Business of Media
Verizon loses 69,000 pay TV, adds 55,000 broadband subscribers in fourth quarter
Verizon lost 69,000 net pay TV subscribers for its FiOS consumer video service in the fourth quarter, compared with a loss of 68,000 in the third quarter and 72,000 in the year-ago period, the telecom giant said on Tuesday, reports The Hollywood Reporter’s Georg Szalai.
The company has in the past often cited “the ongoing shift from traditional linear video to over-the-top offerings” as a key driver of video subscriber declines.
Verizon, led by chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg, gained 55,000 broadband internet subscribers, compared with 92,000 in the year-ago period. For the full year 2021, Verizon reported 360,000 broadband user net additions, “the best annual performance since 2014.”
Australia Day Honours 2022: Jane, Maggie, Delta, Dylan.
Performer Delta Goodrem, culinary doyen Maggie Beer, Seven News presenter Jane Doyle and Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott are amongst those recognised in the Australia Day Honours, reports TV Tonight.
Also honoured is performer Deborra-Lee Furness, writer Doug Edwards, and former Prime Media Chairman John Hartigan.
Here are TV and related names in this year’s list.
News Brands
BBC to be taken to court to stop it from reporting on spy story
The government will take the BBC to court in March in an attempt to prevent it from publishing or broadcasting a proposed news report, reports The Guardian’s Haroon Siddique.
Oliver Sanders QC, representing the attorney general Suella Braverman, told the high court on Wednesday that the case involved matters of national security and breach of confidence.
The Telegraph reported on Friday that the BBC was planning to reveal the identity of a spy working overseas, prompting comparisons with the Spycatcher saga.
Given the sensitivity of the current case, Sanders requested that Wednesday’s hearing be held in private, telling the court: “In our submissions, the difficulty of proceeding in open court … is it makes it almost impossible to discuss the issue, in terms of what the case is about.”
Adam Boulton: Sky News faces ‘existential’ crisis as TV habits change
Adam Boulton has said Sky News faces “existential” questions about its future as it grapples with changing audience habits and the long-term funding necessary to keep an intensive 24-hour operation on the air, reports The Guardian’s Jim Waterson.
“I know there are executives at Sky that take the view there will only be one news channel in the UK in 10 years’ time and it probably won’t be Sky,” the former Sky News’ editor-at-large told the Guardian. “Any corporation is going to ask, ‘What’s the point of Sky News? Is everything it’s offering being done by others anyway so we might as well not bother?’ Colleagues at Sky News think about it all the time. It’s existential.”
When Rupert Murdoch sold the wider Sky business to the US media conglomerate Comcast in 2018, the new owners promised to fund the prestigious but lossmaking news service for a decade. Boulton, who left the channel last month after serving as editor-at-large, said Comcast had honoured the deal but the channel’s long-term future was unclear: “People are wondering what’s going to happen when the guaranteed funding under the takeover deal expires … the problem with the takeover arrangement was it put Sky News in aspic with the same funding and the same management.”
Entertainment
Neil Young demands Spotify remove his music over Joe Rogan vaccine misinformation
Neil Young has demanded that his music be removed from Spotify due to vaccine misinformation spread by podcaster Joe Rogan on the streaming service, saying: “They can have Rogan or Young. Not both,” reports The Guardian’s Sian Cain.
See More: Podcast Week: Abbie Chatfield on LiSTNR & Josh Szeps talks Joe Rogan
In an open letter to his manager and record label that was posted to his website and later taken down, Young wrote: “I am doing this because Spotify is spreading fake information about vaccines – potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread by them. Please act on this immediately today and keep me informed of the time schedule.”
Young specified that his decision was motivated by The Joe Rogan Experience, which is currently Spotify’s most popular podcast and one of the biggest in the world. Rogan signed a US$100m deal in 2020 giving Spotify exclusive rights to the show.
Radio
Ray Hadley airs strange claims about NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet
Radio veteran Ray Hadley has aired stunning claims regarding unconfirmed comments allegedly made by Premier Dominic Perrottet at a Christmas party, reports news.com.au
Speaking on 2GB on Tuesday morning, Hadley claimed government insiders told him that Perrottet made comments at a Christmas party about not “caving in” to NSW Health on reimposing restrictions.
However, The Daily Telegraph said senior government sources have pushed back against this claim.
This comes as Perrottet denied claims from One Nation leader Mark Latham that Treasurer Matt Kean was leaking information to the media over his response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kyle Sandilands rips into Machine Gun Kelly over resurfaced Kendall Jenner interview
Radio host Kyle Sandilands has slammed Machine Gun Kelly on-air, branding the musician an “idiot” over comments he once made about model Kendall Jenner, reports News Corp’s Mibengé Nsenduluka.
Last week a 2014 interview resurfaced in which the US artist, born Colson Baker, revealed his hopes of hooking up with his “celebrity crush” Jenner, despite her being 17 at the time and him being 23.
The legal age of consent in Los Angeles, where Jenner lives, is 18 and Sandilands called Kelly a “dumba**” for gushing over Jenner at the time.
Television
The Project: Carrie Bickmore, Peter van Onselen in fiery debate over Grace Tame
Carrie Bickmore has defended Grace Tame after the sexual assault survivor came under fire for an icy meeting with the Prime Minister, reports News Corp’s Alex Blair.
Tame sparked national media coverage after cameras captured her frosty exchange with Scott Morrison ahead of a morning tea for the 2022 Australian of the Year finalists.
Some conservative MPs labelled the interaction “childish”, while journalist Peter van Onselen described her as “ungracious and rude” in a piece for The Australian.
Political reporter Amy Remeikis ripped into van Onselen for his column on Tuesday’s edition of The Project, describing his opinion as “devastating” and sparking a heated debate amongst the panel.
“Why do you feel the need to tell Grace how she should have behaved? But second of all, why should she stand there and smile and pretend it‘s all okay when there is an absolute catastrophe on the cards here?” Carrie Bickmore asked van Onselen.
Lisa Wilkinson’s swipe at Peter van Onselen amid Grace Tame debate suggests tensions on The Project
The Project’s Lisa Wilkinson has taken a subtle dig at her colleague Peter van Onselen for his brutal attempted take down of sexual assault survivor Grace Tame, reports News Corp’s Bella Fowler.
Penning an article for The Australian, PVO labelled Tame’s frosty reception “ungracious, rude and childish”, with Wilkinson hitting back hours later by applauding Tame for “making noise”.
While it’s not uncommon to see hosts of the nightly current affairs panel disagree on various issues, it comes amid swirling industry rumours of historical tension between the pair.
Taking to Instagram after The Project aired a fiery debate between Carrie Bickmore and PVO over Tame’s headline-making move, Wilkinson — a staunch Tame supporter — waded into the discussion herself.
Seven to reboot This Is Your Life
This Is Your Life is returning to Seven later this year as a series of special events celebrating famous Australians, reports TV Tonight.
The classic TV format will profile celebrities, achievers, sports stars, performers and feature reunions, never-before-seen-footage and performances. It will highlight memories from family, friends, and colleagues, including international names.
Originally premiering on Seven in 1975 with Mike Willesee, it ran for six years with hosts Digby Wolfe and Roger Climpson. Nine also screened it variously from 1995 to 2008 with Mike Munro, before a brief 2011 run with Eddie McGuire.
Seven’s Director of Network Programming, Angus Ross, said: “This Is Your Life was an iconic and incredibly successful show for many years. The time feels right for it to return. We can’t wait to bring the format into 2022, engaging both new viewers and the generations of Australians who remember the show fondly and will welcome its return.”
Disney+ to launch in 42 countries this summer
Disney+ will launch in 42 countries and 11 territories this summer, the streamer announced Wednesday, reports The Hollywood Reporter’s Abid Rahman.
Among the major new markets, the service will launch in South Africa, Turkey, Poland and the United Arab Emirates.
The full list of new countries where Disney+ will launch this summer includes: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Bahrain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, North Macedonia, Oman, Palestine, Poland, Qatar, Romania, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Vatican City and Yemen.