Emmy Bullseyes and Misfires

The worst things One outstanding series was robbed of an Emmy it should have received while another won in a category it had no business being placed inamp160Atlanta in stunning fashion after Glover39s earlier wins lost the Outstanding Comedy Series award toamp160Veep the winner in that category the last two years amp160No way this acclaimed FX series groundbreaking on many levels in its first season should have been denied amp160Moments earlieramp160Black Mirror the brilliant Netflixdistributed anthology series picked up the madeforTV movie Emmy for its excellent quotSan Juniperoquot episode amp160Trouble isamp160Mirroramp160is a series and quotSan Juniperoquot isamp160an hourlong TV episode not a madeforTV movieDon39t put Mirror or Netflix at fault here amp160Blame Emmy organizers who in recent yearsamp160have zapped the credibility of this category by allowing the inclusion of extended series episodes amp160Sherlockamp160won this way last year amp160Was this episode worthy of Emmy recognition amp160You bet in the drama series categories where quotSan Juniperoquot could have competed for best writing directing guest actors and so forth amp160How does the Academy of Television Arts ampamp Sciences explain this awayamp160 If not among us viewers thenamp160 to members of the madeforTVmovie producing community who are seeing some of that genre39s best work shut out replaced by such series episodesThe solution is simple and twofold amp160Insist that no TV series episodes of any length are placed in this category and have the nominees be movies that run from 90 minutes to three hours giving 10minute latitude on either end amp160A simple solution to execute and execute nowMore Notes from the Passing ParadeThe future of TV is apps That39s the clarion call Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook delivered two years ago during an Apple TV upgrade introducing a variety of new uses to users amp160What39s more before a packed Silicon Valley audience Cook and colleagues allocated time to demonstrate how innovative those features can be from ordering merchandise on the spot through the TV set to hooking up with Airbnbamp160and ZillowCook and his audience reunited at Apple39s new and impressive Cupertino California headquarters last week to show off the next iteration of Apple TV starting with more than 10000 apps and more innovative features already in play including virtual reality content from Littlestar and ticketing through StubHub amp160However new innovations were nowhere to be showcased not even those users could tap into by command via Siri amp160Instead the focus was on introducing ultra highdefinition and high dynamic range technologies which result in better picture quality features already commonplace in many smart TV sets and TVconnected devices amp160Even a quick demo of multiplayer adventure game Sky couldn39t derail the impression that this Apple TV upgrade priced at 179 and available by end of this month was out to catch up with rivals in its marketplace instead of leading the marketplace forward amp160Time for Apple to inspire its developer ecosystem to bring the innovations on and when they do tell the public about themRemember Hulu39s announcement at its Upfront event last May that it wasamp160launching an interactive commerce by TV option this fall amp160Here39s a recap When watching an ad for a new movie if you want tickets to watch that movie that afternoon or evening at the nearest theater you hit the remote or speak through Siri or Alexa and the tickets get ordered through the TV set amp160Hulu chief executive Mike Hopkins says that feature is very alive and proceeding under a pilot tryout using Roku and an unidentified advertiser amp160quotOnce we see results from this test we39ll roll Tcommerce out aggresivelyquot Hopkins told a Paley Center For Media breakfast audience in New York last week amp160quotThat39s the holy grailquotUnivision Communications largely through its Fusion Media Group subsidiary has introduced action after action the last few months to spike more diversity on the tube amp160First came Fusion39s creative board announced in May with notables from Viola Davis to Jodie Foster in search of promising talent of color on both sides of the camera amp160Then participation in the Creative Thread Foundation a consortium out to carve quicker pathways for diverse programming and talent to reach viewers amp160Now Univision has put Project Unbound in motion amp160Unbound39s focus is on eliminating barriers to inclusion within the entertainment scene in general amp160Look for all three projects to go quotfull steam aheadquot and work with each other saidamp160Fusion copresident Camilia Jimenez Villa in New York last week for a Paley Center screening ofamp160El Chapo amp160Several projects from these ventures will be announced before the end of the year followed by much more in 2018 Villa addedKeep an eye out for Samsung39s annual developers conference in Silicon Valley next month amp160Several smart TV app development sessions are on the agenda and this may be the event where Eko the interactive TV programmer counting Samsung and MGM among its investors announces its first rollout of original series including an adaptation of MGM39samp160War Gamesamp160movie amp160Eko lets users dictate the course of a program39s plot or characters when prompted on the screenNice trio of Paley Center for Media New York events on three consecutive days last weekamp160 A screening ofamp160El Chapoamp160Tuesday another for season four ofamp160Transparentamp160Wednesday and Mike Hopkins39 breakfast ThursdayUntil the next time stay well and stay tunedClick on the social media tiles above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively those of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggersamp160

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Emmy Bullseyes and Misfires

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Simon Applebaum

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Emmy Bullseyes and Misfires

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