JOHN STANKEY

The airline industry is raising the stakes in a showdown with AT&T and Verizon over plans to launch new 5G wireless service this week, warning that thousands of flights could be grounded or delayed if the rollout takes place near major airports.

Telecom giants AT&T and Verizon have agreed to postpone the launch of a new slice of 5G wireless service after airlines and aviation groups complained that the networks can interfere with systems on board planes.

Verizon and AT&T have rejected a request by the U.S. government to delay the rollout of next-generation wireless technology.

House Democrats are raising concerns that the proposed merger of Discovery and AT&T’s WarnerMedia, a $43 billion effort to conquer the world of streaming, could affect diversity efforts in Hollywood and particularly hurt Latinos, who are already deeply underrepresented.

Corporations have given more than $50 million in recent years to state lawmakers who have seized on Donald Trump’s lies about a stolen 2020 election to push for new restrictions on the right to vote.

This image released by Warner Bros. Entertainment shows Gal Gadot in a scene from "Wonder Woman 1984." “Wonder Woman 1984” grossed an additional $19.4 million in international markets where it began playing a week earlier. But WarnerMedia is counting on “Wonder Woman 1984” to matter more to HBO Max, which wobbled in its initial rollout. Warner Bros. nevertheless seized on the returns for “Wonder Woman 1984” as the best as could be expected, given the circumstances. Streaming numbers weren't provided for “Soul” or “Wonder Woman 1984.” WarnerMedia said nearly half of HBO Max’s subscribers watched “Wonder Woman 1984” on its first day on the streaming platform, though it didn't say how long constituted a watch.

NEW YORK – The Walt Disney Co.’s streaming plans shifted into hyper speed Thursday, as the studio unveiled a galaxy’s worth of new streaming offerings including plans for 10 “Star Wars” series spinoffs and 10 Marvel series that will debut on Disney+. But Disney also kept its biggest films — including Marvel's “Black Widow," Pixar's “Luca,” a “Lion King” prequel — on course for theatrical release. Jenkins becomes the first woman to direct a “Star Wars” film. Among the “Star Wars” series are two spinoffs of “The Mandalorian,” set during the series' timeline: “Rangers of the New Republic” and “Ahsoka,” with Rosario Dawson. Seven Disney films topped $1 billion worldwide.

The coronavirus sapped $2.8 billion in revenue from AT&T in its most recent quarter, mostly in its WarnerMedia TV and film division. WarnerMedia revenue fell 23% to $6.8 billion due to a pullback by TV advertisers, particularly as there were no live sports, and movie theaters closed. The company is hoping to navigate the shift to online video with its HBO Max service, which launched in late May. It's not specified how many were existing HBO customers who upgraded to Max for free and how many were new customers; there are 36.3 million U.S. subscribers to HBO Max or HBO. The company said it had “work to do to educate and motivate” HBO customers that they could switch to HBO Max, which has more content.

FILE - Posters for upcoming movies are displayed in an empty corridor at the currently closed AMC Burbank Town Center 8 movie theaters complex on April 29, 2020, in Burbank, Calif. After several false starts, the film industry is hoping to bring new releases back into movie theaters in late August. While the beleaguered restaurant industry still has takeout and airlines continue to operate with masked flyers, the vast majority of U.S. movie theaters havent punched a single ticket since March. The largest studios the Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros., Universal now all have streaming services of their own now, along with television operations. Theaters in China, the worlds second largest movie market, this week reopened with theaters limited to 30% capacity. If they dont do something, if they just keeping holding the films back, the theaters are going to die.

The launch of a new subscription video streaming service was a keystone in AT&T's $85 billion deal for Time Warner. The launch of a new subscription video streaming service was a keystone in AT&T's $85 billion deal for Time Warner, CNN's parent company. The media company previously had three divisions -- HBO, Warner Bros and Turner -- with relatively little synergy between them. AT&T said Monday that it intends to spend about $2 billion on HBO Max in the next two years. HBO already offers a streaming subscription option for its programming, known as HBO Now.

AT&T announced two promotions on Tuesday that place John Stankey, the CEO of its subsidiary WarnerMedia, firmly in line to succeed the wireless giant's CEO, Randall Stephenson. DALLAS, Texas - AT&T announced two promotions on Tuesday that place John Stankey, the CEO of its subsidiary WarnerMedia, firmly in line to succeed the wireless giant's CEO, Randall Stephenson. Stephenson, who has led AT&T since 2007, is installing Stankey as president and chief operating officer of the entire company. At the same time, Stankey will remain the head of WarnerMedia, the entertainment and news unit that includes CNN. Another contender was John Donovan, the head of the AT&T Communications unit, but Donovan announced his retirement last week.