The money, which often isn’t as much as one might think, that recording artists make off of their music these days is enough to make the average person very happy, but not quite enough to fund the crazy, extravagant lifestyles that they like to publicly flaunt. Hence, the ubiquitous clothing lines, colognes, footwear lines, and other branding deals. In recent days there have been a flurry of such deals, from high brow to low brow.
Barnes & Noble + Borders = Borders Barn? [BW]
Angry that they’re taking so much heat from activist groups for sponsoring the Olympics that’s hosted in a Darfur-hating country, big name sponsors are fighting back against orgs like Mia Farrow’s Dreams for Darfur.
That outfit issued a report card on 19 Olympics sponsors, awarding sixteen of them Ds or Fs. Giant corporations with billions and market value and shareholders with a tendency to bitch aren’t taking it lightly.
Spits Coca-Cola: “For an organization that has not eased the suffering of a single individual on the ground in Darfur to criticize those who are helping thousands every day is more than ironic.” Johnson & Johnson adds: “Given the complexities of the tragedy in Darfur, we are disappointed that Dream for Darfur has used such a narrow context by which to evaluate the company’s response.” Fires off General Electric: “We commend Dream for Darfur for raising awareness of this tragic situation, however we strongly disagree with the organization’s approach as well as the use of the Olympic Games as a political platform and the assertions made in the report card.” And also: CONTINUED »
In order to fend off Microsoft’s takeover bid, Yahoo is said to be teaming up with Time Warner’s AOL division in a merger. [Reuters]
While Maria Bartiromo was watching the Dow go up and down, and Fox Business recapped the market while throwing back a few pints, the News Corp.-ownedWall Street Journal figured out what to do with its CNBC relationship, and Portfolio watched as staffers fled and gossip radiated, where was everyone calling out financial institutions on their risky lending practices? MediaChannel.org’s Danny Schechter would certainly like to know.
Just as the mainstream press is quick to blame things like America’s boredom for its plummeting Iraq coverage, they’ve also tucked away coverage that you’re going to lose your home into the “not widely read business sections that focus on the ups and downs of the markets and the way the collapse of these arrangements have affected the fortunes of CEOS and business enterprises, not citizens, consumers and most of all homeowners.”
And they were only too happy to do so: Many media outlets prospered financially from ignoring the coming crisis. CONTINUED »
While the XM-Sirius merger is worth either $5 billion or $13 billion, the sale of radio giant Clear Channel to a pair of private equity firms is worth $19.5 billion. Or it would be, if the banks handling the sale don’t pull out, as they’re threatening to do. If banks like Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, and Morgan Stanley do pull out, Clear Channel, and Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners, are threatening to sue to force them to complete this ridiculously enormous transaction. That mortgage market crumbling is their problem.
Know what was a terrible marketing move for Chrysler? Having DaimlerChrysler’s German CEO Dieter Zetsche play “Dr. Z” in its ads. When the ad campaign (which celebrated the merging of American and German engineering) aired, sales and market share plummeted. It was an embarrassment for the agency behind it, BBDO Detroit, who thought it could hone the success of making household names of Dave Thomas, Orville Redenbacher, and even Chrysler’s own Lee Iacocca. They couldn’t.
And Sprint didn’t get the memo.
They’ve enlisted CEO Dan Hess, who’s only been on the job since December, to star in its new TV campaign promoting it’s $99.99 unlimited everything service plan. The ad is black-and-white; this tells viewers “the decision to switch to Sprint is obvious.”
After the jump, a few of those terrible Dr. Z ads. CONTINUED »
In exchange for creating the best time suck for pot smoking university students, Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy are set to receive a $200 million-plus payday. The duo, who created the video game Rock Band at their company Harmonix, sold their equity to Viacom in October 2006 and pocketed $175 million, in cash, during the sale. Now, with game sale revenues expected to hit $600 million, Viacom is preparing to dole out another nine-figure sum to its creators. [NYP]
Crain’s 40 Under 40, a listicle of mostly attractive men and women who have all accomplished more than even your mother had hoped for you, has often been the target of publicists lobbying to get their clients included, because the attention carries potential for new clients, salary raises, and evidence that your publicist is earning her keep.
The roster includes the “first marketing chief at Hispanic media giant Univision Communications,” the chief of “one of the most successful record labels at Sony BMG,” and the “head of a joint venture between deep-pocketed investors, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and acclaimed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.” And you thought setting up your 401k was an achievement worth celebrating.
People always talk about the dying newspaper industry, but no one ever does anything about it. Apparently, complaining about job cuts while reading the news free online isn’t enough.
Roy Peter Clark at Poynter claims it is our duty to buy the actual paper:
And now I pose this challenge to you: It is your duty as a journalist and a citizen to read the newspaper—emphasis on paper, not pixels … Until we create some new business models in support of the journalism profession, we’ve got to support what we have, even as we create and perfect online versions that may one day attract the advertising dollars and other revenues we need to do what we do well.
That’s like being told to floss your teeth for the good of Johnson & Johnson.
We happen to buy the paper several times a week, let’s be real here: A business model that depends on people’s goodwill to pay for something they can get for free has no chance of universal buy-in.
Staring mid-October, The Financial Times‘ website will be granting “casual readers” complimentary access to its online content. The move will enable would-be viewers to read up to 30 articles per month and give the FT an opportunity to get a leg up on competitors like the Wall Street Journal Online (without pulling a TimesSelect) by becoming a growing online presence.
[The shift] comes as other newspapers are rethinking their efforts to charge users for online content. A surge in online ad spending over the past three years has persuaded many publishers that it is better to increase their Internet audience, in an effort to appeal to advertisers, than to try to squeeze meager revenue from online subscriptions.
Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether Murdoch and the Dow Jones Co. will retaliate in kind, either by offering WSJ readers a similar online premium or by taking over the Financial Times Group (owned by Pearson PLC) in an effort to singlehandedly control every international financial news outlet and, ultimately, the world.
Is the Internet’s biggest gay married man looking to unload his Home Shopping Network? Analysts sure hope so!
With the stock of Barry Diller’s IAC (nee InterActivCorp) – responsible for that building on the West Side Highway that looks like a glacier – in the crapper, stock trackers are issuing a resounding “sell HSN!” In fact, according to one smarty pants, “a lot of people would be happy if IAC sold off the Home Shopping Network.” Something about HSN’s slipping sales and massive overhead, whereas Diller’s more lucrative properties are performing well, like Match.com’s increasing membership signups.
But if there’s one property Diller must absolutely hang on to, it’s Evite.com. How else is Diane von Furstenberg going to have us RSVP to her trunk show?
Ever wondered how exactly to go from being borderline alchy to rich and semi-famous? Just do what Mediabistro.com founder Laurel Touby did: surround yourself with semi-successful media professionals who enjoy drunken benders as much as you do (we suggest the New York Post’s Steve Dunleavy, or one of those perma-tipsy Rush & Molloy assistants) and then find a way to turn your appreciation for all things hard liquor into a profitable online venture!
Laurel Touby turned her popular cocktail parties into a high-traffic Web site for job-seeking media and creative professionals. Yesterday, she sold mediabistro.com, the company that sprang from those mixers, for $23 million. The Jupitermedia Corporation, an Internet research company that also sells photos and art, agreed to pay $20 million in cash and an additional $3 million over two years for the company.
As for our own career plans, we’ve got two wine coolers in the fridge and a half-empty (or is it half-full?) bottle of Absolut vodka in the freezer, and a six-pack of Rolling Rock. Which means, it’s time to play ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire!’
For $825 million, United Arab Emirates gets the chance to slap its man-made palm tree islands on a $300 tee.
Congratulations to CBS News, CNN, NBC News, and ABC’s Nightline, all of whom took home a pair of Emmy Awards for Business & Financial Reporting. Which includes just about everyone – except CNBC – who could be up for a Business & Financial Reporting Emmy. So really, they all won by default. So again, congratulations to the lowest common denominators.
What the hell is going on around here? Er, actually, what the hell is going on in San Fransisco? Hewlett Packard has infiltrated the San Fran offices of CNET and the Wall Street Journal in an attempt to discover who is leaking stories to the media. Both publications have previously reported on discussion that occurred amongst the board of Hewlett Packard — and HP is not pleased.
The consideration of undercover agents inside news organizations adds a new element to what is known of the Hewlett-Packard investigation, which prominently included the use of subterfuge to gain the phone records of company directors, employees, journalists and others.
One report includes HP’s consideration of placing investigators posed as clerical workers and or cleaning staff in offices of CNET and WSJ. So freakin’ ridiculous, we don’t even know where to begin. Honest, we wouldn’t be surprised if, now that the Times has totally blown up their spot, HP decides to send bombshell agents in blue wigs and fuck me boots to pose as secretaries.
Sidenote: Can’t you envision CN Portfolio editors clicking champagne glasses and saying “in seven months Eichenwald is ours … ours! Mwahahah.
H.P. Said to Have Studied Infiltrating Newsrooms [Damon Darlin and Kurt Eichenwald]
Big ‘biz news today in the media world. While we would much prefer to track the comings and goings of Maxim staffers, it seems today we will have nothing more than Fashion Week, CBS, and the news that Time Inc. is selling off half its publications. Ok, fine, it’s not that sexy, but it is pretty big industry news.
Expect the holidays (in Time Inc. language that means massive firings) to come early this year, reports Nat Ives at Advertising Age. Time Warner’s mag division is pitching 9 of its pubs, including Ski, Skiing, Field & Stream, Popular Science, Outdoor Life, Motorboating, Yachting, Parenting, and BabyTalk.
Staffers are expected to learn today that a number of Time4 titles will be sold.
It’s so funny when does that. “Staffers are expected to be told by their bosses that they probably won’t have a job in four months, but we’re going to tell them now.”
There’s little speculation as to who would be in line to take the titles off the block, obviously indicating either secret deals or a major lack of interest from larger companies to invest in smaller niche mags. Somebody somewhere really should save Field & Stream, though. It’s the only thing retired guys in Minnesota have to look forward to. Not to mention the teen literacy in North Dakota it promotes. Ok, we’ll stop now.
Time Inc. Sell-off of Titles to Begin Today [Nat Ives, Ad Age]
You know how Paramount dropped Tom Cruise because he sucks? Well, the actor-turned-placenta-eater found another group willing to invest in his “independent production company.” It all sounds kind of sketchy to us. Especially since his new investor also puts money into two other totally random entities: Six Flags and the Washington Red Skins.
Most of the article is filled with boring money business stuff that we really don’t have time to bother with, but, from what we can gather, Tom and First and Goal L.L.C have signed a two year agreement to pour a measly “well under $10 million figure” into Cruise-Wagner Productions for covering overhead and developing new projects.
According to the New York Times, the industry is not impressed.
Hollywood’s reaction? That’s a good start, but show us more.
Yeah, Tom, show us more. Like, show us Suri already!
Cruise Gets First Funds for Projects [Geraldine Fabrikant, New York Times]
Kurt Andersen freely admits that, while tooling around as the editor of the magazine he now columns for, he didn’t know what the Web was. And when he was running the ship at an Internet business vehicle, he acknowledges he didn’t know about blogs. Or RSS. In fact, his column in this week’s New York pretty much establishes him as an Internet fucktard (we’re just pulling from Dictionary.com’s antonym listing for “visionary”), which actually might make him more qualified to talk about Internet business than, say, Jason Calacanis. And we welcome that. Except when he tries to describe the difference between the Web boom of yesteryear and the Web boom of today and gets things miserably wrong.
The vocabulary and doctrine are different, of course. To call a Web business a “dot-com†in 2006 would be the equivalent of calling a black person “colored.†…
In other words, people are still having sex with strangers, but now it’s safer sex.
And with the resurgence of Silicon Alley, did we mention this is our tsunami?
Though to be sure, Andersen did use some copy to take a swipe at favorite foe Michael Wolff, and for that we can forgive him.
The Way We Boom Now [Kurt Andersen, New York]
Four-inch heels are kickin’ (if not flyin’ across the boardroom) over at Jimmy Choo. The shoe company famous for its stifled in-fighting is making good on its rep.
At the center of the dolled-up drama is Choo’s polished head designer, Sandra Choi (niece of the original Jimmy Choo, who ducked out of the company in 1996). Except, well, you might not know of Sandra’s efforts at all, given corporate chief Tamara Mellon claims that it is she who’s the the chief designer — and entirely responsible for the collections Choo spits out.
Sure, Tamara.
Sandra, we learn, has been mildly okay with this arrangement. She sticks to the creative realm while Tamara reaps in the Bungalow 8 sightings. Crucial to this arrangement as well is co-chief Robert Bensoussan, who handles the business end of things.
But since Sandra’s contract expired in December of 2005, she’s wised up: She knows she’s talented and is keen to the fact that she’s worth a shitload more than she’s being paid. What to do? Threaten to quit if her compensation doesn’t start reflecting her role in the company. And by “role” we mean “holding the entire company together.”
And that, folks, would mean disaster for Jimmy Choo.
From inside the derailing Choo Choo train, we learn:
Sandra feels that she has contributed to the success of Jimmy Choo and had her own attorney negotiating a new contract. Robert Bensoussan doesn’t want to pay her.
There is truly no one who can take on the design of the shoes if Sandra leaves and she is using this for her negotiating basis.
And that’s only the catfight portion of this whole arrangement.
What’s really at stake are the feelings of majority investor Lion Capital (nee Hicks Muse) — the latest in a long list of owners, which included former Vogue accessories editor Mellon herself, as well as a Phoenix Equity Partners, a division of Equinox Luxury Holdings. In November 2004, Lion Capital extended £101 million to acquire the shoe designer. And yet somehow, after all that money was wired over, they weren’t exactly aware of the whole situation.
Also, all of the investors in Lion Capital can not know that a company was bought when one of
the main assets contracts where up in December.
Needless to say, this could create a problem for Bensoussan, the business brained half of the CEO duo, who may be searching for investors to keep the head of that little company four inches above water.
The bad blood between Sandra and media hog Mellon isn’t helping to diffuse the Choi/Choo stand-off. Our insider spills on Mellon’s incessant insistence that Choi receive very little media attention:
There is minimal press on Sandra. This is because Tamara has said that Sandra is not allowed to have press. All press is to go to Tamara.
The fact that we can’t find pictures of Choi anywhere? Yeah, that might be evidence of such.
We’ve learned that both parties are knee-high in the negotiations process, and while Choi is certainly enjoying some of the comfort of her current kicks – such as hanging the fact she is chief boss but knows she is worth more than she’s being paid for – she’s putting her sateen swathed foot down.
“Jimmy Choo knows they can’t afford to loose her,” claims our insider. Unfortunately, it seems as though they may not be able to afford to keep her either … what with all that money being poured into Nicole Richie’s endorsement deal.
Editorial Director
