World Screen

LONDON: France Telecom’s Orange service is said to be considering the acquisition of the technology behind Project Kangaroo, the VOD venture from ITV, Channel 4 and the BBC that was nixed by British competition authorities. ITV, Channel 4 and the …

TORONTO: Ron Berryman, the senior VP and general manager of the digital publishing group for Fox Interactive Media (FIM), has been tapped to deliver the crossover keynote address for the Banff World Television Festival and nextMEDIA Banff on June 7. …

UNIVERSAL CITY: The series finale of NBC’s long-running medical drama ER notched up 16.4 million viewers, the largest audience for a drama series finale since Murder, She Wrote in 1996. The final episode on Thursday night also delivered the highest 18-to-49 …

SYDNEY: Beyond Distribution has licensed 75 hours to FOXTEL for scheduling across Crime & Investigation, History and Biography channels in Australia. The deal includes Jetstream, seasons one and two of Tube Tales, seasons one and two of Deadly Women, Air …

LOS ANGELES: Production is under way on the film adaptation of Ann Rule’s crime novel Everything She Ever Wanted, which will air as a two-night mini-series event on Lifetime Movie Network. Gina Gershon (Showgirls, Face/Off) headlines the cast, alongside Ryan …

SYDNEY: France’s AB International Distribution has acquired the Australian drama series Rush, set in a critical incident police unit, from Southern Star International.  Currently in production on a second season, Rush provides an insider’s view of police under pressure. The show …

LONDON: Discovery Networks EMEA is expanding the reach of its Investigation Discovery (ID) channel in Europe, with launches in Poland, Romania, Hungary and Greece. The network, which made its international debut in the U.K. in January, targets adults 25 to …

BURBANK: A comedy series starring the Jonas Brothers will have a multiplatform premiere on May 2 on Disney Channel. Jonas, which stars recording artists Kevin, Joe and Nick Jonas, Chelsea Staub (Minutemen), Nicole Anderson (Hannah Montana), John Ducey (Will and …

NEW YORK: Broadcast TV stations in the U.S. surpassed $1 billion in interactive sales for the first time in 2008, growing their online ad revenues by 36 percent. According to a report from the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB), despite …

LONDON: The U.K. regulatory body Ofcom has fined the BBC £150,000 for lewd phones messages left on actor Andrew Sachs’s voicemail by BBC 2 radio personalities Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross. Ofcom said Russell Brand’s radio show had violated the …