-at-a-10b-valuation/

·         Facebook has hired the team from an audio production company, WaveGroup Sound, that specializes in sounds for games (not an acquisition)

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/26/facebook-acquires-a-sound-studio-to-help-power-its-app-factory/

·         Google acquired Zync to make it easier for movie studios to render their visual effects in the cloud

o   http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/26/google-acquires-zync-to-bring-visual-effects-rendering-to-its-cloud-platform/

·         Square is in the process of raising more funds, and has valued his company at $6B

o   http://recode.net/2014/08/26/square-raising-new-investment-at-6-billion-valuation/

Business:

Exec Moves:

·         Western Digital hires a new CFO – Tim Leyden

o   http://www.socaltech.com/western_digital_names_new_cfo/s-0056644.html

·         YouTube’s music monetization company, AdRev, names a new president – Brian Felsen

o   http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/digital-and-mobile/6229425/giant-youtube-music-monetizer-adrev-names-new-president

Retail:

Startups:

·         Zuli raises $1.65MM to prepare for pre-orders for its smart plug

o http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/27/smart-plug-startup-zuli-raises-1-65m-and-kicks-off-new-pre-orders/

·         Google to open a startup campus in Seoul

o http://techcrunch.com/2014/08/26/google-to-open-campus-for-startups-in-seoul/

·         Jessica Alba’s startup The Honest Co., which sells eco-friendly baby products, readies itself for an IPO by raising $70MMM at a valuation of nearly $1B

o http://www.businessinsider.com/jessica-alba-honest-co-raises-70-million-at-a-nearly-1-billion-valuation-2014-8

Government:

Other: