Video Age International articles from May 1998

Video Age International archives from May 1998

Latin American TV growth tied to democratura. (impact of democracy on television broadcasting industry)
May 1, 1998... To paraphrase the famous saying, the best of times can also be the most challenging of times, and this certainly seems to be the case for the 33 Latin American countries. On the one hand, Latin America is witnessing a cultural revival,...

Plaza construction deconstructs L.A. Screenings. (Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, California)
May 1, 1998... For some of the 60 companies that exhibited at the Century Plaza Hotel at last year's L.A. Screenings, this year's renovations are creating a big change. The hotel found itself with 240 fewer rooms available after it committed to housing the...

Azteca comes to America. (Mexico's TV Azteca)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... TV Azteca, Mexico's second largest television network, is looking to expand north of the border. According to Network President Ricardo Salinas Pliego, Azteca aims to tap into the United States' Spanish-speaking television community - which...

German giants avow innocence. (anti-trust investigation against television broadcasters Kirch Group and Bertelsmann)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... In a two-day antitrust hearing, media giants the Kirch Group and Bertelsmann defended themselves against European Commission charges of monopoly by claiming that the EC made "highly speculative" assumptions and failed to consider relevant facts...

Cinar duo's million-dollar deal. (compensations for Cinar Films' chief executive officer Micheline Charest and husband, President Ron Weinberg)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... The husband-and-wife team at the helm of Canada's Cinar Films took home a combined raise of roughly 25 percent for 1997. CEO Micheline Charest and her husband, President Ron Weinberg, both received $255,000 in salary and a $482,000 bonus; in...

Hong Kong cinema loses ground, grosses. (film industry)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... While phenoms such as John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat have upped their international profiles by moving to Hollywood, 1997 box office figures indicate that the Hong Kong film industry is in serious trouble. After a four-year slide in which foreign...

BCFM addresses growth. (award for Broadcast Cable Financial Management Association)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Herb Granath, senior vp at ABC and chairman of the board at ESPN, received the Avatar Award for outstanding contribution to the communications industry at the 38th annual Conference of the Broadcast Cable Financial Management Association (BCFM)....

Up the ladder. (promotion of television broadcasting executives)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... A&E Television Networks has appointed Michael Yorick to the position of director of European Affiliate Relations. In addition, the company has named Isabelle Hen-Wollmarker to the position of director of International Marketing. Jean Michel...

'Hurly Burly' at Telefilms. (television program; Telefilms of Argentina)(World)
May 1, 1998... Over the last six months, Telefilms of Argentina has purchased more than 200 movies, complete with rights for all Latin American countries. The new movies were acquired primarily through seven agreements with companies including Icon, Largo...

Banff comes to NYU. (Banff Television Festival at the New York University)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... The Banff Television Festival came to New York University in May for a half-day conference called "The State of Television - A Banff Perspective." After an address by Shaw Media President John Cassaday, the afternoon featured two panels:...

ChumCity-SheTV deal. (partnership between ChumCity International and Japanese television station, SheTV)(World)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... ChumCity International, Chum Television's distribution and development arm, has announced the sale of more than 300 hours of programming to SheTV, a Japanese staton devoted to women's programming. SheTV was launched on March 25 by Global Japan (a...

Beneath Mulholland: Thoughts on Hollywood and Its Ghosts.
May 1, 1998... A Handful of Gold Dust David Thomson made his name with A Biographical Dictionary of Film, his eternally exasperating guide to the lives and careers of nearly 1,000 movie folk. The tome, a bookshelf staple for cineastes, frequently allows the...

New season's conflicts with L.A. Screenings.(Markets)
May 1, 1998... Possibly, the entertainment divisions of the four U.S. TV networks don't even know what the L.A. Screenings actually are. What international TV executives call the L.A. Screenings, for most Americans the event moves exclusively on three different...

The changing landscape of TV dramas. (television)(Programming)
May 1, 1998... Broadcasting means having shows that appeal to a wide spectrum of people," said Don Ohlmeyer, president of NBC West Coast. And that's just what network executives are hoping for as they launch their drama pilots to the channel-surfing viewer....

Localized formats: a toehold in crowded markets. (television program formats)(Programming)
May 1, 1998... Over the last five years, the world's television landscape has experienced a sharp increase in local production. Some sources estimate this increase to be as high as 50 percent. Spurred by better ratings, the growth of private broadcasting and...

Cable's ready for the new season. (cable television programs)(Cable TV)
May 1, 1998... Cable TV programs for the upcoming season will compete with those of the networks as they try to develop new audiences, according to several cable TV executives. Although most cable TV shows premiere in the summer in order to get a jump on the...

Shifting terrain at the AFMA. (executive agencies at the American Film Marketing Association)(Movie Biz)
May 1, 1998... April 1 was the dawn of a new era for the American Film Marketing Association (AFMA). The new president, Allen "Mike" Frischkorn Jr., took the helm from reigning veteran Jonas Rosenfield, who had decided to step down after 15 years of service....

She got game: sports licensing welcomes women. (sports merchandising for the Women's National Basketball Association and American Basketball League)(Licensing)
May 1, 1998... In the locker room and in the licensing world, the definition of organized sports is changing faster than you can say, "You play like a girl." With athletic retail sales totaling nearly $15 billion a year and male-related merchandising "leveling...

U.S. TV nets need to make a profit. (financial status of television networks)(Business News)
May 1, 1998... The burning question: Cut programming costs, or make advertisers pay more? Pity the U.S. TV networks. Programming costs are rising, the networks' primetime share of viewers is declining, competitors are multiplying and digital TV is knocking....

MIP-TV... or was that the Cannes Film Fest? (France)(Markets)
May 1, 1998... Under the watchful eyes of the giant inflatable Smurfs floating surreally back and forth in the harbor of Cannes, the 35th annual MIP-TV went off without a hitch . . . but not without some The aisles of the Palais were busy for most of the...