VIDEOAGE "PAPER CLIPS": A WEEKLY PRESS REVIEW

PROGRAMMING
Monday night was a big "deal" for NBC. Game show Deal or No Deal ended its season on a high note, with 18 million viewers tuning in to see who would win the big ($5 million) cash prize. Deal finished its season with an average of 18 million viewers and 5.5 rating/17 share in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary estimates from Nielsen Media Research.
Reuters

Ugandans are about to get another TV channel. NTV (Kenya's premier channel) has announced that it is extending its brand and will launch an NTV (Uganda) channel in the fourth quarter of 2006. The channel will comprise international programming, as well as localized programs and talk shows.
The Monitor (Kampala)

Real estate tycoon and reality TV star Donald Trump has just added a Brit to his payroll. On Monday night's The Apprentice finale, Londoner-cum-Floridian Sean Yazbeck heard the coveted "You're hired" line straight from the horse's mouth.
BBC News

BUSINESS
Cannes was a busy market for Emirates Cable TV and Multimedia (E-Vision), the premier cable TV provider in the United Arab Emirates. The company snapped up 200 movies for its e-View pay-per-view service during the Cannes Film Market (which takes place alongside the Film Festival). While the average time between theatrical releases and pay-TV release is 15 months, e-View makes films available just three to six months after their theatrical release.
AME Info

Looks like Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes isn't moving from the mouse house. Rhimes has renegotiated her production pact with Disney-owned Touchstone Television for at least three years, in a deal estimated to be worth $10 million. But Rhimes will have to work for that money -- she currently has a new untitled drama pilot in the works for Touchstone and ABC about a group of female journalists.
Yahoo! News

TECHNOLOGY
Canada's CTV has unveiled the first phase of the country's premiere multi-channel, on-demand broadband service -- the CTV Broadband Network. The network will use a free video player to deliver programming at broadband speeds. It will be advertiser supported and accessible through the CTV website.
Canada.com

Looks like HDTV is finally entering its heyday. Experts predict that consumers will buy more high definition TVs than traditional TVs this year. Sounds good, right? Well, not necessarily for cable operators. Their wires are so packed with TV channels and new services -- including video on demand (VOD), broadband Internet and phone -- that many are scrambling to increase bandwidth for the coming wave of HD channels.
USA Today

ADVERTISING
The CRTC (Canada's regulatory body) has cleared the way for cable companies to advertise services they sell -- such as high-speed Internet and mobile phones -- on Canadian broadcasts of U.S. specialty channels, such as A&E and CNN. Prior to this ruling, a 1995 agreement stated that only Canadian specialty-TV channels could be promoted in reserved slots called "local availabilities".
Canada.com

EXECUTIVE SHUFFLE
The BBC is showing its commitment to diversity by creating an Editorial Executive of Diversity role. The Beeb has poached Mary Fitzpatrick from Channel 4 to fill the post. Fitzpatrick was Channel 4's editorial manager of cultural diversity. In her new role she will work closely with channel controllers, commissioners, in-house and independent production companies to improve on-screen portrayal and diversity on BBC Television.
Asians in Media magazine

Another executive is abandoning ship at ABC's Good Morning America. Just weeks after morning show's co-anchor Charles Gibson announced that he'll be leaving for the main gig at World News Tonight, GMA's executive producer, Ben Sherwood, announced that he will leave the show in late September, citing family reasons.
The New York Times

CONTROVERSY
If U.S. broadcasters air "indecent" programming, they better be prepared to pay, big time. The House of Representatives is expected to approve a Senate-passed bill that could increase the Federal Communications Commission's fines on broadcasters tenfold. Fines would likely jump from the current $32,500 to $325,000 per violation.
USA Today

FILM
Classic Chinese heroine (and Walt Disney animated star) Mulan is going live action. Harvey Weinsten and Beijing-based City Glory Pictures have entered into a deal to produce a live action version of the story. The deal will see the two partners split the $20 million cost of the film; it represents the first time Weinstein has invested in a Chinese production.
Shanghai Daily

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