More Articles By Susanne Ault

• New Line pushes King of Kong for Oscar
  NOV. 9 | New Line is positioning arcade documentary King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters as a contender for a Best Documentary Oscar, streeting the title on Jan. 29, days after the 2007 Academy Award nominations are unveiled on Jan. 22. More
  
• Trans World considers becoming private company
  NOV. 9 | Trans World Entertainment’s board of directors is exploring taking the retail chain private. More
  
• Warner Premiere finds its Cinderella
  NOV. 8 | Warner Premiere has started production on made-for-DVD Another Cinderella Story , a teen romantic comedy starring Disney Channel talent Selena Gomez. More
  
• Income lifts 71% for Gaiam in Q3
  NOV. 8 | Boosted by growing sales of its health and wellness DVDs, Gaiam made earnings gains in its third quarter. More
  
• Image, Criterion extend distribution deal to 2013
  NOV. 8 | Image Entertainment has extended its North American output agreement with the Criterion Collection through July 31, 2013. More
  
• Warner buys maker of <i>LEGO Star Wars</i> games
  NOV. 8 | Deepening its commitment to growing its gaming category, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group has agreed to acquire TT Games, the U.K.-based publisher of Bionicle Heroes and the LEGO Star Wars series. More
  
• Shrek characters in HD DVD promotion
  NOV. 8 | About a week after Blu-ray Disc backers debuted a $30 million media blitz, Toshiba and DreamWorks Animation have jointly launched a campaign in support of the Nov. 13 bow of Shrek the Third on HD DVD. More
  
• Film, DVD up 33% at Time Warner in Q3
  NOV. 7 | Although Time Warner enjoyed higher revenue in nearly all business segments, including its film and DVD unit, soft AOL earnings curbed earnings in the third quarter. Time Warner’s filmed entertainment division revenue lifted 33% to $3.2 billion. More
  
• Navarre in red for fiscal Q2
  NOV. 7 | Citing retail consolidation and DVD sales softness, Navarre fell into red ink for its second quarter of fiscal 2008. Navarre posted a $400,000 net loss for the three months ended Sept. 30. That compares to the $1.6 million net gain Navarre tallied for the same 2007 fiscal year period. More
  
• Spidey 3 top Blu-ray seller for Sony
  NOV. 7 | Sony Pictures Home Entertainment’s Spider-Man 3 swung to the top of the studio’s Blu-ray roster, selling 130,000 high-def units in its first six days on shelves, according to the studio. The studio shipped about 400,000 Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray units to retail for the title’s Oct. 30 bow, said Sony, making first-week sell-off about 30%. Sony said that does not include units bundled with the new $399 PlayStation 3. More
  
• Warner pacts for Paramount/DreamWorks distribution in China
  NOV. 7 | Warner Home Video has struck further studio alliances in its efforts to combat piracy in China, agreeing to distribute Paramount Home Entertainment and DreamWorks Animation DVDs in the country. More
  
• Image, BTP extend merger date
  NOV. 6 | Image Entertainment and BTP Acquisition Company have extended the closing date on the companies’ merger to allow time for Image to file its 10-Q financial statement. More
  
• HD DVD set-top player $99 sales moves units
  NOV. 6 | The HD DVD format significantly pumped its installed base over the weekend, as dueling store clearances sold an estimated 90,000 Toshiba players for as low as $99, according to sources close to retailers. More
  
• Genius closes $50 million credit facility
  NOV. 5 | Genius Products LLC has closed a $50 million amended and restated credit facility with Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking and Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank. More
  
• Bewkes named CEO of Time Warner
  NOV. 5 | Jeff Bewkes has been named CEO at Time Warner, succeeding Dick Parsons, who will stay on as the company’s chairman of the board. More
  
• WGA formally goes on strike
  NOV. 5 | Despite withdrawing its demand for higher DVD residuals, members of the Writers Guild of America formally went on strike Monday morning. The WGA had been negotiating with the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers on a new contract through Sunday, days after their current contract expired on Oct. 31, in the hopes of averting a strike. More
  
• Image family shares Hoffman title
  NOV. 2 | Illustrating synergy between newly combined units, Image Entertainment has acquired domestic home entertainment, TV and digital rights to Philip Seymour Hoffman drama Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead from Capitol Films. More
  
• Microsoft targets gamers with HD DVD promos
  NOV. 2 | Despite selling 210,000 of its Xbox 360 HD DVD add-ons through September—more than any individual Blu-ray standalone player—Microsoft’s strategy is to market the unit as a niche accessory. More
  
• Spider-Man 3 swings strong sales
  NOV. 2 | With no strong competition hitting stores Oct. 23, Paramount Home Entertainment’s Transformers rode to the top of the DVD sellers chart for a second week. Then Spider-Man 3 swung in Oct. 30 as the second of the season’s elite club of $300 million-plus-grossing films. But despite a strong performance, some retailers reported that the webbed one wasn’t strong enough to take Transformers down. More
  
• Wal-Mart priced HD DVD below $100
  NOV. 1 | In a unique pre-Black Friday sale on Nov. 2, Wal-Mart for one day will offer Toshiba’s second-generation HD-A2 model for $98.97, shedding $200 off the manufacturer’s suggested pricing. The chain also is listing HD DVDs, including Warner Home Video’s Blood Diamond and Universal Studios Home Entertainment’s 12 Monkeys , for $14.96, down from about $20 pricing at many other retailers. More