Fox, Disney, Warner Will Tap Streaming Sports Venture in TV Upfront (EXCLUSIVE)

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Netflix may be a new-tech company, but it approached advertisers Wednesday with old-school TV talk: The company aims to make dozens of shows and movies that people like to watch and talk about. During an upfront presentation, executives from the streaming giant showcased a msssuve pipeline of content that included two Christmas Day games from the NFL, a year of WWE matches and a new movie that features the return of Cameron Diaz, who will come-star with Jamie Foxx in “Back in Action.” “At a time when the competition is pulling back, we are investing,” said Bela Bajaria, the company’s chief content officer.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor The television industry’s annual “upfront” is usually a place where advertisers get to preview new series and specials, not blockbuster movies, so NBC raised eyebrows Monday when one of the first previews it showed to an audience at Radio City Music Hall was of the coming Universal film “Wicked.” NBCUniversal, chief content officer Donna Langley told the crowd, was “excited to build up our story legacy across film, TV and streaming.” Movies and premium cable series from HBO and Showtime used to be something traditional TV advertisers got their hands on only after they had made their way through theaters and pay-TV windows. Now, as a batch of this year’s upfront showcases reveal, they are increasingly being dangled before Madison Avenue as a major reason to support TV companies.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor The turmoil in TV and advertising has been reflected in a high level of turnover among top TV ad sales executives, so media buyers will be doing business with a number of new faces in this year’s upfront advertising sales market. Madison Avenue’s growing reliance on streaming video has given rise to a new array of top sales honchos. Jeff Collins is leading Fox Corp.’s efforts this year following the retirement of sales stalwart Marianne Gambelli.

Will Mellor discussed the notorious Strictly curse for the first time ever during a candid conversation with co-host Ralf Little on their popular show Two Pints With Will and Ralf. The duo treated fans to an engaging back-and-forth at Nottingham's Royal Concert Hall.The chat kicked off with Ralf teasing his friend: "I believe there's a thing called the curse of Strictly.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Amazon Prime Video isn’t waiting for the start of next week’s “upfront” to draw attention to women’s sports. The streaming giant said it has struck a sponsorship deal with AT&T that will have the telecommunications perennial serve as the lead sponsor for 21 WNBA games shown on Prime Video, and the presenting sponsor of the halftime show that airs during the service’s National Women’s Soccer League matches.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Mark Marshall has been given a lot of time to prepare for NBC Universal’s annual presentation to advertisers. Last year, he only had 72 hours.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery — ordinarily rivals for consumers’ time and money — are teaming up for a triple-play bundle of Disney+, Hulu and Max. The companies announced a new streaming bundle comprising Disney+, Hulu and Max will be available this summer in the U.S.

Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery are breaking ground in streaming with a bundled offering featuring Disney+, Hulu and Max in a single package.

EXCLUSIVE: We have one final addition to Ryan Coogler‘s supernatural thriller for Warner Bros, starring Michael B. Jordan: BMF‘s Christian Robinson.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor NBC is adding a new event to its coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics: Steve Kornacki in front of his big board. Kornacki, who is known for his deft on-the-fly analysis of political campaigns and races, will turn his focus for a short period of time to athletic competition in Paris as part of a cadre of NBC News journalists who will present some coverage of the extravaganza, Willie Geist, Sam Brock, Gadi Schwartz and Anne Thompson will also participate, with Kornacki offering analysis from the U.S., and his colleagues on the ground in France. The Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics is Friday, July 26 on NBC, Peacock, and Telemundo.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor NBCUniversal inked a deal with iHeartMedia making it the exclusive audio partner for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. Under the agreement, iHeart will provide 24-7 play-by-play audio channels for select NBCU linear coverage of the Olympic Games.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Fox Corp. said it swung to a profit in its fiscal third quarter despite slumps in advertising revenue, largely due to the absence of charges associated with a massive legal setback tied to Fox News Channel and a boost in affiliate fees.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Dale Earnhardt Jr. is changing vehicles. The legendary racer will leave NBC Sports’ NASCAR team, where he has held forth as a color commentator since 2018, in favor of lending his expertise to both Warner Bros.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Audiences may not be the only thing about TV that continues to shrink. Advertisers are expected to once again press for “rollbacks,” or declines in the rates they pay for reaching streaming and TV viewers, in early “upfront” talks with TV networks, according to five media buying executives and other people familiar with these annual discussions in which U.S. media companies try to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory ahead of their next cycle of programming.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Disney doesn’t think it’s going to foul in its drive to score a new pact with the NBA. Speaking to investors Tuesday, Disney CEO Bob Iger said the company was “optimistic or confident” that Disney would renew its agreement with the basketball league that would keep a sizable package of its games on ESPN and other Disney properties. Disney has also served as home to the NBA Finals, which typically air on the ABC broadcast network.

EXCLUSIVE: Following her breakout role as Shin Hati in the hit Star Wars series Ahsoka, Ivanna Sakhno has found her next big role. Sources tell Deadline she has landed a major part in M3GAN 2.0, a sequel to the hit film from Atomic Monster and Blumhouse in association with Divide/Conquer. She joins a cast that includes Allison Williams and Violet McGraw.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor These days, it’s never too early to start talking about the Super Bowl. Fox Corp’s 2025 broadcast of Super Bowl LIX is nearly a year away, slated to air Feb. 9 from New Orleans.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Fox Corp. has slimmed down since it sold the bulk of its cable and studio assets to Walt Disney Co. in 2019, but its new head of ad sales is eager to take on bigger rivals.

Love Island's Jessie Wynter has confessed that she would get engaged to her boyfriend Will Young in a heartbeat.The 27 year old met the 25 year old farmer on last year's series of Winter Love Island, where the pair's relationship blossomed during their time in the South African villa. Fast forward over a year, and Jessie, who is from Tasmania but lived in Sydney before Love Island has embraced her new life in the UK, after she decided to stay with Will on his Buckinghamshire farm following the show. Now, with their relationship going from strength to strength, Jessie has admitted that the pair have even talked about getting hitched.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Continued investment in streaming contributed to a first-quarter loss for Spanish-language media giant TelevisaUnivision, which is seeing the bulk of its growth come from its Mexican operations while U.S. revenue stays flat with year-earlier results. The company, which operates the Univision TV network, said operating expenses grew 16% during the first quarter, to $821 million, driven by continued investments in its ViX streaming service and the expansion of a third party ad-sales business in Mexico.