We did a lengthy review of Viacom’s (NYSE: VIA-B) vertical strategy in the Fall. Meanwhile, revenues were up 24% in 3Q07 to $3.27 billion. Adjusted net earnings grew 20% to $437 million and diluted EPS were $0.65, a 27% increase over 3Q06. The solid performance was due to the DreamWorks-Paramount blockbuster Transformers. Earlier this month,
I talked about Audience Fragmentation and the Rise of Ad Networks recently. At the moment, the Ad Networks are in the business of amassing large volumes of fragmented traffic, and offering a channel to advertisers to access the publishers who own this traffic. Expect, in 2008, a trend towards these “mass” Ad Networks gradually becoming
SM: What are some of your key learnings from this journey so far? SS: The journey has been very interesting. More technology start-ups didn’t survive the dot-com bust. We were able to weather the downturn and adapt to the environment. We adjusted the management team, adjusted the focus on applications and with a bit of
Business Week has a good analysis of the prospective demise of WSJ’s subscription business under Murdoch’s regime. “For The Wall Street Journal Online, going free will come at a high cost. The daily financial newspaper is one of the few major publications to successfully charge for access to most of its online content, earning roughly
By Frank Lara, Guest Author If John Welch is building a new Electronic Arts then how is the real Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) doing and is it worth your time and money for a potential investment opportunity? The quick answer – they are worth your attention. Electronic Arts is the big daddy of the gaming
SM: Describe some of your team building experiences. Is your management team complete now? JW: The first hire was the toughest. We raised $5 million on a PowerPoint deck and the promise that we knew the industry better than anyone. But then weeks went by and we couldn’t seem to find the right people to
SM: How did you penetrate the market and get early traction? JW: While I was at Shockwave, I had the privilege to work with some of the top developers in casual games. We saw the opportunity to help those developers do what they love – focus on making games – by becoming the first publisher
As we discuss Web 3.0 and Online Music, I have also been pondering some of the issues that large media companies are facing today. I had an interesting chat with Nick Rockwell, CTO of MTV Networks, focusing on MTVN’s digital businesses, including some of the internet’s most popular and recognizable brands: MTV.com, VH1.com, Nick.com, and