Are You The Next Internet Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire, which is likely to hit the 170-million-pound mark in worldwide ticket sales, following the Oscar sweep nearly went straight to DVD.

Slumdog, which cost only 8.7 million pounds to make, last night scooped eight Oscars, including Best Picture.

According to The Times, studio executives at Warner Bros had decided to sell the distribution rights to Slumdog Millionaire last August - three months before the film’s release.

The movie’s earnings are likely to go on raking in millions of dollars a year for decades, thanks to DVD sales, TV licensing, and revenues from Internet streaming.

Last year, because of crisis of confidence Warner Bros had decided to circumvent its relatively small bet on Slumdog by handing over 50 per cent of the US distribution rights to Fox Searchlight, part of News Corporation, parent company of The Times.

Simultaneously, Warner Bros decided to pack up its Warner Independent Pictures division, which had co-produced Slumdog along with Pathé, Celador Films, and Film4.

The move was made to focus on more mass-appeal movies such as The Dark Knight.

Of all the movies that were on Warner Independent Pictures’ 2008 plate, it was believed that Danny Boyle’s film was the only one that had its distribution rights sold to a third party.

Boyle - who was told that the film was going to go straight to DVD in the US - made sure to reference Warner Bros in his acceptance speech for the Best Director award.

“I’ve got to thank everybody at Warner Bros for having the great grace to pass the film on to the extraordinary guy at Fox Searchlight, Peter Rice, and all his team,” he said.

Peter Carlton, the senior commissioning executive at Film 4, remembered showing a director’s cut of the film to Warner Bros last June.

“It was like showing it to a brick wall. They told us afterwards they were thinking of sticking it out on DVD,” he added.

Carlton, however, added that Slumdog’s eventual distribution deal with Fox Searchlight remained heavily biased in favour of the studio.

He accused big American studios like Fox and Warner Bros of “damaging British film” by imposing distribution deals that gave little or nothing back to independent film financiers.

“They make sure they’re the first in line for the profits. And the second and third in line as well. It’s damaging to the whole British film industry,” he said. (ANI)

Source: http://www.pcdistrict.com

The collective wealth of the UK’s top 1,000 multimillionaires grew by nearly £53 billion last year.

According to The Sunday Times Rich List 2008, the cash boost means they now sit on a fortune of £412.8 billion - an annual increase of nearly 15 per cent.

The UK is now home to some 75 billionaires - up from 68 in 2007 - 40 of whom arrived from overseas to settle in the country.

Topping the list for the fourth year running is steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal with a personal wealth of £27.7 billion, up more than £8 billion.

He is followed by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. The Russian oil and industry tycoon saw his fortune increase from £10.8 billion to £11.7 billion this year.

Among the fallers is Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson. The value of his transport, Internet and mobile phone empire fell by £400 million to £2.7 billion.

It saw him slump from 11th in 2007 to 20th in the latest report.

The owner of the strike-hit Grangemouth refinery, Ineos chemicals billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, experienced an even greater dive down the list.

Higher energy costs and more competition from the Middle East resulted in Mr Ratcliffe falling from 10th last year to 25th.

New entrants in this year’s top ten include steel and mines magnate Alisher Usmanov comes in at five with £5.726 billion.

One place below are Ernesto and Kirsty Bertarelli. The former Miss UK winner and her husband sit on a fortune of £5.65 billion built on pharmaceuticals.

The top 1,000 wealth creators included 762 self-made millionaires.

Britain’s super rich needed a personal wealth of more than £80 million to feature in this year’s list, up £10 million on last year.

Source: http://www.itv.com

A 25-year-old internet magnate has been revealed as the buyer of one of the most expensive pieces of real estate in Australia.

Brisbane-raised millionaire Daniel Tzvetkoff paid $28 million for the mansion which, when completed, will be the largest on the Gold Coast strip known as “millionaires row”, The Courier-Mail reports.

The mansion will have an estimated value of between $50 million and $70 million when it is completed.

Mr Tzvetkoff, who is of Bulgarian origin but was born in Ipswich, started the online payment business Intabill when he was 18 with his business partner Salvatore Sciacca, a cousin of former federal minister Con Sciacca.

The father of one, who is engaged to be married in the coming months, said the mansion would be his family home.

“We’re not out there to have the biggest place or anything like that,” he said.

“We bought it to live in and raise a family. The property to me, was about the right time and a good investment for me.”

Mr Tzvetkoff bought the property from former Sydney Swans ruckman and Breakfree founder Tony Smith, who has been hit by the collapse of tourism group MFS earlier this year.

Source: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au

London (ANI): Amy Winehouse has entered the Sunday Times” list of Britain’s Richest Young Millionaires with an estimated fortune of 10 million pounds. The 24-year-old star ranks 10th in the top 100 richest people in music in Britain aged 30 and under, reports The Telegraph. X Factor chart-topper Leona Lewis is also a new entry at 14th place with an estimated 6 million pounds fortune.

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe, who has added 3 million pounds to his wealth in the past year and is now worth 20 million pounds, is the richest actor in the young millionaires list. Radcliffe’s co-star Emma Watson, is a new entry on the list with 10 million pounds, while fellow Harry Potter star Rupert Grint, has 7 million pounds. Atonement star Keira Knightley has been named the richest young actress with 18 million pounds.

Michael Owen, of Newcastle United and England, is the richest young footballer with an estimated 41 million pounds while another England footballer, Wayne Rooney, of Manchester United, and his fiancee, Coleen McLoughlin, have a joint wealth of 35 million pounds tying them in 13th place in the young millionaires list with Princes Harry and William.

Source: http://entertainment.oneindia.in