Billions of people access social media monthly, but users are posting less and favoring a more passive experience, surveys of users and research from data-analytics firms say. - The Wall Street Journal
In recent years, the Malayalam-language cinema industry of Kerala — the state with the country's highest literacy rate and standard of living — has been moving beyond the action-pic, song-and-dance blockbusters typical of Bollywood to depict ordinary people and such sensitive topics as closeted gay politicians. - The New York Times
"Pundits have been puzzling over the Mouse House’s annus horribilis for weeks, identifying several factors. A key one being that the COVID-19 pandemic got people into the habit of watching films at home. … Then there is 'superhero fatigue.'. … But there is another, more important explanation for Disney's woes this year." - BBC
I think that we’ve always been an international industry, but the pandemic has really illuminated that fact in some ways, both in physical production, as well as in content distribution. And that’s a good thing. - Variety
"The shell of Carlos Watson's Ozy Media (has) filed a lawsuit against Semafor co-founder Ben Smith, his news site and his former outlet, BuzzFeed, claiming that Smith stole trade secrets from the now-defunct (Ozy) and then forced its implosion" with a New York Times story revealing Ozy's lies about its readership." - TheWrap
Paramount Global planned to sell the Black-oriented cable network earlier this year but backed off after deciding that the purchase offers were too low. Now Byron Allen of Allen Media Group has offered $3.5 billion for the BET Media Group, which also includes studios and the cable channel VH1. - Variety
"(The 41-year-old LGBTQ+ festival's) dramatic reversal of fortune began with a series of clashes between board members and the group's former executive director over spending decisions that allegedly deepened financial woes faced by the organization, according to a Times review of internal emails, board-meeting minutes and interviews." - Los Angeles Times (MSN)
"Attorney general (Letitia James) filed suit Wednesday against SiriusXM, accusing the satellite radio and streaming service of making it intentionally difficult for its customers to cancel their subscriptions." - AP
"Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav met with Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish (for several hours) on Tuesday in New York City to discuss a possible merger, Axios has learned from multiple sources." - Axios
Notwithstanding the big bets on the continent made by Netflix and Showmax, "multiple producers and executives in countries including Nigeria and Kenya … said African producers in 2023 had to adapt to tighter production budgets driven by harsh macroeconomic conditions, and they expect more of the same in 2024." - Semafor
According to a 2019 Deloitte report, India has the largest film industry in the world in terms of films produced each year. The industry employs 850,000 people. As AI tools get sharper and the internet is filled with uncanny deepfake videos of popular Indian stars. - BBC
“Given that we lost 50% of production time in 2023, the anticipated 5% year-on-year decrease in 2023 is not indicative of a declining interest in cinema, but simply a direct consequence of limited product availability. In fact, as July 2023 marked a record-breaking month at the global box office." - Deadline
"It’s a gentle, enjoyably melancholy story, twee but not damnably so — but something else stands out. Though set in the near-future, Her captures Obama-era techno-optimism better than any other movie. It’s a time capsule, preserving dreams about the future that appear more naive the further we get from the 2010s." - Wired
Shows about struggling, intrepid women are doing well. So are zombies, devils, and serial killers. Spanish-language series are major hits, and, as writer Lili Loofbourow put it, "We knew K-dramas were a phenomenon, but this is ridiculous." What aren't doing as well as expected? Comedy specials. - The Washington Post (MSN)
Disney in 2019 was hit with a suit accusing it of “rampant pay discrimination.” The case cleared a major hurdle Dec. 8 when a judge certified a diverse class of employees, who work across the company’s movie production arm, record labels, theme parks and home distribution subsidiaries, among various other units. - The Hollywood Reporter
