This gallery contains 16 photos.
By Zack Phillips Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. 10706 Beaver Dam Road Hunt Valley, Maryland 21030 (410) 568-1500 http://www.sbgi.net ABOUT THE COMPANY [2]: Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG), founded in 1986, currently owns, operates, programs, or provides sales services to 163 … Continue reading
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp
10201 West Pico Boulevard,
Los Angeles, California 90035
www.foxmovies.com
www.foxstudios.com
Phone: (310) 369-1000
KEY EXECUTIVES:
[10] via The Empress of Dress Blog
Mr. Keith Rupert Murdoch, 82 years old
Chairman of the Board and CEO
HIS TEAM [3]
Mr. Eduardo Echeverria – Senior VP of Latin America
Mr. Michael Peikoff – Senior VP of
Licensing and Merchandising
Mr. Robert Marick – Executive VP
BIO
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, better known as 20th Century Fox, is one of the top six world-renowned American film studios. It is a fully-equipped studio with over 17 stages, based out of the Century City area of Los Angeles, California. It is a subsidiary of the major media conglomerate 21st Century Fox as of recent divisional affairs. Major motion pictures from the studio include Avatar, Star Wars, X-Men, and Independence Day. [5]
[10] via Empress The Dress Blog
HISTORY
20th Century Fox began as Fox Film Corporation, which was started by movie theater chain entrepreneur William G. Fox. He began Fox Film Corporation when he merged his two companies Greater New York Film Rental and Fox Office Attractions Company in 1915, unknowingly creating the foundations of one of the biggest film production companies in American history. Fox Film Corporation eventually merged with Twentieth Century Pictures on May 31, 1935 to become what we know today as The Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation, or simply, 20th Century Fox. [1]
20th Century Fox is a subsidiary of the newly established 21st Century Fox. This past June 2013, mega-media distributor News Corporation (founded by Rupert Murdoch in 1979) was split into two separately traded companies; 21st Century Fox and News Corp. The film/media assets (20th Century Fox Studios) went to 21st Century Fox, and the publishing assets went strictly to News Corp. This highly anticipated split was achieved to appease long-term shareholders who were tired of the lesser of the successes, the publishing assets, from weighing down the stock. [4]
FINANCIAL SNAPSHOT
21st Century Fox (the owner of the subsidiary 20th Century Fox) is publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol FOXA. As of last week (Tuesday, November 5th) it has been an official quarter since the June 2013 split of News Corporation into News Corp and 21st Century Fox. Since the split, the quarter report reveals that 21st Century Fox profit has experienced a 44% profit loss. Net income for the past quarter was 1.26 billion or 54 cents a share [8] whereas a year ago, it was 2.23 billion or 94 cents a share. This drop may be due the launch of two new cable channels, FXX and Fox Sports 1, however Fox executives recognize their success take time. “We knew going in that building these networks would take a few years, not months, and many of our signature events and programs are yet to be launched” Chase Carey, Chief Operating Officer of 21st Century Fox, said. However in terms of studio revenue, there was a 9% increase to $2.12 billion in the past quarter, partially attributed to the sale of popular TV series New Girl to Netflix and strong movie releases such as The Wolverine and The Heat, although neither compared to last year’s blockbuster Ice Age: Continental Drift. [7]
CURRENT NEWS
Via IMP Awards [16]
In Theaters now: 20th Century Fox recently released the young adult film The Book Thief on November 8, 2013, based on the best-selling novel. It tells of the journey of a young adopted girl, Liesel, and her life-changing experiences during World War II in Nazi-occupied Germany. Because of the film’s heavy theme and need to find its niche audience, it is being released gradually. Over opening weekend it was only released in four theaters (two in New York and two in LA), the second weekend it opened in 29 theatres, and its major release will be November 27, over Thanksgiving weekend. [12] The film ranked #30 in terms of gross total and has made a total of $569,000 thus far, although greater success after its main release is highly anticipated. [11] On the same day The Book Thief was released, another 20th Century Fox motion picture, 12 Years A Slave, took box offices by storm. It is the story of Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, who is sold into slavery in the antebellum south. The movie is in its 5th week and ranks #8 on top grossing movies on the past weekend. It has made nearly 25 million dollars and is showing in 1,411 theatres. [11]
Past successes of the quarter include the drug trafficking thriller The Counselor (which currently ranks #18 in its 4th week) which has made $16,582,000. Ben Affleck and Justin Timberlake’s Runner Runner came in third in its opening weekend, after Gravity and Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs. Although it did not receive much praise from the critics, Runner Runner’s international release helped its numbers greatly. It grossed a domestic total of over 19 million dollars and adding this to its foreign box office totals, the film has earned over 60 million dollars. [14]
[17] via Chicago Now
Other films released this year include the indie teen romance The Spectacular Now, comedy The Internship, and 3-D animated kids movie Epic. In 2012, 20th Century Fox hits included Life Of Pi, Lincoln, and Diary Of Wimpy Kid: Dog Days. [13]
WHAT’S TO COME?
Walking With Dinosaurs: The 3D Movie and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty will finish out 20th Century Fox’s releases of 2013. For 2014, Devil’s Due, Son of God, Mr. Peabody & Sherman, The Maze Runner, the extremely expensive sequels X-Men: Days of Future Past, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, are all in store. [13]
20th Century Fox recently began discussing plans for the creation of a theme park near Miami Florida’s Zoo, after its recent agreement to create one in Malaysia. The plan would consist of 70 acres of a traditional “Orlando-style” amusement park with rides and attractions themed around the studio’s recent hit movies, such as Rio, Ice Age, Life of Pi, and Night at the Museum. There would be a separate 16-acre water park, an expansive hotel, a movie theater (used for Fox film premiers), a concert hall, a shopping strip, and a sports park. The cost of the park is 1 billion dollars, although Fox is only looking to pay $800 million of it, and hopes Miami-Dade County can fund the rest. Although nothing is finalized yet, Fox projects a dual-phased opening, one in 2018 and one in 2020. [15]
SOURCES:
[1] The Studio Tour – Fox Timeline
[2] 20th Century Fox – Directory of Services
[3] BusinessWeek FOXA – Private Company Information
[4] Paid Content Article – News Corporation Split
[5] Fox Studio Chart – Box Office Mojo
[7] News Corporation Split via The Guardian
[8] FOXA Stock graphs on MarketWatch.com
[9] Kell, John. Market Watch: 21st Century Fox profit drops 44%; Sales Gain
[10] Photos via Blog The Empress of Dress
[11] Box Office Mojo – Fox Weekend Chart Movies
[12] Background on The Book Thief via Yahoo! Entertainment News
[13] www.foxmovies.com – Fox main website
[14] IMDb Page – Runner Runner
[15] Munzenreider, Ken. 20th Century Fox Has Plans for Major Theme Park Near Zoo Miami via miaminewtimes.com
[16] The Book Thief Photo via IMP Awards
[17] Runner Runner Photo
By Jacob Warren
DreamWorks SKG Studios Logo [1]
DreamWorks Studios Entrance [2]
Key Executives
Steven Spielberg [3] Founder & Principal Partner
Stacey Snider [4] Co-Chairman & CEO
Jeff Small [5] President & COO
DreamWorks Studios was founded in 1994 by filmmaker Steven Spielberg, animation specialist Jeffrey Katzenberg and recording industry expert David Geffen. The three
![DreamWorks Logo [6]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/dwLogo_News.png)
DreamWorks Logo [6]
founders initially planned to create DreamWorks as a diversified media firm, however they quickly realized that this was the wrong approach and transformed DreamWorks into a television and film developing, producing and distributing powerhouse. The partners sold DreamWorks to Viacom in 2005 and the majority of DreamWorks Studios’ films are now marketed and distributed by Walt Disney Studios. [6] [7]
Company Overview
![Company Sign [21]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/7842082_600x338.jpg)
Company Sign [7.5]
DreamWorks Studios is a mini-major motion picture company led by Steven Spielberg in partnership with the Reliance ADA group. DreamWorks develops and produces films and television programming with a goal of releasing or producing a minimum of five to six films each year. Since its inception, DreamWorks Studios has produced and developed over 75 motion pictures including three consecutive Academy Award Best Pictures in 1999, 2000 and 2001. With distribution outlets in North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and Russia, DreamWorks’ success in the film industry prompted the company to split into two separate entities in 2004, DreamWorks Studios and DreamWorks Animation. [8]
Financials
Unlike DreamWorks Animation, DreamWorks Studios has remained a privately held company and is not required to release financial statements to the public. However, significant financial information about the company is available through research. Initially funded by the three founders who each contributed $33 million, DreamWorks was also initially capitalized by an investment of $500 million from Microsoft co-Founder, Paul Allen. Despite earning Academy Awards for Best Picture in 1999, 2000 and 2001, nu-
![Reliance ADA Media Logo [22]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/reliance-media-works-large-logo.jpg){kind=logo}
Reliance ADA Media Logo [8.5]
merous box office flops resulted in a $400+ million debt for the film company, which nearly declared bankruptcy twice. In February 2006 DreamWorks and Viacom agreed to terms that awarded Viacom control of DreamWorks Studios for an approximate $1.5 billion. Viacom assumed DreamWorks’ debt, however Viacom’s film distribution company, Paramount Pictures, also acquired DreamWorks’ film library that was valued at $900 million. [9] In 2008, DreamWorks ended its distribution deal with Paramount Pictures and inked another $1.5 billion deal with one of India’s largest media companies, Reliance ADA Group, which now owns 50% of the DreamWorks Studios. JP Morgan executives Clark Hallren and Alan Levine guided Reliance Media’s formulation of a business plan for DreamWorks Studios. [10]
Early Filmography
Although considered a mini-major film company, DreamWorks competes with major film studios. In 1997, DreamWorks released its first film, The Peacemaker. After several smaller films, DreamWorks made a significant impact in 1998 with the release of Saving
![Battlefield scene from 'The Pacific' [23]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/the-pacific-03.jpg)
Battlefield scene from ‘The Pacific’ [10.5]
Private Ryan, featuring Tom Hanks. Grossing just under $500 million, the film was nominated for 11 Academy Awards. DreamWorks Studios’ success was just beginning. During the next three years DreamWorks Studios films won Best Picture for American Beauty (1999), Gladiator (2000) and A Beautiful Mind (2001), bringing in over $1 billion and 14 Academy Awards. DreamWorks Studios also enjoyed success in television with the HBO 10-part mini series, ‘The Pacific’ (2010). The series was nominated for 23 Emmy Awards, winning eight. [6]
Right Here. Right Now.
Radical Changes
Despite its film and television success, by 2012 DreamWorks Studios was losing tens of millions of dollars a year. In 2013, the founders began streamlining operations to focus on improving profits. Although DreamWorks has its history as a Hollywood film
!['Lincoln' DreamWorks film co-financed by 20th Century Fox [24]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/lincoln-movie-2012.jpg)
‘Lincoln’ DreamWorks film co-financed with 20th Century Fox [10.6]
company, the studio began slashing budgets and transitioning to more of an independent film company. Beginning by reducing annual films in production from six to two, they tightened film schedules from 60-days to 40-days as well as keeping film budgets under $30 million. DreamWorks now utilizes co-financing on almost all of its films to reduce its financial risk and has slashed its work force from 120 employees to a lean 80. [11]
2013 Film Releases
!['The Fifth Estate' film released in 2013. [25]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/FifthEstate.jpg)
‘The Fifth Estate’ film released in 2013. [11.5]
With DreamWorks’ new business plan they now have the flexibility to release three or four films a year. This year, DreamWorks produced and released three new films. The first, ‘The Fifth Estate’, released on October 18, 2013, chronicles the demise of the company WikiLeaks. The film “reveals the quest to expose the deceptions and corruptions of power that turned an Internet upstart into the 21st century’s most fiercely debated organization.” Although a popular and compelling story, the film has yet to earn a fraction of its $28 million budget, only earning $3 million domestically to date. [12] [13]
The second film being released this Friday, November 22, 2013 is the comedy ‘Delivery Man’ featuring Vince Vaughn. This heavily marketed film presents the story of underachiever David Wozniak, whose uneventful life gets turned upside down when he finds out that he unintentionally fathered 533 children via sperm donations that he made in his youth. [14] [15]
The final film that DreamWorks has finished production on this year is the action-packed ‘Need For Speed’. A spinoff of the popular video game series set to release March 14,
!['Need For Speed' action scene (2014). [26]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/need-for-speed-movie.jpg)
‘Need For Speed’ action scene (2014). [15.5]
2013 Acquisitions
Along with slashing budgets and modifying business plans, DreamWorks Studios has focused on purchasing rights to popular literary works. Early in 2013, they obtained the rights to Richard C. Morais’s best-selling novel, ‘The One-Hundred Foot Journey’. The film went into production on October 9, 2013 and is scheduled for release on August 8, 2014. Also in October 2013, DreamWorks Studios acquired an untitled pitch from screenwriting
![Goodwin's best seller 'The Bully Pulpit' [27]](https://bejone03.expressions.syr.edu/trf235/files/2013/10/the_bully_pulpit.jpg)
Goodwin’s best seller ‘The Bully Pulpit’ [18.5]
brothers Phil and Scott Rosenberg. “Plot details are being kept under wraps, but sources describe the film as a ‘modern-day-mission movie’ with a supernatural twist. [18]” Industry experts are waiting to see if DreamWorks will put the pitch into production. The most recent purchase occurred on October 30, 2013 when DreamWorks acquired the film rights to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin’s recently released book, The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism. Goodwin and DreamWorks successfully collaborated on the 2012 film ‘Lincoln’ which grossed over $275 million. [19] [20]
Sources:
[1] Broadwayworld.com: DreamWorks logo image
[2] Communitybranding.com: DreamWorks entrance image
[3] DreamWorks: Steven Spielberg image/bio
[4] DreamWorks: Stacey Snider image/bio
[5] DreamWorks: Jeff Small image/bio
[6] DreamWorks: Film history/image
[7] LA Times: DreamWorks & Walt Disney Studios deal
[7.5] ABClocal.go.com: Company sign image
[8] Google Articles: DreamWorks & Reliance Media deal
[8.5] Variety: Reliance ADA Group image
[9] Hollywood.com: Paramount buys DreamWorks
[10] Reuters: Reliance ADA Group deal
[10.5] Skymovies.com: ‘The Pacific’ scene image
[10.6] Gcmag.org: ‘Lincoln’ film image
[11] Hollywood Reporter: DreamWorks new business plan
[11.5] Benedictcumberpatch.co: ‘The Fifth Estate’ image
[12] DreamWorks: ‘Fifth Estate’ snapshot
[13] Contactmusic.com: WikiLeaks reaction to film
[14] DreamWorks: ‘Delivery Man’ snapshot
[15] Rotten Tomatoes: ‘Delivery Man’ Analysis
[15.5] Collider.com: ‘Need For Speed’ image
[16] DreamWorks: ‘Need For Speed’ snapshot
[17] IMDb: ‘Need For Speed’ Info
[18] Variety: Rosenberg script acquired
[18.5] Hollywood Reporter: Doris Goodwin’s best-seller image
[19] Movie Insider: Recent DreamWorks Acquisitions
[20] DreamWorks: Acquisition of best-seller
(Total Sources: 27)
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp
10201 West Pico Boulevard,
Los Angeles, California 90035
Mail: P.O. Box 900,
Beverly Hills, California 90213
Phone: 310-277-2211
Fax: 310-203-1558
www.foxmovies.com [1]
20th Century Fox’s iconic logo.
20th Century Fox is a film production and distribution company under Fox Entertainment
Recent Best Picture winner, Life of Pi, is a 20th Century Fox film.
Group which is a part of the media conglomerate, News Corporation. The company releases about 14 films a year many of which have been very successful [1]. 20th Century Fox formed in 1935 and has been one of the top film studios for almost a hundred years [2]. The subsidiary companies to 20th Century Fox include Fox 2000 Pictures, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Fox International Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Animation and Blue Sky Studios [1]. 20th Century Fox is most notably responsible for James Cameron’s films Avatar and Titanic as well as classics such as the Star Wars series, Home Alone, the Ice Age series, Independence Day, The Sound of Music, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and hundreds more [4].
Fox Searchlight’s logo
Fox Searchlight is a speciality division under 20th Century Fox. The company tends to release smaller budget, niche-genre films. Many of Fox Searchlight’s films have earned Academy Award nominations and wins such as Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, Slumdog Millionaire, The Descendants, and Black Swan [4].
Rupert Murdoch
News Corp’s current share price is $30.9 up 36.6% from 19.58 at this time last year. Their revenue for the year 2012 was $34.33 billion a 2% increase from their 2011 revenue of $33.4 billion [3].
This graph represents the share price of News Corp stock since 2008 [9].
Fox Searchlight is currently 16th in the market with a .2% of the market share. It has currently grossed $4.5 million at the box office with the release of 4 films so far this year. Searchlight finished 2012 grossing $117.8 million, down 22.7% from the 2011 gross of $152.4 million. For 2012, Fox Searchlight was 12th in the market a slight decline from their 2011 position of 11th in the market. In 2012 they released 10 movies and in 2011 they released 11, most likely causing the decline in profits [4].
The Weinstein Company is independently owned unlike most studios that fall under a media conglomerate.
20th Century Fox competes most closely with the five other major studios (Columbia Pictures, Warner Bros, Disney, Universal, and Paramount.) Universal is currently number one in the market, followed by the Weinstein Company, and Buena Vista. Universal has only released 2 films so far this year, one being the successful film, Identity Theif, and have still been experiencing profits from their late 2012 releases including the award winner Les Miserables. Beuna Vista released the high grossing, Oz The Great and Powerful. The recent wild success of the Weinstein Company has caused it to become more comprable in profits to 20th Century Fox than to Fox Searchlight though they release similar types of films. This has largely been due to their award winning films Django Unchained and Silver Linings Playbook. 20th Century Fox has held a high position in the market due to the success of The Croods. Other 2013 releases inclue Broken City and A Good Day to Die Hard [4].
After a phone hacking scandal in 2011 and increased pressure from shareholders, News Corp will be splitting into two separate companies mid-2013. 20th Century Fox and all other Fox brands will become a part of a new company titled Fox Group. The publishing side of the company will remain News Corporation. Fox Group is slated to be led by Chase Carey, president and chief operating officer, Rupert Murdoch, chief executive and chairman, and James Murdoch, who will serve as the deputy chief operating officer [6]. Due to this split, 20th Century Fox’s co-chairman Tom Rothman will be resigning, leaving co-chairman, Jim Gianopolus, to lead the entire film division [11].
The 2013 release of The Croods has been notable for more than just its success at the box
office. The film is the first to be released under DreamWorks Animation and 20th Century Fox’s new partnership. Formerly, DreamWorks films were distributed by Paramount but the two companies ended this agreement late last year. This new deal has been very profitable for 20th Century Fox, as The Croods grossed $44.7 million in its opening weekend alone [7].
20th Century Fox and Blue Sky Studios are currently preparing for the release of the film Epic. Director, Chris Wedge, known for the Ice Age films, claims that Epic shows both technological advancement and genre evolution for Blue Sky [12]. The companies are heavily promoting the film that is set to release in May. Teaming up with Rite-Aid, the film will be an official charity partner of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals [13].
20th Century Fox is taking initiative to lead the industry in the new medium of digital media. In September, the Home Entertainment division decided
to release digital copies of the film Prometheus three weeks before the DVD and Blu-ray release. In attempt to make online films more accessible and affordable, the company is also moving to dispel online piracy. 20th Century Fox is the first of the major studios to place such high importance on the release of digital content, calling the initiative Digital HD. Fox will release all recent films on Digital HD in addition to the effort to have over 600 Fox titles available on other digital platforms [8]. 20th Century Fox as well as other studios are currently in a prolonged legal battle with Google due to online piracy issues. The companies are requesting Google to remove links to pirated content but Google is responding by publishing the requests from these companies with direct links to the pirated content. This phenomenon is being called “copyright irony.” [14]
Fox Searchlight recently announced that it will be releasing the upcoming film, Twelve Years A Slave, rather than the parent company 20th Century Fox. The Steve McQueen film features Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, and the young Quvenzhane Wallis. It will premier in December [10]. Fox Searchlight currently has two films in theaters: Danny Boyle’s thriller Trance and Chan-wook Park’s Stoker which experienced festival success [10].
[1] http://www.newscorp.com/management/20film.html
[2] http://www.cobbles.com/simpp_archive/zanuck-schenck.htm
[3] http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=NWS+Key+Statistics
[4] http://www.boxofficemojo.com/studios
[5] TRF 235 Lecture Notes: Barbara Jones, Class 2
[6] http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/03/news-corp-announces-its-corporate-split-and-the-closing-of-the-daily/
[7] http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/25/movies/the-croods-and-olympus-has-fallen-lead-the-box-office.html?_r=2&
[8] http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/20th-century-fox-s-mary-daily-taking-digital-lead/238751/
[9] http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=NWS+Interactive#symbol=nws;range=20080103,20130401;compare=;indicator=volume;charttype=area;crosshair=on;ohlcvalues=0;logscale=off;source=undefined;
[10] www.foxsearchlight.com
[11] http://www.medialifemagazine.com/people-9-17-12/
[12] http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=101806
[13] http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1149205
[14] http://businessofcinema.com/hollywood/twentieth-century-fox-and-others-in-piracy-battle-with-google/71643
[15] http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/people.asp?privcapId=35867
1.http://www.foxstudios.com/data/image/teasers/category_bg_home.jpg
2.https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/495817344/FoxLogo_FanfareVersion.jpg
3.http://www.impawards.com/2012/posters/life_of_pi.jpg
4.http://www.foxsearchlight.com/media/blog_post_images/fsl_logo2.jpg
5. http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/files/2010/09/rupert-murdoch.jpg
6. http://cdn.pastemagazine.com/www/articles/2010/11/19/weinstein.jpg?1290168446
7. http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BODU3NzI5ODc1NV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODQ2NDU1OA@@._V1_SX214_.jpg
8. http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/threatlevel/2011/09/FBI_Anti-Piracy_Warning.jpeg
by Adam Kloos
News Corporation
Fox Broadcasting Station
[1][2]
Contact Information [3]:
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY, 10036 United States
(212)-852-7000
http://www.newscorp.com
Key Executives [6]:
Rupert Murdoch, Chairman and CEO
[7]
Rupert Murdoch is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of News Corporation. He is very active within the company and continues to expand into new media outlets.
Jose Maria Anzar, President
[9]
Jose Maria Aznar is the president of News Corporation and former Prime Minister of Spain.
Chase Carey, President and COO
[10]
Chase Carey is the President and Chief Operating Officer of News Corporation.
Natalie Bancroft, Director
[11]
Natalie Bancroft is the Director of Newscorp. She is part of the Bancroft family that used to own the Dow Jones Media [5].
Gaude Lydia Paez, Vice President of Corporate Communications
[12]
Gaude Lydia Paez is the Vice President of Corporate Communications at FOX Broadcasting Company.
Overview:
News Corporation is a corporation made up of a large number of various media businesses. News Corporation has assets in film, magazine, newspapers, direct satellite television, news, cable broadcasting, cable programming, television programming and broadcast, as well as sports teams and social media [4]. The media conglomerate was created and is currently under control of Rupert Murdoch, who according to Forbes is the 26th most powerful person in the world and the 91st richest[5]. News Corporation currently operates on 5 continents that include North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia [8]. Their main competitors include CBS, NBC/Comcast, and Disney. The FOX Broadcasting Company was launched in 1986 as a fourth broadcast station that has been largely successful in competing with the Big Three. It owns 27 different stations in the US and many more internationally. Throughout the early 2000s until 2012 FOX was the number one watched station by young adults, 18-49 [13].
History:
The history of News Corporation stretches back to 1952, when Rupert Murdoch inherited ‘The Adelaide News,’ a newspaper company his father owned. After returning from school to run the company, Murdoch greatly improved its profits. From there he acquired a number of other newspapers throughout Australia and New Zealand before eventually moving to the British market in the mid-60s. In 1973 he turned his attention to the US where he began buying up American newspaper publishers. In 1980 he announced the creation of News Corporation as a global holding company [4].
In 1985, News Corporation acquired 50% of TCF Holdings which was the parent company of 20th Century Fox. In 1986, 20th Century Fox launched FOX, an alternative to the already existing broadcast stations ABC, CBS, and NBC [14]. In the early 90s, FOX signed a contract with the NFL, giving them the rights to broadcast NFL games on Sundays. Today FOX continues to be the preferred station of youner adults with popular shows such as The Simpsons, American Idol, Glee, Family Guy, Bones, and The X Factor [15].
What They Are Doing Presently?
In 2011, News Corporation was caught in a huge phone-hacking scandal that involved the family of a murdered British school girl by News of the World. There were also accusations of phone-hackings of the London subway bombing victims, families of deceased British soldiers, and an FBI investigation of possible phone-hackings of 9/11 victims. As a result of this, Rupert Murdoch shut down publication of the magazine, News of the World in England and 12 people were arrested. This scandal also caused the company to withdraw a $12 billion bid for shares of British Sky Broadcasting [16]. The arrests and investigation continued into late 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIZNXZVNk74
Apart from the scandal, News Corporation announced in 2012 that they plan to split into two publicly traded holding companies. One division would take care of all film and television assets including 20th Century Fox film studio, Fox Broadcasting Company, and Fox News. The other would have control over the company’s publishing division that includes The Times of London, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Post. Rupert Murdoch would remain chairman of both companies while Chase Carey would remain Chief Operating Officer of the entertainment and media company [17].
What Are Their Plans For The Future?:
Disney and News Corp. are currently in negotiations over the video streaming service Hulu. Jason Kilar, the current CEO of Hulu is planning to leave his postion, and the interim CEO for now is senior vice-president Andy Forssell. Once News Corp. and Disney finalize their negotiations, a permanent CEO will be named to take over Hulu. There has been recent talk of both Disney and News Corp. planning to buy out each others stake in the company. Both companies admitted that Hulu was losing money due to the high costs of liscensing television shows and computer servers [18].
Fox Broadcasting Company is looking forward to “Fox Now,” a collection of apps for mobile devices. These apps allow audiences to view their favorite FOX shows and allow viewers to be more interactive with the content. “T-Commerce” is part of the “Fox Now” app that enables viewers to shop online while watching the show New Girl. The items from the show such as clothing and other paraphenelia would be available to audiences in real time [13].
Programming:
American Idol, 2002-present
[19]
American Idol has been a long running success on the Fox network. It first aired in 2002 and had been the number one watched show for eight consecutive seasons through 2011. The show is very interactive with the audience because the millions of viewers get to decide which contestants get to move on to the next round each week, before eventually choosing the winner [20].
The SImpsons, 1989-present
[21]
The Simpsons is the longest running prime-time animated comedy series in the history of television. Created by Matt Groening in 1989, it is currently in its 24th season. The show focuses on the lives of a dysfunctional lower class family in Springfield. The show is typically family friendly [22].
Family Guy, 1999-present
[23]
Family Guy was created by Seth McFarlanein 1999. Family Guy has remained a hit on Fox since that time and gained an undeniable cult following. Also focusing on the lives of a dysfuncitonal working class family, this show contains content for more mature audiences with it’s slapstick and often raunchy humor. The show is currently in its 11th season [22].
Financials:
By the end of 2012, News Corporation had assets that equaled out to $63 billion and saw a revenue of $34 billion, the highest it had ever been. This was up from 2011 by about $500 million. The increase in revenue can be attributed to its deals with Netflix and Amazon.com for its sitcoms and films [6]. Currently a share of News Corporation is $30.68 [24]. This is improved from exactly one year ago when a share was going for $23.18. Stockholders have been pleased with the strong growth over the past few years, especially the 2011-2012 fiscal year.
Works Cited
2. http://www.zenithotimedia.blogspot.com
4. http://www.corporatewatch.org
9. http://www.en.mediamass.net
10. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com
13. http://www.thefutoncritic.com
14. http://www.thehistoryofcorporate.com
21. http://www.collegiatetimes.com
by Jacqueline Grossman
Courtesy of www.aenetworks.com
A&E Overview
A&E Television Networks is a privately held media company located in New York City that owns and operates 10 channels that are available by both cable and satellite. The network’s channels reach more than 300 million households in 150 countries, producing content in 35 different languages [1]. Its mission involves bringing human stories to life, knowing full well that quality entertainment can come straight from real-world experiences. Lifetime Television, its flagship network, is the most powerful media brand targeted to women, with shows such as Dance Moms and Project Runway. Since its launch in February, 1984, Lifetime has grown significantly, reaching nearly 98 million households today [2]. In addition to this station, the A&E television channel itself offers a mix of reality-based programming and documentaries while its History, Military History, and History 2 channels air original programs on historical topics. The company also operates sister networks such as Crime & Investigation Network and The Biography Channel. It has international networks in the UK and Asia. [3].
History
AETN was formed in 1983 as a joint venture between Hearst, Walt Disney, and NBCUniversal (NBCU). The company launched Lifetime in 1984, followed by the History Channel, History Channel International, and The Biography Channel in 1995 and 1998, respectively. Throughout its history, the network has achieved incredible success, for instance in 2004 when it won 24 Emmy nominations and in 2008, when HISTORY (renamed from The History Channel) became the #1 cable network in primetime among the target demographic: adults 18-49. A&E continues to demonstrate success through its new reality television shows Duck Dynasty, Storage Wars, and Hoarders. In July of last year, NBC sold its 15.8 percent stake of A&E to Hearst and Walt Disney for $3.03 billion. [1]
Key Executives
Abbe Raven, courtesy of www.aenetworks.com
Abbe Raven has been the President and CEO of A&E Television Networks since March 2005. Before overseeing all A&E holdings, she was part of the original team that launched the History Channel and reinvented A&E (channel) in 2003. Ms. Raven is a firm believer in the motto “slow and steady wins the race,” having started as a secretary for A&E and learned the business from the bottom up. Today, she is an award-winning President and CEO who has been named one of the Top 5 Most Powerful Women in Entertainment by The Hollywood Reporter. [1]
Gerard Gruosso, courtesy of www.aenetworks.com
As, Executive VP, Finance and CFO, Gerard Gruosso is responsible for the management of A&E’s accounts, budgets, and strategic planning. He also oversees the network’s facilities and information management. Mr. Gruosso has been with A&E since 1985, beginning as Assistant Controller, working his way up to Controller and Vice President, and eventually reaching his current position. [1]
Nancy Dubuc, courtesy of www.aenetworks.com
President, Entertainment and Media Nancy Dubuc oversees the creation and development of A&E’s brand and marketing in addition to managing A&E International and A&E Digital. Before transitioning to this position, Ms. Dubuc previously served as the President and General Manager of HISTORY and Lifetime Networks. [1]
Dan Suratt, courtesy of www.aenetworks.com
Six-time Emmy Award-winner Dan Suratt is the Executive VP, Digital Media and Business Development. He handles the network’s business negotiations and digital distribution. As a result of his efforts, Mr. Suratt has doubled A&E’s site traffic to 22 million visitors per month. [1]
Competitors
A&E’s top three competitors are Discovery Communications, Inc., MTV Networks Company, and AMC Networks Inc. [4]
Company News
January
Lifetime Television was off to a great start in the first month of 2013. It’s original movie, Prosecuting Casey Anthony, generated great success for the channel; it ranked as the number one telecast across ad-supported cable in total viewers, adults 18+, women 18+, women 25-54, and women 18-49 on the night it premiered. The movie—which starred Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee Rob Lowe—was the first opportunity to recount the infamous Casey Anthony trial. It is from the perspective of Jeff Ashton, the Florida prosecutor who was involved in the case and provides details on his aggressive investigation of Caylee Anthony’s death. [10]
February
Duck Dynasty, courtesy of www.aetv.com
A&E’s unexpected hit, Duck Dynasty, became the channel’s number 1 telecast ever and number one nonfiction series on cable in 2013. The show follows the lives of the Roberson family members, owners of Duck Commander, a business that makes products for duck hunters. Its season three premiere earned a total of 8.6 million viewers, ranking ahead of FOX’s American Idol. What is it that distinguishes this series from other “redneck” reality shows like Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, Swamp Pawn, and Buckwild? Television critics argue that it comes down to the characters themselves. The Robersons are savvy, educated businessmen with diverse yet endearing personalities. In addition, the show flows at a relaxed pace and is suitable for family audiences. [11][12]
March
Nielsen ratings for cable network TV shows, courtesy of www.nielsen.com
A&E received more great news in March. Its A&E television channel had its best quarter in history among total viewers and adults 25-54, soaring past the previously record-setting first quarter 2012. One of the key reasons for this success is the increase in well-received original series that aired in the first quarter of 2013, specifically Bates Motel, Duck Dynasty, and Storage Wars. Due to these shows, the network was up 2% in adults 25-54 (835,000 vs. 819,000) and up 6% in total viewers (1.7 million vs.1.6 million). March was the most watched month in the quarter, and it was the first time A&E averaged more than one million viewers age 25-54 in a single month. These records have propelled A&E up to become the fourth ranked most-watched cable network in all three demographics this March (18-49, 25-54, and total viewers). [8]
Vikings, the History Channel’s new show, courtesy of www.history.com
The History Channel enjoyed success from its first scripted series, Vikings. The hit drama explores the adventure, bloodshed, and passion that existed during the Dark Ages, all through the eyes of the Vikings. Vikings is special in that it not only celebrates the excitement of warfare but also demonstrates the strength of familial ties. According to the network, Vikings attracted 4.8 million total viewers, with 2.2 million adults 25-54 and 1.9 million adults 18-49. These ratings made Vikings the most-watched cable series in its timeslot. [9]
April
Storage Wars, courtesy of www.aetv.com
One of A&E’s most popular television shows, Storage Wars, is returning on April 16th with a full series of 24 episodes, despite the network’s participation in lawsuits with former show star Dave Hester. The hit series premiered in 2010 and features teams of auctioneers looking to “hit it big” by purchasing the contents of storage facilities after inspecting it for a short amount of time. Hester took the network to court claiming the show is staged; he argued that the show’s producers knew what items were in which storage locker and used this knowledge to rig the bidders’ fates. [6] Even with this controversy, Storage Wars ranked as A&E’s number one series among adults aged 18-49 and 25-54. It also achieved the number three rating for non-fiction show on cable among adults aged 25-54. Last year, the show averaged 4.2 million total viewers. [7] Click here for a link to this season’s trailer.
Contact A+E
Website: http://www.aenetworks.com/
Address: 235 E. 45th St. New York, NY, 10017 United States
Telephone: (212) 210-1400
Works Cited
1. About A&E Networks – bringing human stories to life
2. Lifetime
3. A&E International Information
7. Storage Wars
8. A&E Scores Best Quarter in Network History
9. Vikings
by Victoria Pane
[14]
Sinclair Broadcasting Group Inc. is one of the largest broadcast companies to date. SBG owns and operates programs or provides sales services to 112 TV stations that span 61 markets nationwide. Sinclair Broadcasting Group reaches about 29.8% of U.S. TV households. Station affiliates include FOX, ABC, MyTV, CW, CBS, NBC, MTN and Azteca.
Headquarters Address: 10706 Beaver Dam Road, Hunt Valley, Maryland 21030
Telephone– (410)-568-1500
Social Media- Facebook LinkedIn
[15]
Executives
David Smith– Chief Executive Officer
David Amy-Chief Financial Officer
Steven Marks– Chief Operating Officer
Barry Faber-Executive Vice President
David Bochenek-Chief Accounting Officer
History
Located in Hunts Valley, Maryland, the Chesapeake Television Corporation was founded by Julian Sinclair Smith in 1971. Station ownership started in Baltimore (WBFF), Pittsburgh (WPTT/WPMY) and Columbus (WTTE). The last of the remaining stocks were bought by Smith’s four son is 1985 and since then the company has been named Sinclair Broadcasting Group. David B. Smith has served as
President and CEO since 1988, while the other three brothers hold various executive positions. With the help of the brothers the company has done nothing but grow in audience size and content range. The year 1995 changed it all when the company became publicly traded. Sinclair owns the majority of its stations, but they do operate some affiliates for the networks using local marketing agreements.
Picture above[16]
See all stations under Sinclair’s control here
Picture Right [17]
Recent News
Since the beginning of the New Year SBG has been placing new General Managers in many of its markets across the country. On January 2, 2013. Noreen Parker was named GM of WTTA-TV (MY TV Tampa Bay) in Tampa, Florida. On January 3rd Sinclair announced that Jim Lapiana would be the new GM of WPGH-TV (Fox 53) and WPMY-TV (MNT 22) in Pittsburgh. Also on January 3rd Ronna Corrente was named GM of WDKY-TV (Fox 31) in Lexington, Kentucky. And lastly on March 7th, Terry Gaughan was named GM of WCGV-TV (My 24) and WVTV-TV (CW 18) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Another major piece of employee news is Steve Pruett joined senior management team as Chief Operating Officer of Chesapeake TV. Pruett has meny years of experience in the media, up until recently he was the CEO of Communication Corporations of America (CCA). Along with being the COO of Sinclair Television Group in the mid-sized market, Marks will also oversee the Company’s most recent strategy for small markets.
During February, Sinclair Broadcasting Group made a deal hoping to create initiative for small market television. The company signed an agreement to purchase stock and broadcasting assets of four television stations owned by COX Media Group. The deal was set for $99 million. These stations operate four different markets and reach about 0.9% of U.S. TV households. David Smith, President and CEO of Sinclair was quoted: “Over the past 18 months, we have led the industry’s consolidation efforts in the mid-sized markets, purchasing 30 TV stations and creating over $400 million of equity value. We believe our platform size and leadership position allow us to bring meaningful purchasing power and negotiating leverage to these stations. Including synergies, we believe the CMG stations can generate approximately $20 million of cash flow, on average.”
[6]
Also in February of this year, Sinclair reached an agreement with DirecTV regarding the retransmission consent agreement. They have entered a short-term extension to the existing contract so that both parties will be able to enter into a formal agreement. In conclusion, DirecTV will continue to carry all of Sinclair’s stations.
On February 28th SBG announced an agreement to purchase 18 television stations owned by Barrington Broadcast Group, LLC for $370 million. It also entered agreements to operate or provide sales services for another six stations. These 24 stations are located in 15 different markets and reach 3.4% of U.S TV households. David Smith commented: “This week, we launched our small market television group when we announced we would be acquiring certain of the COX Media television stations. The Barrington stations are an important part of that strategy, providing meaningful scale to the group. Including synergies, we believe the Barrington stations can generate approximately $71 million of cash flow, on average.”
[8]
Conflicts with FCC ownership rules have forced Sinclair to sell its station WSYT (Fox) in Syracuse, NY and assign its local marketing agreement and purchasing option on WNYS (MNT) in Syracuse. The Company also sold its station WYZZ (Fox) in Peoria, IL. The license assets of four stations will be bought by Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation and Howard Stirk Holdings (newly formed and controlled by Armstrong Williams who is the founder and CEO of Graham Williams Group).
On April 2nd, SBG announced its full support of MobileDTV. Over the next six months, the Company will being to broadcast 10 mobile-cable signals in nine different markets. This is in partnership with Cunningham Broadcasting Company that broadcasts two stations in Columbus, Ohio (WSYX-TV and WTTE-TV). Consumers in these markets will be able to use MobileDTV on their smartphones or tablets to enjoy local over-the-air broadcasting for free simply by installing a plug-in adaptor. Sinclair has long been a mobile tv advocate has committed to offer some FOX affiliates on this developing platform. MobileDTV is expected to help with targeted advertising and the TV anywhere anytime for consumers.
Find a list of available stations and markets here.
SBGI Financial Reports
[13]
Sinclair announced its first quarter of 2013 estimates of a net broadcast revenue of about $251.9 millon to $254.9 millon. Also an EBITDA of approximately $90.3 million to $93.3 million. The Board of Directors declared a $0.15 dividend to all Class A and B stock holders as of close on March 1st, 2013. The dividend became payable on March 15th.
Listen to the First Quarter Earnings Webcast and Conference call here
Financial Events Calendar
May 1, 2013- First Quarter 2013 Earnings Report
June 6, 2013- Annual Shareholders Meeting
August 7, 2013- Second Quarter Earnings Report
November 6, 2013- Third Quarter 2013 Earnings Report
Industry Conferences
March 4-6 dbAccess Media, Internet and Telecom Conference Palm Beach, FL.
April 8-9 Wells Fargo Investor Forum at NAB Las Vegas, NV.
May 7-9 Jefferies 2013 Global Technology, Media and Telecom Conference The Westin, NYC
May 20-22 Barclay’s High Yield and Syndicated Loan Conference Chicago, IL.
May 30th– The Benchmark One on One Investor Conference Milwaukee, WI.
Sept 30-Oct 2 Deutsche Bank’s 21st Annual Leveraged Finance Conference Scottsdale AZ.
Sources
1.http://www.sbgi.net/about/history.shtml
2.http://www.sbgi.net/about/profile.shtml
3.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/Parker%20Tampa_kv9j79fq.shtml
4.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/Lapiana%20Pittsburgh_nf4w27hf.shtml
5.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/Corrente%20Lexington_y574z5b9.shtml
6.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/_q81qytdm.shtml
7.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/_8tv8hrf9.shtml
8.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/_7xfvjv6f.shtml
9.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/_vhm639mg.shtml
12.http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/MobileDTV13_t7j41d11.shtml
13.http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=SBGI.O
14/15.http://www.sbgi.net/
16.http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-david-smith-2010-photo,0,4271489.photo
S. Catherine McCabe
Sinclair Broadcasting Group
– Image courtesy of sbgi.net
Overview
The Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., based in Baltimore, Maryland, is a diverse television broadcasting company, which owns and operates over one hundred stations in over sixty markets around the country. It also provides programming and sales services for its stations under local market agreements (LMA), a concept that was pioneered by SBG in the 1990s. It reaches almost 30% of households in the United States and is one of the biggest broadcasting groups in the country. [1]
History
The Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., was founded in 1986 by the four sons of Julian Sinclair Smith, a pioneer in ultra high frequency (UHF) television broadcasting. Julian Smith started the company as the Chesapeake Television Corporation in 1971; under which name Sinclair broadcasted one of the first UHF stations in the country from their flagship station WBFF-TV. UHF broadcasting immediately became a major part in the television industry and started to become more involved with their father’s company in the 1980s.
Julian Smith’s sons began acquiring other UHF stations and quickly saw the Chesapeake Television Corporation become a major consolidator in the industry. The name was changed to the Sinclair Broadcast Group in 1985. In 1990 the Smith brothers bought the remaining shares of SBG, owned by their parents, and immediately began acquiring more stations. It was not long before SBG became one of the largest media distributers in the country. [2]
– Image courtesy of jhu.edu
Smith Brothers
David D. Smith
David D. Smith is currently serving as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sinclair Broadcast Group and has held the position since 1988. He was a major part it’s founding in 1986 and has help a position on the Board of Directors since. Before Sinclair, Smith was an officer and director at Comark Communications, a manufacturer of high power transmitters for UHF television companies, which he founded. [3]
Frederick G. Smith
Dr. Frederick G. Smith was an oral and maxillofacial surgeon before coming to Sinclair as the Vice President. He took that position in 1990 and has served on the Board of Directors since 1986. Dr. Smith also serves as a director or trustee of Sinclair Ventures, Inc., the Freven Foundation, Gerstell Academy, University of Maryland at Baltimore Foundation, St. Joseph’s Hospital, The Sinclair Relief Fund, Bay Television Inc., Cunningham Communications Inc., Gerstell Development, LP, Keyser Investment Group, Inc. and Beaver Dam, LLC. [3]
J. Duncan Smith
J. Duncan Smith who started off building and operating television stations in Pittsburgh, PA; Columbus, OH; Bloomington, IN; and multiple cities in Florida, now serves as the Vice President, Secretary and a Director of Sinclair. He has been with Sinclair since it’s founding in 1986. Before Sinclair, Duncan also worked with David at Comark Communications. [3]
Robert E. Smith
Robert E. Smith served as the Vice President and Treasurer of Sinclair from 1988 to 1998. he later resigned from this position to shift focus to a commercial real estate investment firm which he started. He still holds a position on the Board of Directors which he has held since 1986. Before Sinclair, Robert also worked at Comark Communications with his brothers. [3]
Affiliates
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
Sinclair has stations in over sixty markets across the country and they have agreements with 8 different networks. These include 27 FOX, 20 MyTV, 20 CW, 17 ABC, 15 CBS, 11 NBC, 1 Azteca and 1 Independent affiliate. [4]
Investments
In the past Sinclair has made very strategic investments over a variety of different industries. They currently hold interest in over five different companies. These include: [5]
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
– Image courtesy of sbgi.net
– Image courtesy of sbgi.net
Bay Creek a planned community on almost 1,800 acres surrounding Cape Charles.
-Image courtesy of sbgi.net
In Recent News
On May 21st, 2011 Sinclair announced the acquisition of the “Ring of Honor” wrestling franchise. It is the third largest wrestling promotion in the country. Sinclair believes their backing and the power of the relationship between television and wrestling will allow ROH to become a household brand. It will premiere on Sinclair’s vast network of stations, as well as access for people outside of their markets online. ROH will be led by Chief Operating Officer, Joe Koff who was previously the director of sales at Sinclair Broadcasting Group. [6]
On September 8th, 2011 it was announced that Sinclair would be purchasing Four Points Media group for $200 million from affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. In this deal they acquired seven different stations from five extremely strong markets in Salt Lake City, West Palm Beach Austin, Texas and Providence, Rhode Island. The acquisition was finalized in January 2012 when they finally received approval from the FCC. [7] [8]
On November 2nd, 2011 Sinclair purchased the broadcast assets of Freedom Communications for $385 million. Freedom Communications reaches over 2% of households over seven different markets. The FCC granted them approval for this deal on March 13, 2012 even though Sinclair had already been managing all of Freedom Communications’ stations since December of 2011. [9]
On February 28th, 2013, Sinclair acquired 24 stations from Barrington Broadcasting Group, LLC. for $370 million. Sinclair will buy 18 of the 24 stations and then will operate and provide sales services for the other 6 stations. They are currently waiting on approval of the FCC and antitrust clearance. However, due to FCC rules, Sinclair has chosen to sell it’s FOX affiliate in Syracuse, NY. They will then purchase a MNT affiliate in Syracuse under a local marketing agreement. Sinclair also announced the purchase certain COX Media stations. They are predicting the combination of these two deals will result in about $232 million of increased equity and $2.85 per share. [10]
Sinclair Broadcast Group has a history of struggling to come to retransmission agreements with the different cable providers. In the past they have had issues with both Time Warner Cable and Comcast and most recently they have finished negotiations with Dish Network and DirecTV. During their negotiations with the Dish Network, Sinclair threatened to black out over seventy channels if they did not come to an agreement by August 13, 2012. Dish Network claimed that Sinclair was charging more than any other broadcaster to carry their channels and Sinclair had doubts of whether or not they would be able to come to an agreement. They did not reach an agreement until August 16, 2012, but fortunately there was no lost signal during the extension. Similar circumstances surrounded their retransmission agreement with DirecTV, however they were able to come to an agreement just hours before 87 channels were due to go black. This deal was made on February 28, 2013. [11] [12]
Sources:
[1] SBG Company Profile http://www.sbgi.net/about/profile.shtml
[2] SBG History http://www.sbgi.net/about/history.shtml
[3] SBG Directors http://www.sbgi.net/corp_governance/directors.shtml
[4] SBG Affiliates http://www.sbgi.net/business/television.shtml
[5] SBG Investments http://www.sbgi.net/business/ventures.shtml
[6] SBG News Release- Ring of Honor Acquired http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/ROH-2_9c2yxbl4.shtml
[7] TV News Check- Four Points Media Acquisition http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/53840/sinclair-buys-four-points-media-for-200m
[8] TV News Check-Four Points Media Acquisition http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/56431/sinclair-closes-four-points-media-acquisition
[10] SBG News Release- Barrington Broadcast Acquisition http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/_7xfvjv6f.shtml
[11] The Daily News- Sinclair TV Blackout http://thedailynewsonline.com/news/article_6b4bfd54-e61e-11e1-8cf8-001a4bcf887a.html
[12] TV News Check- Sinclair and DirecTV deal http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/65829/sinclair-and-directv-make-retrans-deal
by Bria Holness
Photo courtesy of fanpop.com
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp
10201 West Pico Boulevard,
Los Angeles, California 90035
A Brief History
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, also known as 20th Century Fox, was established on May 31, 1935 when the founders of Fox Film Corporation and Twentieth Century Pictures decided to merge into one. It is now one of the major American film studios that produces, acquires, and distributes motion pictures. Based in Los Angeles, California, it operates as a subsidiary of Fox Entertainment Group Inc. and is responsible for some of the top grossing movies, including Avatar and Titanic. [1] [2]
Quick Financials
During the first quarter, which encompasses the months of January, February, and March, 20th Century Fox brought in a gross income of $256.9 million, a 13.7% decrease in comparison to the first quarter of 2012; however, this is also an 123.7% increase in comparison to 2011. [19]
Key Executives
Keith Rupert Murdoch
Photo courtesy of biography.com
Murdoch is the founder of News Corporation, in which 20th Century Fox is a subsidiary of, and has been its Chairman since 1991. Since 1992, Murdoch has been the Chairman of Fox Entertainment Group Inc. and its Chief Executive Officer since 1995. He operates as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. [2]
Eduardo Echeverria
Photo courtesy of variety.com
Echeverria is Senior Vice President of Latin America at Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation and has served as so since 2001. [2] Echeverria manages the sales and marketing operations and theatrical distribution for all Fox Filmed Entertainment product in Latin America. [2]
Michael Peikoff
Since July 1, 2007, Peikoff has been Senior Vice President of Licensing and Merchandising of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. His duties include managing internal and external communication for the licensing division and managing retail marketing and licensed promotion initiatives in the U.S. [2]
Robert Marick
Photo courtesy of licensing.biz
As Executive Vice President since July of 2010, Marick manages the global licensing of Fox’s television and film assets across different platforms including television promotions, interactive gaming, literary publishing, themed entertainment, and consumer products. [2]
Ricardo Crespo
Photo courtesy of centralpa.aiga.org
Crespo has served as Senior Vice President of Global Creative at Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation since July 2010. [2] Prior to joining the 20th Century Fox team, Crespo held several leadership positions at Saatchi & Saatchi, Mattel Inc., Bozell Worldwide, and McCANN ERICKSON. [4]
In The News
Broken City
Photo courtesy of radionowindy.com
20th Century Fox Films released its first film of the year, Broken City, starring Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe, and Catherine Zeta Jones, on January 18th. The film told the story of a New York City cop, who one night gets involved in a scandalous shooting. He’s stripped of his badge but kept out of jail by the works of New York’s Mayor, who offers him a lump sum of money to investigate his wife. While doing so he finds himself in the middle of a much larger scandal as he realizes that the Mayor isn’t who he seems to be.
During its opening weekend, the film made about $9 million and $4 million the weekend after. With an estimated budget of $55 million, it has made an overall gross of $19,667,601 up to date. It has received mixed reviews ranging from being called a complete mess to being considered an entertaining thriller. Nonetheless, there seems to be a majority consensus—the cast and the numerous twists are great but can only keep the “weak” storyline going but so far, causing it to receive a B- from Entertainment Weekly. [5] [6]
20th Century Fox employed an interesting marketing strategy for the movie. Instead of featuring promotional quotes from legitimate movie critics, they chose to use tweets from the hashtag, #BrokenCity, in which basically anyone could be a critic.
Photo courtesy of cultureblues.com
The studio believed it was a way to be more personable and interactive and to get fans more excited for the upcoming film. However, the tactic raised many questions about the weight of movie critics’ opinions and whether or not they carry the same weight as the opinions of the fans. [7]
Wahlberg also held a special, early screening of the film as a fundraiser for the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation . He offered a chance to win tickets at Celebrities for Charity. [8]
A Good Day to Die Hard
Photo courtesy of movies.wikia.com
20th Century Fox released the fifth movie of the Die Hard franchise, A Good Day to Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis and Jai Courtney, on February 14th. This is the first of the franchise to not be released during the blockbuster summer months and instead in the cold month of February. [9] The film tells the story of a cop, John McClane, who travels to Moscow to help his unruly son Jack, unaware that Jack is really a CIA agent attempting to stop a nuclear weapons robbery. Despite their differences, they are forced to work together to keep each other and the world safe. [5]
The film was produced for about $92 million. During its opening weekend, it made $24,834,845 domestically and $45,301,894 oversees, giving it the number one spot of films newly released that weekend. [10] However, this is over $70 million less than what the last movie of the Die Hard franchise made in the summer of 2007. With this comparison, it could be considered disappointing. [11]
Very unlike the previous films of the series, the film has been largely slated by various critics. Based on 40 “generally unfavorable” reviews, Metacritic has given the movie a 28 out of 100 and based on 184 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes has given it a score of 4 out of 10. On both sites, several reasons for such low scores have been cited but the majority seems to agree on a muddling plotline with too many holes and twists as the movie’s downfall. [12] [13]
The Croods
Photo courtesy of filmofilia.com
20th Century Fox teamed up with DreamWorks Animation for the first time in the production and release of The Croods, a prehistoric comedy for the family, starring Nicholas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone, and Catherine Keener. It officially premiered worldwide on March 22nd and brought in $43,639,736 during its opening weekend. [18]
The film follows the story of a caveman, Crug, who must lead his family across an unstable and dangerous landscape after an earthquake destroys their home. While doing so they come across a nomad who charms everyone but Crug with his revolutionary modern ways. [14] As of April 1st, with a budget of about $135 million, the film has made $93,893,394 domestically and $148,802,379 from foreign theaters, amounting to $242,695,773 worldwide. [18]
To build up anticipation of the release of the movie, DreamWorks made a deal with Rovio to create a mobile game based on The Croods, an impressive marketing strategy. In the game, the Croods, a family of cave men, find their way out of the Stone Age through the use of a new tool, the idea. They hunt and gather their way through new landscapes as they tame creatures they’ve never seen before.
Rovio released the game for Apple and Android devices on March 14, just about a week before the official release of the film. [15]
What’s Next for 20th Century Fox?
20th Century Fox plans to release another 3-D animated family film, Epic, which is based on the children’s book, The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs. From the creators of Ice Age and Rio, Epic follows the story of a teenage girl, who finds herself magically transported into a secret universe. While there, she must team up with a group of capricious characters in order to save their world and her own from Queen Tara, the evil spider. [16]
Starring the voices of Amanda Seyfried, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Farrell, Aziz Ansari, Steven Tyler, Johnny Knoxville, Beyonce Knowles, and Pitbull, the film is scheduled to be released on May 24th. [17]
Sources
[1] http://www.thestudiotour.com/fox/chronology.shtml
[2]http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=35867
[3] http://www.screendaily.com/echeverria-promoted-to-evp-latin-america-at-fox/4030307.article‘
[4] http://centralpa.aiga.org/previous-events/ricardo-crespo-creative-ronin
[5] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1235522/
[6] http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20483133_20657927,00.html
[7] http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Broken-City-TV-Spot-Turns-Podium-Over-Twitter-Fans-34876.html
[8]http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass_roundup/2013/01/mark-wahlberg-broken-city-hingham.html
[9] http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/02/13/3852964/its-a-good-day-for-john-mcclane.html
[10] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/17/weekend-box-office-a-good-day-to-die-hard_n_2707284.html
[11] http://www.boxofficemojo.com/franchises/chart/?id=diehard.htm
[12] http://www.metacritic.com/movie/a-good-day-to-die-hard
[13] http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_good_day_to_die_hard/
[14] http://www.movieinsider.com/m2646/the-croods/
[15] http://variety.com/2013/digital/games/the-croods-go-mobile-with-angry-birds-creator-1200001701/
[17] http://www.movieinsider.com/m3739/epic/credits/
[18] http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=croods.htm
[19] http://boxofficemojo.com/studio/chart/?view=company&view2=ytd&compare=Q1&studio=fox.htm
By Jimena Wu
Official 20th Century Fox 2012 Logo – Courtesy of Google Images
Company Information [2]
10201 W. Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA, 90064 United States
(310) 369-1000
Brief Overview
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation is a subsidiary of Fox Inc., owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation. 20th Century Fox Film Corporation’s motion pictures are produced or acquired by the company’s smaller units, including: Fox 2000 Pictures, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Fox International Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Animation and Blue Sky Studios [1].
The company has had major success with motion pictures, including the huge hits Star Wars, Titanic, and it’s most successful in the box office yet, Avatar, released in 2009. Avatar recorded up to a gross of $749,766,139, including nine Academy Awards nominations and three wins. [23]
Top 3 Competitors [2]
Columbia Tristar Motion Picture Group
Key Executives [3]
Keith Rupert Murdoch – Chairman of Board & CEO
Ricardo Crespo – Senior Vice President of Global Creative
Eduardo Echeverria – Senior Vice President of Latin America
Pam Kunick-Cohen – Senior Vice President of Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products
Robert Marick – Executive Vice President
Brief History: The Formation of Twentieth Century Fox [5]
20th Century Fox was funded in 1935 with the merging of the Fox Film Corporation and Twentieth Century Pictures. It was co-founded by Joseph Schenck, president of United Artists, and Darryl F. Zanuck, former head of production at the Warner Bros. Studio.
Elaboration & Transformation of Company Logo after Fox Film-20th Century merged in 1935 [4]
20th Century Fox at the Box Office
The company began the Fall of 2012 with the release of Won’t Back Down in September 28, 2012, starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis. However, despite its notorious casting, this movie was ranked as the worst saturated release ever, bringing only $2,603,370 in the opening weekend. The movie made a total of $5,310,554. [6]
Taken 2 Movie Poster – Courtesy of Google Images
In October 5, 2012, the awaited Taken 2, starring Liam Neeson, was released, making $49,514,769 in its opening weekend [8]. Despite all of the critics, Taken 2 was the reason the overall box office was up more than 40 percent over the same weekend last year [7]. The movie scored $361,060,485 worldwide, showing strong results for a $45 million production [8].
Following Taken 2, Chasing Mavericks, starring Gerard Butler, was released October 26th, disappointing with a $2,268,274 debut. The movie made a total domestic gross of $5,843,722, barely one-fourth of its $20 million production budget [9]. However, Hurricane Sandy could have affected this result, as it”may have suppressed business by about 10 percent.” [10]
Wreck-It Ralph Poster – Courtesy of Google Images
As the storm passes, Wreck-It Ralph came to the #1 spot in its opening weekend with $49,038,712 [11]. This movie has actually become the biggest box office ever for Disney Animations [12]. After five weeks in theaters, it still maintains itself in the top ten, recording a total domestic gross of $159,213,887 and a worldwide gross of $203,213,887 (as of December 5, 2012) [11].
Lincoln opened in limited theaters in November 9, 2012 and released worldwide November 16, recording $944,308 for the opening weekend, and $21,049,406 in its second place, getting into the box office’s top 3. Lincoln, a film produced by Steven Spielberg, remained at #3 for two weekends, including Thanksgiving weekend. As of December 5, 2012, the movie earned a total domestic gross of $87,088,719, already compensating its production costs of $65 million. [13]
Next up for 20th Century Fox was Life of Pi, released November 21, which was considered to be “tough to sell” and a “gamble” for the company [14]. This film’s production budget will definitely be hard to compensate as it cost $120 million to produce, mainly because of its unbelievable graphic effects. The movie did pretty good in the opening weekend, earning $22,451,514, and also performed fairly well during the Thanksgiving weekend in the 5th spot, behind Twilight, Skyfall, Lincoln, and Rise of The Guardians. However, it is still at half its production budget, reporting $51,676,132 in total domestic gross as of Dec. 5, 2012. [15]
Life of Pi – Movie Poster – Courtesy of Google Images
The next movie for Fox is called Parental Guidance, which was supposed to be released during the Thanksgiving weekend but will now be released December 25th, 2012. The movie has high expectancies as it has less competition during Christmas than what it would’ve had during Thanksgiving [16].
First-Quarter Earnings (Quarter ended Sept. 30) – See full News Corp. Earnings Release
Rupert Murdoch led the company to more strong results as the fiscal quarterly earnings for the first quarter, ending in September 30, 2012, reported earnings of $2.23 billion, compared with $738 million made last year. Revenue also rose in large amounts, from $7.96 billion to $8.14 billion. As for the role Twentieth Century Fox plays in this increase in earnings, filmed entertainment reported quarterly segment operating income of $400 million, $53 million higher than a year ago, when the segment operating income was $347 million. This is majorly due to the huge success Ice Age: Continental Drift had in box offices back in July. As of December 5, the $95 million film has earned a total worldwide gross of $874,920,192 [24]. Also, Fox made a licensing deal with Netflix back in May 2012, which contributed enormously to the rise in profit [17]. Through this licensing agreement, Fox classic films were distributed to Latin America. “Our alliance with Twentieth Century Fox continues to get stronger and benefit Netflix’s members across the globe,” said Jason Ropell, VP of content acquisitions at Netflix. [25]
Deals/News
August 2012
Fox to Distribute DreamWorks Animation Movies [18]
DreamWorks has decided to shift from Paramount Pictures to 20th Century Fox looking for a 5-year distribution deal. This deal will place DreamWorks’ animated titles in Fox’s animation division, Blue Sky Studios. This deal will go into effect in 2013.
DreamWorks Logo – Courtesy of Google Images
Company Perspective: “DreamWorks Animation is a great company that makes terrific films and everyone here feels privileged and honored to have been chosen to distribute their marvelous work throughout the world,” stated Fox Filmed Entertainment CEOs and Chairmen, Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman. “We are particularly excited to add DreamWorks Animation’s films to the strong and growing slate of movies from our outstanding Blue Sky Studios division, which is coming off another global blockbuster with Ice Age: Continental Drift, and has Epic and Rio 2in advanced production. Together we will be a dominant force in animated entertainment for years to come.” [19]
September 2012
Fox Hoped To Boost Movie Downloads By Offering Titles Ahead of Discs [20]
In order to increase movie downloads, Fox has decided to offer the option to downnload movies through Amazon, CinemaNow (Best Buy), iTunes, PlayStation, VUDU (Walmart), and Xbox, before the home video or DVR formats are available.
November 2012
Sony, Fox, and Universal Sign On For PGA’s Producers’ Mark Credit [21]
Sony Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, and Universal Pictures signed on to apply the ‘Producer’s Mark’ Certification. This is a huge advancement in the industry and a step forward to protecting the right of producers and the ‘produced by’ credit.
Independence Day ‘3D’ Cancelled [22]
Independence Day (1996) – Movie Poster – Courtesy of Google Images
Plans had been made by 20th Century Fox to produce a 3D adaptation of the 1996 blockbuster, Independence Day. However, due to difficulties in reuniting the original cast, the company has decided to cancel it. The movie was due for July 2, 2013, which was perfectly timed for it to be released during the Independence weekend. This would’ve potentially help the movie top the box office during the opening weekend and gain high revenue for the company.
Coming Soon (Click to see the trailers)
References
[1] News Corporation: http://www.newscorp.com/management/20film.html
[2] Hoovers: http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.Twentieth_Century_Fox_Television.ff69d030bb3d82da.html
[3] Bloomberg BusinessWeek: http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/people.asp?privcapId=35867
[4] Logo Images: http://www.closinglogos.com/page/20th+Century+Fox+Film+Corporation
[5] History: http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/66/Twentieth-Century-Fox-Film-Corporation.html#ixzz2EFVbd3Ul
[6] Box Office Mojo – Won’t Back Down: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=learningtofly.htm
[7] Yahoo Movies – Taken 2: http://movies.yahoo.com/news/taken-2-blows-away-box-office-critics-50-163212681.html
[8] Box Office Mojo – Taken 2: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=taken2.htm
[9] Box Office Mojo – Chasing Mavericks: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=ofmenandmavericks.htm
[10] The Week – Hurricane Sandy: http://theweek.com/article/index/235648/6-ways-hurricane-sandy-affected-the-entertainment-world
[11] Box Office Mojo – Wreck It Ralph: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=rebootralph.htm
[12] Wreck It Ralph: http://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/Latest-News-Wires/2012/1105/Wreck-it-Ralph-Biggest-box-office-opening-ever-for-Disney-animation
[13] Box Office Mojo – Lincoln: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lincoln.htm
[14] Company Town – Life of Pi: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-life-of-pi-tough-sell-20121119,0,5088507.story
[15] Box Office Mojo – Life of Pi: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lifeofpi.htm
[16] Parental Guidance: http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118052479
[17] Hollywood Reporter – Quarterly Profit: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/news-corp-reports-huge-rise-387027
[18] Fox to distribute DreamWorks: http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-08-20/fox-to-distribute-dreamworks-animation-movies
[19] Company Perspective – DreamWorks deal: http://www.deadline.com/2012/08/exclusive-dreamworks-animation-to-fox/
[20] Movie Downloads: http://www.deadline.com/2012/09/fox-digital-hd-movie-download/
[21] Sign for PGA: http://www.deadline.com/2012/11/producers-mark-credit-program-pga-sony-fox-universal/
[22] Independence Day 3D: http://www.nme.com/filmandtv/news/independence-day-3d-cancelled/291343
[23] Box Office Mojo – Avatar: http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=avatar.htm
[24] Box Office Mojo – Ice Age: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=iceage4.htm
[25] Netflix and Fox Licensing Agreement: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/netflix-fox-agreement-latin-america-brazil-323988
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