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Due April 7 [|A Growing Population, and Target, for Marketers] By Stephanie Ramirez.

Telemundo Network which is part of NBCUniversal has decided to team up L'O'real USA to create a website called Club de Noverleras. This website will feature information on novelas (Spanish soup operas) while promoting L'Oreal products which include Garnier, L'O'real Paris, Matrix and Maybelline New York. The website will broadcast the Telenovelas so their audience will be able to view them online just like the other major networks do. Both Telemundo and L'O'real have realized the Hispanic population has increased over the years and are becoming an important target group. They now account for about 16 percent of today's population and it continues to grow. The goal of the website is to create communities and to achieve this they will allow fans to interact with other fans. "The Web site is being advertised in multiple outlets that are part of NBCUniversal, in what is known as cross-promotion."

[|Fox and NBCU test clip-sharing service] By Anna Drozdoff

Fox and NBCU are now allowing viewers to share video clips across social networks like Twitter and Facebook by using a software called SnappyTV. This was tried by a different company a few years ago, but they were sued for copyright-infringement. SnappyTV however is using a more structured approach in that its network clients can set the parameters for how many times footage can be captured for viewing along with how long the clips are. In the era of social network, SnappyTV has proven to be pretty effective, because fans are doing the work by promoting these shows that air on Fox and NBCU.



[|The taxi’s of the future] Mallory Sharp 

Leave is to the rapidly growing Mumbai to be one of the pioneers in making one of the most common forms of travel more luxurious. A fleet of taxi firms in Mumbai recently announced their plan to make a simple cab ride into a ride fit for even the top executives. This will be the first in-cab entertainment facility of its kind for the country. These taxis will have screens in headrests, much like cars here in America, but they will be touch screen. They will also have wireless internet access from all cabs so whether you’re looking to catch up on your soaps or send out a memo to the office, your wishes can be accomplished with ease. It will also have access to video games and flight information. This is interesting because it could open up a whole market for entertainment TV. While they are looking to host the normal lineup of channels, there is room here to create entertainment TV specifically geared for those traveling. It also would help in reaching a niche market that may spend valuable hours commuting by cab. The question this then raises is how this will be accounted for ratings-wise. Will the screens be on all the time or will they be turned on per passenger request? Only time will tell. In the mean time, sit back and enjoy the ride.

[|Dish Wins Court Approval for $320 Million Blockbuster Deal] By: Alyson Fargher



Dish Network’s $320 million buy-out of Blockbuster was approved by a bankruptcy judge in court this week. Blockbusters customers had been steadily declining ever since the popularity of Netflix and Redbox came about which ultimately led to their bankruptcy. Dish plans on using Blockbusters multi-channel offering business plan to ultimately compete with the popular Netflix and in turn drive in more customers. Since the decision became final however Dish’s stocks have fallen. It will be interesting to see if there is a shift in both television provides as well as movie rental services.

[|Hulu eying half a billion in sales this year] by: Sarah Chere The president of Hulu has set figures for the future based on figures from this year. Revenue has shot up 90% compared to last years quarter and took in sales of $263 million for 2010. Hulu did start off with a bumpy road with its initial price tag of $ 9.95, including ads. Many users also complained that there wasn’t even a big enough selection when compared to the new company Netflix. Therefore Hulu was forced to drop their price to $7.99 for Hulu Plus. Hulu has increased its number of content partners to 264, however they have lost some major companies such as Viacom who broke things off early last year. There are also rumors about tension between Hulu and its owners, NBC Universal, Disney, and News corp. about key aspects of Hulu’s basic business model, such as how much of the content should be free.

Youtube Superstar 'FRED' is Back - In 3d!



'FRED,' or Fred Figglehorn is a character created by teen actor Lucas Cruikshank who is supposed to be a hyperactive little boy who gets himself into mischief and mayhem. His career began on Youtube and has developed into something much bigger. LIONSGATE has signed on 'FRED' to create a 3D movie, NIGHT OF THE LIVING FRED. This reiterates the idea that the internet has become a gateway for television entertainment. A small wed series like 'FRED' can no development into a major motion picture. [|Watch an episode of 'FRED']

Update by Jaime Stein



[|Netflix to lose some Showtime content on its streaming service] Updated by Cynthia Haro

As if Netflix does not have enough up and coming competition to worry about, some of its devoted allies, like the premium cable channels Showtime and HBO, are no longer renewing their contracts. And in addition to their lack of contribution to Netflix's successful industry, these channels are now adding their own Internet video streaming to the mix. Hoping to sign up and retain subscribers, cable channels are now planning to use some of their more popular programs as bait, shoving aside Netflix as they do so. It has become enough of a dog eat dog world in the entertainment industry that while Netflix seemed harmless enough in the beginning, its growing success scared enough corporations to muster up their own creative ideas to bring on more customers. As for what this is going to do or change in the TV entertainment industry, we will see whether Netflix will lose enough of its entertainment and subscribers to go under or if its continuity will keep it afloat.

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