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ENGLEWOOD: Blockbuster is officially ending its retail and by-mail DVD distribution operations in the U.S. by early January 2014. The company is set to close around 300 remaining U.S.-based retail stores as well as its distribution centers. The Blockbuster By Mail service will end mid-December; all existing customers will be …

NEW YORK: John Oliver, a comedian/writer known for his work on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, has signed on as the host of this year's International Emmy Awards Gala, which is taking place later this month. Since 2006 Oliver has been a writer and correspondent for The Daily Show …

SANTA MONICA: Revenue of $498.7 million for the second quarter at Lionsgate declined by 29 percent from the same period a year ago, mainly due to a tough comparison that included the home-entertainment release of The Hunger Games as well as timing of TV deliveries. Adjusted EBITDA of $56.5 million …

NEW YORK: Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks have a new long-term carriage agreement in place with A+E Networks covering channels such as A&E, Lifetime and HISTORY. The multiplatform pact sees the continued carriage of, among others, LMN, Bio., H2, HISTORY en Espanol, Crime & Investigation Network and Military …

LOS ANGELES: The international sales for the films Oculus and Somnia are to be handled by Sierra/Affinity. Oculus picks up ten years after an incident that killed the parents of two children. The movie, which stars Karen Gillian, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff and Rory Cochrane, was picked up by Relativity …

BEVERLY HILLS: John B. Penney, formerly the executive VP of strategy and business development at Starz, has become the company's new chief strategy officer. As chief strategy officer, Penney will be expected to help improve Starz's corporate and business growth strategies. He will develop an execute such strategic initiatives as …

LOS ANGELES: FOX has picked up Bordertown, an animated comedy about two families living on the U.S.-Mexico border from Family Guy's Mark Hentemann and Seth MacFarlane. The series, which has been given a 13-episode order, will take a satirical look at the cultural shifts occuring throughout America. The show is …

LAUSANNE: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has granted the broadcast rights in the Caribbean to CANOC Broadcasting Inc. (CBI) for the 2016 Games in Brazil. CANOC Broadcasting has won the rights for all media platforms for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The territories covered …

BEVERLY HILLS: Starz has replaced some of its existing Encore offerings with new channels geared toward African-American viewers and the Baby Boomer generation; the premium pay-TV service also added a new horror block and has moved Encore Español to a lower tier. Encore Black, which replaces Encore Drama, will offer …

LOS ANGELES: Showtime has revealed its upcoming programming schedule, which includes new seasons of the hit original series Shameless, House of Lies and Episodes. The fourth season of Shameless will premiere on Sunday, January 12 at 9 p.m. The season 3 debuts of House of Lies and Episodes will air …