Time Warner Cable

Posted on by 
By Tim Wright
-Image Courtesy "Lazy Tech Guys"

-Time Warner Cable Logo.  Image Courtesy “Lazy Tech Guys” [17]

Time Warner Cable, Inc.

1 Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019-8016
212-484-8000

About the Company

Time Warner Cable, Inc. is a media company providing cable, phone, and Internet services to 29 states and over 15 million customers.  These services are provided in different packages with arrangements of the cable, phone, and Internet services in different price tiers.  Time Warner Cable, Inc. provides its services to both homes and institutions [1].

Cable
Time Warner Cable, Inc. distributes a number of television plans and packages, spanning from basic with 20 channels to digital with over 200 channels.  Certain packages offer Digital Video Recording services and pay subscription services such as HBO.  Pricing varies for the packages depending on the number of channels and services [2].

Internet
Time Warner Cable, Inc. offers Internet services that span from 2Mbps to 50Mbps, allowing a range of basic Internet usage to plans that can accommodate large homes with multiple Internet-ready devices [3].

Phone
Time Warner Cable, Inc. offers a number of voice packages.  An unlimited domestic plan is offered for a monthly rate, as well as basic and premium international plans [4].

Key Executives [5]

Image courtesy

-Glenn A. Britt
Courtesy of Time Warner Cable [18].

Glenn A. Britt
Chairman & CEO

1374779036992

-Robert D. Marcus
Courtesty of Time Warner Cable [19].

Robert D. Marcus
President & COO

1370961847282

Arthur T. Minson, Jr.
Courtesy of Time Warner Cable [20].

Arthur T. Minson, Jr.
Executive VP & CFO

Competitors

Time Warner Cable, Inc.’s primary competitors in the cable industry are AT&T, Inc., Comcast Corporation, and Dish Network Corporation.  Competition became a serious issue for Time Warner Cable after it lost over 300,000 subscribers during the month long CBS blackout [6].

Ownership History

The 1968 founding of the American Television and Communications (ATC) set the foregrounds for Time Warner Cable, Inc.  In 1989, Time Inc. and Warner Cable merged to become Time Warner, Inc.  In 1992, a merger between ATC and Warner Cable was announced, creating Time Warner Cable.  In 2009, Time Warner Cable and Time Warner, Inc. separated.  NewWave Communications and Insight Communications were acquired by Time Warner Cable, Inc. in 2011 and 2012, respectively [7].

Financials

2013 has been a successful year for Time Warner Cable.  Stock prices fell in February and March, going as low as $84.75 but have remained steadily above $100.00 since the end of July.  A noticeable valley in stock prices occurred between August and September, when Time Warner Cable had its conflict with CBS, prompting a large loss in subscribers.  Stock prices saw an increase in early October and have remained consistent throughout November, showing a rebound from the discrepancy [8].

Quarterly data has ranged from $5.5 Billion to $5.6 Billion in 2013, and current stocks suggest this trend will continue in the fourth quarter.  This forecast means a total revenue of roughly $22 Billion in 2013, showing on par results with the 2012 revenue of $21.3 Billion and surpassing the 2011 revenue of $19.7 Billion, marking a successful year for Time Warner Cable [9].  However, due to the CBS conflict, Time Warner Cable is now expecting only a 3-3.5% increase in revenue for 2013 as opposed to the initially projected 4-5% [10].

In The News

  • The CBS and Time Warner Discrepancy

CBS ad concerning Time Warner blackout. Image Courtesy CNN Money

CBS ad concerning Time Warner blackout. Image Courtesy CNN Money [21]

The retransmission agreement between CBS and Time Warner Cable, Inc. ended in June of 2013, and the failure to reach a new agreement after numerous deadline delays resulted in the station being blacked out in eight markets across the United States on August 2nd [11].  CBS was seeking more compensation from Time Warner Cable due to the high ratings of its programming.  An agreement was reached and CBS was reinstated in the markets on September 2nd, 2013.  The beginning of the regular NFL season caused urgency in reaching an agreement, as both sides wanted to reap advertising benefits [11].  Over the course of the blackout, Time Warner Cable lost over 300,000 subscribers, and also had to compensate pay-subscribers for different CBS owned stations, including Showtime [10].

  • Increasing Internet Speeds

Time Warner Cable router. Image courtesy Hot Hardware. [22]

Time Warner Cable router. Image courtesy Hot Hardware. [22]

Following the problematic CBS blackout, customers in the New York, Los Angeles, and Hawaii markets will have their Internet speeds increased. Those with the Ultimate Internet package will have speed doubled from 50 to 100Mbps through the rest of the year, while other markets will receive the increased speed throughout 2014.  The baseline Internet offering will also be doubled in speed, while maintaining its $14.99 price.  Customers with the existing baseline Internet package will receive the speed increases throughout 2014.  Time Warner Cable hopes to appease its remaining customers and bring back customers who cancelled their subscriptions with these speed increases [12].

  • IntelligentHome Service Expands

Intelligent Home display. Image courtesy Time Warner Cable. [24]

IntelligentHome display. Image courtesy Time Warner Cable [23].

Time Warner Cable’s 2011 project, IntelligentHome, finalized its national implementation in November.  The service allows for electronic control of several aspects of the home, including lights, temperature, and security.  A central, outlet connected device acts as the main control and mobile applications can be used to access IntelligentHome, allowing control from outside of the home.  The $99.99 installation and monthly fees below $40 are looking to revolutionize home security and efficiency.  Time Warner Cable entering into the emerging home automation market and creating all encompassing deals with Internet and cable can result in a brand makeover [13].

  •  Al Jazeera Distribution
Al Jazeera America logo. Image courtesy American Thinker [24].

Al Jazeera America logo. Image courtesy American Thinker [24].

News source Al Jazeera America announced a distribution deal with Time Warner Cable in late October.  The channel initially launched in New York City and Los Angeles, as these are seen as key markets.  Al Jazeera America will be fully implemented in all of Time Warner Cable’s Markets by March of 2014.  Time Warner Cable viewed adding Al Jazeera America as an opportunity to replace Current TV, which was pulling in lackluster ratings.  The channel is currently attracting fewer than 25,000 viewers at any given time, but Time Warner Cable and Al Jazeera America are hopeful that it will follow a similar ratings trajectory of other news stations such as Fox News and MSNBC [14].

  • Samsung Galaxy Tablet Partnership

Time Warner Cable and Samsung Galaxy Promotion. Image Courtesy Multi Channel [25].

Time Warner Cable and Samsung Galaxy Promotion. Image Courtesy Multi Channel [25].

With the 2013 holiday season approaching, Time Warner Cable has entered into a partnership with Samsung, offering new and old customers an opportunity to get a Samsung Galaxy Tablet.  By selecting or upgrading to particular cable and Internet packages, customers will receive a complementary tablet.  Samsung and Time Warner Cable are seeking a mutually beneficial relationship; Time Warner Cable is hoping to get more customers and upgrades by attaching the desired tablet to its packages, while Samsung is looking to be competitive with Apple in the tablet market.  Time Warner Cable is also looking to promote the idea of watching television on a tablet, whether inside or outside of the home through these packages, so tablets will come with the Time Warner Cable application already installed [15].

  • Streaming Deal With Discovery

Discovery Channel Logo. Image courtesy of Hollywood Reporter [26].

Discovery Channel Logo. Image courtesy of Hollywood Reporter [26].

Time Warner Cable made an agreement with Discovery Communications that involves streaming the content of its numerous channels across new platforms including smartphones and tablets.  This may be implemented through Time Warner Cable’s official mobile application, or Discovery may potentially be launching its own applications.  Comcast entered a similar agreement with Discovery Communications, but solely with Discovery Channel, opening an opportunity for Time Warner Cable to gain a wider market than one of its major competitors.  The recent announcement from Nielsen that portable views will start to be accounted for in ratings was an extra incentive for both parties [16].

Sources

1.  Time Warner Cable: About Time Warner Cable

2.  Time Warner Cable: Digital Cable

3.  Time Warner Cable: Internet

4.  Time Warner Cable: Phone

5.  Time Warner Cable: Executives

6.  Hoovers: Competition

7.  Time Warner Cable: Ownership History

8.  Yahoo Finance: Stocks

9.  Yahoo Finance: Income Statement

10.  Reuters: Subscription Loss & Income Forecast

11.  USA Today: CBS Blackout Ends

12.  Uber Gizmo: Increasing Internet Speeds

13.  PC Mag: IntelligentHome Implementation

14.  NY Times: Al Jazeera Distribution

15.  Next iPhone News: Samsung Galaxy Deal

16.  Wall Street Journal: Discovery Distribution Deal

Image Sources

17.  Lazy Tech Guys – Time Warner Cable

18.  Time Warner Cable – Glenn A. Britt

19.  Time Warner Cable – Robert D. Marcus

20.  Time Warner Cable – Arthur T. Minson, Jr.

21.  CNN Money – Time Warner Ad

22.  Hot Hardware – Time Warner Cable Router

23.  Time Warner Cable – IntelligentHome Display

24.  American Thinker – Al Jazeera Logo

25.  Multi Channel – Time Warner Cable and Samsung Galaxy Deal

26.  Hollywood Reporter – Discover Channel Logo

 

Universal Pictures

Posted on by 
By Luke Lamble
Universal Pictures logo

Universal Pictures logo

History

Founded in 1912, Universal Pictures, Inc. is the oldest American movie studio and continues to be a leader in the world of motion picture production and distribution. [1] In 2004, General Electric bought Universal Pictures. [2] GE sold all of its control of Universal in 2011 to the cable provider, Comcast, creating NBCUniversal.  Universal Pictures still operates as the movie production subsidiary. [3] In 2012 alone, Universal has produced a diverse selection of award-winning movies such as the film production of Les Misérables and the comedy hit, Ted. [4]

Key Executives [5]

Ron Meyer (www.nbcumv.com)

Ron Meyer (nbcumv.com)

Ron Meyer – Vice Chairman, NBCUniversal

Meyer served as President and COO of Universal Pictures since 1995 before being made Vice Chairman of NBCUniversal in September 2013.  He currently oversees all facets of the company, while still managing its portfolio of film assets amongst others

Donna Langley (nbcumv.com)

Donna Langley (nbcumv.com)

Donna Langley – Chairman, Universal Pictures

Langley began working at Universal in 2001 as the senior vice president of production.  After being named Chairman of Universal Pictures in September 2013, she assumed the role of overseeing the production and distribution of the company’s feature films.

Suzanne Cole (nbcumv.com)

Suzanne Cole (nbcumv.com)

Suzanne Cole – Executive VP, Media, Universal Pictures

Since the beginning of her tenure at Universal Pictures, the studio has experienced some of its most lucrative successes.  Because of this success, Cole was named Executive Vice President of Media in 2008.  She now oversees all strategic activities for the marketing and distribution of the studio’s feature films.

Financials (all numbers in millions)

Recent years have been good for Universal Pictures and its parent NBCUniversal.  From 2011 to 2012, revenue for NBCUniversal grew by almost $5,000, from $19,028 to $23,812.  Filmed entertainment was responsible for approximately 21% of the total revenue in 2012, generating $5,159.  That was up from $4,239 generated by Universal Pictures in 2011. [6]

NBCUniversal logo

NBCUniversal logo

In regards to how Universal Pictures measured up against the five other major movie studios, so far in 2013, Universal holds a 14.6% market share amongst all the studios, placing it second behind Warner Brothers.  This year Universal Pictures has grossed $1,329.3 from the release of 13 movies. [7]

Competition

The main concern for NBCUniversal and Universal Pictures right now is the new technologies that are affecting traditional media production and distribution methods.  This is referring mainly to companies like Netflix and Hulu that syndicate video programming online.  A growing concern is that these companies and others like them are beginning to create and obtain their own original content. [8]

Recent Film Releases

Universal Pictures has developed a reputation for having great success with movie franchises with such iconic franchises such as Back to the Future, Jurassic Park, and the Bourne series. [9] In 2013, Universal stuck with this trend and reaped the benefits of new installments in the Despicable Me and Fast & Furious series, amongst an eclectic mix of other successful films. [10]

The Best Man Holiday

A sequel to 1999’s The Best Man, The Best Man Holiday picks right up with the old college friends from the The Best Man, as they all reconvene for some Christmas celebrations.  Amidst all the fun times, sparks of old romances begin to rekindle and old rivalries that had faded away over time arise again.  Taye Diggs, Terrence Howard, Morris Chestnut, Monica Calhoun, and Regina Hall star in this quintessential holiday comedy-drama written and directed by Malcolm D. Lee. [11]

The Best Man Holiday (vibe.com)

The Best Man Holiday (vibe.com)

Released on November 15, 2013, in just three days The Best Man Holiday has nearly doubled its budget so far, bringing in $32,536,350.  That’s also $6.5 million over the $24 million it was projected to earn. [12] Tagged as “just another black comedy,” The Best Man Holiday has not only offered more evidence that generally black films can succeed, but that this is no typical movie by any sense, except for the fact that it is generally crowd-pleasing.  (No particular race or age group dominantly represents itself in the film’s audience demographics).  In fact, CinemaScore even gave the movie an A+, an extremely rare feat for any film. [13]

Despicable Me 2

Gru (Steve Carell), a former master villain, has settled into family life after adopting and coming to love his three daughters, but peace and quiet is not lasting for the villain-turned-hero, as he is called upon to save the world from a new super-villain.  And just as the world needs Gru’s help, so does his eldest daughter who has fallen for a classic bad-boy and an inevitable source of heartbreak.  Kristen Wiig and Benjamin Bratt star alongside Carell in this story of one former villain’s attempt to be a hero for the world and for his own family. [14]

Despicable Me 2 (ropeofsilicon.com)

Despicable Me 2 (ropeofsilicon.com)

 

The original Despicable Me (2010) was a tremendous release for Universal, ranking seventh all-time amongst its highest grossing movies by bringing in $251,513,985 domestically.  On July 3, 2013, Despicable Me 2 was released and has shattered that record, becoming the all-time highest grossing movie for Universal Pictures with $365,943,520 of domestic revenue.  This income has far surpassed the film’s production budget of $76 million, and that’s not even factoring in its performance in the worldwide box office.  To the delight of the studio, 60.1% of the movie’s total revenue came from foreign releases, grossing $550,100,000 worldwide.  All in all, Despicable Me 2 has brought in $916,043,520 for Universal Studios, and subsequently, is still playing in 305 theaters across the U.S. [15]

Fast & Furious 6

The very CIA agent who has been trying to track them down in order to defeat a new crew of criminal drivers who are causing chaos in twelve countries across the world calls upon refugees of the law.  In an effort to be pardoned from the charges against themselves, Dom and Brian (Vin Diesel and Paul Walker) get their old gang of expert drivers back together to take to the streets of London and defeat these mercenary drivers.  Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson star in this pedal-to-the-metal thriller. [16]

Fast & Furious 6 (teaser-trailer.com)

Fast & Furious 6 (teaser-trailer.com)

The sixth film in the Fast & Furious series was the most successful installment to date for the studio, becoming its ninth highest grossing film of all time, and reaping in the most revenue of all the Fast & Furious films. Fast & Furious 6 generated $238,679,850 for Universal, making it the second highest grossing film of 2013 behind Despicable Me 2.  In the worldwide box office, Fast & Furious 6 brought in another $550 million, bringing its total gross to a lofty $788,659,850.  Given the $160 million budget, Universal Pictures had another major box office winner with this film. [17]

What’s to Come from Universal Studios

Fast & Furious 7

Fast & Furious 7 (hitfix.com)

Fast & Furious 7 (hitfix.com)

Just a little over a year after Fast & Furious 6 came out, the seventh is already on its way, slated for a July, 2014 release date.  This time, the brother of the defeated world-criminal from Fast & Furious 6 has come onto the scene seeking revenge for his brother’s death. [18]

Ted 2

Ted 2 (collider.com)

Ted 2 (collider.com)

Universal Pictures also has plans to release the sequel to its wildly successful, raucous comedy Ted.  However, Universal did not produce the original, but acquired the rights to it and distributed it as a Universal Pictures film.  Despite not having the rights yet, the studio is confident it will be able to secure them and go forward with production of the sequel. [19]

 

 

 

 

 

Sources

[1] Universal Pictures History

[2] NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment Unite to Create NBC Universal

[3] Comcast Completes Acquisition of GE’s 49% Stake In NBCUniversal

[4] About Universal Pictures

[5] NBCUniversal Film Executives

[6] NBCUniversal 2012 Annual Report

[7] 2013 Studio Market Shares

[8] NBCUniversal 2012 Annual Report

[9] Movie Franchises by Studio

[10] Universal Pictures’ 2013 Movie Releases

[11] The Best Man Holiday Plot Summary

[12] The Best Man Holiday Box Office Performance

[13] The Best Man Holiday Performance Analysis

[14] Despicable Me 2 Plot Summary

[15] Despicable Me 2 Box Office Performance

[16] Fast & Furious 6 Plot Summary

[17] Fast & Furious 6 Box Office Performance

[18] Dwayne Johnson Tweets Fast & Furious 7 Photo

[19] Ted 2 Scheduled Release

AMC Networks

Posted on by 
By Garrett Braddock

 

AMC Network Logo

AMC Networks Logo

 AMC Networks Inc.

11 Penn Plaza
New York City, New York, USA
 (212) 324-8500
http://www.amcnetworks.com/

About AMC Networks [1}:

AMC Networks is an entertainment company based in New York that owns a multitude of popular channels including AMC, IFC, WE tv, and the Sundance Channel. Their flagship channel, AMC, boasts the impressive feats of having the most

The various properties owned by AMC Networks

The various properties owned by AMC Networks

watched drama series in cable history with, The Walking Dead, and also stands as the only cable network to win an Emmy for “Outstanding Drama Series” four years in a row.   AMC Networks also owns the film company IFC films and the highly regarded IFC center, a movie theater in New York City.

Key People at AMC Networks [2]: (All images curtesy of AMC Networks)

Charles Dolan--Executive Chairman

Charles Dolan– Executive Chairman

Joshua Sapan--President and Chief Executive Officer

Joshua Sapan–President and Chief Executive Officer

Edward A Carroll--Chief Operating Officer

 Edward A Carroll— Chief Operating Officer

Finances in Fall 2013:

AMC Networks enjoyed a financially beneficial third quarter here in Fall 2013. The Wall Street Journal reports that the networks earnings were up by 59% from last year, a rise that is sure to make investors very happy people. This growth can be

Past Year Stocks for AMC Networks. Courtesy of Seeking Alpha

Past Year Stocks for AMC Networks. Courtesy of Seeking Alpha

contributed to a high demand from advertisers to be placed on their channels. The Journal states, “The growth was driven by a 36% rise in advertising revenue to $146 million, helped by a strong demand for original programming.”[3]

News Stories from Fall 2013:

-Harmonious Deals with Chellomedia

Chellomedia

Logo courtesy of Chellomedia

One of the major moves that AMC Networks made this fall was the purchasing of Chellomedia, which is an international content division of Liberty Global, an acquisition that cost around $1.04 billion. Chellomedia focuses on operating digital and broadband channels across Europe and Latin America, a spread that will broadly widen the amount of viewers AMC could reach. It is estimated that Chellomedia reaches around 400 million viewers in 138 countries. This acquisition means that AMC will be able to access various netoworks in the aforementioned countries and have a much wider, international market for their already popular programs. Of the deal, Josh Sapan said, “This acquisition allows us to secure a large, global platform on which to distribute our increasingly successful original programming through a collection of strong, well-established and well managed assets worldwide.”[4] One criticism of this deal is that it makes AMC less likely to be bought out by a larger company, a move which some investors may have been expecting. Previously, it was thought that AMC may be the target of larger cable network companies New Corp or CBS Corp, but this acquisition seems to prove that AMC is still looking to expand before looking for potential buyers.[5] Overall, the acquisition of Chellomedia, likely to officially go through in early 2014, will broaden the reaches of AMC Networks, expand their global market, and allow them to become much less dependent on success in the US market.[6]

-Breaking Bad? More like Breaking Records!!

Promotion for beginning of fifth and final season of Breaking Bad. Courtesy of AMC

Promotion for beginning of fifth and final season of Breaking Bad. Courtesy of AMC

Throughout its airing, Breaking Bad has become one of the most highly regarded and well-liked shows on television. The show tells the story of a high-school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with cancer and decides to secure financial security for his family by cooking and selling meth. The show has garnered both viewer and critical acclaim, and won “Outstanding Drama Series” at this years Emmy awards, after being nominated for the past 3. AMC saw record numbers for Breaking Bad almost every episode of the last season, with those numbers peaking on its final episode, “FiNaLe” where the average viewership was 10.3 million according to Nielsen. When it comes to the important adults 18-49 demographic, Breaking Bad achieved a 5.4 rating, reaching about 6.7 million people.[7] This impressive finale ranks third in cable series finales, finishing behind only The Sopranos and Sex and the City.

An interesting article on Slate discussed how Nielsen began ranking television shows on the number of people tweeting about them, and how that reflects on Breaking Bad. It was estimated that 9.3 million people tweeted about, or viewed tweets about Breaking Bad during its penultimate episode. This is an important statistic because it displays how many people are actively engaged in the show, a fact many advertisers would love to know so they can more intelligently places their advertisements. [8]

-Ratings Spring Back To Life With The Walking Dead

Another one of AMC Network’s hugely successful series, The Walking Dead, comes again from their flagship channel, and has been racking up huge ratings with every episode. This show follows a group of survivors during the zombie apocalypse and chronicles their

Main promotion for The Walking Dead. Courtesy of AMC

Main promotion for The Walking Dead. Courtesy of AMC

harrowing tale. The show has seen growing success over its first 3 seasons, with ratings and viewer numbers reaching record-breaking heights during the premiere of the fourth season. TVbythenumbers reports that 16.1 million people tuned in for the premiere with 10.4 million being of the adult 18-49 demographic.[9] The Walking Dead has become the #1 show on television across both cable and broadcast networks. Even compared to Sunday Night Football, The Walking Dead is 23 percent bigger than the perennial broadcast telecast.[10] These ratings and numbers have either stayed the same or grown with each passing episode. On the heels of such success, AMC Networks announced on October 29th that it has renewed The Walking Dead for a fifth season, in which they are likely to have continued success.[11]

-The Sundance Channel Brings a New Kind of Zombie to Life[12]

This fall The Sundance Channel premiered The Returned, a French hit, and one of the

Photo showing premise of The Returned: the reconnecting of those once thought to be dead

Photo showing premise of The Returned: the reconnecting of those once thought to be dead

channel’s first forays into scripted TV series. The series tells the stories of people who come back to life exactly as they were before they died. The show, based on the French film, They Came Back, was a critical hit in France before being picked up by The Sundance Channel. The show is quietly doing very well for the channel, considering the small audience and fact that the show is subtitled to English. As mentioned earlier, The Returned has received critical acclaim, being lauded for its beautiful cinematography and emotionally believable characters.[13] Despite only having eight total episodes, the show has an impressive 92/100 score on metacritic.[14]

 

-Low Winter Sun: Maybe Sinking a Bit too Low?

Another AMC show to be grabbing headlines this fall was crime-drama Low Winter Sun. This show tells the story of a cop in Detroit who believes his girlfriend was murdered by another detective. Despite airing after the widely watched Breaking Bad, this show has

Promotion for Low Winter Sun. Courtesy of AMC.

Promotion for Low Winter Sun. Courtesy of AMC.

never gotten the viewer attention AMC Networks was hoping for. Low Winter Sun has received mixed reviews, with many leaning towards the negative side, citing the show’s pace and darkness as its main adverse aspects.[15] The show has even drawn criticism from one of its stars, James Ransone. Ransone said of the show, “It wasn’t a good show…” and “If it doesn’t get canceled, I’ll be goddamn shocked…the ratings were terrible.”[16] AMC Networks has yet to decide if the show will be renewed for a second season, but the decision is likely to come by early December.

 

 

Sources:

  1. http://www.amcnetworks.com/
  2. http://www.amcnetworks.com/about-us/leadership
  3. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304448204579183603236753382
  4. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/10/28/amc-networks-to-acquire-chellomedia-from-liberty-global/?_r=1
  5. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/10/28/us-libertyglobal-deal-idUSBRE99R0FT20131028
  6. http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/11/06/amc-networks-will-grow-significantly-with-this-str/
  7. http://variety.com/2013/tv/news/breaking-bad-finale-ratings-1200681920/
  8. http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2013/10/07/nielsen_twitter_ratings_good_news_breaking_bad_not_big_bang_theory.html
  9. http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/10/14/the-walking-dead-season-4-premiere-is-highest-rated-episode-ever-with-16-1-million-viewers-10-4-million-adults-18-49/208857/
  10. http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/11/11/the-walking-dead-ratings/
  11. http://www.nj.com/entertainment/tv/index.ssf/2013/10/the_walking_dead_renewed_for_fifth_season_after_record-breaking_ratings.html
  12. http://www.newsadvance.com/the_burg/couch_potato/article_a73461b6-4654-11e3-8c50-0019bb30f31a.html
  13. http://nyunews.com/2013/11/14/returned/
  14. http://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-returned
  15. http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/6921/will_low_winter_sun_get_the_nod_for_second_season#.Uo0YTJTwL6l
  16. http://www.thewrap.com/low-winter-sun-star-james-ransone-wasnt-good-show/

Radio One

Posted on by

Radio One, Inc.


Location: Corporate Office – 1010 Wayne Ave.
14th Floor, 
Silver Spring, MD  20910

Web: www.radio-one.com

Executive Team: [2]

Founder, Chairperson and Secretary  – Catherine L. Hughes

CEO and President – Alfred C. Liggins, III

Exec. Vice President and CFO– Peter D. Thompson

VP, Assistant Secretary and CAO – Linda J. Vilardo

 

Overview:

Radio One, Inc. is an urban multimedia company primarily targeting African Americans. The company consists of four subdivisions: radio broadcasting franchise, Radio One; cable television network, TV One; cross platform media company, Reach Media; and internet companies Interactive One, an online platform and Community Connect, specializing in social networking. [5]

In regards to radio, the company is ranked number one among Black listeners with a weekly audience average of 19 million. It is the largest radio broadcasting franchise that targets an African American audience. [5] In 2011, it owned and/or operated 55 stations in 16 U.S urban markets including Atlanta, Houston, Washington D.C and many others. The company also has 9 nationally syndicated radio shows, expanding its geographic reach. [6]

 

History:

Catherine Hughes’ tumultuous life journey led her to found one of the most successful multimedia companies and become a great business example to African-Americans and aspiring businesswomen everywhere. Born to a scholarly family in 1947, Hughes took to radio and media at an early age. At 16, she became pregnant with her first child, Alfred Liggins Jr., and was disowned by her influential family. After a brief two-year marriage, Hughes decided to attend the University of Nebraska, Omaha and become involved with the campus radio station where she was quickly named general manager. She left the school early to become a lecturer and a general manager of WHUR at Howard University. There she perfected the Quiet Storm format, a collection of love songs played at late night. This would become a successful program format adopted by urban stations across the country in years to come. [8]

Catherine along with husband, Dewey Hughes, gathered $950,000 from personal savings, Syncom, an African-American venture capital firm, investors, and a bank loan to acquire WOL, a 1000-watt AM station located in DC. [8] The financial constraints and difficulty of making the station profitable broke up the Hughes marriage and Catherine bought out her ex’s interest in WOL. After bouts of poverty to keep the station afloat, Hughes’ son began to attract more advertising for the station and it turned its first profitable year in 1986. Using profits, Hughes began to  acquire other stations in urban markets across the East Coast and build the empire that would become known as Radio One. In 1999, the company went public with an IPO of $172 million. Using this and additional investors, Radio One acquired 12 additional stations from Clear Channel for $1.2 billion. [9] The company has continued its growth and has branched out to include other media sectors, most notably T.V One, a rival to Black Entertainment Television with a target audience of affluent African-Americans between 25-54. [8]

Financials (2012): [10]

Total Revenue: $424.57 Million

Gross Profit: $288.8 Million

Other Operating Expenses: $217 Million

Radio One Inc. continues to see increased revenue as the urban market continues to grow. Its primary revenue stream is local and national advertising sales on its radio stations. Boasting as the “urban media specialist,” Radio One offers advertisers effective ways to reach urban and African American audiences. Multiple program formats in key urban markets allow advertisers to reach intended demographics and lifestyles. In the company’s 2011 annual report, it notes the rising population, income, and Internet usage of African Americans as well as the growing influence of African American culture on mainstream American society.  Advertisers spent $748 million on Black radio in 2009 despite the economic recession. [11]

News:

2013 has been a relatively quiet year thus far for the company. Recent news stories include the renewing of popular programs on TV One including R&B Divas, Rickey Smiley Show, and Family Time. Other notable news stories include:

  • April 8, 2013 – Radio One Selects WideOrbit Inc.

Radio One selects WideOrbit Inc.’s WO Traffic system for its advertising sales, traffic, and revenue management. The system would allow the company “to view real-time, consolidated reporting, maximize revenue and inventory, and optimize performance across all of its stations and markets. “ [12]

  • April 2, 2013 – Acacia Subsidiary Enters License Agreement with Radio One

Acacia Research Corporation, which licenses patents to corporations and share the revenue [14], entered into a license agreement with Radio One as part of its settlement with district courts in the Southern District of New York and the Northern District of Illinois. [15]

  • March 5, 2013 – Radio One Launches Telemundo Affiliate

Radio One’s WDNI Channel 19 in Indianapolis will launch the market’s first Spanish-language broadcast station. It will feature Telemundo’s full line-up of original programming. [17]

References:

[1] http://www.frequencynews.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/radio_one_logo2.gif

[2] http://www.radio-one.com/about-us/who-we-are/

[3] http://www.blackeconomicdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/cathyhughes_1.jpg

[4] http://www.radiofacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Radio-One-Alfred-Liggins.jpg

[5] http://www.radio-one.com/about-us/

[6] http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/radio-one-inc/index.html

[7] http://i.huffpost.com/gen/788993/thumbs/r-CATHY-HUGHES-AND-SON-large570.jpg

[8] http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/radio-one-inc-history/

[9] http://streamingradioguide.com/blogradio/?page_id=707

[10] http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/financials/financials.asp?ticker=ROIA&dataset=incomeStatement&period=A&currency=native

[11] http://www.radio-one.com/investor-relations/sec-filings/

[12] http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wideorbit-traffic-selected-by-radio-one-for-its-55-broadcast-stations-that-span-16-urban-markets-2013-04-08

[13] http://tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/wideorbit.png

[14] http://www.acaciaresearch.com/pr/040113b.pdf

[15] http://www.ipwire.com/ip-deals-and-opinion/acacia-subsidiary-enters-into-settlement-and-license-agreement-with-radio-one.html

[16] https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/664552302/Telemundo.jpg

[17] http://www.radio-one.com/2013/03/06/radio-one-launches-telemundo-affiliate-in-indianapolis/

 

Univision

Posted on by 
Seth Goldstein

Headquarters:

605 3rd Avenue

New York, NY 10158

(212)-455-5200

Univision.com

Key Executives

Haim Saban – Chairman

Randy Falco

Randel A. (Randy) Falco – President/CEO and Chairman

  • Served as President and CEO of AOL Inc. from 2006-2009 
  • Before that, had spent over 30 years at NBCUniversal Television Group; most recently as President and Chief Operating Officer
  • Responsible for both groups commercial and operational functions including affiliate relations, cable distribution, business development, information technology, and network and studio operations.

Andy Hobson

Andrew W (Andy) Hobson – Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

  • Shared several positions at Univision (Chief Strategic Officer, Executive Vice President)
  • Before Univision, Hobson was a principal at Chartwell Partners from ’90-’93; where he was instrumental in the 1992 leveraged buyout of Univision

llamas

Roberto Llamas  – Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer

  • Llamas comes from a background where he was head of Human Resources at Nielsen; a company with over 35,000 employees in over 100 countries 
  • Has held previous human Resources positions as Lehman Brothers, TRW, and General Electric

beau

Beau Ferrari – EVP of Operations (Univision Networks)

  • Responsible for the growth and profitability of Univision’s content 
  • Serves as interim co-head of Univision Sports; he is responsible for the content on the 24-hour channel Univision owns titled, Univision Deportes

History

Univision was started in 1960 as an International Spanish Network by Emilio Azćarraga; a media-mogul responsible for forming and operating Grupo Televisa (Leading Spanish Network at the time). Through a partnership with Jerrold Perenchio of Venevisíon, the two business bought out two major network stations ins Houston, TX and Chicago, IL respectively. This led to to the 1996 formation and announcement of the company now known as Univision Communications. THe company has been focused on pertaining to the hispanic demographic across the United States through various media channels featuring, television and radio. They have had a lot of success standing at the top of their class and ratings for a hispanic-television station.

Profile

Univision Communications Inc. is the leading media company serving Hispanic Americans. With a number of current channels owned and operated by Univision Communications Inc., Univision Communications Inc. stands alone at the top of the Spanish-American Television totem-pole. The recent news coming out that as of last year,was that Univision Communications Inc. had surpassed ABC for the most watched network at night reaching over 10.8 million homes on the average evening. The numbers do not lie, and the numbers are what has led ABC and Univision to fuse together for a somewhat of a merger, creating a new English-based news channel covering Sports, Entertainment, and original Media Content.

Ben Sherwood of ABC News has been quoted saying “Fusion will be the ultimate meeting place for English-speaking Latinos. Our goal for this young, vibrant, and media-hungry audience to come to Fusion to be informed, entertained, and empowered. It will be fresh, fun, and optimistic and great interest to latinos and non-latinos alike” (WSJ, 1). Fusion will be interesting to see, as watching ESPN has become very natural for the majority of Americans. Seeing the potential cross-branding initiatives of both companies come into full effect will be very interesting.

The medium has been necessary overdue to the high volume of hispanic viewers and the somewhat smaller numbers of American viewers. The medium that “Fusion” will be provide will be one unlike any other, as no major company such as ABC has ever made such a strong push into the Latino marketplace for telecommunications. Other current competitors to Univision include; Belo Corporation, Citadel Corporation, and TV Azteca; which is Univision’s top competitor.

Univision currently has been seeing a large share of their viewers tune in for their shows

  • Arranque de Pasion 
  • Pq El Amor Manda

In addition to their 24-hour running show on sports titled, Univsion Deportes. Univsion offers multiple telenovelas which are spanish-based romantic dramas which seem to be the most popular based off of ratings in the hispanic marketplace. In addition to the telenovelas, the Univision Communications Inc. have worked very hard on various media platform operations. A mobile application for your smartphone will now allow the user to access exclusive Univision content and be regularly updated with new news developments, television episodes, in addition to exclusive webisodes featuring interviews with the cast members of some of the most highly-watched programs.

Univision Deportes

Univsion Deportes serves similar to ESPN’s “SportsCenter”, providing around the clock sports information and news headlines with a large team of anchors and reports. Univsion Deportes does not only entertain the hispanic or latino viewer, but anyone who can understand the spanish language will be able to see that the content is universal. Strongly pertaining to sports that are well-liked in the Spanish community, however, are still relevant in non-hospanic parts of the world.

Lela

Arranque de Pasion is a Webnovela series by Univision known for the drama between characters Checo and Ela. The stories and episodes vary on the never-ending lust and personal conflict that take place in this show. It is the 2nd highest rated show on the Univision network, and is becoming more popular in The United States.

ABC and Univision announced their finalized merger on February 11. This let the world know that two of the most powerful media players will be joining forces to bring together the American and Hispanic television communities together through cross-media branding and promotions. This will not only allow the American-based ABC to start branding themselves more in the hispanic markets, while Univision creates their name as a go-to news site in the United States and other english-speaking territories. The merger could not have taken place on a scale of much bigger proportion due to the conglomerate size of both of these companies individually.

The merger with ABC was a substantial power move for the American-based company, that saw the hand-writing on the wall of how successful the potential of a major media merger over different languages could possibly be. Teaming up with the strongest player in the spanish telecommunication game, ABC was able to do just that. Offering their content over cross-media platforms and opening doors for quality product enhancement from both the hispanic and non-hispanic communities alike.

Bibliography

1. Wall Street Journal

  • http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130211-909202.html?mod=crnews

ION Media Networks

Posted on by 
by John Baldwin

Ion Logo

Ion Media Networks’ Logo [1]

Corporate Headquarters

601 Clearwater Park Road

West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Phone

(561) 659-4122

Website

http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/

Executive Team

Brandon Burgess

Chairman & Chief Executive Officer

Previously the head of Business Development at NBCUniversal, Brandon Burgess has guided ION Media Networks through a complete reversal—financially and operationally—since its re-branding in 2006. Under his leadership, ION Media Networks has expanded drastically, which is no easy feat for any independent television network company in the US. Also during his tenure, ION Television has seen unprecedented growth, and he has played a significant role in launching Qubo and ION Life [2].

Chris Addeo

Marketing

Chris Addeo is the head of multiple areas of marketing, including Consumer, Sales, Distribution and Corporate Marketing. She is also responsible for developing ION Media Network’s strategic brand [3].

 

Douglas Holloway

Distribution

Douglas Holloway maintains cable, satellite and telephone company partner relationships for each of ION Media Networks’ brands. He also oversees a distribution team in several areas across the US [4].

Jeff Quinn

Finance

As the director of the office of Finance, Jeff Quinn sets the financial policy and direction of ION Media Networks. He is credited with establishing ION’s Financial Planning & Analysis Group and also oversees business planning, development, and budgeting [5].

 

A Brief History

In February 2006, the company formerly know as Paxson Communications—founded in 1984—announced a change to its current name, ION Media Networks. The rebranding of Paxson Communications was done in an effort to create a fresh corporate identity which would reflect its commitment to providing consumers with high-quality media content by distribution to its network of television stations nationwide [6]. Today, ION Media Networks upholds that same commitment.

In 2008, ION Media Network’s primary television network was also re-branded, and has since gone by the name of ION Television. After the network’s re-branding, its reach expanded to about 260 million Americans in 100 million households. Its viewership doubled as well, and it reached the top 15 cable ratings in the United States in only 3 years, an extraordinary feat in American television history [7].

 

About

ION Media Networks is a privately owned, independent TV company, officially formed in 2006. The company’s main goal is to lead innovation in television content and technology, as well as provide a wide variety of entertainment to consumers. With the help of its three main branches—ION Television, Qubo, and ION Life—it serves well over 100 million homes in the United States [1]. In addition, ION Media Networks is a partial owner of Dyle, a mobile content service which was created through a joint venture involving a few other television companies [8].

ION Television

ION Television Logo [10]

ION Television’s New Logo [9]

ION Media Networks’ flagship television network, ION Television, is a leading entertainment network in the US. In fact, it stands within the top 15 networks among adults 25-54. ION Television relies on a combination of high-quality syndicated programming such as Criminal Minds, Without a Trace, Cold Case, House, and Leverage, as well as original programming such as Flashpoint and WWE Main Event. In addition, it carries many popular movies of a wide variety of different genres [1].

Qubo

Qubo's Logo [10]

Qubo’s Logo [10]

Qubo is a television network for 5 to 8 year olds. With a combination of original programming and outside partnerships with organizations such as the US Olympic Committee and Reading is Fundamental, Qubo promotes literacy and a healthy lifestyle for kids. Qubo refuses to air national ads which feature unhealthy food and beverage choices in an attempt to reduce obesity rates in children. This network is available 24/7 on Cable, Satellite, AT&T UVerse and Verison FiOs, and it also airs programming blocks on NBC, ION Television, and Telemundo [11].

ION Life

ION Life's Logo [12]

ION Life’s Logo [12]

ION Life is a digital sub-channel of ION Television, dedicated to healthy living. It carries a vast array of entertaining shows aimed at inspiring people to live healthy, active, and overall better lives [1]. ION Life provides programming 24/7 and is available via Cable, Satellite and Telco carriage [13].

Dyle

Dyle's Logo

Dyle’s Logo [14]

Dyle is a mobile television service which allows users to view digital broadcast television. It carries channels such as ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Qubo, Telemundo, and Univision, as well as some local broadcast channels which are not officially affiliated with Dyle mobile television. Unfortunately, like most television providers, it is not available in all markets [15].

Recent News

In 2010, ION Media Networks along with 11 other major broadcast television companies developed Dyle through a joint venture known as Mobile Content Venture, or MVC for short [8]. On April 3, 2013 it was announced that Dyle mobile television would be on display at NAB in the Las Vegas Convention Center [16].

In January of 2012, ION Media Networks alongside PMC announced ENTV as a new business partner, which launched a premium YouTube Channel to distribute entertainment news. ENTV provides YouTube viewers with breaking stories in the entertainment world directly from reliable sources such as Deadline.com, HollywoodLife.com, and TVLine.com [17].

In October of 2012, ION announced a long-term partnership for ION Television’s to be carried on DIRECTTV nationwide. The agreement ensures that ION Television will be available to DIRECTTV subscribers for years to come, and now in high-definition as well [18].

On March 4 of 2013, ION Television excitedly announced the launch of a multi-tiered business-to-business campaign. The campaign targeted at advertisers introduces IONTHUSIASTS, a digital representation of ION Television’s viewers. Alongside this announcement was the news that ION Television had a new logo and graphics package [19].

The IONTHUSIASTS represent Adults 25-34, 35-44 & 45-54 [20]

The IONTHUSIASTS represent Adults 25-34, 35-44 & 45-54 [20]

Sources

[1] Ion Media Networks http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/

[2] Brandon Burgess http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/about/brandon-burgess

[3] Chris Addeo http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/about/chris-addeo

[4] Douglas Holloway http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/about/douglas-holloway

[5] Jeff Quinn http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/about/jeff-quinn

[6] Paxson Communications http://www.annkarrick.com/news/news0602

[7] History http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/about/history

[8] About Dyle http://www.dyle.tv/about/mcv/

[9] ION Television’s New Logo http://www.deadline.com/2013/03/ion-television-gets-makeover-with-new-look-logo/

[10] Qubo http://www.qubo.com/

[11] About Qubo http://www.qubo.com/about

[12] ION Life http://www.ionlife.com/

[13] About ION Life http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/business/ion-life

[14] Dyle http://www.dyle.tv/

[15] More About Dyle http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/business/dyle

[16] Dyle News http://broadcastengineering.com/shows/mobile-tv-go-another-round-nab

[17] ENTV http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/press/pmc-and-ion-television-announce-launch-of-youtube?id=270

[18] DIRECTTV Agreement http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/press/ion-media-networks-announces-new-agreement-with-d?id=297

[19] IONTHUSIASTS & New Look http://www.ionmedianetworks.com/press/ion-television-unveils-new-look-for-the-network-an?id=299

[20] Meet the IONTHUSIASTS http://ionthusiasts.com/meet/

Univision

Posted on by

by Juan Alvarez

 

-Univision’s Newest Corporate Logo (Updated in October 2012)

(Photo courtesy of Univision Corporate website) [4]

605 3rd Ave.
New York, NY, 10158 United States
(212) 455-5200

http://corporate.univision.com

http://www.univision.com/

Key Figures

(Picture Courtesy of Univision Corporate Website)

(Picture Courtesy of Univision Corporate Website) [1]

Randy Falco

        Joined Univision Communications in June 2011 as President and Chief Executive Officer. Before joining the company he was Chairman and CEO of AOL. Since his arrival, Univision has added three new cable networks and steadily increased its net revenue. [1]

Cesar Conde

Cesar Conde
(Picture Courtesy of Univision Corporate Website)[1]

Cesar Conde

      Mr. Conde is president of the Univision Networks and is responsible for every television network including Univision Network, Unimas and Univision Cable Network. He is also responsible for the Univision Studios which were established in 2009. He previously served as Executive Vice President of Univision Communications. [1]

Andrew W. Hobson

Andrew W. Hobson
(Picture Courtesy of Univision Corporate Website)[1]

Andrew W. Hobson

      Joined Univision Communications in 1993 as Executive Vice President of Univision Network. In 2007 he became Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Univision Communications playing a vital role in the company’s recent financial growth. [1]

Profile

      Univision Communications is the leading spanish broadcaster in America with a pedigree of television, radio and interactive media operations. The company’s primary audience are Latin American families in the United States. Univision Communications runs the top-rated Univision Network, as well as sister networks UniMas and Galavision. In addition, the company owns and operates about 60 local TV stations and 70 radio stations all across the nation and an online division which owns and distributes a network of online and mobile products like Univision.com. Some major competitors include TV Azteca, S.A. de C.V, Liberman Broadcasting, Inc. and NBCUniversal Media, LLC. [2] Some of the most successful current programs are Sabado Gigante, which has been on the air since 1997, and Primer Impacto since 1994.

The following video summarizes what Univision’s vision consists on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsf76kXaiKw 

        Television: The television segment owns a large number of TV stations and networks of which the most successful is Univision Network, the driving force behind the company. Univision Network has the largest spanish speaking television audience in the world and has reached parity with the 5 major english television networks outranking The CW several times. The television department also owns UniMas a spanish language broadcast television network, as well as Galavision a cable network in the U.S. In addition to the three major networks the company recently added three single format 24-hour cable networks: Univision Deportes Network, ForoTV and Univision Telenovelas. In 2009 the company founded Univision Studios, their own production division. Last year the company announced the creation of Fusion, an english language joint venture with ABC targeted at hispanic americans. [3]

abc-news-univision-logo

Univision and ABC joint venture (photo courtesy of mediabistro.com) [10]

        Radio: The radio segment owns and operates 69 radio stations in the United States. In 2003 Univision completed the acquisition of the Hispanic Broadcasting Corporation to form Univision Radio, the largest spanish language radio broadcasting company in the United States. In addition, the company founded Univision America this past summer, which is a spanish talk radio network that operates in major states like California, Texas and Florida. [3]

UNIVISION_America-logo-e1338509306117

Univision America (photo courtesy of mediamoves.com) [11]

          Interactive Media: This segment is responsible for operating a network of online products of which Univision.com is the most important. Univision interactive media was launched in 2009 to house Univision Movil and Univision.com, an online publisher that features entertainment, news and information. The interactive media segment also includes UVideos, a bilingual digital network and Univision Partner Group, a publishing network. [3]

Screen Shot 2013-04-08 at 10.09.34 PM

Univision.com Homepage
(photo courtesy of Univision.com) [12]

History

       In 1955 KWEX-TV, the first full time Spanish language station in America was founded. The station changed owners several times until in 1968 the new owners decided to name it Spanish International Network after buying channels in New Jersey and LA. By the mid 1970s the company had grown into a national network in the United States. In 1986 a Partnership of Televisa (a major media production company) and Hallmark cards bought the network formally naming it UNIVISION. Univision online was launched in 2000. [4]

      In the past decade Univision Communications has grown in many fronts of the industry launching UniMas, formerly known as Telefutura (2002), Univision Radio (2003), Univision Studios (2009) and Univision Interactive media (2009). [4]

Financials

      During 2012 Univision Communications Inc. reported a steady rise in their financials. Both their OIBDA and their total net revenue increased in comparison to the previous numbers of 2011. For the full year, net revenue increased 7.4 percent to $2,442.0 million from $2,273.5 million in 2011 and OIBDA increased 7.4 percent to $1,003.2 million from $933.9 million in 2011. Moreover the increase took place in each of the three media production areas of the company (Television, Radio and Digital). [5]

2012 Financials-Univision

(photo courtesy of Univision Corporate financial statement 2012) [5]

In the News 

     January [6]: 

  • The new revamped UniMas was launched coast to coast on January 7th premiering two prime time series that same night: Made In Cartagena and Quien eres tu.
unimas_ad

(photo courtesy of underconsideration.com)

  • “Quinceañera” the groundbreaking production that catapulted Thalia and Adela Noriega is being rebroadcasted by Univision Telenovelas on January 7th.
  • Univision Communications announced a partnership with Samsung to carry their digital video network UVideos, in all 2013 Samsung smart TVs and connected devices.
  • Univision Network launches new talent competition show “Lo que mas quieres” on January 27th.
lo-que-mas-quieres

Lo que Mas Quieres ad campaign (photo courtesy of latinospost.com) [13]

February [7]: 

  • Univision’s “Despierta America” established itself as the fastest growing morning show in the current season regardless of language registering its seven month of consecutive growth among adults 18-49 and 25-54.
pic_1315599492

Despierta America (photo courtesy of tucuentas. com) [14]

  • Univision’s “Premios Lo Nuestro“, which is Television’s longest running Latin music  award show, aired on Feb 21 reaching 11.6 million viewers and making Univision No. 2 network for the night among adults 18-34 for fourth consecutive year.
  • WXTV Univision 41 New York received 22 Emmy Award nominations. According to Nielsen, Univision 41 was also the #1 newscast in the 6pm slot during the month of January.
  • On February 11 ABC and Univision announced their joint venture news and lifestyle network for Hispanics is being named Fusion and is set to launch during the second half of 2013.
  • Univision set milestone as the No 4. network in February sweeps ahead of NBC. Univision out performed NBC establishing a 26% margin among adults 18-49 and a 47% among adults 18-14.

The following video demonstrates the recent rating success of Univision.

UNIVISION COMMUNICATIONS INC from Univision Insights on Vimeo.

March [8]: 

  • Premiere of new romantic comedy telenovela “Porque el amor manda” on Univision Network set for March 11.
  • “Nuestra Belleza Latina” a beauty competition show is set to launch its seventh season March 10 on Univision Network. The show includes sponsors like AT&T and Subway.
Nuestra-belleza-latina

Seventh season of Nuestra Belleza Latina (photo courtesy of lagranciudad.net) [15]

  • The season finale of “Por ella soy Eva” made Univision stations #1 among adults 18-49 and adults 18-34 in several cities like Los Angeles and Houston and Chicago.
  • On March 11 Univision Radio and TuneIn announced an alliance to extend the reach of 50 terrestrial stations via TuneIn.
  • Univision Studios announced the premiere of “Arranque de Pasion, La historia de Ela“, an original webnovela produced exclusively for Univision Online and mobile properties set to begin April 1.
ArranqueDePasion1

Arranque de Pasion webseries (photo courtesy of univision.com) [16]

  • Univision signs a major contract with DirecTV enabling the satellite provider to carry all of Univision’s own and operated broadcast stations, as well as the network feeds for Univision, UniMas, and Galavision.

Future of Univision 

2010

ABC News and Univision News merge to create Fusion in 2013
(photo courtesy of Univision Corporate Website) [4]

      When it comes to its future Univision Communications seems stronger than ever. If the current trends continue the network could become a recurrent top four in the United States Television market because of the constant increase of the Latino population. Furthermore, Univision is on the verge of launching a great number of new series including “Los Heroes del Norte” (NotiMas) and “Que Bonito Amor“ (Univision), which are two long awaited primetime series set to premiere this April. Last but not least, Univision News is focusing greatly on the creation of the new joint venture with ABC news called Fusion (to be launched sometime this year). The new network will be carried by 5 cable operators and will serve 50 millions Hispanics; a number expected to double by 2050 [9]. This measures are expected to further enhance the company’s presence in the multimedia market during the next decades.

Sources 

1. Key Executives http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/executive-leadership/#axzz2PxOlER2b

2. Univision Company Information Hoovers http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.Univision_Communications_Inc.a9ff6a528ba4bf61.html

3. Company Overview Bloomberg http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=352350

4. The Univision Story http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/#axzz2PxRZSjvT

5. Financial Statement 2012 http://corporate.univision.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/FINAL-Press-Release-Q2-2012-1.pdf

6. January Press Releases http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/press/press-releases/?date=2013-1#axzz2PxUQXB7G

7. February Press Releases http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/press/press-releases/?date=2013-2#.UWPlYqvwIx4

8. March Press Releases http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/press/press-releases/?date=2013-3#.UWPldavwIx4

9. April Press Releases http://corporate.univision.com/corporate/press/press-releases/?date=2013-4#.UWPlnKvwIx4

10. ABC / Univision picture http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/files/2012/08/abc-news-univision-logo.jpg

11. Univision America logo http://www.mediamoves.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/UNIVISION_America-logo-e1338509306117.jpg

12. Univision.com www.univision.com 

13. Lo Que Mas Quieres ad campaign http://images.latinospost.com/data/images/full/11264/lo-que-mas-quieres.jpg?w=600

14. Despierta America promo https://www.tucuentas.com/images/product/pic_1315599492.jpg

15. Nuestra Belleza Latina picture http://lagranciudad.net/home/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Nuestra-belleza-latina.jpg

16. Arranque de Pasion promo  http://univisionnetworks.com/assets/uploads/homepages/ArranqueDePasion1.jpg

Walt Disney/Touchstone Pictures

Posted on by 
By Maria F. Cristo

 

 

The Disney Story 

“If you can dream it, you can do it.” – Walt Disney

It all started in Chicago, when a baby by the name of Walter Elias Disney was born in 1901. Walt enjoyed drawing from a young age, and based his life on this one passion. His first job was at a small art studio in Kansas City, where he met his future partner, Ubbe Iwerks. Ubbe, Walt, and his brother Roy joined forces in 1923 and opened a Hollywood studio: the Disney Brothers’ Studio. In the next five years, the company created Mickey Mouse, a character that would become an extremely powerful worldwide icon, and whose face would become the company’s image. Steam Boat Willie was the company’s first release, and launched Mickey into fame. Walt Disney was an pioneer, and as such he used Mickey to introduce sound to cartoons, a great innovation in early motion pictures. The company proudly released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937, a movie that is still considered the greatest American animated movie today. This first movie embodied Disney’s essence in every way possible, it represents everything that Disney was back then and still is today. Snow White’s profits allowed the company to open a bigger more sophisticated base in Burbank, California three years later. [1]

This reformed company continued producing animated hits such as Pinocchio, Fantasia, and Bambi. In 1950, Disney launched it’s first of many live action films, Treasure Island. Each story that came out of the company was new, detailed, touching, and sent a positive message to people of all ages. Walt Disney lived to see his dream come true in 1955; the inauguration of a park that embodied the spirit of all of his movies in real life. Eleven years later, Walter Elias Disney died, but his legacy continues to touch the hearts of millions of people around the world. The dream that started with a deep passion for drawing, genuine imagination, and a mouse, is now a multibillion dollar company with more than 150,000 employees that holds assets in every sector of the media. [2]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hXsLTcgmLQ

This short video visually illustrates my description of Walt Disney’s achievements.

 

Executives

CEO of the Walt Disney Company: Robert Iger

http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/

Robert Iger [3]

Chairman of Walt Disney International: Andy Bird

Andy Bird

Andy Bird [4]

Walt Disney Studios Chairman: Alan F. Horn

http://waltdisneystudios.com/

Alan F. Horn [5]

Walt Disney Studios President: Alan Bergman

Alan Bergman

Alan Bergman [6]

Walt Disney Studios VP and Global Communications: Paul Roeder

PaulRoeder_TWDSOnline

Paul Roeder [7]

Walt Disney Studios Senior VP and Human Resources: Carolyn Wilson

CarolynWilson_220x290

Carolyn Wilson [8]

Walt Disney Pictures

The Walt Disney Studios is a division in the Walt Disney Company that produces, promotes and distributes both animated and live-action films in the US and internationally. Its top three competitors are Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros. Entertainment, and Paramount Pictures Corporation. The studios divisions include: animation, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Marvel Productions, Touchstone Pictures, and Disneynature. [9]

Disney Animation Studios [10]

The animation division is the oldest division of the Walt Disney Studios. The year 1937 marks the beginning of its first feature length animated film: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. From then, Disney animated films have combined evolving technology and beautiful artistry to make inspiring stories that mark the childhood of many. Famous films that have emerged from this division include: Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Lilo and Stitch, and Tangled. [

DisneyToon Studios is an innovative branch of Walt Disney Pictures animation that produces feature-length animated films for the company. Many of its films are sequels to films that are produced by the animation studios such as Tarzan, The Little Mermaid, and The Lion King. They also make movies that star Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, and Peter Pan’s Tinker Bell.

The Walt Disney Company owns yet another animated company: Pixar Animation Studios. This production company has produced 13 films that have done incredibly well in theaters and home entertainment, as they are greatly appreciated by the public. Pixar films impact kids, teenagers, and parents alike. The characters and stories are held dear by people of all ages all over the world, and have generated Disney a total of $7.8 billion. Films produced by Pixar include Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and Up.

 

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures 

This division is responsible for the creation of all Disney live-action films. It started in 1950, when it launched Disney’s first live-action film ever, Treasure Island. Since then, this Studio has been releasing family-oriented films that compete with companies like Universal, and 20th Century Fox. These films explore fantastic worlds, and are usually packed with colorful and often humorous adventure, as can be seen in Pirates of the Caribbean. Movies made by this division may also be remakes of old classics like Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, and OZ The Great and Powerful, it’s newest release. [11] 

Marvel

In 2009, the Walt Disney Company acquired Marvel Entertainment and its 8,000 characters for $4 billion. Expensive as it was, it was a great investment, as the company has hugely benefitted from the purchase. In four years Disney has profited from hits such as Iron Man, The Avengers, and Thor. Disney will continue to profit through sequels to these movies and other new releases starring Marvel characters. [12]

 

Disneynature

Disneynature was established on Earth Day 2008, and is Walt Disney Studio’s most recent division. Disney started this division to promote conservation awareness through heartfelt films such as Earth, Oceans, African Cats, and Chimpanzee. Part of the revenues collected from their release were used to benefit the environment. Three million trees were planted in Brazil, and 40,000 acres of marine life, 65,000 acred of African savanna, and 130,000 acres of Chimpanzee land went under protection. [13]

Touchstone [14]

Touchstone Pictures was launched to the public in 1984 with the hit film Splash. The company arose due to controversies surrounding Disney releases that were not considered appropriate for the family atmosphere of the company. Disney released its first PG rated movie ever, The Black Hole, in 1979. Four years later, the company released Trenchcoat, a film that was also criticized for its inappropriate content. This film is believed to be responsible for Disney’s launch of Touchstone Pictures, a Walt Disney Pictures division that would be in charge of producing films that did not have to be suitable for children. Critics believed that this division was out of place for a company like disney, yet it was the top source of income for Disney in the 80s. Touchstone pictures debuted with the film Splash, starring Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah. The film set the tone for future touchstone films, as it contained some nudity.

Touchstone’s second movie was an R-rated film, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, which featured a story about a rich yet unhappy couple that head a dysfunctional family, the very opposite of Disney’s representative ideals. After these two inauguration films, The Walt Disney Studios has launched more than 200 films produced by Touchtone Pictures, including: The Nightmare Before Christmas, Armageddon, Ed Wood, Signs, Pearl Harbor,The Count of Monte Cristo, and Steven Spielberg’s new release: Lincoln.

 

Disney’s Numbers

The year 2012 was great for the Walt Disney Company in general, and for The Walt Disney Studios as well. Last year the company experienced a 5% growth in total revenue and a 6% growth in net income when compared to 2011 numbers. The studios, however, generated 73 million dollars less in the fourth quarter of 2012 than it did for the same quarter of the the previous year. After subtracting the cost of goods sold, the profit earned by the studios for the same quarter was 234 million, very low compared to the previous year’s 413 million, a plunging 43% decrease. [15]

 

On the News

December 19, 2012

Walt Disney Pictures announces that Jonathan Groff will be part of the cast of it’s upcoming movie Forzen. The Tony Award nominee will join forces with Kristen Bell to voice the lead characters of Disney’s new adventure comedy, expected in theaters on November 27 of this year. [16]

March 6, 2013

Disney officially released the trailer to the third Iron Man movie. [17]

March 27, 2013

The Walt Disney Studios discloses the full voice cast of Disney’s Planes, the company’s new animated film which is expected to open in theaters August 9 of this year. Among the lead voices are Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Garrett. [18]

April 2, 2013

During her live show, Ellen DeGeneres left her audience and the rest of the world astounded when she announced that Disney Pixar agreed to produce a sequel to Finding Nemo. Finding Dory is expected to come out in theaters November 25, 2015. [19]

April 8, 2013

After several weeks of great numbers, the Disney stock reaches it’s highest point ever at $58.54. Even though they had a great year for business, they are stil laying off employees as an anticipation of costly rising technologies. [20]

Sources:

1. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/

2. http://www.biography.com/people/walt-disney-9275533

3. http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/about-disney/leadership/ceo/robert-iger

4. http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/about-disney/leadership/corporate-management-team/andy-bird

5.  http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/6/bio/1015

6. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/6/bio/29

7. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/6/bio/621

8. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/6/bio/831

9. http://www.waltdisneystudios.com/

10. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/76

11. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/74

12. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/246

13. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/261

14. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/unit/264

15. http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/sites/default/files/reports/q1-fy13-earnings.pdf

16. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/news/1238

17. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/news/1277

18. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/news/1288

19. http://waltdisneystudios.com/corp/news/1293

20. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/viacom-disney-stocks-hit-highs-434709

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Radio One

Posted on by 
Greg Jacks

[1]

 “THE URBAN MEDIA SPECIALIST”

1010 Wayne Ave. 14th Floor

Silver Spring, MD  20910

 

 

Basics

[2]

Radio One, Inc. is the largest urban-centered multi-media outfit primarily targeting an African-American audience in the world. They own and/or operate 55 broadcast stations in 16 major U.S. markets including: Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and Atlanta. The genres of their stations include: gospel, mainstream r&b/soul, hip-hop, and classic r&b. Radio One also has majority ownership of TV One, LLC (a black-    oriented cable channel), Reach Media, Inc, and Interactive One (a series of online platforms serving the black community). [1]

History

[3]

In college, Catherine Elizabeth Hughes, founder and chairperson of Radio One, developed the now highly popular format called Quiet Storm; a late-night show specializing in urban contemporary ballads. Following the success of this new format, Hughes sought to own a station of her own. After many attempts to drag money together, Hughes and her husband finally managed to buy their first radio station in 1980. The station was first called Almic Broadcasting, and started as a 24-hour news broadcast for Washington D.C.’s black community. By the late 80s, Hughes had handed down the position of president to her son Alfred C. Liggins III, who helped propel the company to new heights. Throughout the 90s, Radio One was buying up locally-owned radio stations in city markets and turning them into urban stations. The success of this period, made Radio One the media conglomerate that it is today. [2]

Key Executives

[4]

Alfred C. Liggins, III – Chief Executive Officer, President, and Treasurer

Liggins has been C.E.O. of Radio One since 1997 after being promoted by his mother. He has helped the company expand into new markets and media. He was a graduate of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Since taking over the company from his parents, Liggins has done nothing but shine, now one of multimedia’s top young moguls. [3]

[5]

Catherine L. Hughes – Chairperson of the Board of Secretary

Hughes co-founded the company in 1980, and has served with it ever since. She has held various titles within the company: C.E.O., President, General Manager, General Sales Manager and talk show host. Outside the company, Hughes has been on the Board of Directors for a myriad of groups including Broadcast Music, Inc. Her 30 years business experience has saved her a special place in the African-American community. [4]

 

Owned Station Samples

                                 Urban AC – Washington                    Gospel – Atlanta                   Hip-Hop – Philadelphia                       News/Talk – Houston                    Old School Jams – Dallas            Black Talk – Baltimore

*All images in section taken from website links. Source is the radio station’s main web page

Properties

TV One

[6]

Launched in 2004, TV One is a cable channel which delivers reality and scripted programming to the African-American consumer. Through sitcoms  real life TV, recorded movies, and news specials, TV One attempts to understand the diverse experience of black life. In 2008, TV One went HD and debuted their now trademark show, Unsung, a biography series focusing on the lives of great R&B musicians. [5]

[7]

Reach Media, Inc.

An atypical media company, REACH Media was founded by Tom Joyner (the nation’s number 1 syndicated radio host). The company is built off the success of The Tom Joyner Morning Show which airs in more than a hundred markets reaching eight million listeners. REACH Media provides a highly popular platform for advertisers to relay messages to the black community. The company also operates several web-based media, namely The Black America Web. [6]

Interactive One

[8]

Interactive One was launched in 2007 to serve as a digital network for Radio One’s African-American community. Now, the site is the number 1 black online platform, serving 9 million monthly users. [7]

 

Recent News [8]

[9]

Jan. 22, 2013 – TV One’s most watched reality series, R&B Divas, is getting renewed for a second season. Also a spin-off, R&B Divas: LA, is in production and set to launch in Q3 2013

Jan. 24, 2013 – TV One adds the original half-hour sitcom Family Time to its classic Friday comedy block

Jan. 28th, 2013 – Radio One announces that Samuel Rogers, formerly of CBS Radio, has been named VP of National Sales.

Feb. 25th, 2013 – TV One announces the debut of its new docu-series, Deceived. It chronicles the stories of those who have been conned or betrayed.

[10]

Mar. 5, 2013 – Radio One’s launches a Telemundo affiliate with the purchase of WDNI in Indianapolis. The station will become the city’s first local Spanish-language broadcast station on March 11.

Mar. 18, 2013 – TV One orders for a second season of the record-breaking summer sitcom, The Rickey Smiley Show.

Apr. 8, 2013 – Radio One has chosen WideOrbit to system the traffic for all 55 of their stations [9]

 

Financials

Unlike most radio affiliates today, Radio One is doing quite well and seeing growth in their company. Their 2012 fourth quarter radio revenues were up 11% from the previous year. TV One also saw Q4 increases, with sales up 8% from 2011 [10]. It seems the growing minority population in this country was had a dramatically beneficial effect on Radio One and its comprising affiliates. It can operate and flourish, despite providing niche programming, for only a segment of the American people.

Stocks

Radio One, or ROIA as it is listed on the NASDAQ, has seen a sharp increase in stock price just since the start of this year. It went from trading at around $0.75 in December of last year to $1.75 in April of 2013. At the market’s close today, April 8th, ROIA is selling at $1.76 a share. [11]

[11]

 

Sources

1. “About Us | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

2. “Radio One, Inc. History.” History of Radio One, Inc. – FundingUniverse. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

3. “Radio One’s Number One.” Wharton Alumni Magazine: 125 Influential People and Ideas: Alfred C. Liggins. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

4. “Catherine L. Hughes.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

5. “TVONE.” About TV One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

6. “REACH Media | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

7. “Interactive One | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

8. “Latest News | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

9. “WideOrbit Traffic Selected By Radio One For 55 Stations.” All Access. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

10. “News Releases | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

11. “Stock Information | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

Images

1. http://www.radio-one.com/

2. Kysdc Staff. “Radio One Erects Sign Above New Silver Spring Headquarters.” 93.9 KYS FM. Radio One, 28 Jan. 2012. Web.

3. King, Morgan. “Cathy Hughes: Finding A Way Or Making One.” Visionary Artistry Magazine RSS. Radio One, 18 Apr. 2011. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

4. “Interactive One LLC » Alfred C. Liggins III.” Interactive One LLC RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

5. Odessey, Bruce. “RADIO ONE: A SMALL BUSINESS THAT GREW LARGE.”Small Businesses at Work. InfoUSA, n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

6. “TVONE.” Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

7. “REACH Media Inc.” Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

8. “Interactive One.”Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

9. “Faith Evans & The R&B Divas Share Some ‘Joy’ & ‘Lovin’ With You » SOULBOUNCE.COM.” Faith Evans & The R&B Divas Share Some ‘Joy’ & ‘Lovin’ With You » SOULBOUNCE.COM. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

10.”TV One: The Rickey Smiley Show.” Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.

11. “Stock Information | Radio One.” Radio One. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.