Top Stories

LOS ANGELES, January 8: As the strike continues, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) has reached its first independent agreement with a movie studio, announcing a deal with United Artists Films. The studio, relaunched by Paula Wagner and Tom Cruise …

TORONTO, January 8: SilverBirch Studios has inked an agreement with Breakthrough New Media to develop two games based on the upcoming animated kids’ television series Jimmy Two Shoes, which will be broadcast on TELETOON Canada and Jetix Europe. As part …

LOS ANGELES, January 7: Ovation TV, the recently re-launched 24-hour U.S. cable network devoted exclusively to the arts and personal creativity, has acquired Universal Music Group’s (UMG) International Music Feed (IMF), a 24-hour music-television network which combines the best of …

ENGLEWOOD, January 7: U.S. satellite platform DISH Network is freezing the prices for its most popular programming packages until February 2009, and is ramping up its HD offerings. The price freeze includes the popular DishDVR Advantage package, which includes the …

ENGLEWOOD/MERIDIAN, January 7: Liberty Media Corporation has acquired a controlling stake in the sports nutrition electronic retailer Bodybuilding.com. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Liberty’s interest in Bodybuilding.com will be attributed to the Liberty Interactive group, which includes interests …

ALVISO, January 7: TiVo will soon expand its Season Pass feature to include online video, allowing subscribers to watch a variety of video content from the web on their television sets. Using Real Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, the TiVo set-top …

BANFF, January 7: The Banff World Television Festival and Japanese pubcaster NHK have teamed up to establish the NHK Best Asian Program Prize, a new award showcasing TV programs from or about Asia. NHK has pledged C$20,000 as the title …

BRISTOL/EMERYVILLE, January 7: ESPN and mobile entertainment provider MobiTV have announced the availability of ESPN Mobile TV, a 24/7 linear channel exclusively for the mobile platform. The channel offers a blend of live simulcast sports events, comprehensive and breaking sports …

SYDNEY, January 7: Beyond Distribution has inked a broadcast deal with the Scripps-owned Fine Living Network in the U.S. for its real-estate series Big City Broker. The series, produced by JV Productions for HGTV Canada, follows real estate broker Brad …

LONDON, January 7: TV-Loonland and Martin Yaffe International are set to launch a new line of merchandise for the hit preschool property Little Princess, with the first range of products hitting stores at the end of February. The spring/summer products …