English Entertainment
CTV acquires ‘Rising Star’ from Keshet DCP for summer 2014
MUMBAI: It’s social TV on a whole new level. CTV announced today it has acquired the exclusive Canadian broadcast rights to the much buzzed-about and sought-after new revolutionary reality series RISING STAR from Keshet International. The fastest-selling talent show ever and already a massive hit in its original Israeli market, RISING STAR is the first competition series ever to tally viewer votes in real time, making it truly interactive television. From the very first minute of the very first episode, viewers play an integral role in every decision made throughout the season via an innovative free app, available in both Canada and the U.S. From Keshet DCP and executive producers Ken Warwick (AMERICAN IDOL) and Nicolle Yaron (THE VOICE), RISING STAR skyrockets onto CTV’s summer schedule Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT beginning June 22 with a special two-hour premiere. The series will also be available live and on demand on CTV.ca and the CTV Go app.
RISING STAR sees aspiring singers – including solo vocalists, duos, and vocal groups – perform alone behind a giant wall of TV screens displaying the faces of viewers at home who have shown their support for the performance. As viewers, the judging panel, and the studio audience vote, competitors and viewers see how they’re doing in real time through a live vote meter. Once the competitors’ votes reach a certain level, the screen in front of them slowly rises and a new star is revealed.
**Media Note** – Download photos from RISING STAR at BellMediaPR.ca
“RISING STAR’s innovative format is truly revolutionary, compelling, and offers CTV viewers an engagement opportunity like never before,” said Mike Cosentino, Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks.
RISING STAR had a record-breaking debut on Keshet’s Channel 2 in Israel from September to December 2013, maintaining its audience throughout Season 1 as the highest-rated show in 10 of its 15 weeks on air. The series also saw over 10 million votes cast through the app. Now sold to more than 25 broadcasters and territories, RISING STAR is the fastest-selling talent show ever. The territories include the USA (ABC), UK (ITV), Spain (Atresmedia), Italy (Toro), France (M6 Group), Russia (Rossiya1), Germany (RTL), the Nordics (Nordisk), Hungary (TV2), Brazil (Rede Globo), Portugal (TVI), and most recently Argentina (Telefe), Turkey (Acun Medya), and Indonesia (RCTI).
English Entertainment
Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approve Paramount deal
Investors wave through a $111 billion megamerger but deliver a stinging, if toothless, rebuke over half-a-billion-dollar goodbye packages
NEW YORK: The shareholders said yes to the deal. They said no to the cheque. At a virtual special meeting on Thursday that lasted barely ten minutes, Warner Bros. Discovery investors voted overwhelmingly to approve Paramount Skydance’s $111 billion acquisition of the company — and then turned around and voted against the lavish exit pay packages lined up for chief executive David Zaslav and his fellow outgoing executives.
Not that it will make much difference. The compensation vote is purely advisory and non-binding. The Warner Bros. Discovery board can, and almost certainly will, pay out as planned.
But the symbolism stings. It is the second consecutive year that WBD shareholders have voted against the executive compensation packages, and this time they had good reason. Zaslav’s exit deal is, by any measure, extraordinary. Under the terms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, he is set to receive $34.2 million in cash severance, $517.2 million in equity in the combined company, and $44,195 in continued health coverage — a total of at least $550 million. On top of that, Warner Bros. Discovery has agreed to reimburse Zaslav up to $335 million for taxes assessed by the Internal Revenue Service on his accelerated stock vesting, though the company says that figure will decline depending on when the deal closes. As of March 11, Zaslav also held $115.85 million in vested WBD stock awards — and last month sold a further $114 million worth of WBD shares.
Shareholder advisory firm ISS recommended voting against the compensation measure, citing “problematic” tax reimbursements to Zaslav and the full vesting of his stock awards.
Zaslav will be bound by a two-year non-competition covenant and a two-year non-solicitation of customers and employees after the deal closes.
His lieutenants are not walking away empty-handed either. J.B. Perrette, chief executive and president of global streaming and games, is in line for $142 million, comprising $18.2 million in cash severance and $123.9 million in equity. Bruce Campbell, chief revenue and strategy officer, will receive an estimated $121.5 million, including $18.8 million in severance and $102.7 million in equity. Chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels is set for $120 million, made up of $6.6 million in cash severance and $113.1 million in equity. Gerhard Zeiler, president of international, will get $82.6 million, including $11.9 million in severance and $70.7 million in equity.
The deal itself, clinched in February after Netflix declined to raise its bid for Warner Bros., still needs regulatory clearance from the Justice Department and European authorities. Several state attorneys general are also weighing legal action to block it.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, was unsparing. “The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger isn’t a done deal,” she said after the shareholder vote. “State attorneys general across the country are stepping up to stop this antitrust disaster. We need to keep up this fight.”
If it does go through, the combined entity would be a formidable beast, bringing together Paramount Skydance’s stable — CBS, CBS News, Paramount Pictures, Paramount+, BET, MTV and Nickelodeon — with WBD’s portfolio of HBO, Max, Warner Bros. film and TV studios, DC, CNN, TBS, TNT, HGTV and Discovery+. Paramount has said it expects $6 billion in cost savings from the merger, which is Wall Street shorthand for mass layoffs on a significant scale.
The ten-minute meeting was presided over by chairman Samuel Di Piazza Jr., with Zaslav, Campbell, Wiedenfels and chief communications officer Robert Gibbs in virtual attendance. Di Piazza was bullish. “We appreciate the support and confidence our stockholders have placed in us to unlock the full value of our world-class entertainment portfolio,” he said. “With Paramount, we look forward to creating an exceptional combined company that will expand consumer choice and benefit the global creative talent community.”
Zaslav echoed the sentiment. “Over the past four years, our teams have transformed Warner Bros. Discovery and returned the company to industry leadership,” he said. “Today’s stockholder approval is another key milestone toward completing this historic transaction that will deliver exceptional value to our stockholders.”
Paramount Skydance struck a similar note. “Shareholder approval marks another important milestone towards completing our acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery,” it said in a statement, adding that it looked forward to “closing the transaction in the coming months.”
The shareholders have spoken on the merger. On the pay, they were ignored before the vote was even counted.
