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Tag: US media

  • BBC admits struggling to compete with Netflix, Amazon

    BBC admits struggling to compete with Netflix, Amazon

    MUMBAI: Even a broadcaster and ancient brand like the BCC cannot escape the threat of the new digital transformation and change in audience habit. In its second annual report, the British broadcaster admitted that it is facing a crisis as the viewing habits of younger audiences change.

    The kids of today find on-demand content more appealing. 82 per cent of children in the UK prefer YouTube for on-demand content, 50 per cent log into Netflix and only 29 per cent use BBC iPlayer. The report says children spend more time each week online than watching TV.

    “At the same time, maintaining the reach and time that audiences spend with our output is equally difficult, when they have so many other choices at their disposal,” BBC said in the report.

    The report estimates 16 to 24 year-olds spend more time with Netflix in a week than with all of BBC TV including the BBC iPlayer.

    Against this context, BBC wants to keep its commitment to the highest production and editorial standards. It will sustain investment in new and original British output, made all over the UK. “We will take creative risks and keep the right balance between new series and returning favourites,” BBC said.

    “Major new entrants such as Amazon and Netflix have meant that the global media market is increasingly dominated by a small number of US-based media giants with extraordinary creative and financial firepower,” BBC fears.

    BBC’s urgent challenge is to develop new ways to grow its income to keep pace with rich competitors like Amazon, Netflix whose money supply seems to have no end.

    Also Read:

    Netflix announces new Indian original film ‘Lust Stories’

    BBC launches news in Indian languages, ties up with Eenadu and India News

  • Bob Bakish to take over as Viacom CEO?

    Bob Bakish to take over as Viacom CEO?

    MUMBAI: Indian executives are familiar with this Viacom long-timer. And now, he’s being tipped to take over as the US media and cable Viacom CEO. We are talking about Viacom International Media Networks president & CEO Bob Bakish who was been quite closely associated with the Reliance group joint venture Viacom18 and its distribution outfit IndiaCast.

    Bakish is slated to replace the interim CEO Tom Dooley if Bloomberg and other international media reports are to be believed. Dooley, who was appointed as the interim CEO following the ouster of the former CEO Philippe Dauman in a public slugfest between him and the majority owner Sumner Redstone and his daughter Shari, will depart on 15 November.

    The fiesty executive has a long history with Viacom, having first worked with the management consulting firm Booze Allen & Hamilton in the nineties, before hopping on board MTV Networks as the EVP & chief operating officer – ad sales between 2001 and 2004. He then was promoted as the EVP – operations Viacom and Viacom Enterprises, following which he ran MTV Networks International as its president between 2007 and 2011. Since then, he has been the president & CEO of Viacom International Media Networks, expanding and consolidating the group’s international business globally and making it profitable.

    The board’s decision will be announced Monday.

    Viacom18 Media, its 50:50 joint venture with Network18 (now Reliance Industries owned), is one of the international successes, which has flowered under his watch. The venture runs India’s top three GECs – Colors — apart from channels such as MTV, VH1, Comedy Central, Colors Infinity. It has expanded the channels internationally as well into markets such as the UK, the US.

  • Bob Bakish to take over as Viacom CEO?

    Bob Bakish to take over as Viacom CEO?

    MUMBAI: Indian executives are familiar with this Viacom long-timer. And now, he’s being tipped to take over as the US media and cable Viacom CEO. We are talking about Viacom International Media Networks president & CEO Bob Bakish who was been quite closely associated with the Reliance group joint venture Viacom18 and its distribution outfit IndiaCast.

    Bakish is slated to replace the interim CEO Tom Dooley if Bloomberg and other international media reports are to be believed. Dooley, who was appointed as the interim CEO following the ouster of the former CEO Philippe Dauman in a public slugfest between him and the majority owner Sumner Redstone and his daughter Shari, will depart on 15 November.

    The fiesty executive has a long history with Viacom, having first worked with the management consulting firm Booze Allen & Hamilton in the nineties, before hopping on board MTV Networks as the EVP & chief operating officer – ad sales between 2001 and 2004. He then was promoted as the EVP – operations Viacom and Viacom Enterprises, following which he ran MTV Networks International as its president between 2007 and 2011. Since then, he has been the president & CEO of Viacom International Media Networks, expanding and consolidating the group’s international business globally and making it profitable.

    The board’s decision will be announced Monday.

    Viacom18 Media, its 50:50 joint venture with Network18 (now Reliance Industries owned), is one of the international successes, which has flowered under his watch. The venture runs India’s top three GECs – Colors — apart from channels such as MTV, VH1, Comedy Central, Colors Infinity. It has expanded the channels internationally as well into markets such as the UK, the US.

  • Ad spends in the US to slow down in 2012: Study

    Ad spends in the US to slow down in 2012: Study

    MUMBAI: Magnaglobal a division of IPG Mediabrands has released its updated US Media Owners Advertising Revenue Forecast.


    The 2011 forecast remains unchanged at 1.6 per cent growth, including the impact of political and Olympics (P&O) advertising, and it still expects media suppliers to generate $173.5 billion of ad revenues in 2011. Due to persistent weakness in the US economy, however, it has revised the 2012 growth forecast down from 4.8 to 2.9 per cent, including P&O.


    A slowdown in real personal consumption expenditures, manufacturing activity, and ongoing problems in the labour and housing markets all contribute to the revised outlook.
     
    The estimates are further impacted by continued disinflation. The forecasts encompass core media categories including Television, Internet, Print, Radio and Outdoor, as well as direct marketing categories (Direct Mail, Directories). Excluding direct marketing components, the revenue growth of core media categories is estimated at 2.9 per cent in 2011 and 4.3 per cent in 2012.


    Under the current expectations of a slow-but-positive economic recovery in 2012, media suppliers’ advertising revenues will continue to recover from the severe recession of 2008-2009.


    Magnaglobal expects revenues to reach $178.5 billion in 2012, which is still significantly less than the pre-recession level of 2007 ($206.1 billion).


    National mass media will continue to gain share due to strength in national online display, online video, mobile and national cable network advertising. Across the three media segments, TV will be the fastest growing medium after Online in 2012, with advertising revenues increasing by 7.1 per cent compared with online’s 11.6 per cent.


    Television will benefit from the “quadrennial bonanza.” The agency believes that the 2012 elections and the Summer Olympics will generate incremental revenue of $3.1 billion for television: $2.5 billion in political advertising (the highest spending ever, mostly on local broadcast television) and $633 million around the London Olympics (up 5.5 per cent compared with Beijing 2008, and primarily fuelling National Broadcast TV revenues).


    Direct media is exhibiting an increasing discrepancy between traditional activities (Directories and Direct Mail) and digital (Internet Yellow Pages, Paid Search, Lead Generation). Traditional direct media remains significant ($26.2 billion in 2011), but it is increasingly challenged by digital alternatives. Digital direct media, on the other hand, continues to outperform.


    Paid Search growth has accelerated this year to 21.7 per cent, and is expected to maintain double-digit growth in 2012 (13 per cent). Recent algorithm improvements have helped accelerate cost-per-click trends and have led brands to rely more heavily on search engine marketing and search engine optimization while eschewing low-quality sites. For 2011, it now expects $31.1 billion in total online advertising, up 19.5 per cent versus 2010.

  • Viacom to sell music publishing business

    Viacom to sell music publishing business

    MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Viacom has decided to explore strategic alternatives to maximise the value of Famous Music, its music publishing business.

    It could sell the business. The company has retained UBS Investment Bank to act as financial advisor to assist in this process.

    Famous Music was founded in 1928 by Paramount Pictures’ predecessor, the Famous-Lasky Corporation, to publish music from its “talking pictures”. Today the firm says that it is one of the top 10 music publishers in the US, supplying music to a diversified range of global media.

    Its catalogue of more than 125,000 copyrights spans seven decades and includes music from films like The Godfather, Forrest Gump and Titanic, as well as classic television shows including The Brady Bunch, Cheers and the Star Trek franchise.

    Since 1992, Famous Music has moved into the mainstream of contemporary music with such platinum-plus acts as Shakira, Akon, Eminem and Busta Rhymes. Writers and producers on the Famous roster include Irv Gotti, 7 Aurelius, Linda Perry, Tia Sillers, Charlie Midnight, and Marvin Hamlisch.
     

  • Disney expands cruise line business

    Disney expands cruise line business

     MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Disney plans to expand its successful cruise business by adding two new ocean liners,

    Scheduled to launch in 2011 and 2012, the ships will more than double the passenger capacity for Disney Cruise Line to meet the sustained demand for Disney’s family cruise vacations.

    The company signed a letter of intent with Meyer Werft shipyard, based in Papenburg, Germany, to negotiate a contract to build the 122,000-ton new cruise liners, which will be two decks taller than the existing 83,000-ton ships, the Disney Magic and the Disney Wonder. Each ship will have 1,250 staterooms. Specific design plans and itineraries for the yet-unnamed ships are still in development and will be unveiled at a later date.

    Disney CEO Bob Iger says, “Since our maiden voyage in 1998, Disney Cruise Line has been a huge success for our guests and for our shareholders alike. It has brought our unparalleled family vacation experience to the high seas, and has also generated high margins and double digit returns on invested capital. We are excited to announce the expansion of our fleet, which is a logical next step in what is a real growth business for us.”

    Disney Cruise Line established the family market within the cruise industry when the business launched in 1998. The first two ships were purpose built for families to reconnect and recharge while creating vacation memories that will last a lifetime. From a theater featuring live musical spectaculars to a luxurious spa for adults and nearly an entire deck dedicated to children’s activities, the ships offer something for every member of the family. Disney Cruise Line continues to grow by attracting passengers who say they would not have cruised if it hadn’t been for the Disney brand.

    Disney Parks and Resorts chairman Jay Rasulo says, “Focussing on families has been smart business for us. More than 95 per cent of Disney Cruise Line guests rate their cruise experience as excellent or very good. Families know they can trust us to provide a quality, immersive Disney experience. As a result, Disney Cruise Line continually sets sail with the highest load factors in the industry of nearly 150 per cent.”

    Similar to the original Disney Cruise Line ships, the new ships will be a modern interpretation of classic ocean liners of the 1930s. Disney Imagineers drew their inspiration from the original trans-Atlantic ships that featured a dramatic black hull with two funnels and porthole windows. The profile of the ships, with its gentle curves at the stern combined with sleek angles at the bow, are reminiscent of the art deco designs of the era.

    To add whimsy to the classic design, the Disney ships have the same exterior colour palette as Mickey Mouse with black, white, red and yellow. The new ships will feature elegant, detailed Disney scrollwork at the bow and will evoke images of the glamour of the golden age of cruising.

     

  • Disney Q1 net profit grows on DVD sales

    MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Disney blew past Wall Street expectations as it reported strong first quarter earnings on gains from the sale of its shares in US Weekly magazine and the E! Entertainment channel.

    Even without the one-time gains, which boosted earnings by 29 cents per share, the media conglomerate beat analyst forecasts by 11 cents per share on strong performance from sales of DVDs, including Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

    In the quarter ended 30 December 2006, Disney earned $1.7 billion, or 79 cents a share, which includes a gain of 39 cents a share from the sale of Disney’s stake in E! Networks and Us Weekly. Excluding the gains, the earnings did top analyst estimates of 39 cents a share.

    Quarterly revenues were $9.73 billion, driven by DVD sales of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Cars and High School Musical along with strong results from ABC and ESPN.

    Net income rose from $734 million in the first quarter last year to $1.7 billion. Revenue grew 10 per cent to $9.7 billion. Disney CEO Bob Iger said, “These results are particularly gratifying given the great year we had in 2006 and are another clear sign our strategy is driving growth and creating shareholder value.”

  • Telefonica puts Endemol up for sale

    Telefonica puts Endemol up for sale

    MUMBAI: Telefonica, which has a majority stake in global television format creator and distributor Endemol is looking to sell the firm.

    In India Endemol recently completed one year of existence.

    Telefonica has a 75 per cent stake in the firm. However US media conglomerate News Corp has said that it has no interest in buying Endemol. There was a report that had said that News Corp was circling around the firm.

    A News Corp spokesman described speculation of interest in Endemol as being nonsense. Executives from the Spanish telecommunications firm Telefonica are believed to be arranging a deal with Merrill Lynch to sell its majority stake in Endemol. Disney has also said that it is not interested in buying the firm. Endemol, reports indicate, has a market value of around $3.4 billion.

    The acquisition of Endemol makes sense for global media firms. It allows them to put new formats and existing endemol formats into their channels. Reports also state that Endemol’s chief creative content officer Peter Bazalgette has been touted as someone who might lead a management buyout of the company.

    But a move to lead a buyout would require him to leave Endemol’s board, something he has not indicated any desire to do.