Seth Gilbert, 08-16-2007
The news from MTV Networks (“MTVN”) is games, lots and lots of games. As part of a two year plan, reports are: the Viacom owned media network plans to invest more than $500m on games. The investment will emphasize casual gaming and will include both online, mobile and console based games.
Historically, dating back to Warner Communications purchase of Atari in 1976, big entertainment media companies have not been terribly successful at launching in-house game initiatives. History won’t deter MTVN. They, Disney, and other big media companies are anxious to cash in on the branding and revenue opportunities in the gaming industry. They are also loathsome to let independent publishers and startups steal all the thunder, and dollars.
MTV CEO Judy McGrath is hoping they’ll be able to expand some of their brands with game offerings. Network president Mika Salmi has said explicitly “games are critical.”
Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert,
After recently moving in to the black, Fox Interactive Media (“FIM”), News Corporation’s Internet division, is taking its show, and services, on the road.
In addition to continuing to operate its own in-house web properties which include MySpace and 24 Fox owned stations, Variety reports FIM will now take on web development and management responsibilities for 160 Fox affiliate stations.
While managing local, and regional, stations will have logistical challenges, offering the out-sourcing service is likely a smart move. Having FIM manage the web properties of affiliates will allow News Corp to leverage FIM’s core Internet marketing and branding skills across its related properties and it will help insure a more unified brand image. Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert, 08-9-2007
Yesterday, NBC announced the planned launch of Didja, an “All Ads, All the time” Internet video site. In the press announcement introducing the new site, it was noted Didja would not launch until some time in early 2008. That schedule was set to insure the much larger YouTube targeting Internet video joint venture between News Corporation and NBC would launch first.
Today, that joint venture (which was announced in March and is still referred to as New Co) received an added shot of working capital. Providence Equity Partners, a media-centric investment company based in Rhode Island, confirmed they’d take a ten percent stake in the joint venture for $100m.
That investment sets the pre-money valuation for the as yet unlaunched effort at a staggering $1b. It’s an enormous number for a company that does not yet have its product on the market. Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert, 08-8-2007
You know you live in a consumer culture when advertising spots become entertainment on their own. Today, NBC Universal announced the planned roll out of their next step into Internet video – an advertising only video site. To clarify, this is not an ad supported video website (well, technically it’s that too) but this is a site showing nothing but video ads.
The site, which is named Didja (in tribute to the opening line of the water cooler conversations they hope their programming will inspire), will launch in early 2008, Variety reported. The site’s roll out will be staged to follow the launch of NBC’s other video effort, New Co, (which is its much larger joint venture with News Corp to build a true YouTube rival called).
The Didja site will showcase both new and old TV ad footage. It’s expected that advertisers will have the opportunity to pay for featured billing or placement similar to the way sponsors buy top search result placement with sponsored search. Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert,
Rupert Murdoch’s media empire spans the globe (for a map see here). With such breadth and scope (and in the wake of the $5b purchase of Wall Street Journal parent Dow Jones) it was easy to almost overlook another acquisition but sometimes the little things can be as telling than the big.
For $11.3m, NDS Group (Nasdaq: NNDS) , an UK based subsidiary of News Corp, is buying a small Israeli streaming video company called CastUP.
Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert,
When it comes to business news, there are usually a few good takeover or acquisition rumors floating around. They make good water-cooler conversations and fuel the tanks of curiosity. Sometimes the stories pan out and “unconfirmed sources” turn out to be accurate insider gossip, other times, the comments prove yarns worthy of super market tabloids.
Tuesday, the publishing industry was the day’s hot topic with two unrelated, and both unconfirmed, stories in the rumor mills and on the coconut telegraphs.
Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert, 08-7-2007
When Apple announced earnings two weeks ago, CFO Peter Oppenheimer shockingly forecast a reduction in earnings for this current quarter. Analysts were dumbfounded how that could be possible after two quarters of stellar returns. The vague explanation Mr. Oppenheimer provided under pressure for more info was that “there will be a product transition [he couldn’t] get into.”
Today, Apple revealed the first of what will likely be a few product changes. Today, they unleashed the new iMac.
Click to Read More
