Trade Articles

Disney’s Bob Iger throws tough questions to digital bigwigs, who give evasive answers

Bob Iger, the normally stiff Walt Disney Co. chief executive, showed that he could indeed work a crowd as moderator of the Hollywood Radio & TV Society’s newsmaker luncheon today at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel. Despite the old media moniker, the “newsmakers” were all digital dudes, including YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley, Hulu chief Jason Kilar, News Corp. Chief Digital Officer Jonathan Miller and Wired magazine editor-in-chief Chris Anderson -- suggesting what’s on Hollywood’s collective mind.
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Webheads mull monetizing Internet

MySpace seeks to stay ‘ahead of the curve’

Once-hot social network MySpace forgot to reinvent itself over time, News Corp. chief digital officer Jonathan Miller told a gathering of industry execs Tuesday.

Kicking off the Hollywood Radio and TV Society’s “newsmaker luncheon” series with a gathering of digital heavyweights, Disney CEO Bob Iger asked Miller point blank: What happened?
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How can media firms keep pace?

HRTS panel examines ways industry can adapt to change

What started as a panel discussion about how media companies make money off the Internet evolved into a discussion of how entertainment companies -- even such recent entrants as Google, Hulu and YouTube -- remain relevant as the pace of change accelerates.
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Industry Leaders View the Web as Moneymaker

Disney’s Iger, Hulu’s Kilar, YouTube’s Hurley muse at digital-media panel.

Will an Internet business model ever emerge that's as good as traditional old TV? That’s the question asked by Disney chief Bob Iger, moderating a panel of top digital-media executives Tuesday in Century City.

Answers from the all-star luncheon panel, convened by the Hollywood Radio and TV Society, differed broadly -- depending on who was asked.
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Digital Chiefs Envision “Freemium” Future Online

HRTS luncheon panel sees free-paid hybrid model for digital content

The ongoing debate over how to monetize digital media was the focus of the panel at the Hollywood Radio & Television Society’s Digital Chiefs Newsmaker Luncheon Sept. 8.
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#HRTS #DigitalChiefs: Hulu’s Kilar Loves Twitter Search

It would have been great to go to the Hollywood Radio and Television Society (HRTS) Digital Chiefs luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza with Bob Iger, Disney, Jason Kilar, Hulu, Jonathan Miller, News Corp, Chad Hurley, YouTube, and Chris Anderson, Wired, but I just couldn’t get down to LA today. So I did the very next best thing and tuned into the live streaming 12:45-2. Free for HRTS members and a fee for guests, live streaming truly is the next best thing to being there. I tweeted as fast as I could at #digitalchiefs (which was the announced hastag), eventhough later Jason Kilar urged the audience to check #hrts for the tweets. Hope they check #digitalchiefs too :) Here’s the summary:
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Reality TV offers ads no immunity

Future of 30-second spots questioned

Attendees got a dose of reality -- the uncertain future of advertising in nonscripted TV -- at Wednesday’s Hollywood Radio and TV Society luncheon.
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Reality wants in on ad action

Burnett calls for more involvement for producers

LOS ANGELES -- Mark Burnett called for reality producers to be allowed a seat at the table when network execs talk about their programming with advertisers.

During a gathering of reality hitmakers at a Hollywood Radio & Television Society luncheon in Beverly Hills on Wednesday, Burnett was asked by moderator Jeff Probst what is the most frustrating aspect of dealing with networks.
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HRTS Luncheon Panel: Reality Needs New ‘Alternatives’

Genre’s future depends on fresh concepts, better communication among producers, networks and advertisers

Reality TV is all grown up. But if the genre that got its start by being the “alternative” is going to keep playing with the big kids, producers and executives need to find what’s different all over again.
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HRTS’ “Broadcasting Reality:Show Me the Money!” Newsmaker Luncheon

Producer Mark Burnett (L), talk show host Tyra Banks and HRTS president Kevin Beggs attend The Hollywood Radio and Television Society’s Newsmaker Luncheon ‘Broadcasting Reality - Show Me The Money’ panel discussion on April 22, 2009 in Beverly Hills, California.
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Tyra & Paris At Luncheon!

Diva Tyra Banks, heiress Paris Hilton and her boyfriend Doug Reinhardt attended the Broadcasting Reality: Show Me The Money! Newsmaker Luncheon presented by HRTS at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Wednesday in Beverly Hills, California.
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Cable Chiefs: The Sky is Not Falling

Panel points to recent media earnings, content ownership, targeted brands and ad integration as reasons for optimism

A group of top cable network executives assembled in Los Angeles Wednesday exuded optimism in the face of the recession.

“I go to bed every night feeling like we’re going to figure it out,” says Doug Herzog, president of MTV Network Entertainment Group and a panelist at The Hollywood Radio and Television Society’s “Cable Chiefs Newsmaker Luncheon” at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel.
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