NBC U's Jeff Zucker Issues Timely Reminder That There's No Money To Be Made On The Internet
· NBC Universal boss Jeff Zucker whines that his company wasn't making much money from iTunes downloads of its TV shows, and that the control-freaky Apple wouldn't allow him to "experiment" with raising the prices for one of its series. Also, the greedy Apple is apparently to blame for denying them revenue they would then immediately share with their beloved partners in content creation, their writers: "Apple sold millions of dollars worth of hardware off the back of our content and made a lot of money. They did not want to share in what they were making off the hardware or allow us to adjust pricing." [Variety]
· The feds are sending a nanny to tomorrow's contract negotiation session to make sure that WGA and AMPTP play nice in the final moments before a possible strike. [THR]
· Warner Bros. chooses Greg Berlanti to direct its Green Lantern feature, taking the leap of faith that his executive producing experience on shows like Dirty Sexy Money, Brothers & Sisters, and Everwood will somehow allow him to effectively tell the story of a guy with a magic ring and a predilection for green spandex . [Variety]
· 19.7 million viewers tuned in to watch the Red Sox complete their sweep of the Rockies, leading Fox to a much more suspenseful win over Desperate Housewives. [THR]
· Overseas audiences prefer cooking rats to torture porn, as Ratatouille holds off a strong international debut by Saw IV. [Variety]