London-based MindsEye has signed directorial duo Mindcastle–consisting of Danielle Krieger and Casey Warren–for commercial representation in the U.K. and the Netherlands. Krieger and Warren developed their strong cinematic look with a foundation in photography that broadened to encompass directing. While in college, they were approached by ESPN to create a piece for the NFL Draft. This led to working on numerous films, commercials, and TV shows, traveling all over the world and working with top sports athletes and celebrities such as Derek Jeter, Floyd Mayweather, Russell Wilson, Richard Sherman and the Dave Mathews Band to name a few. Mindcastle has turned out films for brands such as Patron, NBA, Arri, Fujifilm and Facebook….
U.K. house LS Productions has opened the doors to LS Productions Manchester, its dedicated new hub for shoots in the North of England. Abi Atkinson has been named sr. producer, heading up LS Productions Manchester which complements the overall company’s offerings in Edinburgh and London. With 13 years of experience in the industry and a strong knowledge of Manchester as a hub for British production, Atkinson is well-positioned to highlight the many aesthetic and practical possibilities available to filmmakers in the North of England….
Google Opens Its Defense In Antitrust Case Alleging Monopoly Over Online Ad Technology
Google opened its defense against allegations that it holds an illegal monopoly on online advertising technology Friday with witness testimony saying the industry is vastly more complex and competitive than portrayed by the federal government.
"The industry has been exceptionally fluid over the last 18 years," said Scott Sheffer, a vice president for global partnerships at Google, the company's first witness at its antitrust trial in federal court in Alexandria.
The Justice Department and a coalition of states contend that Google built and maintained an illegal monopoly over the technology that facilitates the buying and selling of online ads seen by consumers.
Google counters that the government's case improperly focuses on a narrow type of online ads — essentially the rectangular ones that appear on the top and on the right-hand side of a webpage. In its opening statement, Google's lawyers said the Supreme Court has warned judges against taking action when dealing with rapidly emerging technology like what Sheffer described because of the risk of error or unintended consequences.
Google says defining the market so narrowly ignores the competition it faces from social media companies, Amazon, streaming TV providers and others who offer advertisers the means to reach online consumers.
Justice Department lawyers called witnesses to testify for two weeks before resting their case Friday afternoon, detailing the ways that automated ad exchanges conduct auctions in a matter of milliseconds to determine which ads are placed in front of which consumers and how much they cost.
The department contends the auctions are finessed in subtle ways that benefit Google to the exclusion of would-be competitors and in ways that prevent... Read More