Sony-BMG merger approved by EU
BRUSSELS -- Independent record companies Tuesday threatened to go to court to challenge Sony and Bertelsmann's creation of the world's second largest music company after failing to convince European Union antitrust regulators to block the deal.
The European Commission unconditionally approved the 50-50 joint venture between Japan's Sony Music and BMG, the German media giant's music unit, late Monday after finding insufficient evidence the deal would harm consumers.
The deal is expected to win U.S. antitrust clearance within days, bringing Sony artists like Aerosmith, George Michael and Barbra Streisand and BMG's Avril Lavigne and Elvis Presley under one roof.
In its decision, the commission indicated it believed its initial concerns about competition in the market were not entirely unfounded.
"The commission will keep a close watch on the music sector as it becomes even more concentrated and would very carefully scrutinize any further major concentration in the industry," it said.
The deal will reduce the number of music "majors" from five to four. Sony and BMG argued they needed to join forces to deal with declining CD sales and the threat from illegal downloading on the Internet.
But independent labels fear the merger will make it even tougher for their artists to gain exposure and shelf space in a market increasingly dominated by mega-stores.
Martin Mills, chairman of the Beggars Group label and board member of Britain's Association of Independent Music, noted BMG posted record operating profits of around $37.2 million US in the first half of this year.
"This merger is not about economic necessity in a changing market, as BMG's stellar figures demonstrate," he charged. "It is about the desire to dominate and to control the outlets at media and retail through which news of wonderful new music is disseminated."
Impala, a group representing 2,000 smaller labels, is considering challenging the deal in court, said spokesman Jean-Luka Monte.
But antitrust lawyers noted such challenges by third parties are extremely rare, with very little likelihood of success.
"It's about as close to zero as you can get," said Stephen Kinsella, an international business expert with the Herbert Smith law firm in Brussels.
Universal Music holds the top spot in Europe, with Sony-BMG pulling ahead in the United States. The rivals control about a quarter each of the $32 billion US global music market.
The other two majors are EMI and Warner Music, with about 30 per cent of the global market between them.
Four years ago, EMI and Warner scrapped a proposed hookup in the face of EU charges that fewer majors could reduce competition and lead to higher prices and less choice for consumers.
A renewed courtship was cut short last year when former Universal Music chief Edgar Bronfman Jr. stepped in to buy Warner for $2.6 billion US.
Similar concerns emerged in the EU's initial appraisal of the Sony BMG deal, with antitrust chief Mario Monti's team suggesting "tacit collusion" in setting CD prices among the five majors.
But after closed-door hearings and an internal review, the commission backed down, saying it "had to conclude . . . that the evidence found was not sufficient to demonstrate in a successful way that co-ordinated pricing behaviour existed in the past."
Reducing the number of majors to four "would not yet create a collectively held dominant position" in recorded music, it said.
The reversal of the EU's position on the merger reflects new hurdles instituted by the commission since European courts overturned three merger-blocking decisions in 2002.
FAMILIAR RECASTS ON 'CSI'
CBS is seeking two new actors who are remarkably like the two they just fired —George Eads and Jorja Fox — from TV's top-rated drama, "CSI," in a salary dispute.
A casting call sheet circulated yesterday among Hollywood talent agencies saying the network is looking for a male character and a female character who, based on descriptions, won't differ much from Eads' Nick Stokes and Fox's Sara Sidle.
According to the sheet, both characters will be in their "late-20s to mid-30s" and should be "sexy, edgy and intelligent" — in other words, not far from the characters played by Eads and Fox, who were fired last week after demanding pay increases and reportedly threatening not to show up for work.
Eads and Fox were reportedly pulling in about $100,000-per-episode, or roughly $2.2 million a year.
CBS chief Les Moonves told reporters earlier this week that the network wasn't sure if "CSI" would replace Eads and Fox.
Moonves said the actors could be replaced, or that co-stars like Gary Dourdan (Warrick) and Paul Guilfoyle (Brass) could have their roles beefed up.
Photos of both Fox and Eads were still posted on CBS' "CSI" Web site as of late yesterday.
Graham is Golden for Extended 'Scrubs' Stint
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) From the underbelly of the porn industry to the bloody dark alleys of Victorian London, Heather Graham has done acting stints in some dysfunctional environments, but wait until she meets the doctors of Sacred Heart. The "Boogie Nights" co-star has signed on for an eight-episode guest-starring role on NBC's "Scrubs."
"Heather Graham is a first-class actress whose beauty and comic sensibilities will mesh perfectly with the unique humor of 'Scrubs,'" says NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly.
As had been rumored, the actress will play an attending psychiatrist on the medical comedy. Creator Bill Lawrence is already looking forward to weaving Graham into the plotlines for the fourth season of "Scrubs."
"I've always found Heather incredibly funny and can't wait to start writing this character for her," Lawrence says. "Although her character will be a professionally competent shrink, her personal life will be a train wreck. She'll shine the light on all the other characters' dysfunctional behaviors and will be a foil for Dr. Cox and a mentor to Elliot."
Graham will make her first "Scrubs" appearance in the show's season premiere, which comes on Wednesday, Aug. 30.
In addition to more serious roles in "From Hell" and "Drugstore Cowboy," Graham has appeared in a variety of big screen comedies including "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" and "Bowfinger." She made a visit to FOX's "Arrested Development" this past season, adding to a television resume that includes the second season of "Twin Peaks" and several episodes of "Growing Pains."
Portman Readies for Re-Shoots of Third 'Star Wars'
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) -- Natalie Portman says she's planning to do re-shoots for the third "Star Wars" movie beginning next month in London.
The actress, who portrays Padme, the wife of the future Darth Vader and mother to Luke Skywalker, says she'll be happy to start a new project after finishing the yet-untitled third part of the six "Star Wars" films by George Lucas.
"It's been like 10 years of my life from when I signed on to when it finally will come out," Portman says. "And being 23, that's really significant obviously. I mean, it is a huge portion of my life and I've met some amazing people and it's been a really unique experience. So obviously, I look back on it and it obviously was part of forming who I am now and I am happy to start something new."
Portman talked to Zap2it.com in an interview Monday (July 19) about "Garden State," an indie film starring and directed by Zach Braff from "Scrubs." That film, coming out July 30, has been a film festival hit. She portrays an oddball girl in New Jersey who has a bizarre family and falls in love with Braff's character.
Although she's mostly recognized for her appearances in "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" and "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones," she appreciates it when people recognize her smaller films.
"I appreciate when anyone ever is excited about any role," Portman says. "Some people have a bit of snobbery about, 'You should have seen this small artsy film I did instead of the big blockbuster' but I think they all have their own values. I'm always equally flattered and really appreciate when people recognize me from anything."
Although she's unsure what she's re-shooting, it's a common thing to do for a big special effects film. Scheduled for release next May, she finished principal photography with co-stars Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor last year. The film has the usual Lucas veil of secrecy around it.
"I haven't been told anything, so for all I know, it could be like walking or an insert shot of my hands, or it could be a whole new storyline," Portman laughs. "So I will be as surprised as you are."
Portman is a stickler about not autographing anything that is "Star Wars"-related unless it's for a charitable cause, because if she signs a lot of items, it devalues things she'd give to charity. Portman graduated last year from Harvard after majoring in psychology, and also will be seen Dec. 2 in Mike Nichol's drama "Closer" with Julia Roberts and Jude Law.
Also, Portman knows nothing about rumors that she is wanted for the role of Lois Lane in the next "Superman" film. "I know there's rumors about it online because reporters keep asking about it but I don't really know," she tells Zap2it "I haven't read it or anything."
TV On DVD
We've got new details for you today on a number of DVDs just announced by 20th Century Fox. To start with, the 4-disc In Living Color: The Complete Second Season streets on 9/28.
Roswell: The Complete Second Season streets on 10/5 on 6 discs, which include audio commentary tracks (by the writers, producers and directors), the A Little Something Extra for the Fans video montage, a storyboard to scene comparison, and the featurettes Here with Me: Making of Roswell Season 2, The Shiri and Majandra Show, and Art of Composing Roswell.
The Garfield Movie will street on 10/19 including a behind-the-scenes featurette, sneak peeks of additional films and the Baha Men Holla music video.
Arrested Development: The Complete First Season also debuts on 10/19 on 3 discs, including the unaired pilot episode, audio commentary tracks, deleted/extended scenes, audio of original songs, behind-the-scenes featurettes, video of The Museum of Television & Radio Q&A (with creator Mitchell Hurwitz and the cast), promos, Easter eggs and more.
Greg the Bunny: The Complete Series arrives on DVD from Fox on 10/19 as well on 2 discs, including 2 unaired episodes, audio commentaries, deleted/extended scenes, promos, behind-the-scenes featurettes, interviews, a publicity gallery, Easter eggs and much more.
The big title in this batch is That 70s Show: The Complete First Season, which is due on 10/26 as a 4-disc set, including audio commentary on 8 episodes, featurettes, a trivia quiz, cast audition tapes, promos, a Cheap Trick music video and 2 Easter eggs.
Moving into November, the studio will release The Simple Life on 11/2.
Remember Alf? He’s back. In DVD form
Lion’s Gate is about to unleash aliens on us in the form of Alf: Season One on DVD this fall.
On September 22, 1986, a brown furry lovable alien named Gordon Shumway crashed his spaceship into the Los Angeles home of the Tanners (Willie, Kate, Lynn and Brian). They immediately took him into their home and their hearts, and named him ALF, short for Alien Life Form. For four years ALF lived with the Tanners, always elusively avoiding houseguests, chasing the family cat (Lucky), eating everything in sight, and breaking anything of value… but the Tanners always loved the old ALFer.
The season one set includes all the episodes in fullscreen and Dolby 2.0 Stereo, the pilot and a gag reel are also included.
The set is crashing to Earth on August 10th.
Michael Jackson Denies Surrogate Mother Report
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Beleaguered pop star Michael Jackson on Tuesday flatly denied a magazine report that he is about to become a father to quadruplets by way of a surrogate mother.
"This is not true, and we are not going to further comment on stories of this nature," publicist Raymone Bain told Reuters when asked about the report in Us Weekly magazine.
Bain also denied that Jackson, who is facing a trial later this year on child molestation charges, was to be the father of any children born through a surrogate-mother arrangement. "This is not true. None of this is true," she said.
But a spokeswoman for Us Weekly said the magazine stood by its story, which cited unnamed sources close to Jackson as saying he recently spent time in Florida with an identified woman who was pregnant with quads she was to bear for the singer.
The 45-year-old performer already has three children -- Prince Michael I and daughter Paris Michael by his former wife, Debbie Rowe, and Prince Michael II, the child he notoriously dangled from the balcony of a Berlin hotel in November 2002.
Jackson later revealed in a television documentary that Prince Michael II had been born to a woman who was essentially a stranger to him. "I used a surrogate mother and my own sperm cells," he told British interviewer Martin Bashir. "She doesn't know me."
It was in that same interview that Jackson ignited a public furor by saying he saw nothing wrong with having other children spend the night with him in the bedroom of his Neverland ranch home in California.
One youth who appeared in that documentary is now at the center of the child molestation case pending against the performer.
Jackson is charged in a 10-count indictment with committing lewd acts on a boy under the age of 14, as well as child abduction, extortion and false imprisonment. He has pleaded innocent, and a trial is set for Sept. 13.