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The Associated Press to Set Guidelines for Using Its Articles in Blogs (NYT)
The Associated Press, one of the nation's largest news organizations, said that it will, for the first time, attempt to define clear standards as to how much of its articles and broadcasts bloggers and Web sites can excerpt without infringing on The A.P.'s copyright. The A.P.'s effort to impose some guidelines on the free-wheeling blogosphere may offer a prominent definition of the important but vague doctrine of "fair use."
McClatchy to Cut Work Force By 10% to Save $70 Million (WSJ)
McClatchy Co. plans to cut its work force by about 10 percent amid a difficult advertising market as the media company reported a 15 percent drop in May revenues, hurt by a 17 percent drop in advertising sales. Chief executive Gary Pruitt said, "The effects of the current national economic downturn — particularly in real estate, auto, and employment advertising — make it essential that we move faster now to realign our workforce and make our operations more efficient."
AMC Conjures More Dramas (Variety)
AMC is expanding its development slate, adding drama projects about diamond dealers and a mysterious magician to the roster. Carter Beats the Devil, penned by Wesley Strick, is based on the fanciful novel about 1920s magician Charles Carter and his role in the death of President Warren Harding. Ice, written by Christian Darren, revolves around a family in New York's diamond district.
Small Publishers Feel Power of Amazon's 'Buy' Button (NYT)
Amazon, the online retailing giant with a fast-rising share of the consumer book market, has adopted the literary equivalent of a nuclear option for rebellious publishers who balk at its demands. In the latest in a series of disputes over the division of revenue from online sales, Amazon has disabled the "buy now with 1 click" icon on its British Web site for hundreds of books published by the British unit of Hachette Livre.
NBC Universal Brings Oxygen Into the Fold (NYT)
NBC Universal spent almost a billion dollars buying the Oxygen cable channel last year. Now it's busy making it a member of the family. The channel is beginning to embrace its new identity as NBC's flagship female television brand, part of a one-month-old "women and lifestyle entertainment network," called Women@NBCU, that it hopes will appeal to advertisers.
The Newest Betty Is Not "Ugly" And Not "Boop" (MIN)
Steve Smith: The first thing you have to ask about the new women's site BettyConfidential.com is the name. "It was based on focus groups," says co-founder/ceo/editor-in-chief Deborah Perry Piscione. "Every woman felt she needed a friend who didn't stab her in the back and who she could talk with about anything and it not come back to haunt her. Betty was the name that kept coming back."
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