SANTA MONICA, March 12: The board of directors at Lionsgate has unanimously rejected Carl Icahn's unsolicited tender offer to up his stake in the company to just under 30 percent from the current 18.9 percent.

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 12: In a 2-1 vote, a federal appeals court has upheld a FCC rule that prevents cable platforms from withholding channels from rival operators.

LOS ANGELES, March 12: Disney-ABC Domestic Television has entered into an exclusive output deal with Showtime Networks that gives the premium channel the broadcast rights to up to 35 DreamWorks Studios' films theatrically released between 2010 and 2015.

LOS ANGELES, March 12: E! International Network delivered its most-watched red carpet season ever, with coverage of the Golden Globes, Grammys, BAFTAs, SAG Awards and Academy Awards.

BURBANK, March 12: Warner Premiere is in production on Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster, an all-new live-action/CG movie slated to air on Cartoon Network this fall.

BURBANK/ENGLEWOOD, March 11: Starz Entertainment and Disney-ABC Domestic Television have signed an new, exclusive long-term agreement for the theatrical releases from The Walt Disney Studios through 2015.

NEW YORK, March 11: Bravo is adding a fifth night of original productions to its schedule, increasing its programming by an additional 20 percent.

LOS ANGELES, March 11: Three new movies have been added to the catalogue of MarVista Entertainment for MIPTV, including the romantic comedy Lost in Love.

NEW YORK, March 11: Mattel and AMC have teamed up with Lionsgate to launch four Barbie collector Mad Men dolls, to be available for consumers in July.

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 10: On the heels of the spat between Cablevision and ABC over the weekend, a number of U.S. pay-TV providers, including Time Warner Cable and DIRECTV, have filed a petition with the FCC calling for a new set of rules governing retransmission consent disputes.

SCOTTSDALE, March 10: Internet TV services are unlikely to serve as a substitute for pay-TV platforms, a new In-Stat report reveals, indicating that "consumers want the best of both worlds."

LOS ANGELES, March 10: Andy Whitfield, who plays the title role in the Starz original series Spartacus: Blood and Sand, has been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, and shooting on the second season will be postponed to accommodate his treatment.

SILVER SPRING, March 10: Verge is an all-new programming block slated for Planet Green's prime-time grid that will feature the mavericks and innovators who are on the brink of changing the world and creating a better tomorrow.

NEW YORK, March 10: The second season of Merlin is to make its U.S. debut on Syfy on April 2 at 10 p.m., following the 9 p.m. season premiere of Stargate Universe.

SILVER SPRING, March 10: The newly created role of international head of content for Discovery Communications is to be filled by Luis Silberwasser, who currently serves as senior VP of the content group for Discovery Networks Latin America/U.S. Hispanic and general manager of U.S. Hispanic Networks.

LONDON, March 10: CBS has given a second-season order for Undercover Boss for the 2010-11 broadcast season.

LOS ANGELES, March 10: The Lifetime original movies Patricia Cornwell's At Risk and Patricia Cornwell's The Front are to debut on April 10 and April 17, respectively.

NORWALK, March 10: CABLEready Productions has been given the greenlight for its first original series, Intersections, from SPEED Channel.

FOSTER CITY, March 9: Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) has secured agreements with 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution to offer HD movies for purchase and rental on the PlayStation Network video delivery service in the U.S.

NEW YORK, March 9: ABC's broadcast of the 82nd annual Academy Awards on Sunday brought in an average audience of 41.3 million total viewers, qualifying as television's most watched entertainment telecast since 2005, according to Nielsen's "Fast National" ratings.

BURBANK, March 9: FOX has given a third-season order to the J.J. Abrams drama Fringe, which is to resume airing in its second season with eight fresh episodes on April 1.

BURBANK, March 9: ABC Family has picked up the network TV premiere rights to The Blind Side, which stars Sandra Bullock in her Oscar-winning role.

MUNICH, March 9: Tandem Communications has begun principal photography on its newest movie, The Lost Future, for commissioning broadcasters RTL Television of Germany and Syfy in the U.S.

HOLLYWOOD, March 9: David Chase, the creator and producer of The Sopranos, is to make his feature film directing debut with a music-driven coming-of-age story set in 1960s suburbia for Paramount Vantage.

NEW YORK/UNIVERSAL CITY, March 9: NBC has renewed its exclusive agreement with Donald Trump and the Miss Universe Organization to broadcast the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants for an additional three years, effective in 2011.

LOS ANGELES, March 8: In addition to scoring the night's big win as best picture, The Hurt Locker took home five additional Academy Awards, including a best director nod for Kathryn Bigelow.

BURBANK, March 8: ABC Family has clinched the rights to Walt Disney Pictures' new blockbuster Alice in Wonderland for a 2012 U.S. network television premiere.

UNIVERSAL CITY, March 8: NBC has renewed three more series for its Thursday night comedy lineup, with 30 Rock, The Office and Community set to rejoin Parks and Recreation.

TORONTO, March 8: Cream Productions has completed production on the new 4x1-hour Aftermath series for National Geographic Channel in the U.S. and History Television in Canada, and the show will be launched at MIPTV by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.

NEW YORK/LONDON, March 8: Philip Bourchier O’Ferrall has been upped to senior VP of digital media for MTV Networks International.