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Warner Bros. will be streaming all its 2021 theatrical releases on HBO Max in a blow to already struggling theater chains as the pandemic continues to reshape Hollywood.
The AT&T-owned studio's 17-film slate, including "Godzilla vs. Kong," "Mortal Kombat," "The Suicide Squad" and "Matrix 4," will be available on the streaming platform exclusively for one month, starting when they are released in theaters and then will disappear from the platform.The move comes shortly after the company announced it would bring its expected blockbuster "Wonder Woman 1984" directly to HBO Max.
<p>"We're living in unprecedented times which call for creative solutions, including this new initiative for the Warner Bros. Pictures Group," said Ann Sarnoff, chair and CEO of WarnerMedia Studios and Networks Group, in a statement released on Thursday. "No one wants films back on the big screen more than we do. We know new content is the lifeblood of theatrical exhibition, but we have to balance this with the reality that most theaters in the U.S. will likely operate at reduced capacity throughout 2021."</p><p>Sarnoff said the model is a temporary one, but the decision will reverberate across an industry that has taken away screening exclusivity from theaters and reshaped how studios function. </p><p>"With this unique one-year plan, we can support our partners in exhibition with a steady pipeline of world-class films, while also giving moviegoers who may not have access to theaters or aren't quite ready to go back to the movies the chance to see our amazing 2021 films," Sarnoff said. "We see it as a win-win for film lovers and exhibitors."</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-youtube">
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<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption...">In Theaters | On HBO Max | Exact Same Day</small>
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</p><p>AT&T's decision to favor its streaming service over theaters comes in response to the pandemic, but it also aligns with CEO John Stankey's public comments that he wants to center his company's strategy around streaming. It's part of a broader blueprint meant to goose AT&T's broadband business, which led the company to acquire Time Warner in 2018 for $85 billion. Comcast, AT&T's chief broadband rival, is pursuing a similar game plan with its own streaming service, Peacock, which falls under its subsidiary NBCUniversal.<br/></p><p>AT&T last month <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/10/see-warnermedia-ceo-jason-kilars-memo-on-impending-layoffs.html" target="_blank">announced layoffs at WarnerMedia</a> to focus the company around HBO Max. Elsewhere, Disney — which <a data-linked-post="2648879597" href="https://dot.la/disney-earnings-streaming-soars-parks-plummet-and-newsom-takes-heat-2648879597.html" target="_blank">logged nearly 74 million paid subscribers</a> to its Disney Plus streaming service last quarter — has refocused on that format. It's another example of a shift toward streaming that was already underway but which has been accelerated by the pandemic. </p>
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TikTok competitor Triller is in advanced talks with at least three blank-check companies to go public at a valuation between $3 billion and $6 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter.
That range is broad because the L.A.-based viral video app is seeking to acquire one of its strategic partners, a U.S. subsidiary of a foreign-listed company, before merging with a special purpose acquisition company or SPAC, those sources said. The target company is a tech business that Triller already works with to help monetize its app. If that acquisition goes through, one source said, Triller's revenues would increase from around $100 million to $300 million, and its valuation could be on the higher end of the reported range.
<p>Triller livestreamed this past weekend's eight-round showdown between Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. at the Staples Center in collaboration with Fite.TV. The event exceeded revenue expectations and convinced company insiders that Triller had enough momentum to make a successful run on Wall Street. </p><p>Since April, Triller has been working with bicoastal boutique investment banking firm Farvahar Partners to pursue a $250 million fundraise at a valuation of $1.25 billion. Triller has raised over half that amount, one source said.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-proxy-image">
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</p><p>But over the summer, several SPACs expressed interest in Triller, as rival TikTok faced a potential shutdown by the Trump administration. When TikTok's parent company ByteDance revealed it sought a $60 billion valuation for the acquisition of its subsidiary – and reputable companies like Oracle, Walmart and Microsoft still wanted to buy it – the interest intensified, one source said. (The deadline for a TikTok sale has been extended to Dec. 4.)<br/></p><p>Farvahar Partners brought in M. Klein & Company, another boutique investment banking firm, to be a co-advisor because of its expertise with SPACs. M. Klein's majority partner, Michael Klein, also directs Churchill Corp, a SPAC, but Churchill is not one of the SPACs that Triller is currently considering, the people said. </p><p>SPACs <a data-linked-post="2648465322" href="https://dot.la/supernova-spac-2648465322.html" target="_blank">are empty-shell companies</a> that raise money to go public with the intention of eventually merging with a private company. To those private companies, going public via a SPAC typically offers a simpler and cheaper route to the public markets than an IPO. SPACs have grown particularly popular this year following several high-profile and successful SPAC mergers, such as DraftKings and Virgin Galactic. </p><p>Founded in 2015 and acquired by Proxima Media in 2019, Triller told dot.LA it currently has around 18 million daily active users and 65 million monthly active users. The company recently faced <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/some-former-triller-employees-wary-of-monthly-active-user-count-2020-9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">accusations from former employees</a> that it has inflated its user numbers, but the company denies those allegations. Either way, its numbers are a sliver of TikTok's estimated 800 million monthly active users.</p><p>Prior to Triller's current funding round, the company had raised rounds of $50 million and $28 million. In total, the company says it has raised around $225 million. </p><p>---</p><p><em>Sam Blake primarily covers media and entertainment for dot.LA. Find him on Twitter @hisamblake and email him at samblake@dot.LA</em><br/></p>
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Shawn Gunn has been waiting for gaming to get to this moment for 20 years.
He ran e-tournaments from his college dorm in the 1990s, long before esports exploded. Since then, Gunn has worked on Wall Street as a trader, at Nokia as the head of monetization and at HERE Technologies, before founding his first company, GUNN Inc, in 2008.
All the while, he watched as video games became lucrative for top competitors. And he decided to find a way to make them profitable for average gamers like himself.
Last year, Gunn founded PLLAY Labs Inc. with Christine Krzyzanowski. The video game wagering app lets users play video games like Fortnite and Call of Duty against each other for money. Since its launch in June, PLLAY has added 10,000 users, bringing its total user base to 60,000.
<p>"Gaming has always been a big part of our demographic's life. And I think now with the ability to not just gain but derive revenue, cash from your skill level and your competitions, is going to be an interesting thesis," said Gunn. now the chief executive at the company. "We've already seen users that today are, you know, literally generating or augmenting their current revenue stream with playing matches on PLLAY. In some cases, depending on your situation, you can be doing well in those matches and paying your rent or just having extra cash in your pocket."<br/></p><p>PLLAY Labs Inc. raised a $3 million seed round to add more games, consoles and platforms to their service. This round of funding was led by Screen Play Ventures and included investors such as NBA all-star Bradley Beal, Obsidian Works Managing Director Chad Easterling and GE Power Portfolio Chief Executive Officer and President Russell Stokes.<br/></p>
<p><span style="background-color: initial;">All of PLLAY's employees are gamers. Gunn is a longtime fan of Electronic Arts' Madden franchise and Krzyzanowski plays Epic Games' Fortnite and Activision Blizzard's Call of Duty. As a result, all three games are part of the five that PLLAY initially offered. The other two are Electronic Arts' FIFA 21 and 2K Sports's NBA 2K21.</span><br/></p><p>"There's been a lot of attention on the esports sector, or part of the industry, which we really look at as the more professional level of gaming," said Gunn. "But we have always believed that there's a much bigger opportunity for what we call the competitive amateur, which are those users that gaming is not going to be their profession, but they use it as an entertainment mechanism and the ability to unwind and have some competition."</p><p>Gunn anticipates PLLAY will release five more games early next year, some chosen to attract PC gamers. He said the company receives several emails daily requesting games like Riot Games' League of Legends and Valve Corporation's Dota2.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://dot.la/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg0OTIwMi9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1OTc0NTY5Mn0.bE4Ix1u9qgUAOncijLy6sZK-8k7Avmzb7JmpcpIf3J0/image.png?width=980" id="02952" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="42b077305f6b3ecf2e581d32f1439a93" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="PLLAY Labs" />
Skill-Based Betting
<p>PLLAY uses an artificial intelligence-driven platform to monitor video game matches, detect cheating and guarantee payment to winners. It is not considered gambling under federal law because players make bets on their own performance in a skill-based game.</p><p>Gunn said there is already a lot of peer-to-peer betting happening online, with or without the app. The wagering is often informal and done through game chats, with no guarantee the other player will send money via CashApp or PayPal. PLLAY ensures that each player is paid appropriately from pooled money that PLLAY secures in escrow.</p><p>PLLAY's background check process also ensures wagering laws in users' states are honored and confirms users are 18 or older.<br></p><p>Beal — a PLLAY investor, two-time NBA All-Star and shooting guard for the Washington Wizards — is a gamer off the court and away from his day job, as is Easterling.</p><p>"They're both gamers, in their own regard, and they fit our profile. So they're not professional gamers, obviously, they have other really cool day jobs," said Gunn. "But they know how big the gaming market is and where it's going."</p><p>Gunn said he sought out high net-worth investors that were passionate about gaming.</p><p>"I'm not just investing in a product; I'm investing in people. I believe in supporting minority- and women-owned businesses," said Beal in a statement, adding that Gunn and Krzyzanowski "have built more than a gaming platform, they've built a diverse and creative culture at PLLAY that fuels their vision."<br></p>From Your Site Articles
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