Sherman Oaks-based Premiere Radio Networks has renewed its contract with conservative radio talk show host Glenn Beck, who originally signed with the network in 2002.
The five-year deal is said to be valued at $50 million, making Beck a onetime Christian radio host and top 40 DJ one of radio’s most highly compensated stars, along with the likes of Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh.
Beck is known for making often inflammatory and offensive remarks, including references to activist Cindy Sheehan as a “pretty big prostitute,” and Sen. Hillary Clinton as “Stalin in a pantsuit.” Most recently, in reference to wildfires raging in Southern California, Beck remarked: “I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today.”
Beck is based in New York and hosts the third highest-rated national radio talk show in America according to Arbitron nationwide spring 2007 data, and saw a 16 percent listener increase in the adult 25-to-54 demographic. Through the deal, “The Glenn Beck Program” will remain on nearly 300 radio stations, including eight of the top 10 markets: Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and Atlanta. Beck also hosts an hourlong television show, “Glenn Beck on CNN Headline News,” which launched last May.
Premiere Radio Networks., a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications, was founded in Los Angeles in 1987 with a $30,000 investment. Clear Channel acquired Premiere in 1998.
The network syndicates 90 radio programs and services to more than 4,600 radio affiliations nationwide. Premiere Radio reaches more than 190 million listeners each week and features personalities including Limbaugh, Jim Rome, Casey Kasem and Ryan Seacrest.
Making Trax
CBS Television Distribution closed a deal to use L.A.-based video-tracking service Teletrax last week. CBS will use the service to monitor usage of CBS marketing and promotional content across CBS affiliates in 210 markets.
Launched earlier this year, Teletrax is now working with all four major U.S. broadcast television networks the company already had agreements with ABC Television Network, NBC Universal and Fox Broadcasting Co. Teletrax is a subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Inc.
Marketing Smackdown
THQ Inc. and Jakks Pacific Inc. have launched a “WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008” global marketing campaign, aimed at highlighting the franchise’s debut on three home video game platforms: Wii, Nintendo DS and the PlayStation 3.
The campaign is a multimillion-dollar effort to publicize the biggest launch in the video game franchise’s nine-year history, and includes TV ads in eight different countries. There will be print, online and wireless ads, a worldwide gaming tournament and a launch event for the franchise at Toys ‘R’ Us in Times Square.
“WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008” is scheduled for simultaneous release on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Sony’s PlayStation 2 and 3, PSP, Wii and Nintendo DS systems, plus wireless devices this month across Europe, Australia, New Zealand and several days later in North America.
On the Go
CinemaElectric Inc., an Encino-based mobile video programming company, is expanding its distribution and advertising deals with Google’s AdSense and YouTube.
The company will distribute the short-form video content from its library already available on YouTube to thousands of Web sites as video units through the deal with Google, which represents Google’s first offering for content distribution on the AdSense advertising program.
The agreement expands the company’s partnership with YouTube and broadens the company’s mobile distribution network to online.
AdSense places ads alongside CinemaElectric’s video content across a variety of genres, ranging from Hollywood news and men’s lifestyle content to Web comedy.
The publicly held wireless service company is traded over the counter and is a producer of original and branded content for mobile, broadband, video on demand and satellite radio platforms.
Art Case
Robert Bane, the Beverly Hills art dealer who was found late this summer to have committed fraud by illegally dumping hundreds of limited edition reproductions of a popular artist’s work online, filed for bankruptcy on Oct 22.
Late this summer, Bane was ordered to pay $2.3 million to Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama, known for his erotic and futuristic art. The verdict in the case included $1 million in punitive damages over Bane’s failure to account for the proceeds from sales of 33 original Sorayama paintings and sale of Sorayama paintings for $100 to $200, rather than the thousands they should have commanded.
“The bankruptcies are part of Bane’s continuing effort to evade his obligations to Mr. Sorayama and are sure to prompt intense scrutiny of Bane’s and his affiliates’ financial affairs through the bankruptcy process,” said Paul Laurin, Sorayama’s attorney.
Sorayama is also known for designing the Aibo robotic dog for Sony Corp.
Staff reporter Anne Riley-Katz can be reached at
[email protected]
or at (323) 549-5225, ext 225.
