The Seven Network is adjusting its arrangement with joint venture partner Yahoo and plans to launch a standalone streaming service. Seven had previously been a stakeholder, with Foxtel, in the Presto streaming service, but announced plans to sell its stake to Foxtel in October, 2016; Presto folded in January, 2017. Seven also operates a Plus7 streaming offering in tandem with Yahoo7, which will be replaced by the planned new service. Seven's chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette said the strategy would allow Seven to bundle its platforms to advertisers, and that the network and streaming service would be "seamlessly connected ??? delivering the most effective total video results for advertisers."
Paradise lost
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Scandals may frequently plague reality TV shows but few properly grind them to a halt. The stars of the fourth season of the US series Bachelor in Paradise will return prematurely from their trip to Mexico following allegations of "misconduct" on the set; the US network ABC has suspended production on the series and says it will, once the investigation is complete, "take appropriate responsive action". The cast of the series, which features former The Bachelor and The Bachelorette contestants, were being flown from Mexico to the US city of Houston, though US media reports suggest they are unaware of the fallout, nor of the network's expected plans to shelve the series.
More Lies on horizon
The proposed second season of the HBO series Big Little Lies could become a reality, the show's director David E. Kelley has said. "It's possible, there's a lot of talk and thought being put into it now but it was not something we planned on," Kelley said, noting the project was intended to be a one-off. Kelley said the series would not have drawn such a stellar cast, including Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Alex Skarsgard, otherwise. "These are all people with big careers with a lot of projects lined up and they all had just one year deals," he said, but noted that the very same actors were supporting a proposed second season. "They're at the forefront now of wanting that second season," he said.
Who could it be?
Newly anointed Doctor Who showrunner, producer Chris Chibnall, has flagged that his employers at the BBC are expecting him to approach the job with "risk and boldness". Chibnall's insight into his plans for the long-running series was light on detail, but asked whether he would consider allowing a single storyline to span an entire season, he said he would. "I had ideas about what I wanted to do with it [and] when I went to them and said this is what I would do, they said great," he says. Meanwhile, there are media reports in Britain that the next Doctor - the actor who would replace incumbent Peter Capaldi - has already been cast, with a regeneration scene expected as early as this year's Christmas episode.