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Steve Flynn, EVP, Publicity

TL;DR

In a hurry? Here's our pick of the top news items of the week.

YouTube has pulled out of the UK’s Barb TV audience measurement comparison, triggering backlash across the UK TV/advertising ecosystem. (Financial Times)
The EU opened a formal investigation into X over Grok-generated deepfakes, under the Digital Services Act. (AP)
Apple TV+ shared a first look at “Ted Lasso” Season 4 and confirmed a Summer 2026 window, with Ted coaching a women’s team. (Entertainment Weekly)

Nielsen’s December 2025 “Media Distributor Gauge” found holiday movies and football drove viewership gains for Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Hallmark, Netflix and Amazon. (Nielsen)
YouTube’s move to halt participation in UK TV audience comparison/measurement work has triggered fresh debate over cross-platform transparency and what gets counted as “TV.” (Financial Times)
Nielsen’s The Gauge reported that streaming hit a record 47.5% of total TV viewing in December 2025 (with Christmas Day the most-streamed day ever), highlighting how audiences are moving away from traditional nightly broadcast viewing. (Nielsen)

Paramount+ is reportedly prepping a TikTok-style short-form video feature to boost daily engagement and discovery inside the streaming app. (Business Insider)
TikTok’s U.S. service continued stabilizing after its data center outage, underscoring how platform reliability can hinge on infrastructure issues during high-scrutiny moments. (Tech Crunch)
As TikTok’s U.S. divestment/ownership-change deal moved forward, U.S. users began bailing app uninstalls jumped about 130% (Jan 22–26). (AP)

The 2026 BAFTA Film Awards nominations were announced, setting the stage for a major awards-season conversation across UK/US film communities and campaigns. (Variety)
Netflix postponed its Alex Honnold “Skyscraper Live” event (set at Taipei 101) due to safety concerns. (Yahoo News )
'Wonder Man' sets new MCU record with audience Rotten Tomatoes Score at 90% on the Tomatometer. (Movie Web)

Microsoft announced its Maia 200 AI accelerator and plans to scale it inside Azure, reinforcing the cloud arms race for in-house AI compute. (Microsoft News)
Reporting indicates Apple is planning to add Google’s Gemini as an option alongside other models for Apple Intelligence and Siri, reflecting a multi-model strategy rather than a single-vendor AI stack. (CNBC)
A new survey of CEOs suggests AI ROI expectations are sharpening, with leaders prioritizing concrete productivity and revenue outcomes over experimentation. (PWC Survey)

The Traitors” is getting a West End stage adaptation for 2027, the hit unscripted IP being repackaged into a ticketed live experience. (The Guardian)
Disney spotlights the “Imagineers” behind its latest multibillion-dollar bet on new cruises, rides and character experiences. (The Wall Street Journal)
London’s “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” will switch from a two-part epic to a single, shorter show in October 2026, making the experience easier to attend in one visit. (The Guardian)

Six Senses is bringing its wellness-first hotel model to London with a major Whiteley redevelopment opening in March 2026. (Financial Times)
Airlines are suspending or adjusting service to parts of the Middle East (including Dubai, Iran, and Israel) as risk guidance tightens, creating knock-on disruption for international travelers. (Conde Nast)
Southwest’s assigned seating rollout hit a key milestone on January 27, marking a high-profile shift away from its signature open-boarding identity and reshaping expectations for its leisure-heavy flyers. (Southwest Media)

Microsoft’s latest Xbox Cloud Gaming UI is being positioned as a “preview” of the broader Xbox future, hinting at how streaming-first surfaces may converge with next-gen console UX. (The Verge)
Capcom is shipping another “Monster Hunter Wilds” PC optimization patch after sustained performance complaints. (PC Gamer)
“Highguard,” the new fantasy-themed online shooter from ex-Respawn devs, is drawing mixed-to-negative early reaction after a poorly received Game Awards reveal and a rocky launch marked by performance issues and Steam backlash, leaving it fighting an uphill battle to win players over. (The Guardian)