World Screen

NEW YORK, July 17: SCI FI has greenlit production on Painkiller Jane, from Vancouver's Insight Film Studios and Kickstart Comics, for launch on the cable network in January followed by a U.S. weekly syndication window next fall. Production on 22 …

EL SEGUNDO, July 17: Mattel’s revenues were up 8 percent to $957.7 million for the second quarter, delivering a net profit of $37.4 million, versus last year’s net loss of $94 million. "We are pleased with our second quarter results,” …

NEW YORK, July 17: Court TV, which Time Warner took full control of in May, is planning to tap into the resources of its parent company with a new Thursday-night crime and investigation movie strand. Most Wanted Movies launches August …

NEW YORK, July 17: Bravo has given an eight-episode second-season order to The Real Housewives of Orange County for broadcast later this year. Bravo has tapped Evolution Film & Tape, whose credits include Fear Factor and Big Brother, to produce …

NEW YORK, July 17: The Comedy Central cult hit Crank Yankers has found a new home on MTV2, with the cable network greenlighting production on eight new episodes. The series featured prank calls made by show regulars and celebrity guests …

HONG KONG, July 17: Buena Vista International Television-Asia Pacific (BVITV-AP) has inked a high-definition live-action series and library features deal in China that will bring Lost and Grey’s Anatomy to the state-run broadcaster CCTV’s new HD channel by the end …

DOHA, July 17: The Middle Eastern news network Al Jazeera is calling for the immediate release of its Jerusalem bureau chief Walid Al Omary, who has been detained by Israeli authorities. According to Al Jazeera, Israeli authorities have been attempting …

NEW YORK, July 17: Frederick Huntsberry, who was upped to president of NBC Universal International just two months ago, is leaving the company to become COO of Paramount Pictures. Reporting to Paramount’s chairman and CEO, Brad Grey, Huntsberry will be …

BRUSSELS, July 17: The European Commission has cleared British investment fund Cinven’s acquisition of the French cable TV, broadband and telephony provider UPC France from Liberty Global. The 1.25-billion euros deal was first announced in March, with a deal formally …

LONDON, July 17: Mark Thompson, the director-general of the BBC, is back at the number one spot of MediaGuardian’s annual ranking of the 100 most influential people in British media, with Apple chief Steve Jobs in second place and News …