Kobalt Music taps Sanders as prexy

Richard Sanders remains named prexy of Kobalt Group, the independent music author introduced Friday. Inside the lately created position, Sanders is dependent in NY and therefore are accountable to Kobalt founder-Boss Willard Ahdritz. Rapid-growing indie author recently acquired digital distributor Artists Without any Label, and launched new divisions in neighboring rights and artist and label services. A 3-decade industry vet, Sanders was most recently chairman from the new the new sony Music Intl. additionally to leader of worldwide marketing. Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

Netflix searching for new CMO

Netflix is searching outside the company for a new chief marketing officer, the streaming service announced Friday.Leslie Kilgore, who held the position for the past 12 years, is being elevated to the Netflix board as a non-executive director. Jessie Becker, currently VP of marketing, will step in as interim CMO."Leslie has been instrumental in our long-term success and our recent return to solid growth," said Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. "We are delighted she is joining our board of directors and will continue to be a key part of Netflix."The search for a replacement for Kilgore comes as Netflix shakes off the most turbulent period in the company's history. Disastrous decisions involving its pricing and DVD business left many on Wall Street with the impression the company was tone deaf to the marketplace--a problem bringing in fresh blood to a consumer-facing executive position could help rectify.Before joining Netflix, both Kilgore and Becker are veterans of Amazon; Becker has been with the compny almost as long as Kilgore.In addition, Netflix made a change on the corporate communications side, elevating Jonathan Friedland from senior VP to chief communications officer. Friedland joined Netflix nearly a year ago from Disney. Both Becker and Friedland report to Hastings. Netflix will announce its fourth-quarter earnings on Jan. 25. Contact Andrew Wallenstein at andrew.wallenstein@variety.com

Swinton, Bell in talks for 'Snow Piercer'

SwintonBellTilda Swinton and Jamie Bell have been in foretells join Chris Evans within the indie drama "Snow Piercer."Bong Joon-ho is helming from the script he composed with Park Chan-wook creating.Occur a global covered in ice and snow, the storyline follows a train filled with vacationers who find it difficult to co-exist.Park is creating through Moho Films. Production is anticipated to begin in March, though no distributor is yet in position.The pic marks Bong's domestic directorial debut and other alike to fit, who also just wrapped production on his first U.S. film, the Korean helmer is drawing notable thesps due to his history overseas.Bell was most lately observed in "The Adventures of Tintin" and is visible next in Summit's "Guy on the Ledge." Swinton is visible next in Wes Anderson's "Moonrise Kingdom." On Tuesday, she snagged a BAFTA nom on her operate in "We have to Discuss Kevin." Bell is repped by WME and Vanessa Pereira at Artists Independent Management. Swinton is repped by WME and London agent Christian Hodell. Contact Justin Kroll at justin.kroll@variety.com

Report: Beyonc and Jay-Z Welcome a Daughter

Beyonce and Jay-Z The most recent princess of stylish-hop has turned up. Beyoncé and Jay-Z welcomed a daughter late Saturday in NY, E! Online reviews. The 30-year-old singer and 42-year-old rapper have apparently named the newborn Blue Ivy Carter. The couple's famous pals were already tweeting their champion late Saturday and early Sunday. Beyoncé pregnancy: Is she ready to give birth? "Welcome all over the world princess Carter! Love Aunty Rih," Beyonce tweeted late Saturday. "Welcome all over the world Blue! We love to you already," Gwyneth Paltrow written early Sunday. Blue Ivy Carter's arrival comes each week after several media shops reported the previous Destiny's Child lead singer had already given birth. Perry wins top recognition at VMAs Beyoncé announces pregnancy Initially due to give birth in February, Beyoncé checked into Lennox Hill Hospital on Friday beneath the alias "Ingrid Jackson," in line with the NY Daily News. The happy couple leased an entire floor in the hospital - apparently for the tune of $1.3 million - and video cameras were recorded to make certain the couple's privacy. Beyoncé introduced having a baby in the finish of August within the MTV Video Music Honours, when she revealed her growing belly within a performance. She and Jay-Z, who've labored with on hit singles for instance "03 Bonnie & Clyde" and "Crazy In Love With One Another,Inch married in April 2008 after dating for approximately six years. This really is really the very first child for.

Royalty suits filed vs. labels

The ongoing legal battle between artists and labels over digital royalties widened late last week, as two new suits alleging gross underpayments to acts were filed. On Friday, singer-guitarist Peter Frampton sued A&M Records, a unit of Universal Music Group, claiming he was paid a fraction of what he was due for downloads of his '70s hits. Frampton's suit succeeded a similar Thursday action filed against Capitol Records by the heir of the late Bruce Gary, drummer of '70s new wave act the Knack. The latter suit against EMI Music's flagship imprint is the first of several actions regarding digital royalty payments to be lodged against a label not operated by UMG. However, UMG could ultimately prove liable in that case, since last month the company made a successful $1.9 billion bid for EMI's label assets that has yet to be approved by regulators. Both plaintiffs scored huge hits for their labels in the '70s. Frampton's two-LP A&M concert set "Frampton Comes Alive" was No. 1 for 10 weeks in 1976, while the Knack's Capitol album "Get the Knack," which contained the No. 1 single "My Sharona," topped the charts for five weeks in 1979. Both suits allege breach of contract and unfair competition and seek compensatory damages to be determined at trial. Frampton's suit, which succeeds a 1998 royalty settlement between the musician and UMG, says the language of the agreement is "virtually identical" to that of last year's appellate court decision in F.B.T. Prods.' suit against UMG and Aftermath Records. That decision found that F.B.T., which produced Eminem's earliest recordings, was entitled to much higher digital royalties based on rates for masters licensed to third parties (Daily Variety, Sept. 7, 2010). It inspired class actions filed in federal court in Northern California earlier this year by the Rick James estate (Daily Variety, April 5); Rob Zombie, his band White Zombie, Whitesnake and Dave Mason (Daily Variety, May 24); and Chuck D of Public Enemy (Daily Variety, Nov. 3). On Dec. 22, Bruce Gary's sister Felice Catena, who holds rights to Gary's interest in the Knack, filed a suit in L.A. Superior Court alleging that Capitol has "systematically" paid less than the 50% of net receipts contractually due for licensed masters. Frampton's suit, lodged Dec. 23 in U.S. District Court in L.A., makes a similar allegation. Frampton claims that a $212,000 check sent to the musician without documentation late this year was "wholly insufficient to cover the actual monies owed to Frampton, which is potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars more than the insufficient partial payment made by UMG." Spokesmen for UMG and EMI could not be reached for comment. However, UMG has consistently maintained that the appellate decision in the so-called Eminem case does not constitute a legal precedent. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Holiday Movie Playlist: Our Favorite Christmas Movies

The holidays are nearly upon us, and while many of you out there will undoubtedly be spending your time roasting chestnuts on an open fire (or some other cheery activity) with your family, there's going to be down time. And what better way to spend that time than by watching some classic holiday movies? There are far too many feel-good Christmas movies (as well as some feel-bad holiday movies) out there to choose from, so if you find yourself stumped come December 25, never fear -- the MTV Movies team has compiled our all-time favorite holiday movie viewing experiences to make your season bright. "Die Hard" Now I have a machine gun. Ho Ho Ho. These words, written on a dead bad guys shirt by NY cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) and uttered by the Grinchiest of movie menaces Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), exemplify why Christmas at Nakatomi Plaza is so much fun. The original Die Hard, a classic action flick which captured the wisecracking talents of Willis on the brink of his mega-stardom, is infinitely quotable and just as enjoyable on the tenth viewing as on the first. -Tami Katzoff "Home Alone" More than 20 years after Kevin McCallister sledded down his staircase and into theaters, "Home Alone" continues to be one of my favorite Christmas movies. Starring blond moppet Macaulay Culkin as the left-behind lad, the 1990 romp follows the boy who stayed as he protects his home from a pair of bungling burglars (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), all the while seamlessly weaving heartfelt holiday-ness with hilarious hi-jinks. I (and the American Dental Association) approve. (I probably shouldn't speak on behalf of the ADA, so for legal purposes, please consider this an assumption.) -Amy Wilkinson "Love, Actually" Is there anyone who doesn't love this wonderfully well-received ensemble romantic comedy? Even the most testosterone-charged of my male friends get all warm and fuzzy when they mention it. The reason it's perfect for the holidays is obvious: it's set right around Christmas, but unlike other films that try to capitalize on an already over-commercialized season with kitschy gimmickry (see "Valentine's Day" and "New Year's Eve"), "Love Actually" works because it's central theme is real love: The good, the bad, the messy, the hard to watch. Plus you could not assemble a better cast: Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman, Laura Linney, Colin Firth, Rodrigo Santorro, Keira Knightley, Andrew Lincoln (pre-"Walking Dead!") and amazing Bill Nighy performing the best new Christmas song ever, "Christmas Is All Around." -Kara Warner "The Christmas Toy" With "The Muppets" back in the spotlight, there's no better time to revisit this little-seen Jim Henson made-for-TV gem about a group of toys who come to life when no one's looking. No, we're not talking about "Toy Story" -- "The Christmas Toy" dates the Pixar classic by several years, and while I'd stop short of saying it's a better film, it's certainly the one I cherish more. Old friends, dear friends, Meteora, eww-it's-Mew, Rugby the Tiger (aka the greatest Christmas toy of all)... this movie has it all. Hands down, my favorite holiday movie of all time. -Josh Wigler "The Lord of the Rings" Extended Edition It's not the most obvious choice, but stick with me here. In all, the three extended editions of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy clock-in at a butt-numbing 12 hours. Now, I love these movies, but when I am supposed to watch them and not feel bad about sinking four hours on "Return of the King" on a random Saturday? The holidays offer the perfect combination of guilt-free sloth and large amounts of free time, the ideal movie marathon conditions. Aside from being convenient, the time of year always reminds me of "The Lord of the Rings," because they were guaranteed Christmas presents each year they came out on DVD. So maybe it isn't that weird after all, jerk. -Kevin P. Sullivan What are your favorite holiday movies? Tell us in the comments section and on Twitter!

'Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance' Trailer: Nicolas Cage Fights the Antichrist

Good news and bad news: a brand-new trailer for 'Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance' has arrived ... but, unfortunately, it does not feature Nicolas Cage pissing fire. (Curses!) In fact, the new trailer does a pretty great job of depressing any trashy expectations you may have had from 'Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.' Despite plenty of fire-breathing and ass-kicking from Ghost Rider himself, the new trailer features a ton of cheesy, cliched dialogue we've come to expect from Cage films over the years. 'Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance,' which stars Cage, Johnny Whitworth and Idris Elba, hits theaters Feb. 17, 2012. [via Yahoo!] Follow Moviefone on Twitter Like Moviefone on Facebook