World Screen

BURBANK: The Walt Disney Company has agreed to acquire Maker Studios, a YouTube-based video supplier, for a total consideration of $500 million. Maker Studios has more than 55,000 channels, 380 million subscribers and 5.5 billion views per month. By acquiring Maker Studios, Disney will gain advanced technology and business intelligence …

LOS ANGELES: MarVista Entertainment has licensed the original movie Starving in Suburbia to Lifetime in the U.S., where it will broadcast on April 26. The TV movie stars Laura Wiggins of Shameless. The drama, also titled Thinspiration for the international market, tells the story of a 17-year-old dancer who joins …

CANNES: James Cameron directed and executive produced the doc series Years of Living Dangerously, which Electus International distributes. It follows A-listers such as Harrison Ford, Don Cheadle, Matt Damon and Arnold Schwarzenegger as they travel to various regions to see how humans contribute to climate change and how these changes …

NEW YORK: BBC America has ordered its first original comedy series, Almost Royal, about two young British aristocrats who make their first trip to the U.S. Almost Royal, a 7×30-minute series, is produced by Burning Bright Productions with Clive Tulloh (Eddie Izzard: Marathon Man, The Dame Edna Treatment) as executive …

LOS ANGELES: E! has unveiled a mix of reality, comedy, news, live events and even a scripted series as part of its upcoming lineup, which includes new spin-offs from the Kardashians franchise and a second season of #RichKids of Beverly Hills. New series on the roster include Escape Club, which …

LONDON: FremantleMedia has purchased a majority stake in the reality producer 495 Productions, which is behind the pop-culture hit Jersey Shore. FremantleMedia has taken a 75-percent stake, and will then have the option to acquire the remaining shares in the future. 495 Productions was founded by SallyAnn Salsano in 2006. …

NEW YORK: Aereo has filed its response brief with the Supreme Court, as it awaits its chance to present its case on April 22, with CEO Chet Kanojia saying that if the broadcasters succeed, the consequences to American consumers and the cloud industry are "chilling." The broadcasters already filed their …

NEW YORK: Just as it celebrates its 30th anniversary, A+E Networks heads to Cannes with a catalogue of original movies, docudramas and lifestyle series produced for its various pay-TV brands. The lineup’s highlights are 18 new original movies for the Lifetime channel, including Flowers in the Attic and its sequel, …

NEW YORK: AMC has revealed its latest development slate, which includes several dramas, an expansion into unscripted programming and its first scripted comedy. The network has given the go-ahead to a pilot of We Hate Paul Revere, exec produced and starring Ethan Sandler and Adrian Wenner. The series tells the …

LOS ANGELES/TORONTO: MarVista Entertainment and CCI Entertainment are planning to co-develop new programming together and also co-distribute select existing content. MarVista will co-distribute around 200 hours of CCI's catalogue, including factual and lifestyle series as well as movies and documentaries. The two will also be exploring co-production opportunities on a …