A bipartisan group of US House lawmakers has introduced legislation aimed at curbing online piracy and counterfeiting on foreign websites, following the May 2011 introduction of similar legislation by the Senate. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (Republican, Texas) along with ranking member John Conyers (Democrat, Michigan) and Bob Goodlatte (Republican, Virginia), Chairman of […]
Paramount Pictures has inked a multi-year content deal for Germany with LOVEFiLM, Europe’s leading online entertainment subscription service. The agreement provides LOVEFiLM subscribers in Germany exclusive streaming access to Paramount titles during the first subscription TV window beginning this autumn. The deal gives LOVEFiLM members in Germany access to Paramount’s upcoming titles before any other […]
Warner Brothers has stopped supplying discs of its latest releases to Blockbuster after the DVD rental chain refused to agree to a 28-day delay between the films going on sale and their availability to rent. The move is the first step taken by Warner Bros to stimulate retail sales and make owning film content more […]
BBC Sport has agreed a three-year extension to its current contract as host broadcaster and UK rights holder, extending its relationship with the All England Lawn Tennis Club to 90 years. The new deal will continue to give audiences access to the tournament across all platforms including TV, radio, online, red button, mobile and tablet. […]
Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has called on the technology and creative communities to build on their partnership to keep the movie industry strong and combat the threat of piracy. Delivering the keynote address at the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers’ (SMPTE) Annual […]
BT has been given 14 days to block access to a website accused of promoting illegal filesharing “on a grand scale” by Hollywood studios, in the first high court ruling of its kind under UK copyright law. Justice Arnold handed down a written judgement to BT – which, with about 6 million customers, is the […]
Fox Networks has confirmed that Verizon FiOS TV and Mediacom subscribers will have access to FOX on Demand, and both providers are scheduled to offer Fox’s recently launched online authentication service. Verizon launched FOX On Demand on October 1, and Mediacom will be launching the service in the coming weeks. Fox On Demand offers viewers […]
Amazon is ramping up content investment in its London-based LOVEFiLM rental and streaming service, in addition to the Amazon Prime membership service offering free movie streams. In an analyst call, CFO Thomas Szkutak said management remained upbeat on its ownership in LOVEFiLM and rollout of movie streams for Amazon Prime subscribers. “We are happy with […]
A Moscow couple has been charged with distributing pirated movies over the Internet, contributing to estimated losses of $1.08 billion for studios and content owners. The charges, following a lengthy investigation, mark Russia’s first major Internet anti-piracy case focused on films. Russia’s deputy prosecutor general said the couple, working under the pseudonyms Ripper, Shturman, Nadezhda […]
Freesat, the subscription-free satellite TV service, has confirmed the addition of Argos TV shopping channel to its line-up of over 150 channels and on Demand TV. The Argos TV shopping channel is available immediately on Freesat Channel 819. Freesat’s Head of Channels, Mark Briggs said: “With the Christmas shopping rush approaching, we’re delighted to offer […]