Media & Entertainment

Nintendo aims splat bomb at Japan’s gerontocracy

26 April 2018

The maker of hit video game Splatoon is getting a 46-year-old boss. That’s refreshing in an ageing country where seniority counts for so much. Youth can be a liability too, as evidenced by the growing pains of Uber or Facebook. But Nintendo’s business is a young man’s game.

Comcast is best leaving Fox to the Mouse

25 April 2018

Boss Brian Roberts says the cable company is open to acquisitions and he won’t use stock. But how he pays is less important than what he pays. Challenging Disney’s $66 bln deal for parts of Rupert Murdoch’s empire would be an expensive fight. Roberts is better off walking away.

Sky upside depends on Disney-Fox irrationality

25 April 2018

Brian Roberts’ Comcast formalised a $31 bln bid for the UK group. Rival suitors Bob Iger and Rupert Murdoch, of Disney and Fox, will struggle to match the U.S. cable giant’s synergies. Sky investors betting on a counteroffer must hope the media moguls ditch financial logic.

Faith in Bolloré brain trust resists Africa probe

25 April 2018

Shares in Vincent Bolloré’s group fell 9 percent after French police questioned the tycoon about dealings in Guinea and Togo. Yet Vivendi, chaired by his son Yannick, barely moved. Investors are trusting that the family’s dealmaking dynamism will survive the test.

Bookie investors misjudge odds in political casino

24 April 2018

William Hill, Paddy Power Betfair and GVC collectively lost 1 bln stg in value on reports Britain may cap betting-machine stakes and hike levies. That’s worse than feared, but not unimaginable given low UK gambling taxes. Smarter investors would have seen the writing on the wall.

Verizon better staid than reckless

24 April 2018

The $200 bln telecom firm's earnings met expectations, but rivals are otherwise engaged bidding for media companies. Verizon hasn't yet left its comfort zone, beside a half-hearted attempt for parts of Rupert Murdoch’s empire. When others are paying high prices, that's reassuring.

Europe tests limits of net neutrality benefits

23 April 2018

Countries like Britain and the Netherlands are taking a strict approach to rules on treating internet traffic equally whereas the United States may roll them back. If opponents of net neutrality are right, Europeans will end up with less investment in networks and worse services.

Poker group bets $5 bln on Sky-high sports growth

23 April 2018

Canada’s Stars Group is buying UK online sports-gambling specialist Sky Bet. The price is more than current owners CVC and Sky would have got in a mooted IPO. For Stars, the debt-heavy punt only works if Sky Bet’s rapid growth continues - or the U.S. relaxes sports-gambling laws.

Breakdown: Telecom Italia’s three-way poker game

23 April 2018

The incumbent telco is entangled in its umpteenth debilitating corporate fight. The row pits U.S. activist investor Paul Singer against French financier Vincent Bolloré. But an Italian state investor may be the key player. Breakingviews explains how the cards will fall.

Bolloréxit sums up Vivendi’s sub-par governance

19 April 2018

Vincent Bolloré stunned investors by abruptly handing the French media group’s chairmanship to his son. The 66-year-old Vivendi shareholder may well linger, muddying accountability for group strategy. Corporate governance issues are familiar, but this is still an eye-opener.

Publicis shows WPP benefits of smooth succession

19 April 2018

The French group last year bumped longstanding boss Maurice Lévy up to the chairman’s suite. New broom Arthur Sadoun has, under Lévy’s guidance, revamped the strategy and revived growth. That is a lesson for its UK rival, which lost CEO Martin Sorrell without any obvious heir.

Netflix’s advantage is Facebook’s weakness

16 April 2018

The video-streaming service is outperforming its FAANG associate. Subscriptions give the business an edge – and an incentive for boss Reed Hastings to keep customers’ data close by. Cash burn is always a risk but for now Netflix is better situated than Facebook.

Icahn will need to work to extend winning streak

16 April 2018

The investor is selling Tropicana, the casino he plucked out of bankruptcy, for $1.85 bln. It follows last week’s sale of Federal-Mogul to Tenneco, and Volkswagen is knocking on Navistar’s door. A bull market has given Icahn a hot hand, but it makes deploying the cash a challenge.

WPP breakup could deliver 25 percent upside

16 April 2018

The UK group is a messy collection of advertising, branding, PR, data and media divisions, often with scant overlap. After the exit of long-term boss Martin Sorrell, selling a few businesses might enable Chairman Roberto Quarta to recover some value for patient shareholders.

China builds South Sea free-trade-zone bubble

16 April 2018

President Xi plans to turn the island province of Hainan into a special area with new commodity markets and lower trade barriers. The plan muddles a regional development strategy around Hong Kong and Shenzhen, but it benefits speculators – and embattled local champion HNA.

Sorrell’s messy exit could put WPP in play

15 April 2018

The ad giant’s CEO of 32 years left after a misconduct probe, but is still eligible for a bumper share award. Chairman Roberto Quarta can kick-start a turnaround by selling WPP’s market-research arm. A braver buyer could make a decent return by taking the $21 bln group private.

Instagram might want to unfriend Facebook

12 April 2018

Mark Zuckerberg snapped up the photo-sharing site for $1 bln in 2012. The savvy purchase could now be worth more than 80 times as much, Breakingviews estimates. But Facebook’s data fiascos are becoming a liability. Setting Instagram free could maximize its value.

Busting EU sport cartel lines already fat pockets

11 April 2018

Antitrust authorities raided groups including Fox in a TV-sports cartel probe. Usually, such moves help consumers. But if the cartel had helped hold down inflated media rights, the main beneficiaries from its end would be already loaded teams and athletes.

Bolloré’s best bet is to play along with Singer

10 April 2018

Vivendi chair Vincent Bolloré may lose a fight for control of Telecom Italia with activist investor Elliott. Selling his 24 pct stake would mean a loss, assuming he can find a buyer. Staying put while Paul Singer’s group tries to revive the Italian telco is a better option.

Netflix’s mooted retro deal is life imitating art

6 April 2018

The video-streaming giant is bidding $300 mln for an L.A. signage firm. Like the lead in Oscar-winning "Three Billboards," grabbing people’s attention may be CEO Reed Hastings’ goal. Just making a show about the current scrappy, litigious owners would make more sense.