Activist Ups Stake In NYTCo Again To 11 Percent; Shares up 27 Percent Since Action Initiated
February 16, 2008
In a fresh filing this evening, the activists agitating for change at NYTCo (NYSE: NYT) announced that they picked up another 500,000 shares on Wednesday. Through the various funds involved, Harbert Management, the parent company of Harbinger, now controls 15.57 million shares or nearly 11 percent of the company. Just since the investors announced their intentions to seat their own boardmembers on Jan. 25, NYTCo has announced board changes as well as newsroom layoffs. And already, since that date, shares are up over 27 percent.
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Top Jobs Of The Week In Digital Media
February 15, 2008
Top jobs in digital media posted this week:
-- Playboy (NYSE: PLA) Digital Media: SVP of Marketing
-- Time, Inc: Director of Business Development, RealSimple.com
-- Howcast Media, Inc.: Director of Content Development & Programming
-- About.com: Senior Interactive Online Producer
-- MySpace: Senior Product Manager
-- Photobucket: Senior Product Manager
Tons more at our job board.
Newspaper Roundup: DJ Settlement; Star Tribune; NCT Buyout; McClatchy Downgrade; Bruce Sherman
February 15, 2008
-- Dow Jones: As tipped last month, the SEC has settled an insider trading complaint against ex-Dow Jones (NYSE: NWS) director David Li and certain affiliated parties. Li was alleged to have passed on news of News Corp.'s bid for Dow Jones to friends, and though he won't admit to wrongdoing, he will pay an $8.1 million fine. Affiliate Michael Lueng, who traded with the help of his daughter and son-in-law, will pay another $16.2 million. Statement.
-- Star Tribune: The Minneapolis daily has laid off 58 staffers - about 3 percent of the newspaper's workforce. Most of the jobs are in the circulation department; no reporting positions are being affected. The paper, which was sold off by The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI) in 2006, also handed down an indefinite wage freeze for all its nonunion employees, which will affect about 600 in total. The Star Tribune's revenues have declined nearly $75 million in the past two years.
-- North County Times: The North County Times newspaper, which covers North San Diego County, has begun offering voluntary newsroom buyouts. In response to the weakening economy, the paper is looking for 20 volunteers to take the buyouts, though it has not announced contingency plans, in the event its target is not met. The paper is a division of Lee Enterprises (NYSE: LEE). The news comes a day after major reductions were announced at Tribune. (via NC Times)
-- McClatchy: The newspaper publisher had its default credit rating downgraded by Fitch from BB+ to just BB. The announcement goes into some depth on the reasons for the dongrade, but the bottom line is that McClatchy is a "strong operator", but not so strong that it can swim against the tides of the industry. Also, there's an interesting comment on the fear that the company may be pressured to do something drastic: "??? while Fitch recognizes that companies with dual-class stock structures may be somewhat insulated from shareholder activist-driven event risk, we are cautious that boards of directors and management teams may still be similarly pressured to consider management-lead buyouts (MBOs), other leveraging transactions or large-scale digital acquisitions to attempt to boost their companies' share prices." Release.
-- Private Capital Management: Bruce Sherman, the investor who spearheaded Knight Ridder's sale to McClatchy, has washed his hands of the newspaper industry. The latest filing from his fund Private Capital Management has no holdings in newspaper stocks. Just last quarter, the company held stakes in NYTCo (NYSE: NYT) and McClatchy, although by then he had eliminated his holdings in Belo (NYSE: BLC), Gannett (NYSE: GCI), Media General (NYSE: MEG), and Lee Enterprises. (via E&P)
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New York Times Cutting 100 Newsroom Jobs; 7.5 Percent Of Total
February 15, 2008
A day after the Tribune Co. announced job cuts both in and out of the newsroom, the New York Times (NYSE: NYT) is planning to eliminate 100 newsroom jobs through attrition, buyouts and possibly layoffs, according to NYT itself. The cuts account for 7.5 percent of the newsroom's 1332 employees. The cuts were announced by executive editor Bill Keller, who described layoffs as a last resort that may be required if the company doesn't get enough people to accept buyouts. In a memo, Keller acknowledged that the "low-hanging fruit" of easy cuts is gone and the move would have an impact on the company's journalistic output. In November, the company announced plans to eliminate a dozen newsroom jobs, although none were reporting positions.
The announcement comes as the company is under pressure from activist investors pushing for aggressive changes. Last Friday, NYTCo top brass met with Scott Galloway and on Tuesday, the company announced a board shakeup to bring in more digital and deals experience.
-- The New York Observer relays a first-hand account of the meeting with Keller when the cuts were announced. Apparently, in an attempt to reduce the pain, there is talk of diverting some money set aside for editor bonuses to saving jobs. Perhaps the most oddly revealing news is that during the Q&A, there was just one question about the cuts: "Instead, there were questions about why the fourth-floor was so cold and why stairwells in the building were still inaccessible."
Los Angeles Times Launches Free Weekly
February 14, 2008
Sam Zell’s Los Angeles Times has introduced its first stand-alone print weekly, a culture and nightlife freebie — one that was reverse-engineered from a Times website that went live last summer. The new free weekly, whose initial circulation is estimated at 100,000, was reverse-engineered from losangeles.metromix.com.
The new tabloid and the site, both called Metromix Los Angeles, represent a push by the Times to finally get its hooks into the young-adult Angelinos who rarely buy the morning paper. “This is something for the Los Angeles Times that’s really trying to reach a demo that we haven’t before,” said Rich Stepan, general manager for Metromix Los Angeles.
Metromix Los Angeles also showcases one way digital media can benefit the same print predecessors they simultaneously threaten. The site at losangeles.metromix.com helped build the Metromix brand, for example, and served as a continuous test issue of sorts for the new print concept.
“We’ve taken this out to them,” Mr. Stepan said. “From our perspective, it’s a resounding ‘We want it.”’
Where to find it
The print edition of Metromix Los Angeles will be distributed every Wednesday on local college campuses, in grocery stores and on racks throughout major Los Angeles neighborhoods. Its initial circulation is estimated at 100,000.The Chicago Tribune, which is a Times sibling in Zell’s Tribune Co., publishes the free, daily RedEye for young commuters; RedEye was able to stave off a challenge from the Chicago Sun-Times in the form of Red Streak, now defunct.
In Los Angeles, the new entry from the Los Angeles Times will go up against L.A. Weekly, part of Village Voice Media.
The print version of Metromix Los Angeles got the green light because of newspaper publishers’ conviction that local expertise is their chief advantage over electronic channels such as Google News.
‘Hyper-local’
“We’re hyper-local,” said Deb Vankin, editor of Metromix Los Angeles. “I’ve been in the industry for about 10 years covering these things in Los Angeles. I sort of handpicked who I thought would be the experts.“I can say with certainty that we’re in an age when the media landscape is saturated,” Ms. Vankin added. “They want not everything at once but someone to curate it for them. What’s great about Metromix is our print edition offers that, and if you want more, you can jump on the website.”
These local, youth-skewed freebies aren’t easy to get right. Last month Metro International, the Swedish publisher with free commuter dailies around the world, eliminated 27 jobs and made other cost cuts in New York, Philadelphia and Boston. An executive said the measures were part of a plan to make the U.S. operation finally profitable.
Via Advertising Age - MediaWorks
Earnings: DirecTV Q4 Revs Up 17 Percent; Interest Expenses Up; Latin America, HD, DVRs Provide Boost
February 13, 2008
DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) reported Q4 revenue of $4.9 billion, a 17 percent year-on-year increase from $4.18 billion. Net income declined slightly to $348 million ($.30 per share) from $356 million (.29 per share). The company attributed the top-line growth to increased subscribers, higher average revenue per user (ARPU) and better performance at its Latin America unit. Meanwhile, the FCC has still not given an official ruling on Liberty's acquisition of News Corp's stake in the company. Some highlights:
-- ARPU was up 8.3 percent in the quarter to $87.40. The company attributed this to the popularity of DVRs, HD and an increased number of receivers per household.
-- Net subscribers adds of 275,000 at DirecTV US was flat year-over-year. Total subscribers now stand at 16.83 million, 5.4 percent more than what the company had a year ago.
-- Op profit before depreciation and amortization was up 21 percent, with income lowered by higher interest expenses.
Release | Webcast (2:00 PM ET)
CNN Readies All Citizen Journalism News Site
February 11, 2008
CNN is preparing to unveil a news site made up entirely of news gathered by users, Mediaweek reports. An offshoot of its iReport citizen journalism feature, which the Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) cable net launched in August. 2006. Since that time, CNN has received roughly 100,000 news photos and videos from viewers. The pickup in activity has been gaining lately, as CNN said it has received nearly 10,000 viewer-submissions just last month to iReport.com. more to come
Harbinger Parent Ups Stake In NYTCo To 9.96 Percent; Activists Meet With Management
February 11, 2008
Harbert Management, the parent firm of Harbinger Capital, announced in a regulatory filing that it now has 9.96 percent of the New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), or 14.25 million shares. Through its Harbinger unit, the firm had previously disclosed a sub-5 percent stake, as part of an effort to put nominees on NYTCo's board. We reported at the time that it was always the intent to up its holdings, but that it originally wanted to fly under the regulatory radar.
-- Meeting: In addition to the new holdings announcement, the firm filed a letter sent by Scott Galloway of Firebrand Partners (also part of the activist group) to Chairman and Publisher Arthur O. Sulzberger, and CEO Janet L. Robinson referencing a previously unreported meeting held on Friday: "On behalf of Harbinger Capital Partners and Firebrand Partners, I am writing to thank you again for taking the time to meet with us last Friday. We are looking forward to continuing a productive and positive dialog. Accordingly, as we discussed on Friday, each of our director nominees is free to meet with the members of your nominating committee at their convenience."
-- Board nominees: The filing also makes official the four proposed nominees to the board each of whom were previously identified: Scott Galloway, James A. Kohlberg, Allen L. Morgan, Gregory Shove. The fund reserves the right to substitute other names or add additional ones if NYTCo attempts to change the structure of its board.
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WGA Strike: Ad Agency React: ‘The Aftermath Begins’; Upfront Presentations Remain In Doubt
February 11, 2008
While broadcast media buyers and marketers are likely to feel relieved by the end of the work stoppage, some contend that too much damage has been done for things to return to normal. Chris Boothe, a president at Publicis Groupe's Starcom USA, tells AdAge that "the aftermath begins" once the strike is completely wrapped up, adding that repercussions to the TV ad business will continue to be felt for some time. Some effects stemming from the way the labor action will permanently affect the way TV ad time is bought. Among the immediate expectations are:
-- There will be less original programming overall, with reality TV assuming a greater share of prime-time.
-- Rather than schedule most of the new season for a big fall opening, many new shows will see staggered debuts. Networks will likely begin to roll out more shows during Q4.
-- Audience erosion has been a fact of life for the networks the past few years. But the strike may have sped up that trend. According to Sanford Bernstein analyst Michael Nathanson, live prime-time audiences between the ages of 18 and 49 fell 11 percent through Jan. 27, with CBS (NYSE: CBS) down 19.6 percent, while ABC dropped 15.2 percent and NBC saw a decrease 13.8 percent. Thanks to popular unscripted shows like American Idol, Fox was the only one to gain, albeit a modest 3.7 percent. Cable has grown and as more people by DVRs, live prime-time ratings might not be able to make a comeback.
-- Development of new shows have been held up during the strike. Therefore, the networks might not have a reason to hold the annual bombast that is the upfront. Between the start of the negotiations in May and the end in end in early summer, marketers placed $9.2 billion in advertising for the 2007 fall season. With some networks left wondering whether they will have to produce "make-goods" - returning advertisers' money for shows that failed to hit guaranteed ratings points - the shape of this year's upfront is very much in doubt.
B&C: Only Fox appears committed to hosting its major upfront presentation this year. NBC continues to waver on its upfront plans. The way it looks right now, the network's fall preview will have a decidedly more scaled back quality.
MyNetflix (beta) Vista Media Center plugin with Watch Now streaming
February 11, 2008
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Media PCs
[Via Chris Lanier's Blog, thanks Matt]
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