Seth Gilbert, 07-28-2009
Tuesday, Viacom delivered some good news. The company said its premium movie channel joint venture, Epix (developed jointly with Lionsgate and MGM), has signed a carrier deal with Verizon. Viacom also said it was “very pleased” with advance bidding (called “up fronts”) for commercial time on its cable properties in the upcoming TV season. The ad sector, CEO Philippe Dauman suggested, is showing signs of recovery. What was less positive, however, was Viacom’s performance in the quarter ended June 30th.
Adjusted earnings (earnings less severance charges of 3 cents per share) came in at 49 cents a share for the second quarter, the company reported. Down 23% year over year, that was just good enough to beat analyst’s consensus expectations of 48 cents (Thomson Reuters) but revenue numbers missed.
Analysts projected revenue of $3.5b. Viacom totaled up $3.3b in revenue for Q2, a 14% drop over the same period last year.
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Seth Gilbert, 05-28-2009
Go back a few years ago and companies pushing net video streams out to proprietary applications were all the rage. IP TV had the hype of a key convergence technology. It was the next new thing. With companies like Joost there was massive venture funding, and talk about how their plans would change the face of TV distribution.
That didn’t happen. The buzz faded, staff left and many of the companies that were yesterday’s darlings have faded from tech culture stardom (at least for now) like the backup singer to a one hit wonder. Two notes hummed and forgotten.
The problem may have been timing, or programming, but it was also in no small part because the offerings required a change in consumer behavior. They required applications downloaded to a desktop when consumers were used to (and comfortable) working within their web browser.
It’s ironic given that, that today’s web video stars, companies like Hulu that have gained audience traction with browser-based video distribution are exploring stand alone players. Click to Read More
Lee Freeman, 05-5-2009
Leading a busy week of entertainment industry earnings reports that also includes News Corp and CBS, both Marvel Entertainment and Disney reported today. The quick facts, by the numbers:
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Seth Gilbert, 04-30-2009
After months of rumors, it’s official. Disney has hopped on the Hulu bandwagon. Subject to regulatory approval, Disney will take an equity stake in the video aggregrator/distributor alongside News Corp, NBC/Universal and Providence Equity Partners (which bought its stake in 2007).
In exchange for the equity, Disney will give Hulu the rights to broadcast full length programs from ABC’s catalog including Prime Time hits, and classics. Access will span the ABC Family, SoapNet, ABC and Disney Channel brands.
The deal will put three major networks (NBC, ABC and Fox) side by side in a joint video distribution platform. When it comes to online distribution of feature length TV content, the deal will make Hulu, “Network 1.”
That may not bode well for YouTube Click to Read More
Seth Gilbert, 03-30-2009
Disney’s castle has been locked down tightly when it comes to distributing its video programming online but that now appears to be changing. Last week, word leaked that the company was discussing a possible content partnership and equity stake in News Corp’s and NBC / Universal’s joint venture, Hulu. This week, today, the Disney Media Group announced a content deal with YouTube.
The new arrangement will lead to the launch of several ad-supported YouTube channels featuring short-form programming from Disney’s ESPN, ABC, and SOAPnet brands.
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Seth Gilbert, 02-5-2009
Analysts expected 19 cents per share in earnings. They got 12 cents, and that’s not taking into account an $8.4b writedown. So much for expectations.
Like other major media companies (Time Warner (PDF), and Disney (article) to name a pair), it’s currently a struggle to balance ad inventory against reduced spending. In the face of this, News Corporation reported weak earnings Thursday.
In a statement Rupert Murdoch explained saying the “downturn is more severe and likely longer lasting than previously thought.”
Revenue for the company’s fiscal second quarter came in at $7.87b, down 8.4% and below Wall Street’s expected draw of $8.35 to $8.38b. Factoring in the pre-tax onetime charge related to goodwill and intangible assets, the net loss was $6.4b, or $2.45 a share compared to net income of $832m (27 cents a share) for the same period last year.
The result was News Corps. First loss in more than three years.
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Seth Gilbert, 01-28-2009
Last April, in a surprise announcement, Lions Gate, Viacom (Paramount) and MGM announced plans to launch their own, then unnamed, premium cable channel and video on demand service. Soon after, former Showtime executive Mark Greenberg took the helm and the joint venture, dubbed Studio 3 Networks, began to roll toward a planned Q4 2009 launch.
Little by little, details have trickled out about what’s planned. In November, it was regulatory filings that revealed some of the initial cost data. Last month, it was the brand name for the channel, Epix, discovered. This month, it’s more info on launch plans.
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