Biz Briefs
French conglomerate Vivendi Universal said Feb. 5 that revenue for 2003 tumbled 56 percent to 25.5 billion euros ($32.1 billion) from a year-earlier level of 58.2 billion euros, the result of asset sales, a drop in the value of the…
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The Search For Mind Parts
A few graphic images put into sharp focus the massive changes that have swept the television business in the past decade. A pie chart from 1994 showed that American Express spent 80 percent of its ad dollars on TV and…
Vulnerable Nets Must Grasp The Big Picture or Pay Through the Nose
Broadcast television’s vulnerability is showing in so many places at the moment that the lack of effective and timely response by the media companies that own networks and TV stations-as well as their inability to grasp the bigger picture-could eventually…
Drama, Emotion, Surprises
If they gave awards for award shows, the Oscars might win for sheer opulence and the Tonys for showmanship. But for a history of drama, theatrics and tears, well … the Daytime Emmys would own that contest hands down. Fans…
ABC Will Go Live With ‘Bachelorette’
ABC plans a live broadcast of the special “The Bachelorette: After the Final Rose,” marking the first time the “Bachelor” franchise will air a live event. The special, which will mark the couple’s first public appearance, has traditionally been taped…
BANNING THE BREAST IS ONLY THE BEGINNING
In the sci-fi spoof section of Woody Allen’s anthology comedy “Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask,” a giant female breast brazenly terrorizes a suburban countryside. It can be captured only by half…
NFL Irked at CBS Over Vegas Spots
The National Football League is angry with CBS, but not just because Janet Jackson flashed her breast during halftime. The NFL is upset because some local CBS stations accepted advertising during the game from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors…
‘They Know Damn Well What They’re Buying’
Jon Mandel, co-CEO of MediaCom Worldwide, said none of his clients are re-evaluating whether to advertise on MTV following the Super Bowl debacle. His clients spent a total of $3.4 billion on media last year. “The issue is you know…
The Insider
You’d be surprised how fast 350,000 square feet of soaring and sprawling space filled up when 5,000 media titans and moguls and power brokers and swells gathered to help christen Time Warner’s new headquarters on New York’s Columbus Circle. Everyone…
News Briefs
President Bush has resurrected a proposal to hit TV stations with $500 million in annual spectrum fees as part of his fiscal 2005 budget. Under the plan, commercial stations would have to pay the fees every year, starting in 2007,…