World Screen

ATLANTA, December 4: Jennifer Davidson, the senior VP of programming and scheduling at Cartoon Network, passed away unexpectedly over the weekend after a sudden illness. She was 38 years old. Davidson was one of the first 15 employees hired by …

LUXEMBOURG, December 4: Bertelsmann is considering the acquisition of the remaining 10 percent it doesn’t already own in the RTL Group, its most profitable division. Bertelsmann confirmed today that it is considering taking full ownership of RTL Group, but noted: …

HONG KONG, December 3: Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing is said to be in talks to acquire a stake in the popular social networking site Facebook. The Wall Street Journal reported today on its website that Li, the chairman of …

TOKYO, December 3: NBC Universal has appointed Shigeo Yushita as the channel director in Japan for Global Networks Asia, where he will oversee the rollout of pay-TV channels in the country. Based in Tokyo, Yushita will be responsible for launching …

LONDON, December 3: BBC Worldwide has appointed Sparrowhawk Media’s Joyce Yeung to the newly created role of senior VP for global TV sales in Asia. Yeung will take up the post in early 2008. Currently the VP of sales and …

VANCOUVER, December 3: Studio B Productions has closed broadcast deals with Canadian educational channels Knowledge Network and SCN for its animated short Clancy with the Puck. The short has already begun airing in high rotation on both Canadian networks. Additionally, …

TOKYO, December 3: Digimon Data Squad, the fifth season of Toei Animation’s animated series Digimon, has launched on Germany’s RTL II. The Digimon franchise already has broadcast deals in more than 40 countries throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. Toei …

PALISADES PARK, December 3: For the 19th consecutive year, The Recording Academy has named Alfred Haber, Inc. (AHI) as the exclusive international distributor for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards. Key market sales have already been shored up worldwide with broadcasters …

LONDON/SYDNEY, December 3: Southern Star Entertainment has been commissioned to develop a new drama series titled Out of the Blue for BBC Daytime. The half-hour series will begin broadcasting next year on BBC One. John Edwards and Julie McGauran will …

NEW YORK, December 3: Lightworks Enterprises has formed Lightworks Pictures, a new motion picture division that will develop and produce made-for-television and independent theatrical films, focusing on topics such as human relations, social justice and understanding among people. Lightworks Pictures …