Discovery

Discovery+ Goes Free On Sky Discovery+ is to become available on Sky for free in the UK and Ireland. The Warner Bros. Discovery streamer, which was initially £6.99 ($8.50) a month, will be integrated within a subscription – a move that solidifies Sky’s position as the major UK aggregator of U.S. streaming content. Sky TV customers with a discovery+ Entertainment pass will be automatically upgraded to the Entertainment and Sport service for free, giving them access to the likes of Australia Open tennis, the Tour de France and entertainment shows such as Peter Crouch: Save Our Beautiful Game and Beauty and the Geek. Sky TV Managing Director Elizabeth Wynn said “value is incredibly important right now,” coming as the UK enters recession and people shed costly TV subscriptions. In the UK, Sky now offers up packages featuring Netflix and Comcast streamer Peacock, as well as discovery+. The newly-combined HBO Max Discovery streamer is set to launch later this year but Sky has … [Read more...] about Discovery+ Goes Free On Sky; Woodcut Hires Meriel Beale; Netflix Doc Talent Fund – Global Briefs

Warner Bros Discovery and the European Broadcasting Union have won the auction for Olympic Games broadcasting rights between 2026 and 2032. Following a competitive tender put out by the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ), the pair’s joint bid was successful and will take the rights in 49 territories. This covers the Olympic Winter Games in Milano Cortino in 2026, the Olympic Games in L.A. in 2028, the Winter Olympics of 2030 and the Brisbane Olympics in 2032, along with the Youth Olympic Games during the six-year period. WBD, in its previous guise as Discovery, first won the rights to the rights to the Games in 2015 in a €1.3BN ($1.4BN) deal struck through subsidiary Eurosports for the 2018-2024 period. It then broadcasted or sub-licensed those rights across the continent. The deal guarantees the Games will remain free-to-air across Europe, ensuring every EBU member gets more than 200 hours of coverage of the Olympics and 100 hours of the Winter Olympics … [Read more...] about Warner Bros Discovery And EBU Land Olympic Games Broadcasting Rights In Europe

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is handing many of its UK and Ireland staff a one-off payment of £1,000 ($1,200) to help combat the cost of living crisis . All central WBD staff who earn under £60,000 ($73,000) have received the one-off lump payment and will get a free lunch once a week until April and other benefits, we’ve learned. The move doesn’t cover those hired for production therefore staff at WBD Television’s UK subsidiaries such as Wall to Wall and Twenty Twenty won’t benefit. WBD declined to state how many would benefit from the measures but said it would be a “considerable number of employees.” The UK’s cost of living crisis has been biting hard, and media companies have been wrestling with how to help their lower-earning workers as inflation rockets. Sky gave 70% of its staff a £1,000 bonus over two instalments, with the second of those landing in bank accounts this month. WBD’s payment will be in a single tranche. “We want to help those most … [Read more...] about Warners Bros Discovery Gives “Considerable” Number Of UK And Ireland Staff $1,200 Payment To Help With Cost Of Living Crisis

Antony Root , the long-serving HBO Max EMEA original programming chief, is to exit his role at Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and retire from the industry. Root will leave his post at the end of March ahead of the launch of the merged HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming service. Root has spent 11 years as Executive Vice President of HBO Europe and later HBO Max EMEA after joining from Sony Pictures Television. Last year, his originals team were halted in their tracks when WBD decided HBO Max would stop ordering shows in most of Europe – a decision one source described as “the end of an era.” Most of Root’s European commissioning and production team were later let go, as Deadline revealed in August, but he stayed on. Deadline hears he has been travelling extensively in recent months to visit the remaining local staff. WBD did not discuss succession plans. Long Career At HBO Root commissioned more than 1,000 episodes of scripted, documentaries and unscripted … [Read more...] about HBO Max EMEA Original Programs Chief Antony Root Retiring From Warner Bros. Discovery

More than 200 BT Sport staff who transferred to the company’s joint venture with Warner Bros Discovery in the UK and Ireland are at risk of redundancy. Their current roles have been dissolved and they can now apply for new positions or leave the business. The staff were informed through a Zoom call and consultations with representatives of BT Sport have begun, as first reported by SVG Europe. An unspecified number are expected to take new roles at the JV, as will be given priority for the positions, according to a JV spokesperson. This comes after Warner Bros Discovery and BT Sport formally launched their JV in September. This brought Eurosport and BT Sport together, with Warner Bros Discovery leading the day-to-day management of the operation. The redundancies and planned staff changes are the result off BT Sport’s lease at offices in Stratford, East London expiring. Staff are now moving to Warner Bros Discovery’s bases in other parts of London. “A consultation … [Read more...] about BT Sport Staff Who Joined Warner Bros Discovery JV Put At Risk Of Redundancy

Ken Lowe , former CEO of Scripps Networks Interactive, is joining the Warner Bros Discovery board of directors . The exec, who will replace departing board member Robert R. Bennett on April 2 pending a shareholder vote, is a familiar figure to the management team at WBD. Discovery, prior to its merger last year with WarnerMedia, acquired Scripps and its portfolio of lifestyle networks including HGTV and Food Network. Lowe served on Discovery’s board from 2018 until the close of the WBD deal last April. Lowe was chairman and CEO of Scripps Networks Interactive from its split with The E.W. Scripps Company in 2008 until its sale to Discovery in 2018. He was president and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Company from 2000 until 2008. Prior to 2000, Lowe was chairman and CEO of Scripps Networks. In an SEC filing, WBD said Lowe’s “expertise in the media industry and experience as a public company executive, as well as his experience in the areas of integration and transformation … [Read more...] about Warner Bros Discovery Names Ken Lowe, Former Scripps Networks Interactive CEO, To Board Of Directors

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros. Discovery is looking to take Puppy Bowl to another level as a live television event by simulcasting it across linear networks and streaming platforms from both sides of the merged company. In its first post-merger edition, Puppy Bowl will run on its home network, Animal Planet , where it has been a staple for 19 years, as well as on TBS , the unscripted-leaning brand of the TNets, Discovery Channel as well as soon-to-be-combined Discovery+ and HBO Max . Last year, Puppy Bowl XVIII streamed on Discovery+ in addition to its Animal Planet run; the event’s footprint has been vastly expanded this year by adding networks, TBS and Discovery, as well as a streamer, HBO Max, with wider reach. “The puppies are taking over, and the epic battle between Ruff and Fluff is now too big for one network,” the promo for the simulcast says. (You can watch it above.) The stunt comes on the heels of big marketing campaigns across the entire WBD portfolio … [Read more...] about Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl To Be Simulcast On Discovery Channel, TBS, HBO Max & Discovery+ In WBD Synergy Move

The Oscar nominations this week set off a new round of speculation about corporate image: Does it matter that Netflix ’s potential Oscar take had dropped to 16 from 36 in 2020? “I don’t give a f*ck about my corporate image and companies shouldn’t waste their time worrying about their’s.” Those were the words of Martin Davis, the only press agent ever to become CEO of a major media company. Davis’ behavior in the ‘90s reflected his views: During his decade-long tenure at Paramount, the company endured a succession of public brawls and setbacks. The Davis Doctrine is worth pondering today given the stalwart efforts of entities like Netflix, Disney and Warner Bros Discovery on image enhancement. Under Bob Chapek, Disney spent $8.3 million to reward its newly recruited PR chief, Geoff Morrell, for his stint on improving the company’s corporate image. Morrell’s four-month tenure culminated in his firing and, later, that of his boss prior to the re-anointment of Bob … [Read more...] about Peter Bart: Big Media Honchos Hunt For Ways To Accentuate The Positive In Turbulent Moment

EXCLUSIVE : And then there were none. Snowpiercer , the only remaining original scripted series on TNT , is done on the Warner Bros. Discovery network. The post-apocalyptic drama’s completed fourth and final season will not run on the basic cable network as previously announced. The move is believed to be part of the tax write-offs for content at WBD. I hear the studio behind it, Tomorrow Studios , is currently shopping the new season, along with potential prequel and sequel, with the goal to build a franchise. “We can confirm that TNT will not air season four of Snowpiercer ,” a spokesperson for the network said in a statement to Deadline. “This was a difficult decision, but our admiration for the talented writers, actors and crew who brought Snowpiercer ’s extraordinary post-apocalyptic world to life remains strong. We have been working collaboratively with the producers since last year to help the series find a new home where fans can continue to enjoy the compelling … [Read more...] about ‘Snowpiercer’ Season 4 Won’t Air On TNT, Final Season Shopped By Tomorrow Studios Along With Potential Offshoots

TMZ.com Lawmakers may now be paying more attention to UFO sightings, but that doesn't mean they should lead the charge in investigating cases ... according to a Harvard physicist, who says it's time for scientists to take the reins. Avi Loeb was on "TMZ Live" Friday to discuss the growing threat of UFOs ... especially since a recently-released report from the U.S. Government revealed there had been 500+ UFO reports as of August 2022. And, only 1 was able to be explained from last year. He believes the government likely doesn't know much about the objects they're observing, and is mostly concerned with national security -- determining if the objects are from another country. Loeb says it should be in the hands of scientists to collect their own data with instruments they can monitor and take that information to share with the public. In his own words, if just 1 report is of alien origin it will be the most important discovery humanity has ever made. … [Read more...] about Harvard Physicist Avi Loeb Says We Shouldn’t Ask U.S. Gov. For Data On UFOs