"Showmax — (a South African company) spun out of Africa’s largest entertainment (conglomerate), MultiChoice, in 2015 — had 2.1 million subscribers on the continent at the end of November 2023, as compared to 1.8 million for Netflix. … Showmax’s market share rose to nearly 39%, while Netflix dropped to 33.5%." - Rest of World
The "passeport talent," launched in 2017 for certain highly-skilled individuals, now includes entrepreneurs, investors, and staff employees (as well as freelancers) judged likely to make a significant contribution to France's culture or economy. It allows holders to live and work in the country for up to four years. - Euronews
"After more than a decade of work, scientists from Argentina, Chile and the United States have successfully dated the Huenul 1 cave paintings in Argentina’s Patagonia region. … The oldest paintings in the cave date back 8,200 years, several millennia earlier than previously suggested." - El País (Spain) (in English)
"Governor Ron DeSantis on Thursday came out in support of a proposal to limit book bans in schools. ... In a press conference, DeSantis tried to claim that accusations that he has enabled book bans in the state of Florida are 'a fraud' and 'a big hoax.'" - The New Republic
"The 13 layoffs include salaried and hourly employees on (the) roughly 100-person staff. Front-line support staff … will not be impacted by staff reductions." In addition, museum director Mark Bessire is taking a voluntary 20% reduction in his annual salary. - Portland Press Herald
"Many in Jasper, a city of about 14,000 (located) 40 miles northwest of Birmingham, fear the culprits have taken more than a heap of steel. Listeners describe WJLX as a trusted source …, breaking through the noise of a cluttered (media) landscape ... with something that felt distinctly theirs." - The New York Times
Hervé Boissière, a former senior executive at Naïve Records who went on to found Medici.TV, where he is CEO, and who's also executive director of the European classical cable TV channel Mezzo, will join Verbier Festival founder Martin Engstroem as the helm of the summer event in the Swiss Alps. - Gramophone
Seeking information using a search engine could be almost completely replaced by this new generation of large language model-powered systems. - The Wall Street Journal
While the nation has been focusing on book bans, school libraries all around us have gone without enough (noncontroversial) books. Or inviting furniture. Or amenities that would help create a sense of community. - Washington Post
Arne Glimcher said the controversy surrounding Close is not his concern. “There has been too much about Chuck that isn’t about the art,” he said. “I only want to talk about the art.” - The New York Times
Rhapsody in Blue opened up a wider set of debates about the relationship between “high art” and popular art, about racism and cultural differences, about black music and black identity, debates that continue to shape contemporary culture. - The Guardian
Prison authorities see a threat to security in a staggering array of literature, art and music. Connecticut has banned 334 individual books, magazines and pieces of music as security risks. Besides “La bohème,” Puccini’s opera “Manon Lescaut” is also banned. - Operawire
It argues that as a reputable and trusted source, its articles have additional weight and reliability in training generative AI and are part of a data subset that is given additional weighting in that training. - The Conversation
Along with making access to the two platforms comparatively cheaper than buying separate subscriptions, the partnership would help Comcast and Paramount “produce significant cost savings — from spending on programming to marketing.” - The Verge
U.S. copyright law is extremely complicated, and the technology bears features that don’t resemble anything seen in earlier technology transitions. Put them together, and the complexities are magnified exponentially. - Los Angeles Times
