Noticias

Candle Media, the venture-backed entertainment startup founded by ex-Disney execs Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, is building an impressive executive team.

The company has onboarded longtime UTA partner Brent Weinstein and former FoxNext Games president Salil Mehta in the roles of chief development officer and chief financial officer, respectively.

Beginning Feb. 1, Weinstein will oversee new business development with an emphasis on social media, creator economy, ecommerce, and Web3 opportunities, Candle says. Mehta, who joined on Jan. 3, will charge financial operations. Both will report to Mayer and Staggs, who serve as Candle’s co-CEOs.

“They will be instrumental in facilitating growth across our portfolio of companies,” Stags and Mayer said in a statement, “and helping us identify new investment and business development opportunities.”

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Entertainment finance firm Forest Road has launched its second Spac with Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs as co-CEOs and co-chairs. Units of Forest Road Acquisition Corp. II started trading today on the New York Stock Exchange as the execs begin the search for a target company in the tech, media, telecommunications or consumer space.

Mayer, previously of Walt Disney and TikTok, was recently named chairman of sports streaming service Dazn. He and Staggs, a former COO and CFO of Disney, are directors and investors of Forest Road. They were advisors for the firm’s first Spac, which recently acquired digital fitness specialist Beachbody. The pair will be taking a more active role in this second Spac.

SPACs, special purpose acquisition companies also called “blank-check” vehicles, are basically shells that go public to look for private companies to buy. There are hundreds of SPACs announced or already trading amid market concerns...

Entertainment finance firm Forest Road and a team of A-list media insiders from Tom Staggs to Kevin Mayer have closed a $300 million IPO of a new Spac – a special purpose acquisition vehicle they’ll use to buy a private company in media, tech or telecom.

SPACs, which are exploding, are basically empty publicly traded vessels with investors and, in this case, seasoned managers, that go public and find private companies to merge with – taking them public in turn in a process that’s faster, easier and cheaper than a traditional initial public offering. Ideally the SPACs offer industry expertise in the transition to public company status and beyond.

Units of the Forest Road Spac now trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol Frx and can start to approach merger candidates to discuss deals. Forest Road chief executive Zachary Tarica, who is also chairman and chief investment officer of the Spac,...

Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal has joined former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs to create Forest Road Acquisition Corp., a Spac investment vehicle with the goal of raising $250 million for media and technology acquisitions. According to a filing with the SEC, Mayer will serve as a strategic adviser, Staggs will be director and chairman of the Strategic Advisory Committe and Salil Mehta, another former Disney executive, will serve as chief financial officer. O’Neal will also be a strategic adviser, as will producer Mark Burg. Martin Luther King III will be a director. Also Read: Behind Kevin Mayer's Sudden Exit From TikTok: Bad Fit, Reputation Fears The special-purpose acquisition company (or Spac) plans to raise $250 million for acquisitions in the technology, media, and telecommunications sectors. SPACs, occasionally referred to as “blank check companies,” are shell companies designed to allow investors to pool capital to fund mergers or acquisitions...

There’s a Spac born every minute – today a new one called Forest Road Acquisition registered with the SEC to raise $250 million and hunt for media and entertainment deals with executives and advisors from former TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer and former Walt Disney CFO Tom Staggs to basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal.

SPACs, or special purpose acquisition vehicles, proliferate when there’s more money floating around than there are places to invest for various reasons — now that’s mainly Covid.

The Spac is a shell company of film financing firm Forest Road. Harry Sloane and Jeff Saganksy, formerly of MGM, done a half dozen SPACs over the years. Playboy just launched one last week. They raise cash from investors to go public in a kind of modified IPO and buy companies in any sector they like.

They’re officially called “blank check” entities so investors need to trust they know what they’re doing.

The “Blank Check” bonanza continues.

On Thursday, a new Special Purpose Acquisition Company called Forest Road Acquisition Corp. filed an S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission seeking to raise $250 million from investors to acquire or merge with a company in the technology, media or telecommunications sectors.

The most notable news for Hollywood, however, is who is behind the Spac: Former Walt Disney Co. COO Tom Staggs, Disney’s former direct-to-consumer chief Kevin Mayer, and former Disney executive vp Salil Mehta. They are joined by NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, film and TV producer Mark Burg (Saw, Two ...

The “Blank Check” bonanza continues.

On Thursday, a new Special Purpose Acquisition Company called Forest Road Acquisition Corp. filed an S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission seeking to raise $250 million from investors to acquire or merge with a company in the technology, media or telecommunications sectors.

The most notable news for Hollywood, however, is who is behind the Spac: Former Walt Disney Co. COO Tom Staggs, Disney’s former direct-to-consumer chief Kevin Mayer, and former Disney executive vp Salil Mehta. They are joined by NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, film and TV producer Mark Burg (Saw, Two ...

Veteran entertainment industry executive Ricky Strauss, currently the president of content and marketing for Disney+ and formerly the president of marketing at Walt Disney Studios, is asking nearly $6.9 million for his fashionable 1930s villa set discreetly in the hills just above L.A.’s iconic Sunset Strip. Per the listing, the “Paul Williams inspired” Regency-style house has strikingly decadent, contemporary interiors that belie its old-school exterior and exquisite landscaping reminiscent of an English garden.

Strauss purchased the property in 2014 for $6.4 million from his friend, fellow marketing exec Matt Brubaker. At that time, the house had recently undergone a dynamic transformation courtesy of Clements Design, the same mother-and-son team who recently overhauled Kris Jenner’s new Hidden Hills mansion into a calming residential oasis. Back in 2018, Strauss had the striking property photographed for shelter mag House Beautiful.

The three-bedroom and five-bath Hollywood Hills abode weighs in at just under 3,000 square feet according to property records,...

Die Hard is easily one of my favorite action movies of all time, so I was thrilled when I was invited to attend an outdoor screening of the film at Nakatomi Tower. I've gotta say, it was pretty awesome watching this movie in the shadow of the building where it was filmed!

Not only that, but I got to watch the movie while enjoying Twinkies! It was a charming little touch that added to the experience. Like Officer Powell says, Twinkies are loaded with, "Sugar-enriched flour, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, polysorbate 60, and Yellow Dye No. 5. Just everything a growing boy needs."

Bonnie Bedelia and Reginald VelJohnson both showed up for the screening to thank the fans for their love of Die Hard. You can watch them get up and talk about the screening in the video provided below, which contains a few minutes of footage from the event to give...

“Alien” fans now have a chance to step into the world of the franchise and fight the Xenomorphs firsthand: “Alien: Descent,” a new location-based virtual-reality experience from FoxNext, opened its doors at The Outlets at Orange mall in Orange County, Calif., on April 26.

“It’s frickin’ cool,” boasted FoxNext president Salil Mehta about the experience. “From the moment you walk in the door, it takes you into the world of ‘Alien.’”

FoxNext officially launched a little over a year ago as an umbrella unit for Vr, gaming and location-based entertainment from 20th Century Fox and the Fox Networks Group. Its mandate is to take the studios’ movie and TV properties to the next level by adding immersion and interactivity.

In the case of “Alien: Descent,” this means strapping on a wireless Vr headset as well as special sleeves outfitted with motion sensors, and grabbing futuristic-looking Vr guns that provide haptic feedback when fired.

With the highly-anticipated Alien Day coming up later this month on April 26, fans of the sci-fi/horror franchise will get a chance to experience this universe in virtual reality. FoxNext Destinations is teaming up with Pure Imagination Studios for Alien: Descent, a "cutting-edge, free-roaming virtual reality experience" at The Outlets in Orange County, California. For those who don't reside in Southern California, there will be additional locations announced soon. Here's what Joshua Wexler, co-founder of Pure Imagination Studios, had to say in a statement.

"Alien: Descent's story-first approach is at the forefront of the location-based Vr experiences that we're rolling out. Our goal at Pure Imagination Studios has always been to push the boundaries of what's possible, Vr attractions are the perfect medium to do just that. Partnering with the forward-thinking team at FoxNext made for a potent combination of storytelling minds and innovative thinking to set a new benchmark for destination entertainment.

If you've ever watched the Colonial Marines fight Xenomorphs in Aliens and thought, "I'd like to try that," then you're in for a treat this Alien Day (April 26th), because Pure Imagination Studios and FoxNext Destinations are teaming up for a new virtual reality experience called Alien: Descent that brings you to the frontlines in a fight against everything from clingy Facehuggers to acidic Xenomorphs.

Alien: Descent will open in Orange County on April 26th, with more locations to be revealed soon. In case you missed it, check out our previous Alien Day coverage here, and read on for the official press release with full details:

Press Release: Los Angeles, CA – Pure Imagination Studios and FoxNext Destinations will open Alien: Descent, a cutting-edge free-roaming virtual reality experience at The Outlets at Orange in Orange County on April 26. Additional locations will be announced soon. Tickets can be reserved now at AlienDescent.

Fox is bringing an Alien-themed virtual reality (Vr) experience to a mall in Southern California: “Alien: Descent,” a Vr experience that can be experienced by a group of up to 4 players, opens its doors at The Outlets at Orange in Orange County, Calif. on April 26.

“Alien: Descent” has been produced by Pure Imagination Studios and FoxNext Destinations, the location-based entertainment arm of 20th Century Fox’s and Fox Networks’ next-generation media unit FoxNext.

It’s a free-roaming experience, meaning that players get outfitted with special wireless Vr headsets that do away with the need for any additional cables. This allows players to freely walk around on a stage that incorporates physical cues for better immersion.

In the experience, players get to join an elite squad of Colonial Marines tasked with investigating a distress signal sent from a mining outpost. Of course, there are also plenty of aliens to be fought,...

Salil Mehta joins Twentieth Century Fox as president of content management, effective September 23.

Mehta arrives from NBC Universal where he most recently served as COO and CFO of the entertainment and digital networks and integrated media division. Prior to that he served in senior positions at Espn Enterprises and The Walt Disney Company.

His responsibilities in the newly created post will include coordinating distribution in all media, overseeing the digital media division and the studio’s worldwide television distribution activities.

He will be responsible for strategic planning and business development, including emerging media platforms, and will oversee Fox’s technology and engineering activities. Mehta also will lead the company’s involvement in industry-wide coordination of technical standards.

He reports to Fox chairman and CEO Jim Gianopulos.

NBC Universal announced on Tuesday the promotion of Salil Mehta to chief operating officer and chief financial officer of its Entertainment, Digital Networks and Integrated Media division -- a newly-created position. He'll report to Lauren Zalaznick, chairman of the division. Mehta was a key player in NBCU’s integration with Comcast, having served as the network’s president of business operations, strategy and development for the past three years. In the new role, Mehta “will oversee all day-to-day operations, finance, legal and business affairs, business development and strategic planning for E&Dn/Im’s entire portfolio which...

Two transition teams will meet weekly starting in January, charged with guiding the creation of a revamped NBC Universal jointly owned by Comcast and Ge.

Heading what is known as the "operational transition team" is Salil Mehta, NBC Uni's president of business operations, strategy and development; the "administrative transition team" is led by Bob Victor, Comcast's senior vp strategic and financial planning.

"I will be overseeing their efforts, along with Comcast's COO Steve Burke and Cfo Mike Angelakis," NBC Uni CEO Jeff Zucker wrote in a letter to employees.

Comcast's lead representative on the Mehta-led team is Comcast Programming Group Cfo Joe Donnelly.

"This team will focus on planning all aspects of how the two programming and digital groups will operate together after the deal closes," Zucker wrote. "We will look to Salil and his team to develop an overall schedule, identify programming and marketing opportunities, recommend organizational structures, etc.

NBC Universal has been built on the foundations of two American institutions whose legacies have spanned nearly a century. Today marks the beginning of the next extraordinary chapter of our history.

 

General Electric and Comcast have signed an agreement to create a new company that will merge Comcast's programming assets into NBC Universal. This new company will be created once regulatory approvals have been received. It will be 51 percent owned by Comcast, with Ge retaining the remaining 49 percent. I am excited to have been asked to lead the new company.

 

From an operational standpoint, we are joining a team of people who are visionaries in the media landscape. Founded in 1963 by Ralph Roberts, and now led by his son, Brian Roberts, Comcast is the nation's leading provider of cable, entertainment, broadband and communications products and services. In this joint venture we will have a new parent that is a pure...

UPDATED 7:33 p.m. PT March 3

General Electric has left the light on for Beth Comstock, who exited a key post at NBC Universal on Monday to return to the parent company.

But as the latest in a string of executives departing the Peacock, speculation mounted over whether she flew the coop or was pushed from her perch.

In a realignment of its executive ranks, Comstock, formerly president of integrated media, will assume a role similar to the one she held previously at GE: chief marketing officer and senior vp.

Her responsibilities were redistributed to Salil Mehta, president of business operations, strategy and development; Mike Pilot, president of sales and marketing; and Jeff Gaspin, president and COO of Universal Television Group.

This will be the second round-trip ticket Comstock has had punched between Rockefeller Center and GE's headquarters in Fairfield, Conn. She first decamped to GE while a NBC publicist in 1998 before returning to the network at the end of 2005.

Comstock is the latest in a string of execs that have departed NBC Uni after the ascension of chairman Jeff Zucker, to whom she was once linked as a rival for that position.

In an interview, Comstock said she was never meant to be a permanent addition, just a transitional leader looking to help NBC Uni work its way through the beginning of a new digital era.

"I leave feeling like we know where we've got to go," Comstock said. "This is very much the way we've been planning for things to happen."

NBC Uni has always been regarded as something of a steppingstone inside GE, which rotates talented execs among disparate divisions to give them a broader sense of a company with diverse assets.

NBC Universal has named former ESPN executive Salil Mehta president of business operations, strategy and development. He will report to president and CEO Jeff Zucker.

In his new role Mehta, will be responsible for leading NBC Uni's global business strategy and corporate development activities, including identifying industry trends and investment opportunities and continuing to shift the company's asset portfolio toward high-growth areas.

"Salil is a first-rate strategic thinker and dealmaker, with a proven track record," Zucker said. "He's got a knack for picking the right opportunities at the right time."

Mehta previously served as executive vp at Disney's ESPN Enterprises, where he was responsible for all of ESPN's nonbroadcasting businesses, including new media, broadband, mobile, publishing, video games and consumer products. Among other things, Mehta led the transition from ESPN's original mobile business model to a licensing deal with Verizon Wireless.

Mehta joined Disney in 1994 as manager of corporate strategic planning and spent 11 years in the conglomerate's corporate strategic planning group.

Mobile ESPN is back on the line.

After hanging up its branded cellular phone package in September, the Walt Disney Co. is re-entering the wireless business with a pair of deals announced Thursday with Verizon Wireless and MediaFlo USA.

ESPN and Verizon are joining forces on mobile in several forms, including as part of the phone company's V Cast subscription lineup and through V Cast TV, a package of 24/7 channels being distributed by MediaFlo, a division of Qualcomm. Terms of the multiyear deals were not disclosed.

The exclusive licensing deals represent an about-face from the costly flop of Mobile ESPN, which failed to find traction among consumers and was promptly shuttered. That MVNO venture was launched with Sprint.

"For ESPN, this is the right strategy and the right carrier relationship to grow our business while serving millions of sports fans with the information they want, when and how they want it," ESPN Enterprises executive vp Salil Mehta said.

Mobile ESPN is back on the line.

After hanging up its branded cellular phone package in September, the Walt Disney Co. is re-entering the wireless business with a pair of deals announced Thursday with Verizon Wireless and MediaFlo USA.

ESPN and Verizon are joining forces on mobile in several forms, including as part of the phone company's V Cast subscription lineup and through V Cast TV, a package of 24/7 channels being distributed by MediaFlo, a division of Qualcomm. Terms of the multiyear deals were not disclosed.

The exclusive licensing deals represent an about-face from the costly flop of Mobile ESPN, which failed to find traction among consumers and was promptly shuttered. That MVNO venture was launched with Sprint.

"For ESPN, this is the right strategy and the right carrier relationship to grow our business while serving millions of sports fans with the information they want, when and how they want it," ESPN Enterprises executive vp Salil Mehta said.