Television

AT&T shareholders need Discovery deal to shine

19 May 2021

Ex-CEO Randall Stephenson in 2016 agreed to spend over $100 bln on Time Warner. Monday’s deal to offload the assets and merge them with Discovery recoups most of that, on paper. But the S&P 500 has doubled since. Owners will be hoping the new group can add as much value again.

John Malone is a flawed ambassador for Discovery

18 May 2021

The cable cowboy is giving up supervoting shares so the Food Network owner can merge with AT&T’s WarnerMedia. It’s a vote of confidence from a shrewd investor. Yet Malone and other insiders stand to get extra benefits that might leave other shareholders feeling less than loved.

Capital Calls: JPMorgan, FirstGroup, Break fees

18 May 2021

Concise insights on global finance: Jamie Dimon is shuffling his deputies; the UK bus-to-rail group’s sale of its U.S. businesses to EQT has hit an investor revolt; deals involving AT&T and Canadian National Railway highlight the fees due for walking away.

French TV deal pits nationalism against antitrust

18 May 2021

The 4.1 bln euro merger of TF1 and M6 creates a domestic broadcasting giant. Owners Bouygues and RTL have crafted a complex structure to get around competition rules but will still dominate TV advertising. The threat from U.S. behemoths like Netflix gives the union a chance.

AT&T hits on smart strategy: be kind, unwind

16 May 2021

Merging its media assets with Discovery, in a reversal of AT&T’s looney-tunes merger with Time Warner, could give the U.S. telecom the cash and focus it needs to build a 5G network. Meanwhile, AT&T boss John Stankey can right his predecessor’s wrongs, which are partly his too.

Bolloré makes tactical retreat in Italian foray

4 May 2021

The French billionaire has buried the hatchet with Silvio Berlusconi’s Mediaset, ending a wasteful five-year row. Bolloré’s Vivendi may not fully recoup its 1.2 bln euro investment in the broadcaster. At least the tycoon now has a freer hand to pursue his Italian telecom bet.

Capital Calls: Robinhood vs. Munger, Meredith deal

3 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: Warren Buffett and his investing sidekick takes on Robinhood, and vice versa; and the U.S. media company is selling its local TV stations to Gray Television for $2.7 bln.

BT keeps eye on the ball by giving soccer the boot

29 Apr 2021

The UK telecom group may sell some or all of its sports broadcast unit. Where live matches once helped lure broadband customers, the battleground has switched to super-fast fibre connections. Falling subscribers and dubious profitability make TV sport an unnecessary distraction.

Netflix’s performance has just enough chill

20 Apr 2021

Shares fell 10% after the video-streaming firm nabbed fewer subscribers in the first quarter. It suggests that the pandemic bonanza is over. But Netflix has plenty of room to take share away from TV. Improving cash flow and a lower stock price tone down valuation, too.

Televisa twist gives Univision a better script

14 Apr 2021

The Mexican company is injecting its content assets into the U.S.-based Spanish-language media group for $4.8 bln. Televisa becomes the largest shareholder in a bigger and less leveraged business. Size matters in media, but Univision is a late arrival to the streaming party.

Capital Calls: McKinsey, Celebrity SPACs

10 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: McKinsey’s new boss isn’t new enough; the SEC tells investors to be careful of celebrities bearing SPACs.

European soccer will try on American-style pay cap

24 Dec 2020

Empty stadia wiped out nearly $4 bln in sales, pushing even rich clubs like Manchester United and Barcelona into the red. A partial return for fans barely eases the pain. To save itself, the beautiful game will have to import the U.S. National Football League’s limit on salaries.

Disney streaming empire strikes back at Netflix

11 Dec 2020

With a trove of content including the Marvel and Star Wars franchises, the Magic Kingdom is eyeing 350 mln streaming subscribers in four years' time – more than double the count now. For Netflix, staying ahead may mean stumping up to buy a content-producing studio.

The Donald Trump show will continue broadcasting

9 Nov 2020

The president may have lost the White House. But an army of Twitter followers and right-wing media will ensure him a platform. That will serve his many interests, from boosting his businesses and staving off looming debt payments to acting as a thorn in the side of his successor.

Fox-Disney deal creates a new greater fool

5 Nov 2020

Sinclair has written down the value of sports networks it bought from Walt Disney by over $4 bln. The Magic Kingdom had acquired them in its overpriced carve-up of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire. That leaves a wily Fox, a lucky mouse, and a hapless Sinclair holding the bag.

Broadband pass-the-parcel still has shiny wrapper

2 Nov 2020

TPG is selling a U.S. cable internet rollup to buyout rival Stonepeak for $8.1 billion including debt. It's offloading Astound at a hefty profit, perhaps more than tripling its money. Yet the buyer has room to capitalize on Americans' growing need to get online at high speed.

Corona Capital: Netflix price hike

30 Oct 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The streaming-video service hiked the price on subscriptions as binge-watching booms during the pandemic.

Corona Capital: Binge-watching, Gaming

27 Oct 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Streaming viewers like to binge-watch, but they are being stingy; a fresh surge of Covid-19 cases could be a boon for gaming developers.

Netflix earns its place out of the spotlight

20 Oct 2020

The $234 bln company notched double-digit revenue growth and gained more subscribers in the quarter. Sure, it’s a one-trick pony in a video-streaming market that only gets more competitive. Where once those might be weaknesses, now they’re strengths.

Disney cannibalizes its history to feed streaming

13 Oct 2020

The $226 bln entertainment giant is centralizing responsibility for the distribution and profitability of all content. That knocks powerful movie studios and sports channels down a few pegs. Theme parks will balance Disney's digital ambitions with a stake in the real world.