Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Says Company Wants to Resolve Strikes ASAP After Disclosing up to $500 Million Earnings Hit From Work Stoppages

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor MoffettNathanson, a leading Wall Street research outfit covering the media and communications sectors, is once again an independent entity. In December 2021, SVB Financial Group acquired New York-based MoffettNathanson, which was founded in 2013 by analysts Craig Moffett and Michael Nathanson. In March of this year, Silicon Valley Bank — part of SVB Financial Group — collapsed after a run on its assets, leading the parent company to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix is gearing up to raise the prices of streaming plans without advertising “a few months” after the SAG-AFTRA actors strike is resolved, according to a new report. The streaming service is “discussing” raising prices in “several markets globally,” and likely will first increase fees in the U.S. and Canada, according to a Wall Street Journal report, citing anonymous sources.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Actors union SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP concluded a full day of negotiations on Monday, the first time negotiators have been in a room together since the union declared a strike on July 14. While little details were shared about the talks, both sides plan to meet again this week. “SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP met for a full day bargaining session and have concluded.

Film extra Cristina Stanovici has detailed the severe injuries she suffered when she was hit by a speeding motorbike on the Glasgow set of the Batgirl movie.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Letterboxd has been acquired by Tiny, a Canadian holding company, in a deal that values the popular social site for film fanatics at over $50 million. Letterboxd was founded in 2011 by two entrepreneurs in New Zealand, Matthew Buchanan and Karl von Randow.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Jim Ryan, president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, is retiring next year after almost three decades with the company’s PlayStation business. Ryan will step down from the post in March 2024. Sony Group president, COO and CFO Hiroki Totoki will assume the role of chairman of Sony Interactive Entertainment effective October 2023.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor MrBeast continues to rake it in. The YouTube mastermind who has orchestrated dozens of over-the-top stunts and big-money giveaways pulled in an estimated $82 million over the past year — more than twice the earnings any other internet creator, according to a new Forbes report.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Shares of major media companies fluctuated on news that studios and streamers have reached a tentative agreement with the writers’ union on a new contract, potentially ending a strike that started in May. There are also hopes that a possible deal with the Writers Guild of America could set the stage for a similar pact with actors, who have been on the picket lines since July. The dual strikes have brought production to a standstill and could mean that several high-profile movies and shows are delayed.

according to Variety and other outlets. They called the new contract “exceptional” and said it would have “meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”“What we have won in this contract – most particularly, everything we have gained since May 2nd – is due to the willingness of this membership to exercise its power, to demonstrate its solidarity, to walk side-by-side, to endure the pain and uncertainty of the past 146 days,” part of the email from the WGA Negotiating Committee states, Variety reported.“It is the leverage generated by your strike, in concert with the extraordinary support of our union siblings, that finally brought the companies back to the table to make a deal.”The likely deal comes as both sides took part in intensive bargaining over the weekend.There were signs last week that the strike, which brought Hollywood to a halt for 146 days, appeared to be nearing the end when the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers issued a joint statement that they were back in talks.The Alliance represents studios, streaming services and producers in the negotiations.Union leaders met Wednesday with top studio bosses including Disney CEO Robert Iger, Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Warner Bros. Discovery is giving DC Studios a primary production hub at its U.K.-based TV and film studio Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, the home of HBO’s “House of the Dragon,” amid a sprawling plan to expand the location by more than 50% capacity and 10 sound stages.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Ari Emanuel reportedly made an offer that Elon Musk could refuse. Last year, Emanuel, chief executive officer of media and talent-representation conglomerate Endeavor, texted his friend Musk with an offer to take on the job of managing Twitter, according to “Elon Musk,” Walter Isaacson’s sprawling new biography of the techno-titan. Emanuel, in a three-paragraph text sent on the Signal encrypted messaging app, proposed that he and Endeavor would run Twitter (which is now called X) on Musk’s behalf, per Isaacson’s book.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor TikTok has been fined €345 million — about $367 million — by an Irish regulatory agency, which ruled the app violated the EU’s data-privacy laws with respect to processing information on children users. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC), in addition to the fine, ordered TikTok “to bring its processing into compliance” with Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) within three months.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Jason Kilar, who exited as CEO of WarnerMedia after Discovery closed the acquisition of the media company last year, has joined the board of directors of online game platform Roblox. Kilar’s appointment to Roblox’s board was effective Sept. 13.

Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels echoed recent sentiments from Netflix and other major TV and film producers, saying the industry must resolve the ongoing strikes and “get back to work.”

EXCLUSIVE: Fran Drescher is less concerned with meeting of several showrunners with WGA leadership this week and more concerned with studios and streamers getting back to the bargaining table to make a fair deal.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor The SEC charged a company called Stoner Cats 2 LLC — which produced an animated web series “Stoner Cats” funded by sales of NFTs that were priced at $800 each — with conducting an unregistered offering of crypto asset securities. The NFT sale of the Stoner Cats in July 2021 raised approximately $8 million to finance “Stoner Cats.” The voice cast of the “Stoner Cats” series included Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, Chris Rock, Dax Shepard, Gary Vaynerchuk, Jane Fonda, Michael Bublé, Seth MacFarlane and Vitalik Buterin.

When it comes to Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchise filmmaker David Yates returning to the Max TV series, he tells Deadline, “Never say never.”

Lee” to the Michael Keaton-directed thriller “Knox Goes Away”) given the uncertainty about what has been agreed to. Still, buyers seem impressed with what’s available to purchase.

At its Max streaming event earlier this year, Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed a new era is coming for Harry Potter fans. The company announced a TV series based on all seven books about the boy wizard written by J.K. Rowling. See below for the most current answers to the most important questions about the project.

David Zaslav said today that Warner Bros. Discovery had anticipated putting Hollywood strikes in the rear-view mirror this month, but with no end in sight, “We are really going to fight to get this resolved.”