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Roku is laying off around 10% of staff as it “performs a strategic review of [its] content portfolio.”

Fox Entertainment CEO Rob Wade is to keynote at this year’s Banff World Media Festival.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Roku revenue came in above Wall Street forecasts for the fourth quarter of 2023 — and it touted new milestones of more than 80 million active accounts globally as of the end of last year and more than 100 billion hours streamed in 2023. But shares of the streaming platform and connected-TV ad provider fell as Roku warned of a “challenging” environment for media and entertainment spending for the rest of 2024.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Just over a year into his tenure at the top of Roku Media, president Charlie Collier sees his service, “the number one TV operating system in America,” as the streaming industry equivalent to a hit primetime series airing ahead of your new show on broadcast TV. “We host the experience of television,” Collier told Variety co-editor-in-chief Cynthia Littleton at Variety‘s Entertainment Summit at CES in Las Vegas Wednesday.

William Earl The Variety Entertainment Summit returns to CES on Jan. 10 at the Aria featuring a day of panels and keynote conversations.

NBCUniversal is shaking up its ad sales division with the hire of a newly promoted Roku executive.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer As he approaches his one-year anniversary as president of Roku Media, Charlie Collier is setting his first restructuring of the company’s leadership team, including naming Alison Levin head of global media revenue, upping Kristina Shepard to vice president of global advertising sales and partnerships, giving head of content David Eilenberg oversight of Roku’s Brand Studio segment and formally naming Joe Franzetta head of sports. Levin and Eilenberg will continue to report directly to Collier, while Shepard is under Levin and Franzetta is under Eilenberg.

Roku executives spent some time today talking about M&E and the company’s Media & Entertainment advertising business that they expect to take a hit in the second half of the year as Hollywood strikes disrupt the television calendar.

Piers Morgan Added To RTS Cambridge Lineup

In one of the biggest twists of the 2023 upfront, Fox opted not to renew its highest rated scripted series, 9-1-1. The drama, produced by 20th Television, was instead picked up for a seventh season by 20th TV sibling ABC.

Charlie Collier, who segued last fall from lengthy exec stints at Fox Corp. and AMC Networks to a top post at Roku, took the stage at his first NewFronts pitch Tuesday to invite advertisers to bring their messages to the stream.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor After an enviable career working for traditional TV outlets, Charlie Collier surprised many a media executive late last year by leaving a senior job running entertainment programming for the Fox broadcast network to join Roku, the company that gives millions of Americans their access to the world of streaming. He hopes advertisers will follow. On Tuesday, Collier, 53, now heading Roku’s ad sales and development of content on its own platforms, will be pressed to show potential sponsors why. Roku, which boasts 71.6 million active accounts, will make a big pitch to Madison Avenue as part of a group of industry “newfront” sessions. Even though NBCUniversal, Disney and their rivals won’t make similar outreach until May, presentations this week from digital players such as Amazon and Roku are seen as an aggressive bid to win ad dollars that might previously have gone to the TV companies. After all, the networks, one secure in their ability to deliver media’s biggest audience, are losing viewers to streaming, and Roku is one of the biggest facilitators of that activity.

a company’s SEC filing published Thursday revealed. Other compensation totaled $25,245.

Charlie Collier, who took over as President of Roku Media in late October, had a pay package that topped $53 million in the last three months of 2022.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Charlie Collier, who joined Roku last fall as president of its newly created media division, had a compensation package worth $53.3 million last year — more than twice as much as his boss, CEO Anthony Wood, took home. Collier left his post as CEO of Fox Entertainment to head up Roku Media, where he now oversees content and ad sales for the Roku Channel. Roku’s recruitment of the high-profile TV exec — who brought such hits as “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad” and “The Walking Dead” to AMC — signaled that the company plans to spend more on original content. That said, Roku has been taking steps to cut costs, including laying off about 400 employees, after its revenue growth slowed dramatically in the last two quarters.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Roku City wants to colonize Times Square. The purple-hued metropolis, the backdrop of the popular screen-saver Roku introduced in 2017, is invading New York City’s so-called “Crossroads of the World” in a bid to make the streaming platform more top of mind in the Big Apple just as the advertising world gets ready to hear pitches from a variety of new-tech video players. Roku wants to remind both consumers and advertisers about its relevance in the weeks leading up to the NewFronts, a set of annual presentations by digital-media outlets to advertisers. In 2023, streaming has gained new scale and Madison Avenue is looking for ways to weave commercials into the consumers’ broadband experience. Digital advertising is projected to grow 9% in 2023, according to Interpublic Group’s Magna, compared with a decline of 4% for linear advertising formats.

EXCLUSIVE: Roku is promoting a number of execs in its originals team following a shakeup last week.

Last year, Fox’s in-person Upfront event at the Skylight venue in New York surprised ad buyers with a largely pre-recorded video led by then-boss Charlie Collier.

David Eilenberg, who joined Roku last April to head up original programming at the streaming company, has been upped to head of content, Deadline has confirmed.

Old schoolers like the late Gil Schwartz of CBS used to hate it when the press would commandeer executive sessions at TCA in the aughts with questions about the death of broadcast TV. HBO had come to dominate the Emmys year after year and the perception was that programming on the Big Three just wasn’t sexy, no matter how much Schwartz would argue that the size of CBS’ audience was far more valuable than the trophies it never seemed to collect at the Shrine Auditorium. He was right, of course: other than The Sopranos, which set HBO records, no show on premium cable could come close to the reach of a CSI.

Fox’s new distribution outfit Fox Entertainment Global (FEG) is pushing into international scripted co-productions, has optioned a “best-selling selling British thriller” and is “looking into” an international detective franchise.

The clocks have gone back in the UK, meaning longer, darker nights and the sense summer is long gone. Happily, there’s plenty of news to keep us occupied. Jesse Whittock here taking you through the first Insider of the month. Let’s go.

New Fox Entertainment CEO Rob Wade has talked up the potential for TMZ to become a “huge entertainment studio,” setting out his stall at Mipcom Cannes for the first time since he replaced Charlie Collier.

Fox’s new Entertainment Global sales unit will “go against the grain of other U.S.-based media entities” by being wholly agnostic and selling to everyone, according to CEO Fernando Szew.

replaces Charlie Collier, who announced his surprise exit to join Roku last month.Wade most recently served as president of alternative entertainment and specials at the company, where he oversaw the network’s unscripted content and development slate.“Since the formation of FOX Entertainment, Rob has been an integral part of the leadership team responsible for delivering on its long-term strategy of creating an independent media company built on broadcast, developing an owned content portfolio and maintaining a disciplined in-house infrastructure,” Murdoch said in a statement. “Given Rob’s sharp creative instincts and proven operational acumen, he is well-suited to lead FOX Entertainment in what promises to be an exciting next chapter in its rich history.”Fox Entertainment includes an expanding portfolio of content studios, including animation house Bento Box Entertainment, TMZ, MarVista Entertainment and Studio Ramsay Global.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Rob Wade has been promoted to CEO of Fox Entertainment following the exit of former chief Charlie Collier. “Since the formation of Fox Entertainment, Rob has been an integral part of the leadership team responsible for delivering on its long-term strategy of creating an independent media company built on broadcast, developing an owned content portfolio and maintaining a disciplined in-house infrastructure,” Fox Corp. executive chief and CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in a statement Thursday. “Given Rob’s sharp creative instincts and proven operational acumen, he is well-suited to lead Fox Entertainment in what promises to be an exciting next chapter in its rich history.”

EXCLUSIVE: Fox’s reality supremo Rob Wade has been elevated to CEO of Fox Entertainment.

Roku’s splashy hire of Charlie Collier, former CEO of Fox Entertainment and president of AMC, has sent a clear signal about the company’s ambition to make more noise with original programming.

EXCLUSIVE: There is a change at the helm of Fox’s comedy department. Julia Franz is stepping down as SVP and head of comedy for Fox Entertainment after three years. She will be succeeded in the role by former 20th Television head of comedy development Cheryl Dolins who will be based in Los Angeles, reporting to Fox Entertainment President Michael Thorn. The changeover had been in the works for awhile and is not related to Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier’s surprise exit on Thursday to join Roku.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Charlie Collier, after more than two decades in broadcasting and cable TV, has jumped ship from the traditional television biz — betting that TV’s future is all about streaming. As first reported by Variety, Collier is leaving his post as CEO of Fox Entertainment, departing from the Murdochs’ fiefdom to head up Roku Media, where he’ll oversee content and ad sales for the Roku Channel starting next month. For Roku, recruiting the high-profile TV exec who brought such hits as “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad” and “The Walking Dead” to the small screen can be viewed as a shift toward more strategic — rather than tactical — spending on original content. Not incidentally, Collier also is familiar with the content economics of the free-streaming space: Fox Corp. spent $440 million to buy Tubi in 2020, which has served as a monetization outlet for Fox TV programming.

Fox Entertainment chief executive officer Charlie Collier is exiting the company and heading to Roku next month.Collier joins Roku as president, Roku Media. He will be based in New York.According to a release, his role will see him “reinforce Roku’s commitment to serving advertisers, content partners, and consumers across Roku’s market-leading streaming platform.” He will also be in charge of overseeing the growth and evolution of Roku Media on a global scale.

Fox Entertainment Chairman Charlie Collier is leaving the linear network to join Roku.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor In a sign of big moves to come for Roku, veteran TV executive Charlie Collier is exiting his post as chairman of Fox Entertainment to join the digital distribution platform as president of Roku Media. Collier will oversee advertising sales and content for Roku’s owned-and-operated channels featured on the streaming platform that hosts the fast-growing number of free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels as well as serving as a key funnel for Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+, Paramount+ and other subscription streamers. Collier is set to shift to his new post at Roku in late October and will be based in New York.

K.J. Yossman Fox Entertainment has launched Los Angeles-based Fox Entertainment Global, tapping Fernando Szew as its new CEO. Fox Entertainment Global will act as a centralized content sales division, Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier revealed today. It will oversee the international distribution of Fox Entertainment content as well as managing content sales on behalf of MarVista Entertainment and looking after global content partnerships. The company will make its debut at Cannes television market Mipcom next month, where it will unveil its slate of content to buyers. Among the shows on offer will be animated series “Krapopolis” (pictured above), created by Dan Harmon, and Jon Hamm’s “Grimsburg” (both produced by Fox Entertainment’s Bento Box Entertainment) and live-action comedy “Animal Control.”

EJ Panaligan editor Disney, Amazon Studios, Fox Corp., Warner Bros. Discovery and other major Hollywood players are pledging support for the Roybal Film and Television Production Magnet, a major educational outreach initiative championed last year by George Clooney and others. Paramount and NBCUniversal/Telemundo Enterprises are also signing on to become founding partners of the Los Angeles Unified School District magnet facility. These companies join previously announced founding partners History Channel/A+E Networks, Netflix and Sony Pictures Entertainment. The group has committed to providing more than $4 million in funding for the school, which opened in August with 150 students at the Edward G. Roybal Learning Complex in downtown Los Angeles.

Amazon Studios, Disney, Fox Corporation, NBCUniversal/Telemundo Enterprises, Paramount, and Warner Bros. Discovery have signed on as Founding Partners of the Roybal Film and Television Production Magnet Fund, which was established by George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Creative Artists Agency’s Bryan Lourd, to support The Roybal Film and Television Production Magnet, a specialized academy created to drive transformational change across the industry by building a more inclusive pipeline of historically underrepresented college- and career-ready students pursuing below-the-line careers in film and television.