TOP NEWS
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*Verizon CommunicationsInc., Quicken Loans Inc. founder Dan Gilbert and Vector CapitalManagement LP are leading the final round of bidding for 's core internet assets,Bloomberg News reports,citing sources familiar with the details. Other bidders are and private equitysuitor TPG, according to the report.
Internet & OTT
*The National Basketball Association struck a deal to stream exclusive original live programming andadditional video on TwitterInc., Vine and Periscope platforms. Under its NBA Digitalpartnership with Time WarnerInc.'s Turner, the NBA will bring a free live stream of a newweekly NBA pregame show on the microblogging service, followed by a yet-to-bedetermined show that will be exclusive to Twitter, according to an officialnews release.
*Facebook Inc.'sWhatsApp was again blocked in Brazil after the messaging service refused tocooperate in acriminal investigation, Reuters reports.Federal Supreme Court President Ricardo Lewandowski, however, lifted the ban,saying it was "scarcely reasonable or proportional" for a judge inRio de Janeiro to impose an indefinite suspension of WhatsApp.
*Netflix Inc. willstream new episodes of its "Making a Murderer" documentary, accordingto a company newsrelease. The new episodes, which are currently in production, willfollow the story of convicted murderer Steven Avery, and his co-defendant,Brendan Dassey, as their respective investigative and legal teams challengetheir convictions.
*Deezer, an on-demand digital music streaming service, is now available in theU.S. According to an official blog post,users can download the app from Apple Inc.'s iOS App Store, 's Google Play, 's Windows Storeand Deezer.com.
TV Networks
*Beasley Broadcast GroupInc. agreed to acquire all outstanding shares of in a transactionworth about $240 million. Under the agreement, Greater Media stockholders willget about $100 million in cash and $25 million in shares of Beasley's class Acommon stock at $4.61 per share, in addition to net cash proceeds, amounting toabout $20 million, from the sale of its tower assets, according to a companynews release.
*Starz renewedoriginal series "Power" for fourth and fifth seasons. The show isavailable in more than 175 territories worldwide, the company said in anews release.
The day ahead
U.S.markets are expected to start the day's trading on a higher note as the Nasdaqcomposite index, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average weretrading above fair value in early morning futures trading.
InAsia, the Hang Seng rose 0.97% to 21,882.48, and the Nikkei 225 was down 0.25%to 16,681.89.
InEurope as of midday, the FTSE 100 was up 0.28% to 6,716.35, and the Euronext100 had climbed 0.93% to 868.42.
On the macro front
TheBank Reserve Settlement report, the MBA mortgage applications report and theEIA petroleum status report are due out today.
Featured news
The Daily DoseEurope: EC approves Deutsche Telekom upgrades; Deezer launches inUS: The European Commission conditionally approved the proposal toupgrade Deutsche TelekomAG's network using vectoring technology, while Deezer launched itsonline music streaming service in the U.S.
The Daily DoseAsia-Pacific: Baidu's iQiyi sale draws fire; SoftBank shares drop after UKdeal: Chinese search engine firm Baidu Inc. is being criticized by U.S. stakeholderAcacia Partners over the proposed sale of its video unit , while 's shares dropped10% after news of its $32 billion purchase of U.K. chip designer ARM Holdings.
The ProgramGuide: Disney to air 'Descendants: Wicked World' season 2 this fall; HBO sets'High Maintenance' premiere date: S&P Global MarketIntelligence presents a roundup of recent programming announcements fromvarious networks and online video platforms, including the debut of realitycompetition series "One Shot" on BET (US) and LOGO (US) greenlighting gay dating reality show"Finding Prince Charming."
Viral successof 'Pokémon Go' could be a turning point for Nintendo: Thesuccessful leveraging of a much beloved IP to a viral hit with the new game"Pokémon Go" could prompt Nintendo to make other popular charactersavailable for mobile platforms.
Asia videospotlight: HBO Asia, China Movie Channel to co-produce martial artsfilms: In this feature, S&P Global Market Intelligence providesa roundup of news related to over-the-top, video-on-demand and other onlinevideo initiatives in different Asian markets.
Data Dispatch:More passive-aggressive behavior: Mutual funds tracking the S&P500 have accumulated net inflows for 22 of the past 24 months, including $3.03billion in June.
Africa andMiddle East video spotlight: BBC Afrique launches in Senegal: Inthis monthly feature, S&P Global Market Intelligence provides a roundup ofnews related to over-the-top, video-on-demand and other online videoinitiatives in different African and Middle Eastern markets.
Data Dispatch:Make way for mobile wallets: At registers across the U.S., banks,retailers and third parties are competing to be consumers' mobile wallet ofchoice.
Featured research
Wireless Investor:New SNL Kagan Report: Economics of Mobile Music: Even thoughsubscriptions to streaming music services grew at the fastest rate ever in 2015— with the leading services nearly doubling subscriber bases from 2014 — thebusiness model has yet to make sense. SNL Kagan examines the opportunities andchallenges in our exclusive new report.
Technology:Technology Industry Presentation, Q2'16: SNL Kagan's latest quarterlypresentation report examining industry trends and data for the technologysector.
BroadcastInvestor: Broadcast Market Industry Presentation, Q2'16: SNLKagan's latest quarterly presentation report examining industry trends and datafor the broadcast sector.