English Entertainment
Outdoor Channel Asia to expand in APAC, starts with Singapore
NEW DELHI: Multi Channels Asia (MCA), which is one of Asia-Pacific’s largest independent channel provider, will bring its Oudoor Channel (Asia) to Brand New Media’s newly launched Multi-Channel Internet TV Network (MCN) across selected Asia-Pacific territories.
Under a new agreement, the territory-by-territory roll-out will commence with the immediate launch in Singapore, followed quickly by a number of other markets.
The move will see Outdoor Channel’s outdoor sports content becoming a part of BNM’s recently launched 4ME network of lifestyle channels. MCA will work closely with BNM – a global content company that owns, creates and operates digital channels for the world’s leading brands and broadcasters – to offer select Outdoor Channel programming, as well as develop original and branded content aimed at the fast-growing outdoor lifestyle entertainment category.
Multi Channels Asia MD Gregg Creevey said, “With the proliferation of mobile devices, advanced infrastructure, changing media consumption habits and the convergence of social and digital media, the launch of Outdoor Channel’s dedicated MCN with Brand New Media in Singapore is part of our digital-first strategy for the region. The specific in-market MCNs will allow us to accelerate Outdoor Channel’s market penetration, and to better reach and engage with the underserved and passionate communities of people who embrace the outdoor lifestyle and its myriad of pursuits.”
Multi Channels Asia director network distribution and marketing Kevin Sim added, “Singapore, which has the highest consumption of digital videos per capita across the Southeast Asia, was the logical market for the first Outdoor Channel MCN. Access to Outdoor Channel online and through multiple devices has become a crucial part of our growth strategy, which is typified by our 2015 #WhatsYourStory programming and marketing strategy. In the longer term, this vertical approach will allow us to work more closely with brands to create richer and more relevant localized content across multiple platforms.”
Brand New Media global director Damien Bray said, “Indicators for digital video consumption globally and in Asia are growing at an incredible rate, and brands have transitioned their spending increasingly to online and mobile video, which is a trend that is expected to continue over the next few years. We have earmarked a handful of lifestyle content genres that will be able to command a loyal community, and Outdoor Channel ticks all the necessary boxes, and its compelling content and positioning will allow us to build deep audience engagement and interaction.”
English Entertainment
Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approve Paramount deal
Investors wave through a $111 billion megamerger but deliver a stinging, if toothless, rebuke over half-a-billion-dollar goodbye packages
NEW YORK: The shareholders said yes to the deal. They said no to the cheque. At a virtual special meeting on Thursday that lasted barely ten minutes, Warner Bros. Discovery investors voted overwhelmingly to approve Paramount Skydance’s $111 billion acquisition of the company — and then turned around and voted against the lavish exit pay packages lined up for chief executive David Zaslav and his fellow outgoing executives.
Not that it will make much difference. The compensation vote is purely advisory and non-binding. The Warner Bros. Discovery board can, and almost certainly will, pay out as planned.
But the symbolism stings. It is the second consecutive year that WBD shareholders have voted against the executive compensation packages, and this time they had good reason. Zaslav’s exit deal is, by any measure, extraordinary. Under the terms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, he is set to receive $34.2 million in cash severance, $517.2 million in equity in the combined company, and $44,195 in continued health coverage — a total of at least $550 million. On top of that, Warner Bros. Discovery has agreed to reimburse Zaslav up to $335 million for taxes assessed by the Internal Revenue Service on his accelerated stock vesting, though the company says that figure will decline depending on when the deal closes. As of March 11, Zaslav also held $115.85 million in vested WBD stock awards — and last month sold a further $114 million worth of WBD shares.
Shareholder advisory firm ISS recommended voting against the compensation measure, citing “problematic” tax reimbursements to Zaslav and the full vesting of his stock awards.
Zaslav will be bound by a two-year non-competition covenant and a two-year non-solicitation of customers and employees after the deal closes.
His lieutenants are not walking away empty-handed either. J.B. Perrette, chief executive and president of global streaming and games, is in line for $142 million, comprising $18.2 million in cash severance and $123.9 million in equity. Bruce Campbell, chief revenue and strategy officer, will receive an estimated $121.5 million, including $18.8 million in severance and $102.7 million in equity. Chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels is set for $120 million, made up of $6.6 million in cash severance and $113.1 million in equity. Gerhard Zeiler, president of international, will get $82.6 million, including $11.9 million in severance and $70.7 million in equity.
The deal itself, clinched in February after Netflix declined to raise its bid for Warner Bros., still needs regulatory clearance from the Justice Department and European authorities. Several state attorneys general are also weighing legal action to block it.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, was unsparing. “The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger isn’t a done deal,” she said after the shareholder vote. “State attorneys general across the country are stepping up to stop this antitrust disaster. We need to keep up this fight.”
If it does go through, the combined entity would be a formidable beast, bringing together Paramount Skydance’s stable — CBS, CBS News, Paramount Pictures, Paramount+, BET, MTV and Nickelodeon — with WBD’s portfolio of HBO, Max, Warner Bros. film and TV studios, DC, CNN, TBS, TNT, HGTV and Discovery+. Paramount has said it expects $6 billion in cost savings from the merger, which is Wall Street shorthand for mass layoffs on a significant scale.
The ten-minute meeting was presided over by chairman Samuel Di Piazza Jr., with Zaslav, Campbell, Wiedenfels and chief communications officer Robert Gibbs in virtual attendance. Di Piazza was bullish. “We appreciate the support and confidence our stockholders have placed in us to unlock the full value of our world-class entertainment portfolio,” he said. “With Paramount, we look forward to creating an exceptional combined company that will expand consumer choice and benefit the global creative talent community.”
Zaslav echoed the sentiment. “Over the past four years, our teams have transformed Warner Bros. Discovery and returned the company to industry leadership,” he said. “Today’s stockholder approval is another key milestone toward completing this historic transaction that will deliver exceptional value to our stockholders.”
Paramount Skydance struck a similar note. “Shareholder approval marks another important milestone towards completing our acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery,” it said in a statement, adding that it looked forward to “closing the transaction in the coming months.”
The shareholders have spoken on the merger. On the pay, they were ignored before the vote was even counted.
