20thcenturyfox

It took just a few weeks, but the trouble is over. The two sides have met and negotiated a fair arrangement. No, I'm not referring to the Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama camps and the Florida and Michigan delegates. No, the news is more animated than that. The powers that be at 20th Century Fox TV have re-signed the actors who voice the The Simpsons.

The principals are signing new four-year deals in which the talent will receive substantial increases in salary. They had been getting $360,000 per episode and were looking for a bump up in that fee to $500,000 per. The negotiated compromise amount is about $400,000 per show. And as expected, instead of a 22 episode season commencing next fall, there'll be 20 shows in the year ahead.

After more than twenty years at 20th Century Fox TV, Emmy-winning writer-producer David E. Kelley is packing his bags.

One of the longest and most succesful collaborations in television history is coming to an end as Kelley announced that he is entering into a three-year partnership with Warner Bros. TV.

Hey everyone! This time we've got five copies of the 24 Season One Special Edition on DVD for five lucky, random commenters. The DVD is available in stores starting tomorrow.

To enter, simply leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, May 23 simply telling us why you'd like to own this DVD set. As always, we'll randomly choose five winners amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:
Click here for complete Official Rules.

From the "Things that make you go, hmmmm?" department... Just let this one roll around in your noggin for a bit. According to reports, after 2 1/2 years of negotiations, Mr. MacFarlane has a new deal with 20th Century Fox TV that could be worth more than $100 million. The deal will keep him with the studio through 2012. To put it in some perspective, J.J. Abrams signed a five year feature/TV deal with Paramount and Warner Bros that was valued at $60 million.

Now, I don't mean to slight Seth or his accomplishments, but doesn't that strike you as just a bit odd? I mean, I'm a fan of his work. I've never missed an episode of Family Guy or American Dad. Hell, I sat through The War At Home to catch his guest spot. Still, I also follow ratings rather closely, and while Family Guy is certainly a success, I wouldn't have expected it to garner him highest paid status. Maybe The Cleveland Show is just that much better than any of us are giving it credit for.

Our first Festivus giveaway! This one is for five copies of The Simpsons Movie on DVD! All you've got to do is submit a comment below before 5PM Eastern, December 21, and mention your favorite character from The Simpsons. We'll randomly choose five winners to receive the DVDs!

Some other details:

• To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating who your favorite Simpsons character is.
• The comment must be left before December 21, 2007 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
  
• You may enter only once.
• Five winners will be selected in a random drawing.
  
• Five winners will receive a copy of The Simpsons Movie on DVD (valued at $29.99).
  

Click here for complete Official Rules.

The giveaways continue today! Not only are we giving away five copies of seasons one and two of Upright Citizens Brigade, we've also got one copy of the Angel Complete Series Collector's Set for a lucky, random commenter. The set is available in stores on October 30.

To enter, simply leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, November 2 (yes, that's two weeks), simply telling us your favorite episode from the series. As always, we'll randomly choose one winner amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:
Click here for complete Official Rules.

There is an interesting article over at The Register about how long Australian TV fans have to wait to get programming from the US. A recent survey of some 119 shows reveals that the average delay for the programs is 16.7 months. As if they are putting videotapes on a rowboat and paddling them across the pond.

To be fair, that 16.7 months number is skewed a little bit by the inclusion of Antiques Roadshow which wrecked the curve with an 11 year delay in being broadcast. Still, there are many more popular shows that still have long delays once they leave their country of origin. Some of the average delays listed are: CSI: NY (9.3 months), Grey's Anatomy (4.9 months), Heroes (4.2 months), House (5 months), and Third Watch (22.1 months).

I think that at this point the bit torrent technology has become so ubiquitous that some people might not even know that there is an actual Bit Torrent Inc. But there is, and they have announced that they are partnering with a bunch of TV and movie companies to distribute content through their website using torrent technology. Among those in the announcement are 20th Century Fox, G4, Paramount Pictures, Kadokowa Pictures USA, Lionsgate, MTV Networks, Starz Media, and Palm Pictures. The partnership agreements have also helped them to secure another round of financing in the 15 to 25 million dollar ballpark.

That's the happy fluffy bunny part of the announcement. What none of the stories floating around get into is how this is all going to shake down for the customers. This is certainly a case where the devil will be in the details, and knowing only what we know now, I'm not too excited about the service's prospects.