Variety

Comedian, writer, producer, director, and actor Nick Kroll will keynote at Variety’s Entertainment & Technology Summit presented by EY on September 17. Kroll will discuss his creative vision across entertainment as an executive producer of FX’s critically acclaimed sitcom Adults, EP and voice actor for several Netflix animated series, including Mating Season, Human Resources, and Emmy-nominated Big Mouth. Secure your ticket today: Variety.com/EntTech

President Trump has endorsed a federal tax incentive “to save the Movie, Television, and Entertainment Business in America": “I am going to suggest that Republicans and Democrats get together, and immediately craft Legislation to save the Movie, Television, and Entertainment Business in America,” he wrote. “Congress should approve, immediately, a Federal Production Incentive to create Entertainment Jobs in America. It can be done quickly, accurately, efficiently and, importantly, will benefit ALL of America. What we watch on the Silver Screen should be made in what was once the Movie and Motion Picture Capital of the World. Let’s get this done!” https://lnkd.in/gt-mwY5c

AMC Theatres will launch an indie distribution label titled Leawood Films, advised by a trio of veteran Hollywood executives from Warner Bros., Apple and more. Leawood will “focus solely on films fully financed by their filmmakers, or already completed films, leveraging AMC’s exhibition, marketing, and distribution expertise to expand the supply of movies for a broad array of movie theatre operators across the U.S. and internationally,” the announcement said. https://lnkd.in/gWEBwjMF

Apple TV is hiking its subscription prices for the fourth time in four years, effective immediately: wp.me/pc8uak-1lHG7w • New and existing subscribers in the U.S. will now be charged $14.99/month (up two bucks from $12.99) or $119/year (from $99/year) • The streamer’s monthly fee now triples its original $4.99 launch price in 2019, when Apple had much more limited content and was trying to amass customers

Netflix has dropped 27 minutes of new “Grand Theft Auto 6” footage in collaboration with Rockstar Games ahead of the highly anticipated video game’s November release: https://lnkd.in/ghRMZh7f • The content was captured entirely from in-game footage on PlayStation 5 • Netflix says the “GTA 6” “extended look” event represents “the next evolution of storytelling and content” on the streaming platform • The event, first announced earlier this month by Rockstar and Netflix, comes amid ongoing “GTA 6” gameplay leaks

Two Republican attorneys general are asking the Supreme Court to block the “politicized” antitrust lawsuit filed by 12 Democratic state AGs seeking to block Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery: • Experts say the Iowa-Montana appeal is unlikely to go anywhere, despite the states arguing they have no other venue to sue California and the 11 other states to resolve “a controversy between sovereigns” • “The Supreme Court is more likely to declare Donald Trump ‘litigator of the year’ than it is to block the states from enforcing their own antitrust rules,” said Erik Gordon, professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business https://lnkd.in/gvfZGK-k

Annapurna, the indie media company founded by Megan Ellison, has laid off approximately 30 employees: • The layoffs, representing over 15% of the workforce, come as Ellison has been quietly rebuilding her business after several years of near-dormancy • “The reduction reflects business conditions. Annapurna is an independent entertainment and media company operating in shifting market conditions, and is realigning to meet the changing landscape,” a spokesperson told Variety https://lnkd.in/esG2kjeF

Meta will enforce a two-hour daily limit on Instagram and Facebook for children as part of a record $17.1B settlement with 29 states over social media addiction claims: • The “Productive Pauses” for children include mandatory pauses after 15 minutes of continuous use and again at 60 and 90 minutes to interrupt endless scrolling • “Nighttime blocks” restricting children’s access from 12:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. • Limited school-time access for children, eliminating push notifications on weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. during the school year • Robust age assurance measures to more effectively verify the age of young users • Safer, age-appropriate content controls, including stronger safeguards against bullying, content promoting eating disorders, and content related to suicide and self-harm • Stronger, more user-friendly parental controls • Limits on social comparison features, including beauty filters and visible “like” counts, that have been linked to poor mental health outcomes in kids and teens • Both the implementation and effectiveness of the features will be regularly assessed by an independent auditor and the settling states https://lnkd.in/gWgkvcFu

California AG Rob Bonta said Tuesday he is open to resuming settlement talks with Paramount over its blocked Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition after canceling a meeting Monday after news reports emerged about the meeting: “If they are willing to clean things up, put a lid on their lying leaks, and engage in a way that is sincere and in good faith, we will be… happy to meet.” https://lnkd.in/gcxDviuw