The Batman blockbuster “The Dark Knight,” slighted in earlier Hollywood honors, was among best-picture nominees Monday for the Producers Guild of America Awards.
Other best-picture nominees were Brad Pitt’s romantic fantasy “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Ron Howard’s Richard Nixon saga “Frost/Nixon,” Sean Penn’s Harvey Milk film biography “Milk” and Danny Boyle’s rags-to-riches tale “Slumdog Millionaire.”
Hollywood’s biggest blockbuster in a decade and one of the year’s most-acclaimed films, “The Dark Knight” missed out on a best-picture slot for Sunday’s Golden Globes and was overlooked for an ensemble cast nomination at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.
The Producers Guild lineup generally is a close match of best-picture nominees for the Academy Awards. The guild picks could give “The Dark Knight” and other contenders a last-minute nudge for the Oscars, whose nomination balloting closes Jan. 12. Oscar nominations will be announced Jan. 22.
Nominated for best animated feature by the Producers Guild were the dog tale “Bolt,” the martial-arts comedy “Kung Fu Panda” and the robot adventure “WALL-E.”
Contenders for television comedy: “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” ”Entourage,” ”The Office, “30 Rock” and “Weeds.” The TV drama nominees: “Boston Legal,” ”Damages,” ”Dexter,” ”Lost” and “Mad Men.”
Winners will be announced at a Jan. 24 ceremony in Hollywood.
Other nominees:
— Best documentary: “Man on Wire,” ”Standard Operating Procedure” and “Trouble in the Water.”
— Long-form television: “24: Redemption,” ”Bernard and Doris,” ”John Adams,” ”A Raisin in the Sun” and “Recount.”
— Nonfiction television: “Deadliest Catch,” ”Frontline,” ”Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List,” ”60 Minutes” and “This American Life.”
— Live TV and competition programs: “The Amazing Race,” ”The Colbert Report,” ”Project Runway,” ”Top Chef” and “Real Time with Bill Maher.”
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More