'Game of Thrones' Writer George R.R. Martin Lands Overall Deal With HBO

There just might be a lot more dragons and swords in HBO's future.

George R.R. Martin, whose "A Song of Ice and Fire" fantasy novel series served as the basis for HBO's hit drama "Game of Thrones," has entered an overall deal with the network.

The two-year agreement will retain Martin as a co-executive producer of the series, which begins its third season March 31, but will also have him developing and producing series for the network.

In addition to "Game of Thrones" -- which he's written a few episodes for -- Martin served as a producer and writer on the 1980s series "Beauty and the Beast," and penned a handful of episodes for the 1980s revival of "The Twilight Zone."

The Wanted Land E! Reality Show

Pop band The Wanted, known for hits including "Glad You Came," will star in a Ryan Seacrest-produced reality show for E!, the network announced Wednesday.

In a not-at-all stagey setup, the band (pictured) will live together in the Hollywood Hills as they record their third album, plan for a new U.S. and European tour, and maybe, just maybe, juggle friendships and relationships with their musical careers.

Produced by Ryan Seacrest Productions, SB Productions and Global TV UK, the new half-hour series premieres in the U.S. in June and around the world this fall.

"The rock star lifestyle is something that everyone has fantasized about and The Wanted are giving viewers total access into their world as they live out this dream,” said E! president Suzanne Kolb. "This series is a perfect blend of music, bromance and superstardom chronicling the lives of one of music's biggest groups as they continue to make their mark on the global stage."

“America has a long history of falling for British bad boy musicians, so it’s no surprise that The Wanted are already beloved by legions of fans far and wide,” said Seacrest. “This talented and outspoken English-Irish band are setting their own course to fame and this journey is the foundation of the series. It’s a road that’s bound to include irresistible pop tracks along with plenty of humor, antics and drama behind-the-scenes, which I believe will further ignite fascination and even obsession with these guys.”

Is Outgoing 'Walking Dead' Boss Under a 'Gag Order'?

Is AMC trying to keep Glen Mazzara from talking about his exit from "The Walking Dead"?

Mazzara's publicist says no -- even if Mazzara isn't going into details about his departure. The showrunner has spoken to several outlets, including TheWrap, about the show returning Sunday for the remainder of its third season.

But Mazzara was a no-show Tuesday at a Television Academy panel about the series, which prompted speculation that he has been silenced.

"AMC's initiated a gag order," said a Wednesday tweet from "Sons of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter, who worked with Mazzara on FX's "The Shield."

Sutter added: "Removing mazzara from press for fear his firing will pull focus & he may tell the truth."

In fact, Mazzara spoke to TheWrap  just hours before the panel Tuesday. The New York Times and New Yorker's Vulture have also posted interviews with the showrunner.

"There is no gag order from AMC," Mazzara's publicist told TheWrap. "They are very supportive of him doing press for the remainder of Season 3, just as they have up to this point."

What Mazzara isn't doing, however, is going into specifics about why he is leaving TV's top-rated drama. Speaking to TheWrap, he addressed it only in general terms. He also talked briefly about his replacement, Scott Gimple.

"It's fine. I'm happy with the show and delivering my season and I'm just going to go on and do my own thing now," Mazzara said. "It's actually a pretty good, productive time for me."

Notably, Mazzara said he has not offered any advice to Gimple, previously one of his top writers on "The Walking Dead."

"I, you know, have been focused on delivering the end of my season and working on my own material," Mazzara said. "I haven't spoken with him."

Read into that what you will. (And look for the full interview later this week.)

In its announcement last month that Mazzara would leave "The Walking Dead," AMC cited "a difference of opinion about where the show should go." The disagreement involved the fourth season and beyond.

Just two months prior to the announcement that he would leave the show, Mazzara told TheWrap he would love to remain with "The Walking Dead" until the end, "if AMC and the fans would have me."

AMC did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday on Sutter's tweet. Network representatives have also decline to comment on why, exactly, Mazzara is leaving.

Even if Mazzara isn't talking about the reasons either, he has a vested interest in promoting the show any way he can.

At this point in the season, "The Walking Dead" is the top-rated drama on any network, cable or broadcast. Mazzara would like his show to end the season with that distinction, which no other cable series has earned. The season's sucess is a testament to Mazzara's fast-paced, more horrific vision of the show.

Sutter has previously weighed in on AMC's disputes with its showrunners, including "Mad Men" creator Matthew Weiner.

In August 2011, Sutter said the network fired the original "Walking Dead" showrunner, Frank Darabont, and entered into tense negotiation with "Breaking Bad" creator Vince Gilligan because Weiner had "held AMC hostage, broke their bank, budgets were slashed, s--- rolled down hill onto gilligan and frank."

BBC TV Centre to feature hotel, cinema, flats and offices

BBC Television Centre is to be redeveloped with a hotel, flats, a cinema and offices by its new owner, although the BBC will still use parts of the West London complex.

Property developer Stanhope and the BBC today jointly unveiled plans to redevelop Television Centre into a mixed-use facility, including the famous forecourt being open to the public for the first time.

The Grade II listed main circular building, known as "the doughnut", will be transformed into a hotel and apartments. It will be remodelled but the forecourt and famous frontage of Television Centre on Wood Lane will be retained

BBC Studio 1 will be re-fitted, along with Studio 2 and 3. The BBC will still use parts of the site, while commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, will take offices there.

Stanhope plc chief executive David Camp said in a statement: "The BBC will continue to have a significant presence at Television Centre and we will be bringing new life into the site with new public routes, spaces and uses.

"We will be introducing a vibrant and exciting mix of new retail, leisure, office and residential uses whilst keeping and enhancing the famous original BBC buildings and retaining key operational BBC studio and office facilities on site. Television Centre will be a great place to live, work and visit."

Under the plans, the current 'Stage 4 and 5' buildings at Television Centre will be refurbished to provide office space, targeted at new media or creative businesses in the area.

The 'Drama Block', 'Restaurant Block' and Multi Storey Car Park on Wood Lane will be replaced by residential buildings and townhouses.

The East Tower will be replaced "with a more slender and appropriately positioned residential building".

There will be approximately 1,000 new residential units and townhouses in total at the 14-acre site, including a 'Village Green' of town houses for families with private rear gardens, and affordable housing.

Also at the redeveloped site will be a cinema, health club, restaurants and cafes.

Television Centre was built for the BBC on the former site of the 1908 Franco-British Exhibition. The West London site, which looks like a question mark from the air, officially opened in June 1960 and was designed by the architects Norman and Dawbarn.

Programmes recorded at Television Centre include Monty Python's Flying Circus, Fawlty Towers, Blue Peter, Strictly Come Dancing and Doctor Who.

But the BBC sold the site to Stanhope plc in July 2012 for a sum in the region of £200 million, as it looked to cut costs and shift operations to the refurbished Broadcasting House in central London and BBC North in Salford.

Stanhope has hired RIBA award-winning practice Allford Hall Monaghan Morris as lead architects on the redevelopment project, supported by Macreanor Lavington and Duggan Morris.

The BBC and Stanhope hope that building work can start at the site in 2015.

Sky dominance challenged by Liberty-owned Virgin

Liberty Global's deal to buy UK cable TV giant Virgin Media is expected to provide the sternest challenge yet to the dominance of Sky, as well as restart hostilities between two billionaires.

Virgin Media has been acquired by Liberty Global - chaired by John Malone - in a $16bn (£10.22bn) deal. The US firm will use cash and stock for the deal, and pay $47.87 per Virgin Media share, representing a 24% premium on Monday's closing price.

Liberty Global, which owns a range of international TV and broadband operations, including Irish cable operator UPC and content distributor Chellomedia, will continue to use the Virgin Media brand in the UK.

Founder of the Virgin Group, Sir Richard Branson, said: "This deal is good news for the company, its customers and our people. Together, Liberty Global and Virgin Media are in a great position to shake up the industry and bring the full power of digital technology to UK consumers."

Virgin Media closed 2012 with 4.9 million customers for its services, but main rival Sky has over double that, at 10.7m customers.

Satellite TV giant Sky has Rupert Murdoch's News Corp as its biggest single shareholder, with a 39.1% stake. The firm has experienced huge growth over the years and recently snapped up a new deal to the lucrative Premier League rights.

However, a Liberty-owned Virgin Media could provide a sterner challenge for Sky in the pay-TV market.

Following the takeover, Liberty Global will become the world's leading broadband communications company, with a network covering 47 million homes. Its companies will have 25 million customers in 14 countries.

As Liberty already has a significant presence in Europe and cable networks, the deal will create instant synergy across 'triple play' products - TV, voice and broadband. It will also bring significant potential for cost savings across the combined group.

Liberty Global chief executive Mike Fries said that the group will be able to secure around $180m per year of cost savings due to the takeover. This is mostly by pooling purchasing across cable equipment and set top boxes.

The combined company will focus on the "strongest and most strategic markets in Europe", with 80% of its revenue to come from the UK, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

Liberty Global will also benefit from Virgin's presence in mobile and business-to-business communications.

Virgin Media chief executive Neil Berkett said: "Virgin Media and Liberty Global have a shared ambition, focus on operational excellence and commitment to driving shareholder value.

"The combined company will be able to grow faster and deliver enhanced returns by capitalising on the exciting opportunities that the digital revolution presents, both in the UK and across Europe."

The takeover renews rivalries between Liberty's John Malone and Rupert Murdoch, the chief executive of News Corp.

The billionaire unsettled Murdoch in 2004 by amassing a 17% stake in News Corp, challenging the Murdoch family's grip over the company.

The dispute was eventually ended after News Corp agreed to sell its stake in US satellite TV broadcaster DirecTV to Malone, who in turn offloaded his News Corp shares.

Malone has eyed a move into the UK for some time, and built up a 25% stake in Telewest before it merged with NTL. The group later joined with Virgin Communications to form Virgin Media.

He can now use Virgin Media and its ready-made customer base and considerable network assets to challenge the dominance of Murdoch's Sky in the lucrative UK market.

But Fries played down expectations that Virgin would compete with Sky for prestige content rights, such as live football.

He told the Financial Times: "I do not see us doing anything in this market that's meaningfully different from what Virgin's been doing with respect to premium content."

Twitter goes big for social TV with Bluefin Labs deal

Twitter is betting big on the emerging social television space, after it acquired Massachusetts-based social TV analytics firm Bluefin Labs.

Twitter said that buying Bluefin Labs will help the firm "create innovative new ad products and consumer experiences in the exciting intersection of Twitter and TV".

Bluefin Labs was created by Michael Fleischman and Deb Roy as an "academic pursuit" at MIT, but has since grown into an analytics platform that links social media commentary with TV shows and commercials at scale.

The company now works with various major brands, advertisers and TV networks, including P&G, PepsiCo, CBS, Turner Broadcasting, FOX Broadcasting and Discovery Communications.

Bluefin said that whilst it draws data from various social media services, it feels that Twitter "is the platform where the overwhelming majority ­- about 95% - of public real-time engagement with TV happens".

"Our work in social TV measurement and analytics to date have meant that Bluefin Labs has necessarily taken an objective, but passive, role in the evolution of social TV," Bluefin said in a blog post.

"Now as part of Twitter, we look forward to working closely with Nielsen, TV networks, advertisers, agencies, and the rest of the TV ecosystem to help shape the future of social TV."

Brands and businesses are increasingly trying to harness activity on Twitter via their advertising.

During the Super Bowl at the weekend, around half the national broadcast ads had Twitter hashtags included in them, up from one in five last year.

In a separate blog post, Twitter chief operating officer Ali Rowghani said that the Bluefin acquisition "reflects our commitment to the social TV market".

He said that it also builds on Twitter's exclusive partnership agreed with TV ratings body Nielsen, which led to the development of the Nielsen-Twitter social TV measurement tool.

"We plan to collaborate closely with Nielsen and SocialGuide on product development and research to help brands, agencies, and networks fully understand the combined value of Twitter and TV," Rowghani added.

"As millions of people around the world experienced during Sunday's Super Bowl broadcast, Twitter is an amazing complement to live television viewing.

"We look forward to working with Bluefin and our partners in the television industry to make the experience of Twitter and television even better."

Rowghani confirmed that Bluefin would honour its existing customer contracts, but the firm will not sell any further products as it integrates with the Twitter operation.

The Bluefin Labs team will remain based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Sky to run first 3D coverage of Formula One

Sky has confirmed plans to broadcast its first ever live Formula One in 3D ahead of the 2013 season.

Viewers will be able to watch the third test session from the Circuit de Catalunya on Sky 3D, as Sky experiments with 3D coverage of the sport.

All four days of the session from February 28 to March 3 will be shown on Sky 3D, as well as simulcast in standard and high definition on Sky Sports F1.

Sky's F1 commentator Martin Brundle said: "This is a special moment for Formula 1 fans and exactly the kind of innovation and access that Sky Sports F1 promised.

"3D will show us the real challenges of the race track with added depth and perspective. It will be a new, immersive experience for viewers and I can't wait to see what F1 action in 3D will reveal."

Sky Sports F1 executive producer Martin Turner said that the 3D broadcast will be "ground-breaking".

"We're as excited as the next fan to see what Formula 1 will look like in 3D. It's uncharted territory, but this is a big opportunity to experiment and innovate, and we're grateful to Formula One Management for working with us on this," he said.

"Sky is a world-leader in the field of 3D broadcasting, so in partnership with Formula 1 we're in the best position to answer public appetite and take up the challenge of bringing live F1 in 3D for the first time."

Sky describes the broadcast as "one-off 3D coverage" and has not indicated whether it could be extended to a full practice, qualifying or race session in the 2013 season.

However, Sky prides itself on being at the forefront of 3D sports production and F1 becomes the 14th sport that it has broadcast in 3D.

Sky's director of 3D John Cassy said: "[3D has] proved a huge success with other sports, and now for the first time ever, 3D will bring TV viewers a new perspective on Formula 1.

"This cements our commitment to innovation and investment in 3D, and it's the latest first by Sky following our recent work on Galapagos with Sir David Attenborough. As the leading 3D pioneer, Sky is delighted to be able to bring this entirely new experience to Sky 3D viewers and F1 fans."