Cable Television

America’s Most Edgy Channel: Viceland

Established in 1994 by Suroosh Alvi, Shane Smith, and Gavin McInnes, Vice Media Incorporated is a global youth media company that specializes in print, event, music, online, television, and feature film business, both domestic and internationally (“Vice Media Inc,” n.d.). The media company launched their only cable channel in 2016, called Viceland. Viceland is looking to capture the important 18-34 demographic by programming nonmainstream original content meant to relate to […]

Film Business, Uncategorized

New Regency: A New Formula for Hollywood Success

Regency Enterprises is an independent company involved both in the production and distribution of television and film. The company was Founded in 1991 by Israeli Billionaire Arnon Milchan. Milchan began his career by turning around his father’s chemical fertilizer company and creating a 125 million dollar enterprise from the once bankrupt business (Arnon Milchan). His business success eventually allowed Milchan to form his own production company that has since made […]

Broadcast Television

CBS Broadcasting: Making Money with a Big Bang

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) was founded in 1929 as a radio broadcasting company, to later become one of the three largest television networks (Erickson). At first, when they were entering the age of television, there were fewer homes using television (HUTs), making the market easier to measure. It was considered to be a luxury, which is why in this era, CBS was called the “Tiffany Network,” after the luxury brand Tiffany […]

Uncategorized

Pixomondo: Come and Dream with Me

In the Academy Award winning film Hugo (Scorsese, 2011), George Melies speaks to his audience, “My friends, I address you all tonight as you truly are; wizards, mermaids, travelers, adventurers, magicians… Come and dream with me.” When watching a Pixomondo product, the audience is invited to do just that: dream. They are invited to a visual experience that brings their most fantastical visions right before their eyes. Pixomondo is an international visual effects […]

Broadcast Television, Cable Television

Stream or be Streamed: ABC Studios Adjusts to the Future

ABC Studios is a major production company that works under the umbrella of the Disney-ABC Entertainment Group, owned by The Walt Disney Company (Investopedia, 2018, para 4). ABC Entertainment Group is one of the five largest companies (along with Marvel Entertainment, ESPN, Inc., Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, U.S., Inc., and LucasFilm Ltd., LLC) that belongs to Disney. ABC Studios is the primary content creator for ABC Entertainment Group and […]

Music Business

Jingles all the Way!

Jingle Punks, established in 2008, is a creative music publishing and licensing company. Jingle Punks, founded by Jared Gutstadt and Dan Demole with their business, is now serving a worldwide audience. The major services provided by Jingle Punks are creative and original music composition for television shows, video games, films, and advertisements. Jingle Punks was born out of a chance meeting at a Black Keys concert (CNN Money, 2010). A […]

Radio

Cumulus Media 3.0

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was a game changer in the broadcasting industry. It removed restrictions on ownership which transformed the industry from an oligopoly to a more competitive one (Economides, 1998).  Lewis W. Dickey Jr. and Richard Weening founded Cumulus Media in Milwaukee, Wisconsin as a result of this Act. Cumulus Media went public in 1998 and purchased 167 broadcast stations (Zoll, 2015). Their goal was to acquire stations […]

Film Business

Everything is Awesome at Animal Logic

The Company (A look at some of the company’s work.)   In August of 2018, Australian visual effects (VFX) giant Animal Logic, a VFX studio that has done major work on The LEGO Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and other major Hollywood blockbusters (“ALE Projects”, 2018; “Guardians,” 2018; “Avengers,” 2018), announced the launch of Truant Pictures, a subsidiary production company focused on live-action genre […]

Radio

Pandora’s Box: Unleashing Music to the Masses

The Beginning and the Basics Pandora Media is the country’s oldest and most influential internet radio platform. Its beginnings and success are grounded in one basic thing which is a passion for music. Founder Tim Westergren had a quandary almost 20 years ago: there are undiscovered musicians everywhere, but there was no way to listen to them anywhere, anytime. Westergren knew there was a way to get them noticed through […]

Broadcast Television, Cable Television, Film Business

Bad Robot Productions: A Small Company with Big Ideas

  “I know the idea of mystery and the idea of asking compelling questions – the key to any of that is having characters you believe and care about.”   Bad Robot is a film and television production company based out of an unassuming, three story building in Santa Monica, California. The thing that sets this company apart, however, is something that no other production company can duplicate: its founder […]