Andrew Wallenstein: Last News

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst Nabbing exclusive rights to the prequel to “Shtisel,” the series Netflix made popular around the world, is more than just a financial opportunity for Izzy CEO Nati Dinnar to put his fledgling streaming service on the global map. Premiering Feb.

Kaare Eriksen Media Analyst The push to utilize generative AI across entertainment isn’t sparing the ever-complex video games industry by any means. With the Game Developers Conference underway this week, Griffin Gaming Partners managing director and co-founder Peter Levin joined Variety Intelligence Platform president Andrew Wallenstein and media analyst Kaare Eriksen on Variety’s “Strictly Business” podcast and wasted no breath expressing the urgency with which AI tech is top of mind for the business and development sides of gaming alike.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst Exactly 10 years ago today, I published a commentary defending the decision to publish the contents of the Sony hack in Variety, the publication where I then served as co-editor-in-chief. Listen to the podcast here: And so in this episode of “Strictly Business” podcast, with a decade’s worth of perspective, I’m going to revisit a decision that, if I’m being candid, I came to regret. I’ve encountered some sticky wickets over the course of my 30-plus-year career, but the Sony hack was the stickiest.

Jack Dunn Scopely is the No. 1 mobile gaming company in the U.S. With titles like “Monopoly Go!,” “Stumble Guys,” “Yahtzee With Buddies” and “Star Trek Fleet Command,” the Los Angeles-based publisher has reached over 500 million Americans in the last six months.

Variety VIP+ staff A decline of approximately 10% versus last summer at the box office may not seem like cause for celebration in Hollywood right now. But put in context, even a decrease can be a good thing. Consider the state of the domestic box office for the first four months of the year, when few titles managed to emerge as hits.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst “The Challenge” and “Below Deck” aren’t mere TV shows; they’re practically the unscripted-TV version of cinematic universes, spanning multiple series that run for many years. Which is a challenge in its own right for Julie Pizzi, who produces those franchises as president of Bunim/Murray and 51 Minds, two different production companies owned by French media giant Banijay.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst While Snapchat is not a newbie at the Summer Games, the social brand is making its presence felt in a distinctly different way in Paris this year than at Olympics past. Jim Shepherd, director of content and global creator partnerships at Snap, details his company’s efforts on the latest episode of the Variety podcast “Strictly Business” to partner with NBCUniversal, advertisers and top influencers like Livvy Dunne and Kai Cenat on the ground in Paris to cover the Olympics with greater access than it ever has before.

Variety Staff Follow Us on Twitter After four critically acclaimed seasons of TV that have resonated with viewers worldwide via Netflix, “Fauda” might seem to have the kind of success that would be preordained. But as Lior Raz, the star and one of the series’ creators, recounted Thursday evening at Variety’s Responsible Storytelling Event Presented by OneFamily, the reality could be anything further from the truth.

Todd Gilchrist editor For 23 years, the OneFamily organization has provided support, rehabilitation and rebuilding services for the victims of terror attacks, their loved ones and their communities. Now, amid heightened conflict in the Middle East, the organization’s founders are heading to Hollywood for Variety’s Responsible Storytelling event presented by OneFamily.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst John Peters, managing director and lead for media and entertainment at Accenture, specializes in tough love for media companies: His new “Thrive Index” lays out 50 strategic options for executives in need of bold solutions to survive tumultuous times. Take, for example, how he applies his innovative principles to the current predicaments facing Paramount Global, which is deliberating over a few different M&A options that strike Peters as not quite radical enough.

Lexi Carson At Variety’s 2024 Entertainment Marketing Summit, Andrew Wallenstein, president and chief media analyst of Variety Intelligence Platform, sat down with Jana Arbanas, vice chair and Deloitte‘s US Telecom, Media, and Entertainment sector leader, to discuss the background and themes of Deloitte’s annual digital media trends. This year was Deloitte’s 18th year of the Gen Z and Millennial survey. The survey analyzes over 3,500 consumers from ages 14 and up and is then sent back to the United States Census Bureau to obtain a real representative look at consumer behavior.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst Horror continues to perform well at theaters. But as this new Variety VIP+ analysis of the track record scary movies have put together in 2024, no genre is immune to the ups and downs of the marketplace.

Variety, about her vision for campaign strategy, having led marketing efforts on such films as “Air,” “Saltburn” and the Academy Award-winning film “American Fiction.” She has also spearheaded marketing for hit series including “Expats,” “Mr. & Mrs.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Just when last week’s ratings resurgence for the Golden Globes had us all feeling good, along comes the Emmy Awards — rescheduled from its usual September slot because of Hollywood strikes — to deliver an all-time audience low to shake our confidence in awards show all over again. Fox’s Monday, Jan.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Attending the Consumer Electronics Show is an eye-opening experience that offers intriguing glimpses into the future and an overwhelming amount of information about how the media, entertainment and tech industries are evolving in the present day. For the past decade, Variety has partnered with the Consumer Technology Association to help Hollywood players navigate a fast-changing marketplace with an entertainment business-focused track of programming at the big show.

Caroline Brew editor In a panel titled “Embrace the Power of Fandom to Connect Content and Commerce,” Alexys Coronel, head of U.S. entertainment and telecommunications at Amazon Ads, sat down with Andrew Wallenstein, Variety Intelligence Platform president and chief media analyst, to discuss how brands can connect with fans — and how that relates to Prime Video’s transition to an ad-supported service. “Once you capture a fan’s interest, they now look to you continue to drive that connection,” Coronel explained to the crowd.

Diego Ramos Bechara editor When asked to summarize his thoughts on streaming in 2024 with just one word, Joe Cady—executive vice president of advanced advertising & partnerships at NBCUniversal—used “democratization.” “The application of data for targeting and measurement, together with automation, lets us make our premium content available to so many more marketers than we could otherwise work with,” he said. “As we go forward into 2024 and beyond, that will be so much more of an opportunity to expand the scope of marketers who can participate in premium TV.” Cady was joined by Rebecca Panico, vice president and global head of media at Hilton and Jed Dederick, chief client officer at The Trade Desk, at a panel moderated by Andrew Wallenstein, president and chief media analyst at Variety Intelligence Platform, as a part of Variety’s CES Entertainment Summit held on January 10 in Las Vegas.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst Perhaps no consumer-electronics product had a more audacious launch in 2023 than Telly, a TV set that was given out for free to thousands of U.S. consumers.

Andrew Wallenstein President and Chief Media Analyst Jewish streaming service ChaiFlicks has greenlit its first original series, a half-hour unscripted showcase for kosher-food cuisine around the U.S. Premiering Nov. 16, “Schmoozing and Cruising” touches down everywhere from Brooklyn to Los Angeles for a mouthful of BBQ, pizza and donuts across six tasty episodes.

McKinley Franklin editor Leaders from Mattel, YouTube, Universal Pictures, Google, Amazon and more gathered at Variety’s Entertainment and Technology summit, presented by City National Bank, to breakdown the future of marketing in the entertainment space. Panels included conversations with the leading experts on artificial intelligence, fan-focused growth on social media platforms such as YouTube and TikTok and the massive future of online gaming. Here are a few of the key takeaways from a day of lively discourse.

Sophia Scorziello editor In an industry on track to drive around $400 billion in revenue this year, it might seem fine for gaming companies to let go of the reins every now and then when hit games take off. But Javier Ferreira, co-CEO of Scopely (a mobile-first video game developer) argues that it’s very much a business of planning. He says, “We think of games as forever businesses.” Ferreira shared his thoughts on best practices for engaging with today’s gaming communities and the best IPs to invest at the “Big Business of Games with Scopely” panel during Variety’s Entertainment & Technology Summit Thursday.