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Tag: Leisure/Arts

  • Disney posts smaller streaming loss, will hike prices for Disney+ and Hulu

    Disney posts smaller streaming loss, will hike prices for Disney+ and Hulu

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    Walt Disney Co.’s stock dipped in after-hours trading Wednesday after the company posted mixed quarterly results roughly in line with analysts’ expectations amid a cost-cutting frenzy.

    Separately, Disney said it is hiking prices on almost all of its streaming packages in an aggressive push to boost its bottom line. Commercial-free Disney+ will cost $13.99 per month, a 27% increase, beginning Oct. 12. Ad-free Hulu will increase 20% to $17.99 per month. A new Disney+ and Hulu Bundle ad-free plan launches Sept. 6 for $19.99.

    Read more: Disney is raising prices on Hulu and Disney+ again. Here’s how much you’ll soon pay.

    The media giant
    DIS,
    -0.73%
    reported a fiscal third-quarter loss of $460 million, or 25 cents a share, mostly because of restructuring and impairment charges. After adjusting for restructuring costs and other effects, Disney reported earnings of $1.03 a share. Revenue grew 4% to $22.3 billion from $21.5 billion a year ago.

    Analysts surveyed by FactSet had on average expected adjusted earnings of 96 cents a share on revenue of $22.5 billion. Disney shares declined about 3% in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the report, after dropping 0.7% to $87.52 in the regular session.

    “Our results this quarter are reflective of what we’ve accomplished through the unprecedented transformation we’re undertaking at Disney to restructure the company, improve efficiencies and restore creativity to the center of our business,” Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a statement announcing the results. Disney is in the midst of a $5.5 billion cost-cutting plan overseen by Iger, who returned to the CEO position to right the ship in late 2022.

    Direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, which includes streaming services and some international products, hauled in $5.5 billion, compared with analysts’ forecast of $5.7 billion on average and last year’s total of $5.05 billion. The division did reduce its quarterly losses to $512 million, compared with $1.06 billion a year ago. Analysts were expecting a loss of $758 million.

    Still, the company has lost more than $10 billion in its DTC segment since launching Disney+ in late 2019. Disney had told investors for three years it expects Disney+ to be profitable by September 2024. During a conference call with analysts late Thursday, Iger said Disney is “actively exploring” options to crack down on account sharing when the company updates subscriber agreements later this year and will “roll out tactics to drive monetization” in 2024.

    The company’s iconic theme parks around the world and product-sales business increased to $8.3 billion in revenue from $7.4 billion a year ago. The average analyst estimate was $8.1 billion.

    Disney’s largest business segment, media and entertainment distribution, raked in $14 billion during the quarter, down from $14.1 billion a year ago. Analysts on average predicted $14.3 billion, according to FactSet.

    Disney’s television networks generated sales of $6.7 billion, while analysts’ average estimates called for $6.74 billion. Content sales and licensing, a category that includes Disney’s film business, reported revenue of $2.1 billion, compared with analysts’ expectations of about $2.15 billion.

    In the weeks leading up to Disney’s results, there has been a whirlwind of fear and doubt over the current state of the company’s streaming services — including ESPN — as well as linear-TV ad sales, the actors’ and writers’ strikes that have shut down Hollywood, Disney’s theme parks and its legal and political battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

    Front and center is the health of Disney+ as it battles streaming rivals like Apple Inc. 
    AAPL,
    -0.90%    ,
     Netflix Inc. 
    NFLX,
    -2.14%    ,
     Amazon.com Inc. 
    AMZN,
    -1.49%    ,
     Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. 
    WBD,
    -2.15%
    and Comcast Corp.
    CMCSA,
    -0.26%    .
    Macquarie Equity Research analyst Tim Nollen believes in Disney’s streaming services over the long term but said “we see too many near-term issues to overcome to support a more constructive view.”

    Disney+ had 146.1 million subscribers globally, 7% fewer than the 157.8 million it had in the previous quarter. The decline mostly came from India, where Disney lost the rights to stream a popular cricket league last year.

    Disney and DeSantis, who is running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, have filed dueling lawsuits that stem from the company’s criticism last year of a Florida law that bans classroom discussion of sexuality and gender identity with younger children. Earlier this week, a group of mostly former Republican high-level government officials called DeSantis’s takeover of Disney World’s governing district “severely damaging to the political, social, and economic fabric” of Florida.

    The somber vibe prompted Deutsche Bank analysts on Tuesday to lower their price target on Disney shares 8% to $120, with “lower advertising revenue, underperformance at the box office, and lighter parks attendance in Orlando” chief among their concerns.

    “This is Iger’s most important earnings call since returning to Disney late last year. He came in with a punch list that was too long to realistically knock off in two years,” Rick Munarriz, an analyst at the Motley Fool, said in an email. “Now the board has given him four years, and every word he uses during Thursday afternoon’s earnings call has to carry some serious heft.”

    Disney’s call was to start at 4:30 p.m. Eastern.

    Shares of Disney have inched up 0.7% this year, while the S&P 500
    SPX
    has climbed 16%.

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  • Live Nation reportedly focus of Justice Department antitrust probe

    Live Nation reportedly focus of Justice Department antitrust probe

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    Ticketmaster parent Live Nation Entertainment Inc.
    LYV,
    -7.84%
    is expected to become the focus of an antitrust suit from the U.S. Department of Justice by the end of the year, according to a report late Friday. Citing three unidentified sources close to the matter, Politico reported Friday that the DoJ intends to claim Live Nation is abusing its power in the live music industry. A request for comment from the DoJ was not returned as of publication time. A new case would add to the embattled company’s many policy and legal battles, which, if successful, could lead to a breakup of the company, Politico had reported previously. Earlier in the month, JetBlue Airways Corp.
    JBLU,
    +1.95%
    said it was unwinding a joint venture with American Airlines Group Inc.
    AAL,
    +1.33%
    after a court ruling in May siding with the DoJ.

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  • AMC had its busiest weekend since 2019, boosted by ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’

    AMC had its busiest weekend since 2019, boosted by ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’

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    AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. AMC
    AMC,
    +1.62%
    has had its busiest weekend since 2019, boosted by the blockbuster openings of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” the company said Monday. More than 7.8 million moviegoers in the U.S. and worldwide saw a movie at AMC between Thursday and Sunday, AMC said, in a statement. That marks AMC’s biggest and busiest weekend since 2019 based on global attendance and global admissions revenue. At its U.S. locations, the movie theater chain and meme stock darling also set a new post-reopening single-day attendance record Saturday. It was also AMC’s busiest day since July 2019, the company said. On Saturday, AMC also recorded its second-highest food and beverage day at its U.S. locations. “What a fabulous weekend for moviegoers at AMC’s movie theatres in the U.S. and abroad. AMC sends an enormous thank you and congratulations to Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, and the entire team at Warner Bros., and to Christopher Nolan and the team at Universal Pictures,” said AMC CEO Adam Aron, in a statement. “They’ve demonstrated that well-made, well-marketed films that captivate audiences can open on the same weekend and both enjoy great success.” Aron also highlighted the “on-going solid performances” of “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One” and “Sound of Freedom.” AMC’s stock skyrocketed 35.7% in premarket trades Monday after Friday’s surprise court setback for the company’s stock-conversion plan.

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  • AMC revises stock-conversion settlement plan after Friday’s surprise court setback

    AMC revises stock-conversion settlement plan after Friday’s surprise court setback

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    AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. has submitted a revised proposal for its stock-conversion plan, after a judge rejected a settlement Friday that would have given a green light to the deal.

    In a letter to investors that was posted Sunday on Twitter, AMC Chief Executive Adam Aron said that a modified proposal was filed Saturday with the Delaware Chancery Court intended to address the court’s concerns. If the court agrees, Aron said he hopes to implement the plan “as soon as possible.”

    Movie-theater chain AMC
    AMC,
    +1.62%
     has wanted to turn its its so-called APE
    APE,
    -2.17%
    — or AMC Preferred Equity — preferred units into common stock as part of its battle to eliminate debt. But Delaware Chancery Court Vice Chancellor Morgan Zurn on Friday rejected a settlement with opposing shareholders that would have allowed that conversion to move forward. That sent AMC shares rocketing more than 60% higher in after-hours trading Friday.

    “AMC must be in a position to raise equity capital,” Aron stressed in his letter Sunday, saying that if the company is unable to do so, the risk of running out of cash in 2024 or 2025 rises.

    “The risk of financial collapse is not whimsical,” Aron said, noting the bankruptcies of rival theater chain Cineworld/Regal and retailer Bey Bath & Beyond.

    AMC shares are up 8% year to date, but have sunk 54% over the past 12 months.

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  • AMC stock surges 60% after Delaware judge puts brakes on APE-to-stock conversion plan

    AMC stock surges 60% after Delaware judge puts brakes on APE-to-stock conversion plan

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    Shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. rocketed more than 60% higher on Friday after a judge in Delaware shot down a settlement that would have allowed the movie-theater chain to move ahead with a plan, maligned by some investors, to dump more shares onto the market, according to reports.

    AMC
    AMC,
    +1.62%
    has wanted to turn its its so-called APE — or AMC Preferred Equity — preferred units into common stock. But Delaware Chancery Court Vice Chancellor Morgan Zurn rejected an earlier settlement that would have allowed that conversion to move forward.

    The theater chain has been looking to find ways to boost its share count and sell more shares — a tack that helped it through the COVID-19 pandemic — as it tries to shore up its finances and rein in its debt, the Wall Street Journal noted.

    But not every investor was on board with the plan, amid worries about share dilution.

    “At this juncture, the Court’s only task is to approve or reject the proposed
    settlement,” wrote in the ruling, obtained by Bloomberg Law. “The focus of the settlement is on the claims presented in this case. The Court cannot address issues that do not pertain to the fairness of the settlement.”

    “Such issues raised by AMC stockholders include theories about synthetic shares, Wall Street corruption, dark pool trading, insider trading and RICO violations, and a request for a share count,” the ruling continued. “The Court’s role is limited to considering settlement-specific issues, like the strength of the plaintiffs’ claims, the consideration the class would receive, and the scope of the release the class would give in exchange for that consideration.”

    “To cut to the chase, the settlement cannot be approved as submitted,” the ruling added later.

    AMC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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  • AMC shares make biggest gain in nearly three months ahead of stock conversion hearing

    AMC shares make biggest gain in nearly three months ahead of stock conversion hearing

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    AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc.’s stock ended Wednesday’s session up 7.6% on the eve of a key hearing in the company’s push to convert its AMC Preferred Equity Units into common stock.

    Shares of AMC
    AMC,
    +7.56%
    had their largest single-day percentage gain since April 6, when they rose 21%. Earlier this week, the stock snapped its longest losing streak in 18 months. The APE
    APE,
    -3.37%
    units ended Wednesday’s session down 3.4%.

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  • Manchester United shares leap on report Qatari suitor to be named preferred bidder

    Manchester United shares leap on report Qatari suitor to be named preferred bidder

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    Manchester United shares
    MANU,
    +3.98%
    jumped 17% in premarket trade following a report from Qatar’s Al-Watan that Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani will soon be announced as the preferred bidder. He has been battling Jim Ratcliffe for control of the club after the controlling Glazer family said they would consider selling.

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  • An unscripted Tony Awards honors ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ and ‘Leopoldstadt,’ among other shows

    An unscripted Tony Awards honors ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ and ‘Leopoldstadt,’ among other shows

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    Call it an equal opportunity Tony Awards.

    No single show dominated Broadway’s big night, with prizes split almost evenly among a handful of productions. “Kimberly Akimbo,” a quirky, smaller-scaled show that chronicles the story of a teenager who suffers from a disease that effectively traps her in an older person’s body, was named best musical, the evening’s most heralded honor.

    But otherwise, the show captured a respectable but hardly record-breaking four other awards — namely, ones for Victoria Clark for lead actress in a musical, Bonnie Milligan for supporting actress, Jeanine Tesori for score and David Lindsay-Abaire for book. By contrast, “Hamilton” won a total of 11 awards when it competed in 2016.

    Similarly, “Leopoldstadt,” legendary dramatist’s Tom Stoppard’s chronicle of a Jewish Viennese family before, during and after the Holocaust, was honored for best play, but didn’t sweep its way through all the other categories in which it was nominated. Still, it picked up wins for Brandon Uranowitz for best supporting actor, Patrick Marber for direction and Brigitte Reiffenstuel for costume design.

    Other major winners: a production of Suzan-Lori Parks’ “Topdog/Underdog” was named best revival of a play and a production of Alfred Uhry and Jason Robert Brown’s “Parade” was recognized for best revival of a musical.

    This year’s Tony Awards ceremony, held at the United Palace theater in New York City, was significant on several other levels. For starters, it was an unscripted awards show — a situation borne from the fact that the Writers Guild of America is still on strike. The powers behind the Tony Awards worked out an agreement with the union to let the show proceed, but without the preamble and intros that usually accompany any awards program.

    Still, there was a host — veteran actress Ariana DeBose — who acknowledged some of the awkwardness of the situation from the start, but also showed that, well, the show must go on.

    “Darlings, buckle up!” DeBose said at the beginning of the main ceremony, which was seen on CBS and Paramount+.

    It was also an occasion for Broadway to flex some of its muscle as it continues its recovery from the pandemic, which forced theaters to shut down for more than year. Shows grossed nearly $1.6 billion during the 2022-’23 season — a sizable figure, but still not equal to the record $1.8 billion that Broadway took in during the 2018-’19 season.

    In addition, this marked the first time the Tonys recognized a non-binary performer with an award — actually, two performers, with J. Harrison Ghee of “Some Like It Hot” for best lead actor in a musical and Alex Newell of “Shucked” for best featured actor in a musical.

    Newell gave one of the most emotional acceptance speeches of the night.

    “Thank you for seeing me, Broadway,” Newell said. “I should not be up here as a queer, nonbinary, fat, Black little baby from Massachusetts. And to anyone that thinks that they can’t do it, I’m going to look you dead in your face. That you can do anything you put your mind to.”

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  • Disney scraps plans on nearly $900 million investment at new corporate campus in Florida 

    Disney scraps plans on nearly $900 million investment at new corporate campus in Florida 

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    Walt Disney Co., locked in an escalating political feud with Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has scrapped plans on a nearly $900 million investment in a new corporate campus in Florida that would have relocated more than 2,000 employees.

    “This was not an easy decision to make, but I believe it is the right one,” Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences and products division, told employees Thursday in a memo viewed by MarketWatch.

    “While some were excited about the new campus, I know that this decision and the circumstances surrounding it have been difficult for others,”D’Amaro wrote. “Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward.”

    Citing “changing business conditions,” D’Amaro said the project is dead, and employees will no longer be asked to relocate from Southern California. Many Disney
    DIS,
    +0.84%
    employees balked at the company’s relocation plans when they were first announced by former Chief Executive Bob Chapek in July 2021. Chapek was fired by the board in November.

    D’Amaro said employees who already moved to Florida may be able to relocate back to California. Disney World is Florida’s largest employer, with approximately 75,000 workers.

    The reversal in Disney’s plans to develop in the town of Lake Nona, outside of Orlando, is the latest dispute between the media giant and DeSantis, who last year criticized Disney for publicly opposing a sex-education bill that he had championed. The rise in tensions has led to a spate of lawsuits and increasingly bitter war of words between the two sides.

    Disney’s stock is flat in trading Thursday.

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  • Disney stock falls as Disney+ subscribers decline amid push to lose less money in streaming

    Disney stock falls as Disney+ subscribers decline amid push to lose less money in streaming

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    Walt Disney Co. shares declined in after-hours trading Wednesday following an earnings report that showed Disney+ subscribers declining in recent months, as executives seek to cut losses in the streaming business.

    Disney DIS reported fiscal second-quarter net earnings of $1.27 billion, or 69 cents a share. After adjusting for restructuring costs and other effects, Disney reported earnings of 93 cents a share, down from $1.08 a share a year ago. Revenue grew to $21.82 billion from $20.27 billion a year ago.

    Analysts…

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  • Hollywood writers go on strike, saying they face ‘existential crisis’

    Hollywood writers go on strike, saying they face ‘existential crisis’

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    Hollywood writers are on strike for the first time in 15 years, halting production of TV shows and movies.

    The Writers Guild of America announced Monday night its boards unanimously approved a strike effective 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. “Picketing will begin tomorrow afternoon,” the WGA said in a tweet Monday night.

    The WGA said the decision was…

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  • Employees asked about their canceled bonuses. The CEO warned them against living in ‘Pity City.’

    Employees asked about their canceled bonuses. The CEO warned them against living in ‘Pity City.’

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    The chief executive of the high-end office-furniture company MillerKnoll has gone viral. And probably not in a manner she would prefer.

    In a leaked Zoom call of a MillerKnoll staff town hall last month, CEO Andi Owen addressed concerns from employees about the company’s decision to withhold bonuses. It quickly descended into her lambasting staff for complaining about the move.

    “Questions came through about, ‘How can we stay motivated if we’re not going to get a bonus?‘ ” she says in the meeting recording. Owen — tapped in 2021 by Fast Company as one of the most creative people in business and celebrated that same year in the New York Times for her navigation of the coronavirus pandemic and swing-state sociopolitics — tells employees of the Zeeland, Mich., company to focus on things the company can control, such as customer service.

    From the archives (April 2021): Herman Miller and Knoll to merge in $1.8 billion deal that will create design leader as companies reimagine office

    “Don’t ask about: What are we going to do if we don’t get a bonus?” she says, growing animated, even, apparently, agitated. “Get the damn $26 million. Spend your time and your effort thinking about the $26 million we need and not thinking about what you’re going to do if you don’t get a bonus. All right? Can I get some commitment for that? I would appreciate that.”

    Though she didn’t specifically identify the significance of the $26 million figure, the company’s operating expenses rose by exactly that amount in its third quarter due to “voluntary and involuntary reductions in the company’s workforce and charges for the impairment of assets associated with the decision to cease operating fully as a stand-alone brand.”

    MillerKnoll’s third-quarterly filing showed that the furniture maker — the product of a 2021 merger of the Herman Miller and Knoll brands, behind products such as the Eames lounge chair and the Saarinen Tulip table, respectively — expects lower sales in the fourth quarter after posting a decline in orders and sales margins in the three months ending March 4.

    Owen recalls in the video that a past employer told her, “You can visit Pity City, but you can’t live there.”

    “So, people, leave Pity City,” she continues, exclaiming: “Let’s get it done.”

    “You have to be a psychopath to say this stuff to your employees when you are taking a massive bonus. Does she think they won’t find out?” asked one Twitter user.

    “Plenty going on here but one of many things that leapt out to me was that mere moments after she went with the ‘be kind to people’ bit, she was yelling at workers,” another said.

    The company said that the widely shared video clip had been taken out of context.

    “Andi fiercely believes in this team and all we can accomplish together, and will not be dissuaded by a 90-second clip taken out of context and posted on social media,” a spokesman said in a statement.

    Owen made $5 million last year. The company has yet to say how much she will make this year. The company this year has expensed $15.7 million in stock-based compensation.

    MillerKnoll shares
    MLKN,
    -2.38%
    have dropped 12% in 2023, compared with the 8% gain for the benchmark S&P 500
    SPX,
    +0.02%    .

    Other MillerKnoll brands include Design Within Reach, acquired by Herman Miller a decade ago and recognized as having made the iconic midcentury designs of Charles and Ray Eames, Isamu Noguchi, George Nelson, and others available to a wider, if affluent, audience without engaging an interior designer; the Danish design brand Hay; and Holly Hunt.

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  • ‘You don’t want to die at your desk sending an email.’ Beyond the numbers, are you ready to retire?

    ‘You don’t want to die at your desk sending an email.’ Beyond the numbers, are you ready to retire?

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    Gauge retirement readiness: You don’t want to die at your desk sending an email

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  • Is climate change changing baseball? Hotter air means hotter MLB home-run hitters, study says.

    Is climate change changing baseball? Hotter air means hotter MLB home-run hitters, study says.

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    Should we save a spot in the baseball annals for the “climate-ball” era? Climate change and its impact on home-run-favorable thinner air may earn a place in recorded history alongside Major League Baseball’s dead-ball era and the notorious black eye on America’s pastime when steroids juiced the power game.

    The way that climate change heats up the air is sending an extra 50 or so home runs a year over the fences, and fans can expect several hundred more home runs per season with future warming, according to a new study out…

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  • AMC stock plunges 22% after company agrees to settlement terms, opening up for APE conversion

    AMC stock plunges 22% after company agrees to settlement terms, opening up for APE conversion

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    AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc.
    AMC,
    +2.00%
    stock dropped nearly 22% in the extended session Monday after the movie-theater operator said in a filing that it has agreed to settlement terms relating to a shareholder litigation around a stock conversion. The terms of the settlement would open the way for AMC’s proposal to convert its AMC Preferred Equity, or APE
    APE,
    +0.68%    ,
    units into shares of common stock, alongside a 10-to-1 reverse stock split and the capacity to sell more shares, which shareholders supported in mid-March but had faced court proceedings. Shares of AMC ended the regular trading day up 2%. APEs were up around 22% in the extended session. A final settlement is subject to a formal agreement and court approval; terms also include payment to the plaintiffs of about 4.4% of AMC’s stock, or about 6.9 million shares.

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  • AMC shareholders approve ‘APE’ conversion in ‘landslide victory’ but stock tumbles

    AMC shareholders approve ‘APE’ conversion in ‘landslide victory’ but stock tumbles

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    Shareholders of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. voted overwhelmingly in support of the company’s proposal to convert AMC Preferred Equity units into shares of common stock Tuesday.

    AMC’s AMC stock, which was repeatedly halted for volatility Monday, fell 13.8%. APEs APE rose 9.3%.

    In January, AMC announced the special meeting of shareholders…

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  • Mega Millions jackpot surges to $1.1 billion: What time is tonight’s drawing?

    Mega Millions jackpot surges to $1.1 billion: What time is tonight’s drawing?

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    The Mega Millions jackpot keeps growing.

    There’s a $1.1 billion top prize at stake on Tuesday night, following the news that no one won Friday’s drawing. While that doesn’t come close to the record $2.04 billion U.S. Powerball jackpot someone claimed in November, it’s still a sizable sum that could pay off all those holiday bills (and then some). And it’s the rare lottery jackpot to pass the $1 billion mark.

    Here’s what you need to know if you’re going to play:

    How does Mega Millions work?

    It costs $2 per ticket to play. As the Mega Millions site explains, “Players may pick six numbers from two separate pools of numbers — five different numbers from 1 to 70 (the white balls) and one number from 1 to 25 (the gold Mega Ball) — or select Easy Pick/Quick Pick. You win the jackpot by matching all six winning numbers in a drawing.”

    There are prizes beyond the jackpot, of course. You can win as little as $2 for matching the gold Mega Ball number alone. Other prizes vary depending on how many numbers you match.

    Players also have the ability to increase their potential winnings by adding a $1 Megaplier option, but this doesn’t apply to the jackpot prize.

    When does the drawing take place?

    The next Mega Millions drawing will take place Tuesday at 11 p.m. Eastern.

    Where can you buy a ticket?

    Mega Millions is offered at lottery retailers in 45 states and is also available in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Some states also allow for online purchase of tickets.

    Up until what time can you buy a ticket?

    How late you can purchase your ticket varies depending on the jurisdiction. For some places, the cutoff time is 10:45 p.m. Eastern, but others have earlier cutoffs.

    What are the odds of winning the jackpot?

    You’re looking at some pretty tall odds — 1 in 302,575,350. But the chance of winning any prize ($2 and up) is much better — 1 in 24.

    What are the options for the jackpot payout?

    You can opt for a lump sum, which is less than the actual jackpot — in the case of the current $1.1 billion jackpot, the lump sum is $568.7 million. But you can also opt for annuity payments, which means you’ll receive an immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that increase by 5% each year.

    Can you watch the drawing live?

    Yes, it’s carried by many television stations across the country, according to the Lottery ‘n Go website. Recorded video of the drawing is also posted to the Mega Millions YouTube channel.

    If you win the jackpot, can you remain anonymous?

    The rules vary by jurisdiction. The Mega Millions site explains it this way: “Public disclosure laws vary from state to state. Some states require their lotteries to publicly identify winners, while others do not.”

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  • It’s Argentina vs. France in the World Cup final: Here’s everything you should know about the matchup

    It’s Argentina vs. France in the World Cup final: Here’s everything you should know about the matchup

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    After a month of stiff competition in Qatar, the 2022 World Cup’s final matchup is finally set.

    Argentina learned Wednesday that defending World Cup winner France will be its opponent in the final on Sunday. France topped a history-making Morocco side 2-0 a day after Argentina shut out Croatia, which lost to France in the 2018 final, a day earlier. Croatia and Morocco square off for third place in the tournament.

    Related: Why is 2022 Qatar World Cup so controversial? Here’s a list of issues overshadowing FIFA’s tournament.

    Argentina and France, led by Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé, respectively, were two among a handful of favorites heading into the quadrennial footballing spectacle.

    Here’s what you need to know ahead of the World Cup final.

    When is the World Cup final?

    The tournament title match will be played Sunday, Dec. 18, at 10 a.m. Eastern time. That’s 6 p.m. in Qatar, earlier than the tournament matches have typically been played.

    The World Cup final can be watched in the U.S. on Fox
    FOX,
    -0.90%
     
    FOXA,
    -0.72%
    and Telemundo, owned by Comcast
    CMCSA,
    -3.70%
    unit NBCUniversal. Fox is available through nearly all cable providers, and cord cutters can stream the match live through FuboTV FUBO, SlingTV, the Alphabet-owned
    GOOG,
    -0.56%
     
    GOOGL,
    -0.59%
    YouTubeTV and Comcast’s Peacock.

    Who’s favored to win?

    Both teams have been oddsmakers’ favorite in every one of their 2022 World Cup matches leading up to the final. But for the grand finale, France is seen a slight favorite over Argentina. France is +175 to win, which carries an implied probability of 36.4%, while the Argentina team is being given a 35.1% chance to win, according to the implied-probability data taken from DraftKings’
    DKNG,
    -1.60%
     odds on Wednesday. The outstanding percentage would account for a draw, though all matches beginning in the knockout stage go to a penalty shootout if a score is tied at the end of regulation and at the end of two 15-minute halves of overtime.

    What’s at stake?

    A win for France would mean back-to-back men’s World Cup wins for the European nation, and France’s third title in history.

    Likewise, a win for Argentina would mean its third World Cup title, and the first World Cup win for legend of the game Messi.

    Related: Budweiser says it will award unconsumed Qatar beer to the World Cup winner

    A record-breaking amount of prize money will also be at stake. FIFA has allocated $440 million in prize money this year, up from $400 million for the 2018 World Cup, hosted by Russia. (FIFA announced on the same day in December 2010 its selection of Russia and Qatar to host the global game’s marquee event in 2018 and 2022, respectively.)

    This year’s winning side will get $42 million, up $4 million from the 2018 tournament.

    The runner-up will receive $30 million, and the third- and fourth-place teams are going home with $27 million and $25 million. As for the rest, the teams that lost in the quarterfinals will each receive $17 million; teams that lost in the second round will get $13 million each; and teams knocked out in the group stage (including the U.S.) will get $9 million each. All 32 qualifying teams also received $1.5 million for securing their spots in the tournament. Only Qatar, as the host country, did not have to play its way in through regional competition.

    Is this really Lionel Messi’s last World Cup?

    Messi, playing in his fifth career World Cup, has said that this would probably be the last time he plays in the competition.

    Failing over the years to achieve in international competition for Argentina what he has in club play (save an appearance in the 2014 final against Germany and a Copa America title in 2021), chiefly with Barcelona in Spain and now with Paris Saint-Germain in France, where he and Mbappé are teammates, Messi has previously announced and rescinded an intent to step back as an international. Only now he’s 35.

    From the archives (January 2010): Club or country? Soccer World Cup revives old tensions

    “Yes. Surely, yes,” Messi said when asked whether Sunday’s game will be his last at a World Cup. “There’s a lot of years until the next one, and I don’t think I have it in me, and finishing like this is best.”

    The Margin: Could Qatar’s ‘reusable’ World Cup stadium end up in Uruguay? There are some amazing plans for tournament venues.

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  • Microsoft to bring ‘Call of Duty’ to Nintendo if Activision merger approved

    Microsoft to bring ‘Call of Duty’ to Nintendo if Activision merger approved

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    Microsoft Corp. said late Tuesday it has made a “10-year commitment” to bring the massively popular “Call of Duty” videogame series to Nintendo Co. consoles, when — and if — its merger with Activision Blizzard Inc. is completed.

    In a tweet late Tuesday night, Xbox head Phil Spencer announced the deal. “Microsoft is committed to helping bring more games to more people – however they choose to play,” he said, adding: “I’m also pleased to confirm that Microsoft has committed to continue to offer Call of Duty on @Steam simultaneously to Xbox after we have closed the merger with Activision Blizzard King.”

    Microsoft is awaiting federal approval of its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision.

    A deal to share one of Activision’s
    ATVI,
    -0.29%
    most lucrative videogame titles could appease some antitrust concerns from regulators. Spencer told Bloomberg News that a similar offer had been extended to rival Sony Corp.
    SONY,
    -2.62%
    for its PlayStation consoles, but said that offer had so far been rebuffed.

    A “Call of Duty” title has not been available on Nintendo since 2013.

    In an interview with the Washington Post published Tuesday, Spencer said there was no Nintendo “Call of Duty” release date set yet, but that if the merger closes — it has a June 2023 target date — future “Call of Duty” games would be released for all platforms at once. “Once we get into the rhythm of this, our plan would be that when [a Call of Duty game] launches on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, that it would also be available on Nintendo at the same time,” he told the Post.

    Nintendo shares
    7974,
    +0.33%
    rose slightly in Tokyo trading following the news. Microsoft shares
    MSFT,
    -2.03%
    fell Monday, and are down 17% year to date, compared to the S&P 500’s
    SPX,
    -1.44%
    17% decline this year.

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  • This 82-year-old retiree makes makes moose calls

    This 82-year-old retiree makes makes moose calls

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    Butch Phillips, an 82-year-old member of the Penobscot Nation, etches 18-inch long moose call horns from birch bark he harvests off tribal land. While some moose calls he gives away to local hunters, others have sold at auction for as much as $3,200 and some sit in museums.

    “It’s very exciting calling a moose. You can hear them coming. Snuffing and grunting,” said Phillips, who hunts a moose each year on tribal land, the largest being 940 pounds. He also sometimes calls moose just to watch them and study them.

    Based in Milford, Maine, Phillips has been making the moose calls, which are hornlike devices used to attract moose when hunting, for about 30 years with a wooden-handled knife his late wife bought him. He has more orders than he can keep up with, due in part to some local media coverage and word-of-mouth. He hopes to pass down his skills to his grown sons.

    Phillips retired 31 years ago from telecommunications jobs with NYMEX and AT&T
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    -0.49%    ,
    and he’s been filling his time with his etching talents ever since.

    “I just can’t imagine being retired with nothing to do. I think I’d go crazy,” Phillips said.

    Plus, in the winter, etching gives him something productive to do to pass time.

    “There’s not a lot you can do outdoors. It gives me something to do rather than just sitting around. Can you imagine doing that for 31 years?” Phillips said.

    Phillips used to make moose calls by peeling a piece of bark off a tree and using it for the day and tossing it aside. Then he started tying spruce roots around the bark to help keep the shape and use it again and again. Hunters started asking for his moose calls and his work spread by word-of-mouth.

    Phillips in a 14-foot birch bark canoe that he built.


    Credit: Butch Phillips

    “Some hunters will use a roadside cone to call a moose. I wanted to do it the traditional way. A large majority of native hunters use a birch bark call,” Phillips said.

    He uses a variety of tools, but the knife given to him by his late wife is his most treasured tool.

    “The blade’s pretty much worn down. But I treasure it. It’s very special,” Phillips said.

    As he became more adept at making moose calls, Phillips started making more permanent models, refining the workmanship and using thicker bark that was suitable for etching.

    “I decided to do etching like they did in the old days. Everything they used to make, they carved. My artwork evolved. I try to keep the older designs alive. I’ve taken symbols like the Wabanaki symbol and incorporated them into the art to keep them alive. I use plants and trees as fillers,” Phillips said.

    “In most of my art work, I try to combine people, plants and animals. We always memorialize our ancestors. And plants and animals are what we owe gratitude to for keeping us alive,” Phillips said. “In our prayers, we always give thanks to ancestors, plants and animals. There’s a theme.”

    Phillips said he writes up explanations of the symbols so each buyer knows what the designs mean. Diamond shapes, for example, represent wigwams, he said. More often these days his buyers are collectors rather than moose hunters.

    Phillips is an expert in his materials.

    “All bark is not created equal. There’s curly bark, thick, thin, white, dark, gray. I use bark that is thick and pliable and doesn’t separate into layers,” Phillips said.

    With winter bark, it’s brown with a thick rind on the inside. He has to take it off the tree carefully and scrape away the rind to make designs. He can approach the etching in two ways – either scraping away the entire background and leaving just a thin image, or carve images onto rind. Summer bark has no rind and is just yellow.

    His museum-quality pieces have used winter bark with an elaborate scraping process that leaves thin details for designs. Those are the toughest to do, he said.

    Phillips approaches each moose call with an open mind and has no preconceived idea of what the designs will be. The bark just speaks to him.

    “I never plan on paper what it’s going to look like. Most of the time I have no idea until it evolves,” Phillips said.

    In the center of the device, he often puts an image of a moose or a moose head. For special orders, he might be asked to incorporate an image of a hawk or favorite dog or even a woodpecker, in one case. He adds touches like a flower, acorns or moose tracks to fill in blank areas.

    “Each side is balanced because nature is balanced,” Phillips said. “Every design is unique.”

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