NBA on TNT to Announce NBA All-Star 2021 Reserves Tonight in Special 30-Minute NBA Tip-Off presented by CarMax at 7 p.m. ET – Celtics/Mavericks and Trail Blazers/Nuggets to Meet in Tonight’s Doubleheader, Beginning at 7:30 p.m.
The NBA All Star festivities will be compressed into a single day this year. TNT’s NBA All-Star coverage on Sunday, March 7, will begin at 5 p.m. with TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by CarMax, followed by the Taco Bell Skills Challenge and MTN DEW 3-Point Contest starting at 6:30 p.m. Coverage of the 70th NBA All-Star Game will begin at 8 p.m., with AT&T Slam Dunk taking place at halftime.
VidMob, a Software Firm for Advertising Creative Data and Services, Raises $50 Million – VidMob Inc., a software firm that provides tools and services for marketers to create and improve their digital advertising, has closed a Series C funding round for $50 million as it targets new business growth in areas such as e-commerce. The round included participation from marketing software giant Adobe Inc., stock media provider Shutterstock Inc. and venture-capital funds including Prefix Capital. [WSJ]
truTV Greenlights “Backyard Bar Wars” – a new home reno series with a comedic spin – each episode pits two neighbors against each other in the ultimate backyard build-off to see who can create the buzziest at-home bar on the block.
Hosted by self-described “unhandy-man” comedian Chris Distefano, the 10-episode half-hour competition series from 44 Blue Productions, a Red Arrow Studios company, will be filmed in and around Los Angeles and will premiere in July 2021.
dentsu Media to Use Comscore for Local Television in 2021 – “dentsu Media will expand its long-standing partnership with Comscore, adding dentsu’s M1 advanced audiences platform to its local market agreement.”
“We believe in the meaningful progress that our agencies can deliver for our clients through the use of M1’s advanced audience capabilities for local investment, and Comscore’s transformative approach to data and currency makes us even stronger,” said Jennifer Hungerbuhler, EVP, Managing Director, Local Video and Audio Investment, dentsu Media. “Furthermore, the integration of over 10 million additional households into Comscore’s measurement footprint was a real driver for us, and we look forward to transacting on the audience-based data in 2021.” [Comscore]
McDonald’s Joins the Fierce Fight for Chicken Sandwich Supremacy – “McDonald’s finally enters the fray with its own take on the crispy chicken sandwich. On Wednesday, McDonald’s is releasing three versions: original, spicy and deluxe, with lettuce and tomato.” [NY Times]
Facebook Strikes Deal to Restore News Sharing in Australia – The agreement means users and publishers in Australia can once again share links to news articles, after Facebook had blocked the practice last week. [NY Times]
Black News Channel Looks to Shake Up Cable-TV News Landscape – “Black News Channel has expanded its reach more than 20-fold in about seven months, part of its new chief executive’s ambitious plan to shake up the cable-TV news landscape and provide an alternative that looks through the lens of Black Americans.” [WSJ]
Disney+ Launches Star in Select Overseas Markets – Fully integrated into Disney+ in select international markets, Star has its own dedicated brand tile featuring a robust collection of general entertainment movies, television, documentaries and more, along with Star-branded exclusive originals and local productions being created for the service.
The Star brand launched today in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Western Europe. In Singapore, Disney+ with Star launched today, becoming the first market to launch with the new general entertainment brand.
The Star brand serves as home to thousands of hours of movies and shows from Disney General Entertainment Content, including Disney Television Studios (ABC Signature and 20th Television), FX Productions, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures and more.
As part of today’s launch, Disney+ has added a new set of robust parental controls.
No word on a United States roll out, but Eastern Europe, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea are next. In Latin America, the general entertainment offering will launch as a separate streaming service, Star+.
Disney says they have an “incredible array” of content for older teens and adults fueled by their acquisition of 21st Century Fox and their creative studios.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: ‘One Night in Miami’ Grapples With the Risk and Responsibility of Black Entertainers Speaking Out [THR]
Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Drivers License’ Leads Both Billboard Global Charts For Sixth Week – “Olivia Rodrigo boasts the biggest song in the world for a sixth week, as “Drivers License” holds at No. 1 in its sixth frame on both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts.” [Billboard]
The Undefeated Presents: A Room of Our Own One-Hour TV Special on the Connection between Black Athletes and Music – Feb. 28 on ESPN – a one-hour special that explores the connection that Black athletes have with music and the impact of that association in powering social movements. The program will debut Sunday, Feb. 28, at 12 p.m. ET on ESPN, with an encore presentation Sunday, March 7 at 4 p.m. on ABC.
Musicians Freddie Gibbs, Jensen McRae, and Tinashe, all of whom are featured on The Undefeated’s “Music for the Movement” Volumes I and II, will host the special.
