Strictly Business

Exploding Kittens is the biggest sensation in tabletop gaming these days, but that's not the only reason the Chernin Group invested $30 million in the venture, started by this week's guest, former Xbox designer Elan Lee. Learn from Lee about how the plan is to translate his company's quirky intellectual property into TV shows, movies and even theme park rides.  Learn more about your ad-choices at...

The veteran film producer doesn’t hold back in a conversation about race, money, movies and why said yes to leading an the ambitious Gamechanger investment venture. The company aims to make creatives from diverse backgrounds -- women, people of color, LGBTQ and the disabled -- equity owners of content. And she wants to dramatically widen the circle of financial backers for film and TV content by b...

The director-producer behind the new “American Masters” documentary “Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool” discusses his non-profit Firelight Media venture, which offers a Documentary Lab program to help promising filmmakers develop projects. Nelson, a 2002 recipient of a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant, explains how a community of documentarians has emerged from the lab program, and why he decided...

As Variety's weekly podcast hits its 100th episode milestone, hosts Cynthia Littleton and Andrew Wallenstein revisit some of their most intriguing discussions with top industry executives, producers, technologists and entrepreneurs. Interview highlights featured in this special installment include Disney's Dana Walden, former HBO chief Richard Plepler, Discovery's David Zaslav, Spotify's Dawn Ostr...

Debmar-Mercury principles Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein discuss the origins of the production-distribution company that is now part of Lionsgate. The pair detail why they remain bullish on the first run syndication business, so much so that they are launching two new series -- a talk show from Nick Cannon and magazine series "Central Ave" from producer Will Packer -- in the fall.  Learn more about...

Rob Sharenow, president of programming for A+E Networks, discusses the exercise is “brand focus” that led to the revitalization of A&E Network and History amid the general downturn in viewership for ad-supported cable channels. The longtime cable executive also weighs in on how Lifetime has grown by shifting its efforts away from the extremely competitive world of scripted drama series to a br...

How has America's most famous family stayed on E! for 18 seasons? Bunim/Murray CEO Gil Goldschein has the secret to producing the long-running series. He also shares his take on the latest trends in the unscripted TV category, a business changing dramatically in the age of streaming.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

Adam Sharp, president-CEO of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, discusses how the digital revolution in television presents challenges for industry awards shows. He details NATAS’ response to questions raised about the eligibility of certain programs considered in the 2018 Daytime Emmy Awards competition. The process of looking into what went wrong helped the organization deve...

Now that she's a few months into the integration of her magazine business with Vox Media, she shares what the process has been like and how the newly combined company is navigating the treacherous waters of the publishing business. With 13 brands from Vulture to Polygon in the portfolio, Wasserstein discusses her diversification strategy, from podcasts to licensing intellectual property. Learn mor...

The "Shark Tank" star pulls no punches on a wide variety of subjects pertaining to the tech world, from the importance of artificial intelligence in today's business world to his misadventures in the film industry, where he believes theaters will stand the test of time.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Endemol Shine North America CEO Cris Abrego explains why the company decided to integrate activity on Spanish-language programs with the rest of the core Los Angeles-based development team. Abrego details the growth of the company’s Mexico City-based Endemol Shine Boomdog operation and the lessons learned from working outside the U.S. He also weighs in on how changes in major Latin American TV mar...

Join Strictly Business hosts Cynthia Littleton and Andrew Wallenstein as they make the rounds at the Consumer Electronics Show. Listen for insights on the convergence of digital media and entertainment, streaming wars, AI and what's next from Jeffrey Katzenberg, Meg Whitman, Mark Cuban, UTA's Brent Weinstein, Pluto TV's Tom Ryan and other movers and shakers. Learn more about your ad-choices at htt...

Chuck Lorre, one of the most successful writer-producers in the history of television, developed new writing muscles and found a fresh source of joy as he branched out into streaming series with Netflix’s “The Kominsky Method” and CBS’ single-camera comedy “Young Sheldon.” Here Lorre compares the creative process in streaming and broadcast TV. He also offers frank thoughts about the prolonged batt...

Construction is underway in Los Angeles on Hollywood Park, a nearly 300 acre complex that will be the site of the city's NFL teams, SoFi Stadium. But this isn't just another development project. Jason Gannon, managing director of the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment District, oversees a $10 billion build poised at the cutting-edge of live entertainment. Learn more about your ad-choices at ht...

Evan Shapiro, president of National Lampoon, discusses the effort to revive National Lampoon as a comedy content studio, starting with the Dec. 19 relaunch of "The National Lampoon Radio Hour" as a podcast. Shapiro details the plan to embrace National Lampoon’s storied legacy to generate a new breed of "twisted mainstream" comedy projects in various media. Shapiro also details the company’s recent...

WarnerMedia's CTO shares his perspective on what it takes to launch a massive streaming platform in a cluttered competitor environment. He discusses balancing the many brands under AT&T's umbrella as well as making space for human curation inside HBO Max, which launches next May. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

Abrams Artists Agency chairman Adam Bold discusses why his company signed the WGA code of conduct that allowed his employees to resume representing writers, his broader observations on the standoff, and why he decided to get into the talent agency business just over a year ago. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informat...

The megaphone of social media has brought dramatic changes to the business of public relations. Sean Cassidy, president of New York-based public relations and marketing firm DKC, discusses the new rules of engagement in image-making -- and image protecting -- for individuals and corporate brands. “This is not an industry for people who panic,” Cassidy says. Learn more about your ad-choices at http...

Local broadcast TV stations are struggling to draw big audiences in daytime as fragmentation and an ever-growing number of programming options takes its toll. Frank Cicha, executive VP of programming for Fox Television Stations, discusses how one of the industry’s largest station groups adjusted its approach to program development in response to big shifts in the marketplace. Cicha also weighs in...

Akamai CEO Tom Leighton illuminates the complexities of working with media companies to transmit their content to consumers as quickly as possible. While Akamai may be seeing record Internet traffic now, he notes that the future of digital transmission has barely begun. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bill Abbott, president and CEO of Hallmark Channel parent Crown Media Family Networks, has the difficult job of navigating the independent cable TV group through unprecedented upheaval in the pay TV marketplace. He speaks candidly about the competitive disadvantage that Crown Media faces against larger competitors who have greater sway with distributors. The business climate has only gotten toughe...

When the upcoming new streaming service Peacock launches next year, NBCUniversal will find itself with an opportunity to rethink how advertising works freed of the constraints of the legacy linear TV world. The company's ad czar is joined by Accenture's Mike Chapman for a conversation about how innovation is changing NBCU's approach from its CFlight initiative to next year's Summer Olympics. Learn...

As a veteran of faded Internet giants like AOL and Yahoo, Erika Nardini knows all too well where the digital advertising business went wrong. And now that she's leading a brash content brand of her own, she's determined to steer Barstool away from the kind of bad practices she fears could rear their head again in the podcast space while also breaking new ground in other areas including merchandise...

With the new NBA season scheduled to tip off Oct. 22, basketball fans have no shortage of options for how they take in the action on the court. But there's an expanding range of viewing experiences beyond linear TV that are evolving in fascinating ways under the oversight of Jeff Marsilio, senior VP of new media for the league, from social media to virtual reality.   Learn more about your ad-choic...

Abigail Disney and Adrienne Becker joined forces to launch content studio Level Forward in early 2018. The pair have vowed to run Level Forward as a socially conscious, artist friendly banner that strives to open doors for women and people of color through storytelling. The partners discuss the philosophy that underlies the business and the reason why they think the time is right for their approac...