The Ten Spot: Nov 18, 2009
EXCLUSIVE: Carl Icahn Buying Up MGM Bonds “Like A Bat Out Of Hell” – Deadline.com
As for Icahn’s intentions for MGM, film financing circles think he’s going after the studio because he wants it for his son. True, Icahn wanted to give one of the four Lionsgate board seats he was seeking to his 29-year-old offspring Brett. A Princeton grad like his dad, Brett worked for years under the radar as an analyst for his dad’s investment company. He has been one of 10 young traders moving the firm’s cash and its hedge fund, which the family started two years ago with $1 billion.
Rupert Murdoch’s Guy Gets It | Newser
If Arthur Miller were at it again, he’d call the play Death of a PR Guy. Gary Ginsberg, Murdoch’s PR guy who got the ax yesterday, used to beg me not to call him a PR Guy—his official title was Executive VP of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs—but that was his job: making Murdoch look good. Read more >>
The Future of Pay Walls
With Rupert Murdoch’s mention yesterday of making consumers pay for all content, no matter the relative quality, e.g., WSJ, NY Post, Telegraph, Fox News, etc. has again paved the way for a heap of dicussion about “pay walls.” With the WSJ’s 1 million users bringing in $65 million per year, and the FT free-to-pay model working, Murdoch is trying to lead by supply, and see if demand and the rest of the competition accept the anti-free model. While this may momentarily resuscitate some of the publishing models, while recreating the cable model where free tv became paid, will it also curtail more voices or media navigators (read: niche blogs and news aggregators). Read more >>