 |
Amazon is in the running to acquire Landmark Theatres, a chain that specializes in independent and foreign films, according to a report on Bloomberg. Amazon operates its own film and TV studio, and the acquisition is seen by some observers as a way for the company to get wider distribution of its film content. Netflix, also a producer of original content, is another company said to be interested in purchasing Landmark. Landmark is currently owned by Wagner/Cuban Companies, which is backed by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner. If a deal between Amazon and Landmark were to take place, its completion would be subject to an overturning of the so-called Paramount decrees, which prevent studios from owning the theaters in which their pictures are shown. Makan Delrahim, head of the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust division, said in a statement that “it is high time that these and other legacy judgments are examined to determine whether they still serve to protect competition.” News of the potential deal sent the prices of several cinema company stocks, including AMC Entertainment Holdings and IMAX, down on Thursday morning.
 |
New York Media, the owner of New York magazine as well as a stable of websites that include entertainment-focused Vulture, fashion and lifestyle site The Cut and food and restaurant site Grubstreet, says it is exploring a number of options to “develop the business.” One of those options might be to sell the company. Purchased by investment banker Bruce Wasserstein for $55 million in 2003, the company is now headed by his daughter, Pamela Wasserstein. In a note to employees, she said that “partnering to support acquisitions or other ways of growing might make sense.” Earlier this year, New York Media purchased comedy website Splitsider from The Awl Network. A Wall Street Journal report says that New York Media’s digital holdings drew 35 million unique visitors in June, nearly double that of the same period in 2017. The print publication reports a circulation of 404,000, according to the Alliance for Audited Media.
 |
Condé Nast is merging the UK and US editions of Condé Nast Traveler. Starting with the January 2019 issue, the magazine will be produced by an editorial team headed by the current editor of its UK edition, Melinda Stevens. Pilar Guzmán, editor-in-chief of the US edition, is to remain during a transitional period, but nothing has been said about her future role at the publisher. The staff of both magazines were informed of the strategy shift on Wednesday, and while it is unclear how many layoffs there will be, a company representative said changes to the overall team will be limited, according to a report on fashion-news website The Business of Fashion. “This announcement is the first title collaboration between the two divisions of the company and kicks off several new initiatives set to launch between Condé Nast and Condé Nast International, leveraging our global footprint,” said a statement issued by Condé Nast Britain, a division of Condé Nast International.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which has roots going back to 1786, is going out of business, the paper’s owners, Block Communications, announced on Jan. 7... GQ editor Will Welch is stepping down to take on a new Paris-based role with the musician Pharrell, who is also men’s creative director at Louis Vuitton... Semafor says it has raised $30 million on a $330 million valuation, following its first profitable year. 
The Walt Disney Company and OpenAI reach an agreement that will make a set of more than 200 animated, masked and creature characters from Disney, Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars available for use by Sora, OpenAI’s short-form generative AI video platform... CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss has moved Tony Dokoupil, a co-host at “CBS Mornings” since 2019, into the anchor’s chair for the “CBS Evening News,” following the departure of John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois... USA Today editor-in-chief Caren Bohan has left the paper.
Michael Kaminer, who was responsible for the Observer’s “Power List” for the past 13 years, has cut ties with the publication... The New York Times Company continues the march toward its goal of 15 million subscribers by the end of 2027... The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is providing more than $6 million in funding to eight organizations working to address the challenges local news and information environments face along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Conservative outlets Fox News, Newsmax and the Daily Caller are holding back from signing Pete Hegseth’s edict restricting press access in the Pentagon... CBS News sees the first executive departure of the Bari Weiss era as head of standards and practices Claudia Milne exits... Indiana University shuts down the print version of The Indiana Daily Student.
Rothschild family plans to unload 26.7 percent stake in The Economist... STAT, a digital media company that focuses the life sciences, brings back Damian Garde, who anchored its biotech newsletter and podcast from 2016 to 2024... High Times officially resumes print publication (following its 2024 shutdown) with the release of a limited-edition, collectible 50th anniversary issue. 
