Tuning In to TV

Sony beefs up Web fare

Sony will make more of its films available for free on Crackle.com, the company’s online movie and TV video Web site, adding “Spider-Man 2” and other male-skewing titles as it looks to lure viewers and advertisers.

The site also is adding more original programming, launching Crackle Cinemactive, a video-clip-based game about pop culture, Variety reports.

In addition to “Spider-Man 2,” new films added to Crackle’s free ad-supported service include “Groundhog Day,” “Stripes,” “A Few Good Men,” “1941,” “El Mariachi,” “Big Fish,” “The Fan,” “LaBamba,” “The People vs. Larry Flynt,” “Johnny Mnemonic” and several installments of the “Godzilla” franchise.

The move makes nearly 100 films available on the Web site, with the latest additions specifically targeting younger males.

The Cinemactive game is being added to a group of original series that includes Ed Brubacker’s thriller “Angel of Death,” starring Zoe Bell and Lucy Lawless, and “Starv-ing,” with David Faustino.

Crackle recently brokered a content deal with YouTube that it hopes will drive more traffic to its own site.

According to comScore Inc., the company has seen streams increase 84 percent during the first three months of the year, and it ranked as the seventh-most-trafficked entertainment video site in March.

CMT to get ‘Bee’

“The Singing Bee” is coming back — but not to NBC.

The musical reality competition has found a new home on cable’s Country Music Television, which plans to relaunch the former broadcast series in the summer, the Hollywood Reporter says.

CMT will premiere the show after its annual CMT Awards, airing June 16. Starting June 20, the hourlong series will be paired with the network’s other singing competition, “Can You Duet.”

Bob Kusbit, CMT’s head of development, said the network was interested in the show from the start and lost the initial bidding war with NBC for the rights. NBC debuted the show right before Fox premiered its similarly formatted “Don’t Forget the Lyrics.” (In both shows, contestants try to complete the lyrics of popular songs.) “Bee” opened stronger in the Nielsens, yet “Lyrics” won the ratings battle in the long haul, and NBC passed on a second season.

CMT is making some changes to the show’s format. Gone are the “Bee” dancers. Also, the series will have a mix of 60 percent country and 40 percent other kinds of music. Ten episodes have been ordered, the Hollywood Reporter says.

Jon, Kate, 8 … plus date?

Story Continues →