SEC Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorSnap reported second-quarter results that came in under analysts’ already reduced expectations — and the company didn’t provide Q3 guidance — sending the stock down more than 25% in after-hours trading.The social messaging and content app company also intends to “substantially slow our rate of hiring, as well as the rate of operating expense growth,” it said in its first quarterly letter to investors. We will reprioritize our investments and drive a renewed focus on productivity.”The company reported revenue of $1.11 billion, up 13%, and a net loss of $422 million (an adjusted net loss of 2 cents per share).

Donald Trump’s plan to take his nascent media company public has had another setback, as federal prosecutors have issued subpoenas to board members of the firm that was to acquire it en route to an IPO.

Digital World Acquisition Corp., the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) set to combine with Donald Trump’s social media firm Trump Media & Technology Group, has been hit with grand jury subpoenas.In a recent security and exchange commission (SEC) filing, DWAC said it had received “several document requests and subpoenas from the SEC, seeking various documents and information regarding, among other things, Digital World’s due diligence regarding TMTG, communications regarding and due diligence of potential targets other than TMTG, relationships between and among Digital World (and/or certain of Digital World’s officers and directors) and other entities (including ARC Global Investments II LLC, Digital World’s sponsor, and certain advisors, including Digital World’s underwriter and financial advisor in its initial public offering).”The company learned on June 16 that a federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York had issued subpoenas to every member of the company’s board of directors. The company as a whole also received a grand jury subpoena.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorDonald Trump’s media and technology venture is part of a new federal grand jury investigation, which is seeking information about the financial dealings of the shell company Trump Media & Technology Group intends to merge with, according to a new regulatory filing.Last year, Trump Media & Technology Group announced plans to combine with Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), to become a publicly traded company.

Police in Wigan have arrested six people following raids that uncovered money laundering as well as numerous drugs. Greater Manchester Police conducted warrants at four addresses in the Marsh Green area.

AMC Entertainment shareholders have sent a message to the company’s CEO, Adam Aron, by voting decisively to reject his compensation package.

first announced that Explorer would be put out to pasture.In fact, most of the memes bidding farewell to it are based in the significant lag users experienced. In one fan-favorite meme, the Grim Reaper arrives to escort Explorer off into the afterlife, only to realize “Internet Explorer is not responding.”Others resurfaced an old joke in which Internet Explorer is the slowest to respond in a call-and-response chant among browsers.is Internet Explorer ever truly dead? pic.twitter.com/KQGndprUxnThis is the best internet explorer joke I came across.

Video: Nick Jonas gushes that fatherhood has 'been wonderful' (Cover Video)Johnny Depp makes surprise appearance at Jeff Beck concert following conclusion of trialNoel Clarke claims he has 'been criminalised' over sexual misconduct allegationsKelly Osbourne celebrates one year of sobrietySnoop Dogg cancels European and Australian tour datesShanna Moakler auctioning off engagement ring from Travis BarkerCardi B videos yacht sinking while on holidayCamila Cabello calls out soccer fans for singing over her Champions League final performanceElon Musk faces SEC investigation and lawsuit by Twitter investors for delayed disclosureCheryl Burke requests trial for Matthew Lawrence divorceJustin Timberlake sells rights to music catalog'Stranger Things' adds disclaimer to 4th season in wake of Uvalde mass shootingEllen DeGeneres reminds people to be compassionate as she ends her Daytime ShowPresident Biden to meet with BTS to discuss Asian inclusion and representationSelena Gomez attends White House conversation on mental healthNEWS OF THE WEEK: Liam Payne and fiancée Maya Henry reportedly splitNEWS OF THE WEEK: Billie Eilish says dealing with tourette's syndrome 'exhausting'Following the happy news, a number of the couple's celebrity friends posted congratulatory messages. "So excited for you guys!!" wrote Britt Robertson, while Dianna Agron posted, "CONGRATULATIONS.

The latest in the Twitter-Elon Musk circus has shareholders of the social media company seeking class action status for a lawsuit against the billionaire Tesla founder, alleging unjust enrichment, false statements and stock manipulation in order to lower the price or walk away from the $44 billion deal he’d agreed to.

Shares of Snapchat parent Snap are more than 30% in late trading after the company said second quarter financials will disappoint Wall Street “as the macroeconomic environment has deteriorated further and faster than anticipated.”

Shares of Paramount popped higher in early trading after Berkshire Hathaway, the company of legendary investor Warren Buffett, disclosed late yesterday that it acquired a chunky stake in the company.

Visual effects and animation firm DNEG has extended its deal with Netflix through 2025.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported Monday in a securities filing that it has acquired a stake in Paramount Global after acquiring $2.6 billion in Class B shares.

Donald Trump is “generally obligated” to post on Truth Social, his new social media network, and cannot make the same post on another platform for six hours.

Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal has cut loose two top executives and announced a hiring freeze ahead of the company’s acquisition by Elon Musk, whose share purchases are reportedly being investigated by the SEC.

Elon Musk has unveiled a group of investors that together will provide about $7.14 billion in financing commitments for his pending $44-billion acquisition of Twitter, and said he’s talking to Twitter founder Jack Dorsey about sticking around as part owner.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorElon Musk is getting a little help from billionaire friends for his $44 billion Twitter takeover.According to an SEC filing Thursday, Musk has secured $7.14 billion in new financing commitments for the Twitter bid, including $1 billion from Larry Ellison. Ellison, co-founder and CTO of software giant Oracle, also sits on the board of Tesla, which Musk heads as CEO.In addition, Prince al-Waleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia committed to retain the equity he owns in Twitter — his 35 million shares are worth $1.9 billion at Musk’s buyout offer — instead of receiving a cash payout, per the filing.Musk “will continue to have… discussions with certain existing holders” of Twitter stock, including ex-CEO Jack Dorsey, to contribute their shares toward his bid, according to the filing.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterFormer AMC Networks chief Josh Sapan’s compensation for 2021, his final year as CEO of the company, rose 30% over the previous year to $15.3 million.According to a proxy statement filed with the SEC Friday, Sapan’s total pay from the company for 2021 was $15.3 million compared to the $11.8 million he received in 2020 and the $20.2 million he was paid in 2019.Click here to sign up for Variety‘s free Strictly Business newsletter covering earnings, financial and investment news, and more.Sapan’s successor, AMC Networks interim CEO Matthew Blank, was paid $6.97 million for the year. Blank joined AMC Networks in his new role in August just as Sapan stepped down.Blank’s base salary for 2021 was $630,136, while Sapan’s was $2 million.

10-Q SEC filing on Friday following the company’s earnings yesterday, in estimated value encompasses roughly 4,000 film titles and 17,000 episodes of TV. It’s the first filing to discuss any information about MGM’s perceived value to Amazon.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorUPDATED: Elon Musk this week reaped $8.4 billion in a series of stock sales of Tesla, the electric car company he heads, evidently as part of raising money for his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter.Musk, , the world’s richest individual, sold more than 4.4 million shares of Tesla on April 26 and 27 at various prices of about $870-$1,000 per share, according to SEC insider transaction filings Thursday. Additional disclosures Friday showed that he sold another 5.4 million Telsa shares on April 28.

disclosed in SEC filings on Thursday. Musk said Thursday that he doesn’t plan to sell off any more shares in the government-subsidized car company.According to the SEC filing, Musk initiated the sales on April 26, the day after his bid to acquire Twitter was announced.

filing with the SEC. The $46.5 billion – backed by debt commitment letters from Morgan Stanley and other financial firms – is $3.5 billion more than the $43 billion of his publicized offer, though it was not immediately clear whether that represented a higher price-point offer or just buys Musk additional negotiating wiggle-room.The filing says Twitter has not responded, and that Musk is exploring “whether to commence a tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Common Stock … at a price of $54.20 per share.” Any shareholder could choose to take the offer; if a majority (plus Musk’s outstanding shares, just over 9%) were to agree, he could take control — though Twitter’s recently enacted “poison pill” conditions could upend that process.The filing is notable in that it prevents Musk from making the same mistake a second time: The Tesla CEO got in hot water with the SEC for tweeting in 2018 that he was “considering taking Tesla private at $420.

Elon Musk has assembled financial commitments worth $46.5 billion to buy Twitter and said he is considering a tender offer – or going over management’s head to make his bid directly to shareholders — “but has not determined whether to do so at this time.”

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorTech billionaire Elon Musk is moving forward with his potential bid to acquire Twitter, revealing that he has lined up $46.5 billion in financing for a possible tender offer for the company.The financing was disclosed in an SEC filing Thursday. Musk’s financing includes commitments from Morgan Stanley and “certain other financial institutions.”According to the filing, Musk has not yet determined whether he will make a tender offer for Twitter or whether he will take other steps to further the proposal.Last week, Musk — the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX who is the wealthiest person on the planet — proposed to buy Twitter for about $43 billion in a hostile takeover, offering $54.20 per share for the social media company.

Total compensation for Paramount Global chief Bob Bakish dipped to $20 million in 2021 from $38.9 million the year before, which included a hefty stock award.

The world’s richest man has the funds to buy Twitter. But if he can’t clinch a deal for some reason, he told a TED Talk Thursday, he’ll bring along as many shareholders as he can to reform the social media giant that’s become America’s “public square.”

not revealed anything on how exactly he plans to pay for Twitter. The possibilities could include going to his investment partners or leveraging his stock at Tesla.“I’m not sure that I will actually be able to acquire it. … I could technically afford it,” he said, adding that his focus is less on raising the business fortunes of the company than in improving the product — which may require converting it to a private company that is not bound by fiduciary concerns.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has made an offer to acquire Twitter for $54.20 a share – valuing the social media giant at $41.4BN.

Billionaire Elon Musk has always been unpredictable, and once again, he delivered a surprise.

Billionaire Elon Musk has joined Twitter’s board of directors, a day after it was announced he had become the social media company’s largest shareholder.

Tesla founder Elon Musk has acquired 73.5 million shares in Twitter, or 9.2% of the company, sending its shares up more than 20% but prompting uneasiness about his intentions.

Redbox, which went public via a SPAC last year, said it will lay off 150 employees, about 10% of its workforce. In an SEC filing, the company said “a number of potential strategic alternatives with respect to the company’s corporate or capital structure.”

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorRedbox Entertainment, which operates a national network of DVD-rental kiosks and a streaming-video business, said it laid off 150 employees, roughly 10% of its total headcount.The company, which disclosed the layoffs in an 8-K filing Friday with the SEC, said it was cutting jobs because of “the ongoing adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic” on its operations. As of the end of 2020, Redbox reported having 1,467 employees.In addition, Redbox on Friday notified the SEC that it is unable to file its 10-K annual report for 2021 within the prescribed time period without unreasonable effort or expense.The company estimated that the layoffs will reduce its annual operating costs by $13.1 million, and that it will incur one-time restructuring charges of approximately $3.8 million, mostly related to severance payments.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentDubai-based cryptocurrency-based content platform MContent has partnered with  PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Middle East to launch its documentary “Ripple vs SEC Saga” in a virtual theater in the metaverse.Produced by MContent and Amsterdam-based Insight TV in tandem with Villain Studios, “Ripple vs SEC Saga” (first look image above) delves into the ongoing case being brought by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) since 2020 against blockchain company Ripple Labs.In this landmark case the SEC has accused Ripple of raising $1.3 billion in unregistered digital asset securities by using its digital coin, called XRP. The SEC’s key claim, which is being refuted, is that XRP is not a currency, but a security and therefore subject to strict securities laws.

AT&T has firmed up more details of its spinoff of WarnerMedia, which is poised to combine with Discovery in a $43 billion merger.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterAT&T CEO John Stankey’s pay for 2021 rose 18% over the previous year to $24.8 million, per the company’s SEC filing Tuesday.His base salary for the year was $2.4 million, with a non-equity incentive plan compensation of $6.88 million.