Programming

Netflix’s new chief financial officer will receive $10 million in total compensation, a more generous pay package than was afforded his predecessor, according to a new regulatory filing. Spencer Neumann will earn $5 million in salary and receive $5 million in stock options.

Veteran TV executive Joe Earley has been named head of marketing for Disney’s new subscription streaming service. Earley will serve as executive vice president, marketing ad operations for Disney+.

No, CBS and Viacom won’t merge (but Verizon will be a buyer), Netflix growth will slow as Disney goes OTT, a tech giant will gobble up a major studio, Sean Hannity will leave Fox News and more bold forecasts.

The Golden Globe Awards declined a bit year to year, but not as much as other recent awards shows have. NBC’s broadcast — which had an NFL playoff game as a lead-in — posted a 12.7 household rating in metered markets Sunday. That’s down 4.5% from the preliminary 13.3 for the 2018 Globes and the lowest since a 12.6 in 2015. Last year’s ceremony ended up falling 5% in viewers and 11% in adults 18-49 (5.6 to 5.0) versus 2017’s numbers.

The new deal reups WFAA Dallas; KXTV Sacramento, Calif.; KVUE Austin, Texas; WVEC Norfolk, Va.; WZZM Grand Rapids, Mich.; WJXX Jacksonville, Fla.; WHAS Louisville, Ky.; KIII Corpus Christi, Texas; and KBMT Beaumont, Texas.

The Netflix comedy The Kominsky Method and FX’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story were double winners in the television category. But the award for The Americans was a sentimental favorite. The taut FX drama about two Russian spies leading an undercover life as an American couple was relatively unappreciated when awards were handed out each year. But it had a strong exit creatively, with the series finale in May called “elegant, potent and unforgettable” by The New Yorker.

The show, which will be featured on Snapchat Discover during the Golden Globes, will offer regular updates as awards are handed out.

In an otherwise slow pre-Christmas week, Access maintained its season-high 1.3 live-plus-same-day national Nielsen rating for a third straight week, while Extra, Daily Mail TV and Page Six TV also did well to hold steady at 1.1, 1.0 and 0.7, respectively.

On the heels of a big debut for The Masked Singer on Fox Wednesday, The Titan Games brought in strong numbers for NBC Thursday night. The Dwayne Johnson-hosted competition show (he’s also an executive producer) helped NBC to its first Thursday win (excluding nights of sports telecasts) in almost two years.

Live sports accounted for 89 of the year’s 100 most-watched broadcasts with the NFL contributing 34 of the top 50 most-watched broadcasts, and 61 of the top 100. The only thing that came anywhere near to matching the NFL’s hegemonic reach was the 2018 Winter Olympics; NBC’s coverage of the PyeongChang Games drew six of the year’s 50 largest TV audiences and 15 of the top 100.