Spot Runner, which got its start producing low cost TV ads for local advertisers and now creates online video ads, too, boosted its ability to shoot the ads by acquiring GlobeShooter/Los Angeles, a network of 1,200 independent filmmakers, videographers, producers and production companies.
Spot Runner announced the acquisition yesterday and said it would help the company shoot advertising around the country. “We have a strong creative in-house team, but the ability to act regionally or locally has been hampered by our limited staff,” said Spot Runner co-founder David Waxman. “The acquisition enables us to get high quality production, so we can create new ads across the nation.”
The company specializes in ads for local businesses that are shot on the premises. Some advertisers provide local footage that is included in the ads, but having the GlobeShooter producers will enable Spot Runner to shoot original footage. “We’ll be able to add local footage and imagery and get the local flavor,” Waxman said.
The acquisition helps Spot Runner shoot local advertising and expand the kind of advertising it offers. “We started selling TV, but now we offer other media and we’re expanding to the Internet and online video,” Waxman said.
Members of the GlobeShooter network will benefit from the acquisition by being able to build their portfolios with Spot Runner clients and work with Spot Runner’s in-house creative team.
GlobeShooter is being renamed the Spot Runner Production Network.
Supreme Court Allows Multibillion-Dollar Class Action Lawsuit To Proceed Against Meta
The Supreme Court is allowing a multibillion-dollar class action investors' lawsuit to proceed against Facebook parent Meta, stemming from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm.
The justices heard arguments in November in Meta's bid to shut down the lawsuit. On Friday, they decided that they were wrong to take up the case in the first place.
The high court dismissed the company's appeal, leaving in place an appellate ruling allowing the case to go forward.
Investors allege that Meta did not fully disclose the risks that Facebook users' personal information would be misused by Cambridge Analytica, a firm that supported Donald Trump 's first successful Republican presidential campaign in 2016.
Inadequacy of the disclosures led to two significant price drops in the price of the company's shares in 2018, after the public learned about the extent of the privacy scandal, the investors say.
Meta spokesman Andy Stone said the company was disappointed by the court's action. "The plaintiff's claims are baseless and we will continue to defend ourselves as this case is considered by the District Court," Stone said in an emailed statement.
Meta already has paid a $5.1 billion fine and reached a $725 million privacy settlement with users.
Cambridge Analytica had ties to Trump political strategist Steve Bannon. It had paid a Facebook app developer for access to the personal information of about 87 million Facebook users. That data was then used to target U.S. voters during the 2016 campaign.
The lawsuit is one of two high court cases involving class-action lawsuits against tech companies. The justices also are wrestling with whether to shut down a class action against Nvidia.... Read More