Entertainment News Roundup: Spotify acquires Podsights and Chartable to advance its podcasting business; Mumbai red light area drama shows rise of rights defender in Berlinale premiere and more

The acclaimed director's first collaboration with celebrated actress Alia Bhatt, which premieres at the Berlin Film Festival on Wednesday, chronicles Gangubai's rise from vulnerable sex worker to a powerful figure in the city's red light district. TelevisaUnivision Spanish-language streaming platform ViX to launch in March TelevisaUnivision will launch its anticipated streaming platform "ViX" in March, executives said on Wednesday, billed by the company as the world's largest Spanish-language streaming content offering.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Spotify acquires Podsights and Chartable to advance its podcasting business

Spotify Inc deepened its investment in podcasting with the acquisitions of Podsights and Chartable, two services that provide greater insights for advertisers and podcasting publishers, the Swedish company said on Wednesday. Podsights helps marketers gauge the effectiveness of their ads, one area that Spotify said has been a major challenge. Chartable provides audience insights that help podcast publishers measure the effectiveness of their growth campaigns.

Mumbai red light area drama shows rise of rights defender in Berlinale premiere

Indian filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali was able to draw on his own childhood memories to make "Gangubai Kathiawadi", a blockbuster adaptation from the book "Mafia Queens of Mumbai", about Gangubai, a sex worker turned women's rights champion. The acclaimed director's first collaboration with celebrated actress Alia Bhatt, which premieres at the Berlin Film Festival on Wednesday, chronicles Gangubai's rise from vulnerable sex worker to a powerful figure in the city's red light district.

TelevisaUnivision Spanish-language streaming platform ViX to launch in March

TelevisaUnivision will launch its anticipated streaming platform "ViX" in March, executives said on Wednesday, billed by the company as the world's largest Spanish-language streaming content offering. The new company combining Mexico's biggest broadcaster Televisa and U.S. broadcaster Univision will make available a free ad-based version of ViX on March 31.

The Blonds close out New York Fashion Week with sparkly show

The design duo that is The Blonds closed out New York Fashion Week on Wednesday with a runway show that sparkled with hand-sewn outfits covered in laser-cut crystals, glittering heels and jewelry. The brand, which co-designer Phillipe Blond described as extremely over-the-top, sparkly and dangerous, found inspiration in vampires and the Matrix for its Fall 2022 collection.

Exclusive-ViacomCBS's Paramount+ 'thinks local' to go global with streaming

When the reality series “The Challenge: War of the Worlds” launches on four continents in June, ViacomCBS Inc aims to test a key component of its streaming strategy - using localized content on broadcast TV to attract subscribers to its Paramount+ streaming service, an executive with the entertainment conglomerate told Reuters. The media giant is launching four versions of the show and airing them on its broadcast TV networks in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Argentina, and streaming episodes on Paramount+ globally the following day, Chris McCarthy, chief content officer for unscripted entertainment and adult animation at Paramount+, said in an interview ahead of his presentation to investors on Tuesday.

Actor Saget's family sues to block public release of death records

The family of comedian and actor Bob Saget has filed a lawsuit to block Florida officials from publicly releasing photographs and other records from an investigation into his death last month, court documents showed. Citing privacy concerns, Saget's wife and other family members said photos, videos and other recordings stemming from Orange County Sheriff's investigation into the comedian's death should only be released to the family.

Michael Kors celebrates return of NY nightlife with Fall/Winter collection

Veteran designer Michael Kors turned his inspiration of New York at night into reality for his New York Fashion Week runway show on Tuesday. Taking over live music venue Terminal 5, Kors, 62, said his Fall/Winter '22 Collection is about stepping out at night and during the day after quarantining.

Spanish tale of threatened family farm wins Berlinale's Golden Bear

Spanish director Carla Simon's film "Alcarras," which explores the divisions ripped into a close-knit family of Catalan farmers when they face eviction from their ancestral plot, won the Berlin Film Festival's top prize on Wednesday. Simon herself grew up on a peach farm in the village of Alcarras, and her film was made using amateur actors from that area whom she recruited at village fairs and coached into playing several generations of a family of smallholders.

Judge tosses most of lawsuit by Mariah Carey's brother over singer's memoir

A New York judge dismissed most of a defamation lawsuit by Mariah Carey's older brother over her 2020 best-selling memoir, though the singer must still face two claims. In a 29-page decision on Tuesday, Justice Barbara Jaffe of the state Supreme Court in Manhattan said Morgan Carey can sue his sister over passages suggesting he distributed cocaine to "the beautiful people," and implying he might have "been-in-the-system" -- in prison -- for a serious crime.

Berlinale fly-on-the-wall film peers inside German far right party

A Berlinale film about Germany's biggest far-right party offers a fly-on-the-wall portrayal of a chaotic organization beset by power struggles and resentful of its rejection by the political mainstream. "A German Party", a documentary that premiered at the Berlin Film Festival on Wednesday, follows the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party over more than two years, showing insider meetings of the first far-right group to sit in parliament since the 1960s.

(With inputs from agencies.)