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Tag: ABC News

  • Disney advances live streaming ad technology in the US

    Disney advances live streaming ad technology in the US

    MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Co has launched new advertising technology integrations to enhance live streaming monetisation on its platforms earlier this week. Advertisers can now programmatically bid on live inventory across Hulu and Disney+, including ESPN and ABC News content, through Disney’s proprietary ad server and Google’s Display & Video 360.

    Senior vice president of ad platforms Amy Lehman highlighted the advancement in ad technology, enabling automated workflows for live ad inventory. Senior vice president of addressable sales Jamie Power confirmed that platforms like Google’s DV360, The Trade Desk, Yahoo DSP, and Magnite are now certified to leverage viewership spikes during live events.

    The integration of Google’s Display & Video 360 instant deals via Disney’s real-time ad exchange (Drax) allows for rapid deal creation, streamlining the buying process. This builds on the existing Drax direct integration.

    Disney is also deploying dynamic ad insertion (DAI) for live events on Disney+, extending the technology already available on Hulu, to enable personalised ad experiences. Lehman emphasised Disney’s leadership in live streaming, combining technological expertise with ad technology to meet market demand.

    This move allows advertisers to target audiences during live events with increased efficiency and precision

  • Walt Disney bets big on virtual reality; invests in Jaunt

    Walt Disney bets big on virtual reality; invests in Jaunt

    MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Company is betting big on virtual reality and has invested in Jaunt – a cinematic virtual reality (VR) company.

     

    Jaunt has raised $65 million series C round of funding led by The Walt Disney Company; Evolution Media Partners – a partnership of CAA-backed Evolution Media Capital, TPG Growth and Participant Media; and Chinabased China Media Capital (CMC).

     

    The new investors will greatly expand Jaunt’s global reach, providing significant resources and relationships to help make VR the next mainstream content medium.

     

    Jaunt leads the industry in innovation through its unrivalled end-to-end solution for creating and distributing premium live-action VR. This latest round of funding will enable Jaunt to significantly scale up VR production, and advance their professional-grade camera hardware and software production tools, delivering content to the widest array of mobile devices and VR hardware in the industry.

     

    In addition, Jaunt plans to use the funding to significantly grow their teams in both their Palo Alto headquarters and their new Los Angeles studio.

     

    Additional new investors in the Series C round include leading European media companies ProSiebenSat.1 SE and Axel Springer SE, and The Madison Square Garden Company. They join existing participating investors that include Google Ventures, Highland Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Sky and SV Angel. 

     

    The new round brings Jaunt’s total funding to over $100 million. With these new additions, Jaunt’s investor group offers a global network of deep ties to the largest brands, franchises, talent and technologies, across all entertainment and media, as well as partners who add unique perspective and experience as Jaunt continues to expand and innovate.

     

    “This round further illustrates our commitment and dedication to advancing the scope of cinematic VR – for filmmakers, storytellers, and audiences alike. With the support of these world-class companies, we will explore new avenues, building on our leadership position to deliver amazing VR experiences using best-in-class tools, technology, and creative teams,” said Jaunt CEO and co-founder Jens Christensen.

     

    “Brands, artists, and creatives are looking to reach and interact with their audiences in new innovative ways, and Jaunt’s expertise provides a groundbreaking medium for exploring these new avenues. We look forward to working with Jaunt as they continue to pioneer in this space, giving them access to our wide-reaching network, and expanding on their distribution potential,” said Evolution Media Partners founder and co-managing partner Rick Hess.

     

    In recent years, advances in technology and mobile devices have made fully-immersive VR possible and accessible to the masses. Jaunt is at the forefront of this content revolution, and is partnering with the leading content creators as well as technology and media companies to take VR to the next level. Jaunt currently works with notable brands and creative artists including The North Face, Rebecca Minkoff, Condé Nast and ABC News, and is looking forward to building relationships with new and innovative creators across a wide variety of verticals.

     

    “We have been closely monitoring the evolution of video technology on the global horizon, and are excited about the potential for VR. It is having implications in areas such as film, television, games, sports, mobile, as well as other entertainment content and experiences where CMC has a profound connection and substantial engagement. Jaunt will be an important step in CMC’s foray into this global entertainment technology revolution,” said China Media Capital chairman Ruigang Li.

     

    “When Jaunt launched a little over 2 years ago, VR was the domain of a few enthusiasts like us. Fast forward to today, with the ability to view VR content on any current smartphone, and a half dozen head mounted displays launching in the next 12 months, the addressable number of users will instantly be in the millions, and quickly grow from there. We look forward to supplying great content to all those users and contributing to the success of VR as a new content medium,” said Jaunt chief business officer David Anderman.

     

    This funding comes on the heels of Jaunt’s recently-announced 5th generation patentpending camera system, officially named Jaunt ONE, which is built from the ground up for VR, and after two years of testing, pushes the limits of technological innovation. The company also announced Jaunt Studios earlier this year, a new arm of the company focused solely on developing, producing and collaborating on live-action virtual reality experiences from its LA studio.

  • ABC News bags National Edward Murrow awards at RTDNA

    ABC News bags National Edward Murrow awards at RTDNA

    NEW DELHI: ABC News has won 2014 National Edward R Murrow awards for excellence in radio and television at the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA).

     

    “This year’s field was the best we have ever seen,” said RTDNA chairman Chris Carl. “The entries gave our judges the luxury of a fantastic pool from which to select the winners.”

    The awards will be presented at the New York Marriott Marquis in New York City on 6 October, according to the RTDNA website.

     

    This year, RTDNA, which recognises outstanding work produced by radio, television and online news organisations around the world, awarded 98 National Edward R Murrow awards in 13 categories including Overall Excellence, Breaking News, Investigative Reporting and more. RTDNA received more than 4,000 entries during the 2014 awards season, surpassing 2013 by more than 500 entries and setting an all-time record for entries in what proved to be one of the most competitive season in RTDNA history.

     
    In the network radio division, ABC News Radio won the Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence, its first in eight years. It has been more than twenty years since ABC News has brought home Overall Excellence awards for both radio and television in the same year. ABC News Radio also won an award in the Breaking News category.

     

    For the sixth consecutive year, National Public Radio took home the award for Best Network Radio Website. NPR won two additional awards for Investigative Reporting and News Series.

     

    CBS Radio News won three awards in the same division – Continuing Coverage, Newscast, and Writing. Studio 360/WNYC/PRI (Feature Reporting), State of the Re: Union (News Documentary), American Public Media (Hard News), ESPN (Sports Reporting), and New York Public Radio/PRI (Use of Sound) each won one award.  

     

    The Washington Post won the Overall Excellence Award in the large online news organisation division as well as an award for Feature Reporting for the second year in a row.

     

    In the same division, The Boston Globe won three awards (Breaking News, Continuing Coverage, and Investigative Reporting). The Bay Area News Group (Use of Video), Time Magazine (News Documentary), The Dallas Morning News (News Series), The New York Times (Hard News), Yahoo! (Sports Reporting), and The Detroit Free Press (Website) also won awards in the large online news organisation division.

     

    Of particular note, this year, in the Small Market Radio division was KNAU – Arizona Public Radio, which pulled off a rare double win in News Series and Writing for its entry Building Hope In Haiti: Flagstaff Responds To Humanitarian Crisis.

     

    In the same television division, CBS News earned five Murrow Awards for Newscast, News Series, Feature Reporting, Investigative Reporting, and Writing.

     

    NBC News took the awards for Use of Video and Breaking News in the Network Television division.

     

    Univision Network News took the award for best network television website, while ESPN won for News Documentary and Sports Reporting.

     

    Overall Excellence award winners in 2014 are:
     
    •         ABC News (network television)

    •         ABC News Radio (network radio)

    •         The Washington Post (large online news)

    •         The Texas Tribune (small online news)

    •         WCVB-TV, Boston (television, large market)

    •         WBIR-TV, Knoxville, Tenn. (television, small market)

    •         WBEZ, Chicago (radio, large market)

    •         WDEL, Wilmington, Del. (radio, small market)

  • Titans of journalism ratchet up pressure on Egypt to #FreeAJStaff

    Titans of journalism ratchet up pressure on Egypt to #FreeAJStaff

    MUMBAI: Journalists from across the world commemorate the 100th day imprisonment of Al Jazeera English journalists.

     

    At the historic Paley Center in New York City, Al Jazeera English’s Executive Producer for Newsgathering in the Americas, Owen Watson, opened the press release with strong calls for the immediate release of Al Jazeera journalists in Egypt. Colleagues from the Associated Press, ABC News and The New York Times, Committee to Protect Journalists and sister-channel, Al Jazeera Arabic, joined him in solidarity.

     

    Jon Williams, Foreign Editor of ABC News, stated, “This is not Al Jazeera’s fight.  This is our fight as journalists.”

     

    Abderrahim Foukara, Al Jazeera Arabic’s Washington, D.C. Bureau Chief, made note of fellow colleague Abdullah al-Shami who has been detained since August of last year with no charges pressed. Al-Shami is currently on this 78th day hunger strike.    

     

    The press conference concluded with an announcement of the International Documentary Association’s letter of support.

     

    At Columbia School of Journalism, a Freedom of Press Symposium was held in partnership with the Dart Center, the Columbia Global Freedom of Expression and Information Project and the Columbia Global Centers l Middle East. The event highlighted the imprisonment of Al Jazeera journalists while reflecting on the changing geo-political landscape across the Middle East as well as press freedom.

     

    In London, Heather Allan, Al Jazeera English Head of Newsgathering participated in the BBC’s Safety of Journalists Symposium, hosted by BBC Global News and CFOM, the Centre for Freedom of the Media at the University of Sheffield, in cooperation with the BBC College of Journalism.

     

    Participants endorsed a statement which called for increased safety and protection of journalists, but also called on the release of the Al Jazeera staff: “Today also marks 100 days since the arrest and detention in Egypt of three respected and highly professional Al Jazeera journalists, Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed. No credible evidence has been produced to justify their imprisonment and prosecution. A number of other journalists have also been held in Egypt for extended periods without adequate access to justice. We call for the release of all those individuals and the freeing of more than 200 other journalists around the world who are now held behind bars only because they were doing their jobs. Journalism is not a crime; it is essential for a free and open society.

     

    Journalists across the BBC also took part in the social media #FreeAJStaff campaign, posting photos and messages of support for all four arrested Al Jazeera staff.

     

    Al Anstey, Managing Director of Al Jazeera English welcomed the support: “We are very grateful for the immense support of our staff to mark 100 days in prison, and from right around the world since they were detained in Egypt. The response has been amazing from the one minute silence outside New Broadcasting House organised by the BBC, to the press conference in New York. The response to their detention has been outstanding. Over 40,000 people have been actively involved in the campaign, events have been held in over 30 countries and in every continent, there have been over 900 million impressions of the FreeAJStaff hashtag, and there have been repeated calls for an end to the detention of our journalists from governments as well as media organisations from all corners of the globe. The campaign is focussed on the release of our four staff, but is fundamentally a stand in the defence of journalism itself, and a call for people everywhere to have a right to be heard and the right to know what is really going on in their world,” said Anstey.

     

    Since December 29th 2013 there have been calls for the release of all Al Jazeera staff detained in Egypt from the White House, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the European Union. Similarly public calls of support for the #FreeAJStaff campaign have been made from prominent media personalities like Christiane Amanpour from CNN, ITN’s Mark Austin, Channel Seven Australia’s Mark Ferguson, SKY news correspondent Sam Kiley and the BBC’s Lyse Doucet. Various media freedom and human rights groups have issued statements ranging from the Committee to Protect Journalist, the International Press Institute, Amnesty International and Foreign Correspondents’ Association of East Africa.

  • ABC News, Univision to launch first English news channel for Hispanics

    ABC News, Univision to launch first English news channel for Hispanics

    MUMBAI: ABC News and Univision News have entered into a multiplatform joint venture to launch an English news network targeted at the Hispanics in that country.

    The currently unnamed television channel is expected to launch in 2013. A website, mobile and social media content are expected to debut this summer.

    A management team will be announced this summer. The network will have anchors and correspondents in major cities across the U.S.Additionally, ABC News and Univision News will share newsgathering and production resources.

    The transaction is subject to the completion of definitive agreements. The landmark agreement.

    would capitalise on Univision’s news leadership and expertise in reaching U.S. Hispanics and ABC’s global news leadership to serve over 50 million Hispanics, the youngest and fastest-growing demographic in the U.S.

    The new 24/7 network will include America’s first English-language channel for English-dominant and bilingual Hispanics as well as integrated digital and social platforms.

    It will deliver news content focused on issues, lifestyle interests and culture of importance to Hispanics and will feature the trusted, award-winning journalists of ABC News and Univision News.

    “This exciting joint venture represents the latest example of our long-term strategy to broaden the reach of ABC. Our powerful premier news brand, combined with the world’s leading Hispanic media company, will create the nation’s first news and lifestyle channel targeted to this quickly expanding and important community,” said Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group.co-chair Anne Sweeney.

    Currently, Hispanics represent 16 per cent of the total population in the United States, a number that is projected to double to 30 per cent by 2050. Hispanics are the fastest growing segment of the population, wield considerable spending power of over $1 trillion, and have an increasing impact on social, economic and political trends.

    “For more than five decades Univision has been the leader in serving Hispanics in the U.S. and this joint venture is an extension of our vision to deliver the most relevant news and information, regardless of language, to all Hispanics,” Univision Networks president Cesar Conde. “This alliance combines the expertise and brand strength of Univision News with ABC News’ leadership and is another example of Univision’s commitment to serving and empowering Hispanic America while connecting all audiences to Latino issues.”

    The new channel will not compete against general news service providers like Fox News. It will target the Hispanics specifically and, besides news, will have lifestyle and wellness content.

  • ABC News gets Sherwood as new chief

    ABC News gets Sherwood as new chief

    MUMBAI: ABC News has roped in Ben Sherwood, the former executive producer of “Good Morning America”, as its new president.

    Sherwood will replace David Westin, who announced his departure in September after spending 14 years with the organisation.

    This will be Sherwood’s third tenure with ABC News. He had left the organisation in 2006 to concentrate on writing books.   
         
      Sherwood first joined ABC News in 1989 as a producer for “PrimeTime Live,” then moved to NBC in 1997 as broadcast producer of the “NBC Nightly News,” and then returned to ABC in April 2004 as EP of “GMA.”

    One of Sherwood’s prime tasks is to figure out how to make the news relevant to the young audience who has drifted away from the television news as they move closer to the Internet. Sherwood takes over a news division ravaged by staff cuts and is currently No. 2 behind NBC in the mornings and evenings.

    Sherwood’s novel, “The Death of Charlie St. Cloud,” was made into the big-screen movie, “Charlie St. Cloud,” which premiered last summer.

  • Fox News signs fresh multi-year contract with Chris Wallace

    Fox News signs fresh multi-year contract with Chris Wallace

    MUMBAI: Fox News has signed a multi-year contract with Chris Wallace to continue anchoring Fox News Sunday.

    However, the specific length and financial terms of the contract were not disclosed.   
         
     Wallace will be covering the changing balance of power in Washington, the 2012 presidential election and beyond.

    Wallace‘s hour-long show that airs at 9 in the mornings on Sundays on Fox‘s broadcast net and re-airs later on Fox News Channel, predates FNC and shares some of its personalities with the cable, including Brit Hume and Juan Williams.

    Washington-based Wallace will continue to contribute to political and election news coverage for Fox News. Last month Fox‘s news division secured FNC anchor Shepard Smith till the next presidential election and also renewed commentator and talk show host Laura Ingraham‘s contract earlier this month.

    Before joining Fox in 2003, Wallace worked for 14 years at ABC News, where he held the post of senior correspondent for Primetime and was a substitute host for Nightline. His career in the news biz extends back to his teen years, when he worked as an assistant to Walter Cronkite during CBS‘ coverage of the 1964 Republican National Convention.
     

  • ABC News to shorten staff by 25 per cent

    ABC News to shorten staff by 25 per cent

    MUMBAI: ABC News, a Walt Disney Company, will shortly reduce its news-gathering staff through buyouts and layoffs. 

    Employees of the company fear that the cutbacks would affect 300 to 400 people of the news division.

    A spokesman said that the cuts at ABC are among the steepest ever made at a network news division. The current workforce of ABC News is roughly around 1,500 people.

    Said ABC News president David Westin in an interview that the reductions were an effort to get ahead of economic pressures squeezing the broadcast business.
    Calling the cutbacks as a “fundamental transformation”, Westin said, “The time has come to rethink how we do what we are doing.” 

    Westin also said that the news division was not in extreme economic duress. “ABC News has always kept its head above water, even in really bad times,” he said.

    He, however, did not comment on reports that the goal was a 20 per cent cost reduction across the board at ABC News. 

    For decades, the network news divisions have suffered audience erosion, the result of competition from cable, the Internet and changing consumer habits. 

    Earlier this month CBS News, said that it was laying off dozens of employees. 

    ABC plans to combine its weekday and weekend staffs of “Good Morning America” and “World News,” and rely more heavily on freelancers for newsmagazines like “20/20.” 
    The network will also further reduce its news bureau structure by replacing some bureaus with more flexible so-called digital journalists who work on their own in foreign capitals.

  • UTVi in content tie up with Business Standard

    UTVi in content tie up with Business Standard

    MUMBAI: UTVi, the soon to be launched English business news channel, has announced a content tie-up with financial daily Business Standard.

    Aimed at augmenting the news content supply, UTVi will air BS Wire, BS Alerts and BS Breaking News along with the business bytes throughout the day, based on the merit of the news.

    The strategic alliance will help UTVi to keep its audiences updated with the latest developments on the business news front, with inputs from Business Standard bureaus. 

    Business Standard editor TN Ninan says, “We are happy to partner with UTVi in this venture. This alliance gives us an excellent opportunity to combine the quality content of a business newspaper with the immediacy of television news.” 

    UTVi will get into the Business Standard news room to showcase senior journalists and subject experts. The views of these journalists and experts will be captured on air through programs such as a stock market preview in the morning, an edit page review or overview, and news items like “Tomorrow’s Headlines Tonight”.

    The business channel can also showcase Business Standard’s research information. Business Standard in turn will publish extracts of interviews and stories telecast on UTVi , as well as occasionally print the highlights of big shows and interviews shown on the channel. 

    UTVi editor-in-chief Govindraj Ethiraj says, “We see considerable synergy and learning for us.” 

    UTVi already has a strategic content tie-up with Disney-ABC International Television (Asia Pacific), the international TV distribution arm of The Walt Disney Company, for ABC News programming and services.

  • CNN expands newsgathering operations in UAE

    MUMBAI: Continuing its growth and investment in international newsgathering, CNN Worldwide has begun expansion in its operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This includes the appointment of a new international correspondent, a new bureau chief and the opening of an office with full broadcast and production capabilities in the capital city of Abu Dhabi.

    The expanded operation in the UAE combines broadcast production facilities in the new Abu Dhabi Media Zone, with increased newsgathering operations set up alongside an existing editorial team for the CNNArabic.com. In addition to the expansion into Abu Dhabi, CNN also retains its base in Dubai, which has an increased newsgathering role for CNN alongside the main CNNArabic.com operation.

    This expansion of operations in the UAE is instrumental in developing the network’s coverage of the Gulf region and beyond, and supports current CNN bureaus in Baghdad, Beirut, Cairo and Jerusalem.

    As part of that expansion, a Middle-East correspondent for ABC News, Wilf Dinnick, becomes an international correspondent for CNN. Samson Desta, who becomes bureau chief, formerly worked as a supervising editor on CNN’s International Desk.

    CNN International executive VP, MD Tony Maddox says, “This is a major step forward for CNN as we ramp up our newsgathering capabilities around the world. Besides, the UAE is the perfect location for an operation of this kind both editorially and logistically. This announcement comes quickly on the heels of the details that we recently released about additional resources in India, Korea and Japan. In the coming weeks, we will announce new editorial operations in Africa and parts of Europe.”

    These new appointments and extended resources are all part of CNN’s on-going and major investment programmes in both newsgathering and editorial resources to generate and own more content for all of its platforms.

    As bureau chief, Samson Desta will be the co-ordinator of coverage from both offices and will oversee the building of the infrastructure in key countries in the region, notably Afghanistan, Pakistan and parts of Africa, as well as across the Middle East. Desta, who has been with CNN for more than 10 years, moves into this new role after serving as supervising editor on CNN’s International Desk, where he played a central role in co-ordinating coverage around the world for all of CNN’s networks and services. Major stories include international reaction to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the tsunami in South Asia and the death of Pope John Paul II.

    Joining CNN as the new UAE-based international correspondent, Wilf Dinnick comes from ABC News, where he served as a Middle-East correspondent. Prior to that, he worked for Canada’s Global National, CBC and CTV.

    Dinnick has covered Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, the South Asia tsunami, Haiti, the Ukraine and many other top stories in recent years. He will support CNN’s editorial needs across the region, which includes Afghanistan, Pakistan, parts of Africa and the Middle East.