Publishing

UK’s Pearson listens to its own online lessons

8 March 2021

The 6 bln pound firm is doubling down on a year of virtual learning by selling education directly to individuals. Winning mass-market adherents will take time and is not a given. Yet anything that reduces its reliance on declining textbook sales is a step in the right direction.

BC Partners finds awkward fix for low-tech buyouts

7 December 2020

After three failed IPOs, the private-equity firm may sell publisher Springer Nature to a new fund it controls for 6 bln euros, the FT says. It’s messy, but probably better than a botched listing. With public investors wary of sluggish assets, other deals may face a similar fate.

Murdoch lets Bertelsmann pay up for publishing

25 November 2020

The German media group will buy Simon & Schuster for an eye-popping $2.2 billion in cash. It already owns the massive Penguin Random House and size gives it more power. But it also means U.S. regulators could thwart the deal, leaving Murdoch an opening.

Corona Capital: Ferrari, E-commerce, Fox

3 November 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Ferrari leaves its auto rivals in the dust; Russia’s online marketplace Ozon heads for a New York IPO; and Fox avoids the virus-induced advertising drought.

Corona Capital: Binge-watching, Gaming

27 October 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.

Corona Capital: Newspaper rivals, College football

17 September 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: the Wall Street Journal hits up the New York Times’ printing presses; U.S. college football’s Big Ten makes a comeback.

Corona Capital: Dividends, Zoom, Big-screen blues

24 August 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: As company bosses try to conserve cash, investors are feeling the pinch; Zoom has a back-to-school problem; and a mediocre debut for Russell Crowe’s new road-rage movie shows Hollywood is stuck in the slow lane.

Corona Capital: Movies, Sports

24 July 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Walt Disney is pushing back the highly anticipated movie “Mulan,” with a domino effect for “Avatar” and “Star Wars” sequels; and sport stars are still making it rain when it comes to pay.

Pearson is poster child for post-pandemic activism

12 June 2020

Cevian Capital has revealed a 5% stake in the ailing education group, sending its shares up 12%. Though the company lagged under departing CEO John Fallon, it should benefit from a long-term shift to more online learning. Pressure from a patient but persistent activist will help.

Bolloré offers Lagardere costly activist defence

22 April 2020

Vivendi, controlled by corporate raider Vincent Bolloré, has taken an 11% stake in the besieged French media company. That may help boss Arnaud Lagardere fend off hedge fund Amber Capital. The reward could be the chance to snap up the group’s prize publishing arm for himself.

Pearson’s excuses are running thin

16 January 2020

The publisher’s shares hit a 12-year low after it said 2019 operating profit would miss forecasts. CEO John Fallon and his finance chief, who are both leaving, switched focus from paper textbooks to digital ones. Their replacements will have to work out how to make that succeed.

Lagardère shoots the messenger and its own foot

14 October 2019

The $3 bln Paris-based conglomerate wants 84 mln euros in damages from activist Amber Capital for destabilising its share price. Lagardère had been doing a good job of that on its own via its ropey strategy. Suing its third biggest investor and change agent smacks of desperation.

Big Tech beware: antitrust cop can think small too

21 June 2019

The watchdog’s bid to stop a $1.4 bln merger of two book printers is old-school. Yet the Justice Department’s meticulous definition of the sector bodes ill for Facebook and its ilk. Narrow market definitions plus broad measures of customer harm would be the worst of both worlds.

KKR finds risky media bargain with Axel Springer

12 June 2019

The private equity group is partnering with the German company’s founding family to buy out minority investors for 3 bln euros. It gets a racy digital listings business at the price of a sluggish newspaper publisher. Yet the lack of control limits KKR’s options if growth slows.

Axel Springer buyout works best with breakup

30 May 2019

KKR may take the $6.6 bln German media group private alongside CEO Mathias Doepfner and the founder’s widow. An unwieldy structure that spans publications like Bild and Business Insider as well as classifieds means a low valuation. Separating the two is the surest route to riches.

Toxic U.S. tabloid sale talk sounds like a whopper

11 April 2019

The hedge fund behind the Trump-friendly National Enquirer may want to sell the controversial title. Yet if heavy debt, a brush with federal prosecutors and an alleged attempt to blackmail Jeff Bezos are scary to the owner, they’ll have the same effect on any credible buyer.

News M&A battle prints one farce after another

9 April 2019

After waving around a toothless credit commitment in its $1.4 bln pursuit of Gannett, Denver Post publisher MNG is going after the board. But its six nominees have ties to either the bidder or its hedge-fund owner. Investors should throw the slate straight into the recycling.

Apple stretches to take on Netflix, Amex, Disney

25 March 2019

It unveiled a dizzying array of new services aimed at disrupting sectors like media and finance. They range from the confusing to the mildly innovative. The $880 bln tech giant’s launches used to strike fear, but this time boss Tim Cook is paving a trail of mediocrity, not havoc.

Extra! Newspaper bidder flubs credit test

25 March 2019

MNG, owner of the Denver Post, is waving a “highly confident” financing letter from Oaktree to advance its hostile bid for publisher Gannett. Yet MNG isn’t clear if the debt specialist will even bother to lend it $1.7 bln. The tactic is as unconvincing as it is unconventional.

Apple tests appetite for a not-Facebook of news

13 February 2019

A new Netflix-like service would help news publishers get onto millions of smartphones, but at high cost, according to the WSJ. It helps that Facebook has set a low bar for content quality and treatment of media partners. Even so, boss Tim Cook risks overplaying his hand.