Top news
* Amazon.com Inc. and Twitter Inc. are considering plans to offer more sports programming, Bloomberg News reports, citing company executives. While Amazon is testing notifications for live events on mobile devices, Twitter is currently focused on working with the National Basketball Association. In fact, a Twitter executive called the NBA one of its most "innovative partners" that always wants to be the "first to try" something new.
* Tinder Inc. founders Sean Rad, Justin Mateen and Jonathan Badeen are part of a group that filed a lawsuit against the dating app's owner IAC/InterActiveCorp and its subsidiary Match Group Inc., CNBC reports. The suit filed in the New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan claims IAC and Match Group falsified financial information, "undermining Tinder's valuation and unlawfully stripping away their Tinder stock options." The suit seeks at least $2 billion in damages.
* Verizon Communications Inc. will roll out its 5G residential broadband service in Indianapolis in the second half of 2018. Also, Verizon said YouTube TV and Apple Inc.'s Apple TV 4K will be included in its initial 5G broadband offering in Sacramento, Los Angeles, Houston and Indianapolis.
* The trend of pay TV operators hemorrhaging video subscribers slowed in the second quarter, improving some analysts' view of the industry's outlook. Traditional pay TV services lost 861,000 net subscribers during the second quarter, as compared to a net loss of more than 1.0 million subscribers in the year-ago period, according to estimates from Kagan analysts Ian Olgeirson and Tony Lenoir.
Technology
* Alphabet Inc. is investing $375 million in startup Oscar Health, Bloomberg News reports, citing a statement from Oscar Health CEO Mario Schlosser. The funds will help support Oscar Health's planned entry into the market for privately administered health insurance plans for seniors.
* Google LLC is planning a $600 million expansion for its data center in South Carolina, The (Charleston, S.C.) Post and Courier reports, citing records filed with Berkeley County, S.C. If approved, the expansion plan will give the company until the early 2030s to complete the development.
* Matt Olsen, the former general counsel for the National Security Agency, joined Uber Technologies Inc. as chief trust and security officer, Bloomberg News reports. In November 2017, the company hired Olsen as an adviser.
* Twitter barred conspiracy theorist Alex Jones from tweeting for a period of seven days, CNET.com reports, citing a company confirmation. Twitter said Jones violated a company policy and thus cannot interact with other users by tweeting, retweeting or liking other posts at present.
OTT
* Anthology drama series "Castle Rock" will return to Hulu LLC for a second season, Variety reports, citing Craig Erwich, senior vice president and head of content at Hulu. The series, which is based on the stories of Stephen King, intertwines characters and themes from the fictional town of Castle Rock.
* Netflix Inc. is ramping up its motor programming with two new original series and the renewal of car competition show "Fastest Car." The new series are "Car Masters: Rust to Riches" and "Hyperdrive," the company said.
TV Networks
* It may take some time, but media analysts expect Tribune Media Co. to sell the company or different sets of assets in the wake of the failed merger deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. Tribune on Aug. 9 terminated the merger with Sinclair and then filed a lawsuit seeking $1 billion. "Once a seller, always a seller," said Craig Huber, CEO of Huber Research Partners, in an interview.
* Discovery Inc. cut jobs at Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. offices in Knoxville, Tenn., Deadline.com reports, citing a company spokesperson. Discovery did not say how many staffers were laid off.
Multichannel
* Charter Communications Inc. will shut down customer service centers in Detroit and Indianapolis on Aug. 28, Multichannel News reports, citing a company statement. The move will impact at least 140 employees, who were notified about the move two months in advance.
The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, the Hang Seng was down 1.55% to 27,323.59, and the Nikkei 225 fell 0.68% to 22,204,22.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 was down 0.87% to 7,544.43, and the Euronext 100 slipped 0.58% to 1,055.11.
On the macro front
The MBA mortgage applications report, the retail sales report, the Empire State Manufacturing Survey, the productivity and costs report, the industrial production report, the Atlanta Fed Business Inflation Expectations report, the business inventories report, the housing market index, the EIA petroleum status report and the treasury international capital report are due out today.
Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.
Featured news
Netflix begins Arabic series production; Naspers selects new video unit CEO: Netflix began production for its Arabic original series "Jinn," while Naspers Ltd. appointed a CEO for its Connected Video division.
YouTube to produce original content for Japan, India; iQIYI launches sports app: YouTube will create scripted series and original programming for audiences in Japan and India, while iQIYI Inc. joined forces with Super Sports Media to launch a sports app.
The Daily Dose Europe: BT eyes former Ofcom head as new CEO; Deutsche Telekom, United Internet mull JV: British Telecom reached out to Stephen Carter to replace CEO Gavin Patterson, while Deutsche Telekom AG and United Internet AG are considering a joint venture on the build-out of fiber optic.
The Daily Dose Asia-Pacific: China Literature to buy New Classics Media; Tencent-backed NIO files for US IPO: China Literature Ltd. will acquire TV, film producer New Classics Media Corp., while Tencent Holdings Ltd.-backed electric car startup NIO applied for a US$1.8 billion U.S. IPO.
Featured research
Global Multichannel: Virgin settles UKTV carriage dispute after 3-week blackout: UKTV channels are back on U.K. cable along with 5x more on-demand content.
Wireless Investor: New Zealand mulls over spectrum, tower sharing for 5G: New Zealand's 6.3 million mobile subscriptions as of year-end 2017 is smaller than its neighbors in Asia-Pacific, but the country's 936.5 MHz of spectrum for mobile services is one of the largest in the region.
Economics of Advertising: Outdoor ad revenue up 1.3% in Q2'18: Revenue growth for the three major public outdoor groups was driven by strength in local ad revenue, improvement in national and an uptick in revenue from digital and static billboards.
Multichannel Trends: Q2'18 top cable MSO table: video, HSD, voice subscribers: Kagan's second-quarter 2018 top cable MSO table is now live.
Global Multichannel: Viacom international networks on track to deliver record earnings in 2018: Despite the declines in international revenue reported by Viacom Inc. for the quarter ended June 30, company execs are optimistic that its international networks will deliver record earnings results for fiscal year 2018.
The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.