09-09-09
Ellen DeGeneres joins 'Idol' as fourth judge
Talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres has joined "American Idol" as the show's fourth judge.
DeGeneres will join Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi on the show's upcoming ninth season.
“I’m thrilled to be the new judge on 'American Idol,'” DeGeneres said in a statement. ”
I’ve watched since the beginning, and I’ve always been a huge fan.
So getting this job is a dream come true, and think of all the money I’ll save from not having to text in my vote.”
DeGeneres will join the judges’ panel after the auditions, which will include guest judges Victoria Beckham, Mary J. Blige, Kristin Chenoweth, Joe Jonas, Neil Patrick Harris, Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry and Shania Twain.
“I could not be more excited to have Ellen join the 'American Idol' family,” said creator and executive producer Simon Fuller.
“Ellen has been a fan of the show for many years, and her love of music and understanding of the American public will bring a unique human touch to our judging panel.
I can’t wait for this next season to begin.”
"She is truly one of America’s funniest people and a fantastic performer who understands what it’s like to stand up in front of audiences and entertain them every day," said Fox president of alternative Mike Darnell.
"We feel that her vast entertainment experience – combined with her quick wit and passion for music – will add a fresh new energy to the show.”
The news also means former judge Paula Abdul has officially been replaced following weeks of speculation about whether she would return to the show
Comcast interested in content, cable systems
But major entertainment acquisition unlikely says COO
By Georg Szalai
NEW YORK --
Cable giant Comcast Corp. is interested in content and cable systems acquisitions, but a play for an entertainment biggie is unlikely, COO Stephen Burke signaled Wednesday.
Some on Wall Street have recently wondered if Comcast could once again go on the hunt for a major entertainment deal like when it made a surprise bid for Walt Disney a few years ago.
However, the executive shrugged off the likelihood of another Comcast run at Disney without using the company's name.
Speaking at the Bank of America -- Merrill Lynch Securities Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference in Marina Del Rey, Calif.,
Burke said "content and distribution work well together," pointing to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.'s use of BSkyB and John Malone's Liberty Media's asset mix as examples.
"There are a lot of case studies...you really can create a lot of value by putting content and distribution together," especially if it is cable network content, he said.
Particularly given that cable networks have been among the best businesses in the media and entertainment space in the recession due to their dual revenue streams, it would be wrong not to get bigger in the networks space if a deal that makes financial sense was possible.
"If the opportunity came about...I think we'd do it," Burke said.
However, he immediately added that he doesn't expect a $50 billion acquisition.
Disney's market cap as of the market close on Tuesday stood at $49 billion.
Burke also said after the recent elimination of an FCC ownership cap that restricted a cable company from controlling more than 30% of U.S. homes, Comcast remains open to buying more cable systems, but feels no increased urge.
"We'd like to get bigger in cable if the economics were right," he said.
But "we don't wake up every day thinking how do we get bigger in cable."
Burke also said Wednesday that Comcast has seen cable systems advertising trends improve some in recent months.
"There is some ground for optimism," he said.
"There are signs that the big car companies are starting to spend a little bit more now.
"It is "too early to say eureka," he argued, "but it certainly is better than it was."
LAYOFFS MAY BECOME GOOD THINGS FOR YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS:
Jeff Mann had already escaped one round of layoffs, just barely.
Less than 24 hours after being told that he was being let go -- enough time to pack up his desk and send a farewell e-mail to colleagues -- he received news that his position in video promotion and strategic marketing had been saved.
But he wasn't so lucky in February.
He and several colleagues were laid off as their employer, a major record label, adjusted to the economic challenges facing the country.
Call it Beatlemania 2.0
Call it Beatlemania 2.0
Remaster sales projected to exceed 500,000 in a week
By Ed Christman, Billboard
NEW YORK --
Could a band that broke up in 1970 really become the best-selling act of the current decade?
The Beatles might just pull it off, thanks to EMI Music's release of the Fab Four's remastered catalog Wednesday.
Eminem reigns as the best-selling artist of the 2000s, with sales of 32 million albums in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan, followed by the Beatles with 28.2 million.
The Eminem catalog is sure to pick up more sales by year's end, thanks in part to the continued strong performance of his May release "Relapse," which has sold 1.4 million copies.
Beyond the fan excitement generated by the first remastering of the entire Beatles catalog in more than 20 years, sales also will benefit from the massive marketing push behind MTV Networks' video game "The Beatles: Rock Band," also released Wednesday.
Sources said the game is backed by a $20 million-$25 million advertising campaign, which includes the value of advertising on TV networks owned by MTV parent Viacom.
That will provide consumers with a timely refresher course on their favorite Beatles songs -- and perhaps prompt many of them to pick up a newly minted remaster.
EMI is banking on the legendary band to be a strong seller through the holidays.
The label shipped 4 million copies worldwide on the street date, including 1.9 million in the U.S.
The catalog relaunch will get its own $1 million-$2 million TV advertising campaign, which will include spots on such key cable networks as ESPN, TNT, TBS, TV Land, USA Network and MSNBC.
Sources said that the primary spend will be at MTV's fellow Viacom sibling Nickelodeon as part of an effort to turn the network's young, game-playing audience into Beatles fans.
And just in time for the start of the holiday shopping season, sources said ABC is planning to air a two-hour primetime special on Thanksgiving night that will feature Beatles footage and contemporary artists performing Beatles songs.
SoundScan sales tallies of the remastered Beatles albums could be diluted somewhat by a boxed set that includes all of the remastered titles in stereo and a collectible monophonic boxed set of the Beatles albums originally released in mono.
Sources said EMI is shipping worldwide about 150,000 copies of the stereo boxed set and 40,000-50,000 copies of the mono set.
Each U.S. sale of either multidisc set will count as only one SoundScan sale, however, which could deflate total unit sales.
Even though EMI has ramped up production of both boxed sets, consumers might find them tough to find initially.
Amazon, which took preorders on both versions, said it has sold out based on its initial allocations but is encouraging customers to continue preordering the sets, promising to let them know when more are available.
After initial shipments are sold out, sources said the stereo boxed set -- expected to be a popular holiday gift purchase -- won't be back in stock until late September.
The mono set is expected to be back in stock in mid-October.
In a year when U.S. album sales are down 14.7% from the same period in 2008, sources project the Beatles reissues to generate first-week U.S. sales of more than 500,000, with first-month sales expected to reach 1.3 million.
But after that initial burst of fan excitement, how will consumers respond to the marketing of a remastered catalog?
During the 1980s and '90s, remastering campaigns provided labels with a reliable means of goosing sales of older titles.
Recently, the marketing of catalog reissues has focused less on improved sound quality than on the inclusion of previously unreleased recordings and other bonuses.
None of the Beatles reissues will feature previously unreleased tracks, but in an apparent nod to the need for bonus material, mini-documentaries on each Beatles album will be included in early copies of individual reissue titles and in the stereo boxed set.
It isn't clear whether improved sound will be much of a draw for young music fans, many of whom listen to music through MP3 players and computer speakers.
"Although the sound is different, the songs are the same, so I doubt the kids of today will give a hoot about the remasters, unless the 'Rock Band' game has a positive influence," said Chuck Thatcher, vp retail at Music City, the Nashville-based parent of the seven-store Cat's Music chain.
"I hope the label works the radio stations for airplay of the remasters.
That could have an impact on the younger generations."
In addition, some retailers and industry executives question the wisdom of releasing the new Beatles reissues all at once, expressing concern that the simultaneous release of so many titles could dilute sales for certain individual albums.
In the late '80s when EMI finally released the entire Beatles catalog on CD, the label staggered the albums' arrivals, putting out at most only a few titles at a time and, in the minds of some industry observers, helping extend consumer demand beyond just such perennial top sellers as "Abbey Road" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."
"I am more of a fan of the staggered release because fans don't have unlimited wallets, and to go buy 13 CDs in a single scoop is expensive," said Carl Mello, head of purchasing at Newbury Comics.
"Also, with the staggered release, you are giving fans a reason and a date to come back into the stores."
A senior distribution executive noted out that by releasing all of the Beatles' titles at the same time, EMI can get more bang for its advertising dollars by amortizing the expense over a larger revenue base.
Furthermore, the simultaneous release of all of the titles in conjunction with that of "The Beatles: Rock Band" -- and its multimillion-dollar ad campaign -- already has created a full-fledged media event that also has generated an additional wave of free publicity.
Brick-and-mortar merchants are viewing the Fabs' catalog relaunch as an early Christmas gift that will help push consumers into their stores to buy CDs.
That's because the Beatles are among a small number of major acts that still don't make any of their albums available as digital downloads.
While Apple and EMI have discussed releasing the Beatles through iTunes, EMI doesn't have any immediate plans to sell the Beatles' music digitally, sources said, despite speculation that a deal might be announced during press-savvy Apple's iPod-related press conference Wednesday in San Francisco.
It wasn't.
But the band has done quite well sales-wise without embracing downloads.
Despite its absence from iTunes, now the top U.S. music retailer, the Beatles' 2000 hits collection "1" is the best-selling album of the decade with 10 million-plus units, the Cirque du Soleil-related "Love" album has sold nearly 2 million copies,
and certain individual catalog titles including "Rubber Soul" and "The Beatles" (aka "the White Album") have sold more than 1 million each since the start of the millennium, according to SoundScan.
Another factor fueling the Beatles' rise during this decade could be the burgeoning strength of catalog sales, which have grown from 34.4% of total album sales in 2000 to 41.8% in 2008.
So far this year, catalog sales account for 46.2% of overall album sales.
The Beatles also are the second-best-selling act of the SoundScan era in the United States, with album sales of nearly 58 million copies since SoundScan's launch in May 1991.
Country star Garth Brooks is No. 1 with 69.3 million.
Like the Beatles, Brooks doesn't make any of his albums available for purchase as downloads.
Coincidence?
Some market watchers believe the ability to buy individual tracks cannibalizes album sales.
While that may be true to some extent, most executives don't believe it explains the sales superiority of the Beatles or Brooks, both of which can count on the loyalty of huge fan bases.
"One could even argue how much bigger they would be if they were available digitally, particularly now, with iTunes accounting for 25% of the U.S. market," said one distribution executive, echoing the observations by other executives.
"The fact that they are No. 2 for this decade," he said, "is due to the power of the Beatles."
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