Media & Entertainment

Telecom Italia’s new boss faces old challenges

19 November 2018

Luigi Gubitosi has replaced Amos Genish as head of the Italian telco. With backing from activist investor Elliott, he will try to engineer a complex network breakup and sell assets. But bitter opposition from 24 pct shareholder Vivendi will make the strategy hard to execute.

Review: New tech brings golden age of media

16 November 2018

The internet has provided ample fodder for the endless debate over culture versus commerce. In “Digital Renaissance,” business professor Joel Waldfogel says consumers have more good music, movies and television shows than ever to choose from, and haven’t bankrupted industry.

Snap shareholders deserve little sympathy

14 November 2018

Some are suing the social-media firm for misleading them before its IPO about competition from Instagram. Now U.S. watchdogs are conducting a probe. Bad conduct deserves punishment. But investors willingly bought stock with no rights in an immature company with lots of rivals.

CEO exit will escalate Telecom Italia brawl

13 November 2018

The board’s decision to sack Amos Genish reflects heightened tensions between activist Elliott and top shareholder Vivendi over the Italian telco’s future. Their next battle will be over the mooted breakup of the group. With competition at home, the timing could hardly be worse.

New Vodafone strategy signals telcos’ sorry plight

13 November 2018

CEO Nick Read wants to cut costs, ply existing customers with more products and may even sell a stake in a new unit that will manage towers. The plan will sustain generous dividends but is a sign that big telecom groups are banking on little sales growth in an era of 5G internet.

Stan Lee’s legacy is Hollywood’s golden ticket

12 November 2018

The Spider-Man creator is dead at 95. Through Marvel, Lee helped whip up comic-book characters that drove action films like Black Panther – on which movie studios now depend for audiences. Even so, Marvel’s bumpy journey shows superheroes need powerful friends too.

Globalization gives new lease on life to Fortune

9 November 2018

Meredith is selling the business magazine to a Thai executive for $150 mln. Chatchaval Jiaravanon reckons its rankings, CEO profiles and mover-and-shaker events will play well in Asia. It’s an ironic twist for the U.S. publication with Beijing and Washington fighting a trade war.

Writedown speeds reckoning for Telecom Italia boss

9 November 2018

A 2 bln euro goodwill charge dragged the Italian telco into the red in the third quarter, overshadowing a resilient operating performance. The group will also bust a debt target. The row between investors Vivendi and Elliott looks increasingly likely to force out CEO Amos Genish.

German TV reset sends blurry signal

8 November 2018

Broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 is slashing dividend payouts to invest more in shows and technology. Such radical moves are necessary – viewers and advertisers are switching over to digital rivals. Yet CEO Max Conze’s plan for hitting ambitious new longer-term targets is fuzzy.

William Hill turnaround looks like a shaky bet

6 November 2018

The British bookmaker wants to double operating profit by 2023 through growing its online and U.S. businesses. Given domestic political heat and economic weakness, it’s the right strategy. But non-UK growth will have to shoot the lights out for the group to hit its targets.

Spotify sings one tune, hums another

5 November 2018

The $25 bln music-streaming group may buy back up to $1 bln of shares, having lost a fifth of its market value in a month. Spotify should generate ample cash to do so over the two-and-a-half-year programme. Still, it’s an odd message for a group promising to invest in growth.

New BT boss will be hostage to Brexit fortune

1 November 2018

The telecom company’s success at tempting clients to buy pricier connections is lifting revenue and profitability. The strategy may unravel and its pension deficit widen if Britain exits the EU without a deal. Incoming CEO Philip Jansen would then have to cut more costs quickly.

Hitachi clinches honourable Italy truce with Singer

29 October 2018

The Japanese giant is paying 12.7 euros a share to Elliott and others to buy out rail-signal group Ansaldo. After a two-year saga, the activist’s boss Paul Singer has secured a better deal. But Hitachi’s scope for further deals in a changing rail sector means it also gains.

Hollywood rewrites Hong Kong IPO script

26 October 2018

STX, the studio behind “Bad Moms,” abandoned plans to go public in the Asian financial hub. A rocky market and new story are easily blamed, but losing an international issuer with Chinese backers will sting the exchange, which has struggled to escape its parochial proclivities.

The Exchange: Leta Hong Fincher

26 October 2018

China’s fledgling feminist movement has laid the foundations for a #MeToo moment. In the wake of the infamous one-child policy, author Hong Fincher has documented the development of women’s rights, and activism. She joins Katrina Hamlin to explain why their work worries Beijing.

WPP’s broken financial model is hard to fix

25 October 2018

The ad group’s old strategy of modest growth supplemented by M&A and share buybacks no longer works. New CEO Mark Read faces shrinking sales and a big debt pile. Given how long it will take to streamline the business and invest in new technologies, investors will be unforgiving.

Private equity fibre rush is dicier than it looks

24 October 2018

Buyout groups and infrastructure investors, including a Goldman Sachs fund, are rushing to build superfast broadband networks. Customers’ loyalty promises healthy, stable returns. But the numbers get tricky if bigger operators like BT compete or demand for data disappoints.

Nigeria bank reform offers olive branch for MTN

19 October 2018

The continent’s most populous nation has invited telecom groups to launch mobile payment services. South African operator MTN could be a big winner. The prospect of a lucrative new market gives it a good reason to end its $10 billion dividend and tax feud with the government.

Movie-themed casino IPO sticks to messy script

19 October 2018

Macau-based Studio City, part of Lawrence Ho’s $9 bln gambling empire, made a stellar New York debut with a 24 pct pop. The listing provides some needed capital and could help existing minority investors eventually stage an exit. It also features Melco’s costly complex structure.

Telecom Italia’s discount is only partly deserved

17 October 2018

A costly spectrum auction and woes in Brazil have driven the telco’s stock near historic lows. Squabbling investors and Italian political worries are also a concern. But if TIM can contain rival Iliad’s assault at home, its discount to European peers looks too steep.