Entertainment Lawyers

  International is in, at least when it comes to trying to draw new subscribers in the streaming market. Hopping on the trend bandwagon, Paramount+ has announced its plans to commission a decidedly ambitious 150 brand-new international originals over the next three years alongside a look at its 7-strong 2022 slate for the same market. Entertainment attorney  from Blake & Wang P.A, Brandon Blake, breaks it down.                                                           Brandon Blake The International Investment Paramount+ has been investing fairly heavily in international titles as it is, and we’ve had seven more (mostly series) announced for their coming slate this year in addition to the planned 150 upcoming entrants between now and the end of 2025. Many will be developed in partnership with VIS, their recently acquired international studio.   No doubt part of this announcement was intended to leverage attention as they kick off their South Korean launch and the U.K and Ir

Mergers and acquisitions have been a major focus for talent agencies over the last few years. This week we see UTA announce that it has acquired Mediahound, a data and analytics firm trying to compete in Nielsen’s home arena. It’s an interesting choice, presented as a way to give them the strategic advantage in negotiations with studios and networks alike. Brandon Blake, the entertainment lawyer with Blake & Wang P.A, examines the announcement.                                                         Brandon Blake Result of Pre-Covid Talks The acquisition stems from a project between UTA and Mediahound that ground to a halt once COVID shutdowns hit the industry, according to UTA partner (and head of UTA IQ), Joe Kessler. The Mediahound developers and engineers will be joining the UTA IQ division. Perhaps fitting, given that UTA has had a small stake in the company for years after a seed investment made through the USC accelerator program.   Data is pretty critical in the agency ind

  As the theatrical industry seeks to expand its market and draw back the pandemic-squashed audiences needed for full-scale recovery, the battle lines seem to be drawn in new, innovative experiences and offerings. We’ve seen a lot of talk- and action- from Cinemark about new developments in the theater space. One seems to be paying off for them. Entertainment attorney Brandon Blake of Blake & Wang P.A expands on this for us.                                                                 Brandon Blake Movie Club Monthly Subscription Plan Let’s be honest- the theatrical industry is one arena that the magic words ‘subscription plan’ hasn’t been seen in. Yet Cinemark, currently the third-largest movie chain in the US, took the risk of offering a paid subscription plan of its own. Their Movie Club plan has now netted them over 1M paid subscribers, a benchmark for such plans in the industry.    Sean Gamble, President and Chief Executive for the chain, was quick to position the

  Despite the streaming boom, it’s become crystal clear that theatrical releases are still a powerful revenue generator for movies, and that the once eagerly embraced day-and-date release model was a bust in more ways than one. This week we’ve seen Sony reaffirm its commitment to the theatrical release model. Brandon Blake, the entertainment lawyer at Blake & Wang P.A, shares the news.                                                                   Brandon Blake 100% Committed- With a Catch We should note, however, that this ‘100%’ commitment was only applied to ‘premium’ films. They also mentioned a slate of ‘moderately priced’ titles being developed specifically for streaming entities.    Sony Pictures Entertainment is an interesting player in the current landscape, remaining an independent studio rather than tied to its own streaming platform. It’s been reasonably aggressive at selling its TV shows and films across TV networks and streaming services alike in the last