MUMBAI: Wade Davis has been appointed as chief financial officer (CFO) of US media conglomerate Viacom. The announcement was made by Viacom COO Thomas E. Dooley.

Davis previously served as Viacom executive VP, Strategy and Corporate Development. He succeeds Jimmy Barge, who, after a transition period with Davis, will leave the company to pursue other opportunities.

Davis will be responsible for the company?s accounting and financial reporting, planning, tax and treasury functions. He will also continue to oversee the strategy and corporate development functions across Viacom.

Dooley said, "This is a well-deserved promotion for Wade, who has made so many contributions to the growth and success of Viacom. We are fortunate to have such a multi-talented executive in our ranks with the leadership skills and the depth of experience to move seamlessly into the CFO role.

He is respected throughout the company for his knowledge of our industry and his financial expertise. Wade has worked closely with me and with Viacom?s entire senior team on important strategic initiatives, while also leading a disciplined corporate development program that has enabled us to tap new growth areas, both domestically and around the world.

"We want to thank Jimmy for his professionalism and many years of dedicated service to Viacom, particularly his outstanding work to strengthen our financial position. His focus and expertise were greatly appreciated by me, as well as by our financial team and everyone at the company who worked closely with him. We wish Jimmy all the best as he moves on to new opportunities beyond Viacom."

Davis said, "I feel extremely fortunate to take on this new role at Viacom. This is an exciting and challenging time for our company and our industry and I am looking forward to continuing to work with Tom and Philippe Dauman, our President and CEO, to keep Viacom financially strong and out in front. Best of all, I step in on day one as CFO with a world-class financial team by my side. Having worked with them closely for many years, I know first hand the depth of their experience and the breadth of their expertise. Working together, I know that we will continue to help Viacom achieve its financial and strategic goals."

MUMBAI: The economy is the top factor impacting the Millennial generation today, with 68 76 per cent feeling personally touched by the global economic crisis. This percentage increases in Spain (86 76 per cent), Italy (85 76 per cent), and Greece (80 76 per cent). But despite significant economic concerns, the vast majority of Millennials worldwide demonstrate a strong sense of happiness and optimism.

Latin American Millennials report the highest levels of happiness, in countries like Mexico, Argentina and Brazil.

US media conglomerate Viacom and its Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) division, have unveiled in-depth findings from its new study, "The Next Normal: An Unprecedented Look at Millennials Worldwide," which provides the first truly global portrait of this highly influential demographic.

 The findings were presented at the Monaco Media Forum by Viacom Media Networks executive VP, chief research officer Colleen Fahey Rush.

The study spans every continent and delivers insights into the attitudes, values, aspirations and perspectives of young people (ages 9-30) from 24 countries including India, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, the UK and the US. In total, this project included 15,000 interviews, in-depth explorations and expert contributions/commentaries.

Rush said, "?The Next Normal? is the broadest single study of the Millennial generation to date. It is a truly detailed understanding of this complex generation from all corners of the world, and is without a doubt the definitive guide to this demographic?s evolution. These insights will help inform our content and further strengthen our connections with Millennial audiences around the globe."

VIMN VP research, insights Christian Kurz said,"We have a wealth of research on how young people approach life, what they consider important and how they cope with challenging situations. This study builds on Viacom?s already significant leadership in understanding our audiences and is a perfect example of our commitment to extending this knowledge and expertise globally."

Following is a snapshot of additional key findings from the study:

*Millenials Suffer From Job Insecurity - Economic concerns have resulted in a legacy of fear around job security and doubts about upward mobility. *Unemployment outweighs world hunger as the top global issue that young people want to see solved. * Almost half of young people (49%) believe that job security will continue to get worse.
* 78 per cent would rather have a minimum wage job than no job at all. *While 38 per cent of young people in 2006 strongly agreed with the statement, "I will earn more than my parents," that percentage is down to 25% in the post-crisis era.

Amidst all these concerns, the generation finds reasons to be happy. Spending time with family is the top driver of happiness for Millennials today. Forty-five percent of all 9-30-year-olds globally say their No. 1 best friend is someone within the family.

"Thanks to the importance Millennials place on family bonds, the family unit today is closer than ever. ?The Next Normal,? based on the widest ever cross-section of Millennials, confirms that this emphasis on family is a global phenomenon," said Kurz.

Friendships, both real-life and online, are another key driver of happiness. Among Millennials, there is a trend towards smaller circles of real-life friends compared with online friends, which are skyrocketing.

Over the past six years, Millennials have maintained about the same number of best friends, but their wider circle of everyday friends is shrinking.

On the other hand, Millennials average well over 200 online friends. In the past six years, there has been a significant jump in the number of online contacts whom they consider friends, but have never actually met in person.

Technology Doesn?t Define, It Enables: Rather than defining the Millennial generation, technology is more of an enabler. If asked, a Millennial might say, "Technology doesn?t make me who I am. It lets me be who I am." Technology underpins relationships and plays an important role in sustaining happiness and broadening horizons.
? Three quarters of Millennials believe social media has a beneficial
effect on relationships with friends.
? 73 per cent of Millennials say access to the Internet changes the
way they think about the world.
Pride And Tolerance: Millennials are displaying a growing sense of
national pride and interest in maintaining local traditions. At the
same time, they have an increasingly open and tolerant view of other
countries and cultures.
? 83 per cent agree "I?m proud to be [X] nationality," up from 77 per
cent in 2006.
? 76 per cent agree that it?s important to maintain their country?s
traditions, up from 68 per cent in 2006.
? 73 per cent think it?s great to have people from other countries
coming to live in their respective home country, up from 51% in 2006.
? 86 per cent describe themselves as tolerant.
? 84 per cent agree "my age group has the potential to change the
world for the better."

"A key priority for VIMN is to provide its audiences around the world with ?glocal? content --programming that strikes the right balance between global and local themes. Our findings from ?The Next Normal? indicate a truly positive display of ?glocalisation? in action among Millennials at an even deeper level," continued Kurz.

The Next Normal: ?We" Versus "Me"

This study indicates that ?The Next Normal? is much more ?we? than ?me?. Key defining traits for the Millennial generation include a sense of global community, newfound tolerance and flexibility, increased creativity and a powerful desire to share and connect.

? 87 per cent are actively curious about the world.
? 87 per cent apply the phrase "sharing and connecting" to themselves.
? 85 per cent describe themselves as able to adapt quickly to change.
? 93 per cent globally believe it?s our responsibility to treat all
people with respect, regardless of race, gender, religion, political viewpoint or sexual orientation.

MUMBAI: US media conglomerate Viacom has reported results for the fourth quarter and year ended 30 September 2012, with bottom line growth and substantial increases in earnings per share.

Revenues for the full year were $13.89 billion, down seven per cent from the previous year, reflecting higher Media Networks revenues, more than offset by lower film revenues. Adjusted operating income grew by one per cent to $3.9 billion, principally reflecting higher Media Networks revenues.

Its full year adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom rose by one per cent to $2.26 billion and full-year adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations increased by 11 per cent to $4.21 per diluted share, reflecting the impact of the company?s ongoing share repurchase program.

Its revenues in the fourth quarter declined 17 per cent to $3.36 billion, due to lower filmed revenues. Adjusted operating income of $1.05 billion was essentially flat compared to the prior year?s comparable quarter as the revenue decrease was substantially offset by lower expenses. Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom in the fourth quarter rose by two per cent to $626 million, and adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations increased 14% to $1.21.

Viacom executive chairman Sumner M. Redstone said, "Viacom continues to create many of the world?s best known and most exciting media properties, and delights audiences across the globe with content for every screen imaginable. Our unparalleled creative minds and Philippe?s outstanding management position Viacom perfectly for long-term growth."

Viacom president, CEO Philippe Dauman said, "Viacom is executing on its goals of continued investment in great content, ongoing operational excellence and ever-increasing returns to shareholders. Our Media Networks drove value in the quarter and the year through steady growth in distribution revenues, and the production of new and engaging programming that connects with valuable audiences. Viacom?s media brands have built unrivaled connections with their fans, creating unique experiences and powerful opportunities for advertisers.

"We continue to invest in our future across all platforms and geographies. Paramount also continued to achieve solid margin growth in the fourth quarter and full year, and has an exciting pipeline in place with eight films in the first fiscal quarter, including Jack Reacher, DreamWorks Animation?s Rise of the Guardians and the recently released Flight.

"Viacom?s balance sheet remains strong, providing the flexibility to invest in our business while delivering capital directly to shareholders. Our shareholders received $3.4 billion in capital in fiscal 2012 through our share repurchase and dividends, and Viacom is firmly committed to achieving its strong capital return goals."

In the fourth quarter media networks revenues were flat at $2.29 billion, principally reflecting increased affiliate fees offset by lower advertising and ancillary revenues. Domestic affiliate revenues increased 12 per cent, driven by rate increases and higher digital revenues. Worldwide affiliate revenues increased 11 per cent. Domestic ad revenues declined by six per cent and worldwide advertising revenues decreased by seven per cent. Film revenues declined by 39 per cent to $1.09 billion, principally due to the number and mix of theatrical and home entertainment titles released in the quarter, and reflecting difficult comparisons with the significant impact of Transformers: Dark of the Moon in the fourth quarter of 2011. TV and ancillary revenues in the Filmed Entertainment segment rose by 19 and 21 per cent respectively.

For the year media networks revenues rose $49 million to $9.19 billion, reflecting an 11 per cent increase in affiliate revenue to $3.89 billion that was partially offset by a five per cent decrease in ad revenues to $4.76 billion. Domestic affiliate revenues increased by 10 per cent and domestic ad revenues declined by four per cent. Film revenues decreased by 19 per cent to $4.82 billion.

Quarterly adjusted operating income was essentially flat at $1.05 billion, due to a three per cent decline in the Media Networks segment partially offset by an increase in Filmed Entertainment. Media Networks results reflected a slight increase in expenses driven by higher operating costs associated with increased programming investment, substantially offset by lower selling, general and administrative expenses. The 5% growth at Filmed Entertainment was driven by higher TV and digital revenues and the beneficial impact of previously announced strategic cost savings initiatives.

Full-year adjusted operating income increased $47 million, or one per cent, to $3.90 billion from $3.85 billion last year. Media networks adjusted operating income increased $41 million, principally reflecting the net increase in revenues. Higher operating expenses driven by programming investment were substantially offset by decreases in selling, general and administrative expenses and lower depreciation and amortization. Film adjusted operating income decreased $16 million, principally reflecting a difficult comparison with the one-time benefit from the sale of certain Marvel distribution rights in the prior year, partially offset by this year?s increased digital revenues.

Quarterly adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom rose by two per cent to $626 million. The increase reflects gains from foreign exchange and a lower effective corporate tax rate. Adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations for the quarter were $1.21, a 14% increase from $1.06 in the prior year?s comparable quarter.

Full-year adjusted net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Viacom rose to $2.264 billion, an increase of one per cent over the prior fiscal year. The improvement was principally due to growth in adjusted operating income. Full-year adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations increased by 11 per cent to $4.21, principally reflecting fewer outstanding shares.

MUMBAI: Viacom?s channel Comedy Central has created Comedy Central Enterprises, a new business division that will focus on building the brand through consumer products, home video, CDs and digital downloads, publishing, and live touring.

The announcement was made by Comedy Central president Michele Ganeless. Mitch Fried has been promoted to the newly formed position of Comedy Central Enterprises executive VP and will head up the new business division, reporting to Ganeless. Fried was formerly Comedy Central Live Entertainment senior VP.

Ganeless said, "In the increasingly fractured world of content distribution, success today means reaching fans everywhere. The formation of Comedy Central Enterprises strengthens our relationship with our fans. It?s another example of the kind of extension that keeps Comedy Central the number one brand in comedy. Mitch Fried is an experienced and innovative executive with a long history at Comedy Central. Respected and well-liked throughout the industry, he knows the brand intimately and is the perfect person to spearhead our efforts under the new Enterprises banner."

Comedy Central Enterprises will bring together a number of brand extensions under Fried?s oversight, including the previously independent Consumer Products, Home Entertainment, Records, Live Entertainment and Publishing divisions.

Under Fried?s leadership, Comedy Central Enterprises will incorporate everything from negotiating with talent representation to execution, distribution, production and marketing support of these ancillary businesses. He will seek to expand the network?s business partnerships with the talent community through omni-platform deals, which will encompass any combination of the division?s brand extensions.

Fried said, "By consolidating these brand extensions into a single business division with a common goal, we are in a better position to grow and strengthen the brand and provide our fans with what they want most, easily-accessible, high-quality comedy, both on screens and off. Forming the Enterprises division also provides benefits to our talent partners by offering them massive exposure to our fans and a multitude of opportunities and points of distribution to increase their own following and generate revenue by getting their content in front of an ever-widening consumer base."

Reporting to Fried are vice presidents Steve Raizes and Jack Vaughn, who will be charged with developing and maximising the synergistic elements of the new Enterprises division.

 
The businesses now reporting to Fried under the Enterprises banner include:

• Comedy Central Consumer Products - generating $2 billion at retail since its inception, the Consumer Products division negotiates with third parties to translate Comedy Central shows, personalities and characters into consumer goods including apparel, social expressions, toys, games, electronics and consumables. Recent highlights include a partnership with Frito Lay and Wal-Mart to introduce "Cheesy Poofs" to the market in celebration of the 15th anniversary of ?South Park?, as well as a licensing programme surrounding ?The Daily Show with Jon Stewart?, ?The Colbert Report? and the brand?s own ?Indecision? political coverage. Additional programs launching in 2012/2013 include efforts around ?Tosh.0?, ?Workaholics? and stand-up comedy.
• Comedy Central Home Entertainment - responsible for over $500 million in sales since its creation, the Home Entertainment division includes DVD and digital on demand releases of the Comedy Central series and stand-up specials distributed through Paramount Home Entertainment, including four of the top five stand-up DVD releases of 2011. Recent releases from Jeff Dunham and Gabriel Iglesias have sold a combined one million units in only six months. The upcoming slate includes artists such as Demetri Martin, Chris Hardwick and Patton Oswalt.
• Comedy Central Live Entertainment - with over $100 million in box office receipts and over 2.7 million tickets sold, Comedy Central Live Entertainment is one of the dominant players in live stand-up touring. In 2012 alone, Comedy Central partnered with Daniel Tosh, Gabriel Iglesias and Jim Gaffigan on their respective tours, generating 375,000 tickets sold and $15 million in box office receipts. In addition to bringing major headliners to the masses, Comedy Central Live has a college touring program that brings younger comedians to campuses across the country and produces a free, annual event in New York City, ?Comedy Central Park?, which this year featured correspondents, contributors and producers from ?The Daily Show with Jon Stewart?. Comedy Central is also in its seventh year partnering with Live Nation in the South Beach Comedy Festival and will continue its partnership in the eight Annual New York Comedy Festival with Caroline?s Comedy Club, taking over New York City each November.
• Comedy Central Records - the world?s largest comedy label as well as one of the largest independent labels in the country, Comedy Central Records? catalog includes both spoken word and music from top comedic talent including Comedy Central series and standup specials. Released via traditional CD and via digital download-to-own, the label has received eight Grammy Award nominations since its launch in 2002, winning "Best Comedy Album" for the last three years. Along with critical acclaim, the Records division has produced numerous Gold, Platinum and Double-Platinum albums.
• Publishing - Comedy Central recently announced a new publishing relationship with Running Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group, and will release its first title, a holiday-themed novelty book from Denis Leary, later this year.

MUMBAI: Raghav Bahl is restructuring his media and entertainment companies under three operational heads as he gears up for expansion after getting Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) to indirectly invest in it.

Forming IndiaCast, a distribution company that houses content syndication as well, Bahl has got individual heads to shepherd the entertainment, news and distribution businesses that are entering a new growth phase.

Bahl‘s broad plan could be to bring the ETV regional entertainment channels under Viacom18 operational management while its news entities will be under TV18, a source familiar with the development says.

It is not clear yet if this operational structure will be allowed to transition into an equity arrangement. For this to happen, media conglomerate Viacom will have to agree to invest and induct the ETV entertainment channels into the joint venture company, Viacom18, where it holds 50 per cent stake.

"Nothing has been finalised yet. Viacom, no doubt, will be happy to have the regional GECs under Viacom18. A lot will also depend on how RIL wants the structure to evolve. But there are other issues as well," the source says.

As part of the plan to fortify its regional presence, TV18 acquired partial ownership in the broadcasting assets of Eenadu after valuing it at Rs 21 billion. With the purchase, the company has got 100 per cent stake in 5 regional news channels of ETV (where RIL has 100% interest), 50 per cent stake in 5 regional GEC channels excluding Telugu (where RIL has 100% interest) and 24.5 per cent stake in ETV Telugu channels (where RIL has 49% interest). The news channels include ETV Uttar Pradesh, ETV Madhya Pradesh, ETV Rajasthan, ETV Bihar, and ETV Urdu. The regional GECs are ETV Marathi, ETV Kannada, ETV Bangla, ETV Gujarati and ETV Oriya.

The restructuring exercise comes in the wake of these developments and the exit of Haresh Chawla who functioned as Network18 and Viacom18 Group CEO.

"The role of Chawla was too unwieldy as he had full control of all the group companies . After his exit, a restructuring was needed keeping in mind the growth plans," the source explains.

Network18 Group has a combined turnover of Rs 19.52 billion that includes 50 per cent of Viacom18 (Colors, MTV, etc), the news channels under TV18 (CNBC TV18, CNN IBN, IBN7, etc), the web properties and HomeShop18. As the company gears up to launch a Hindi movie channel (put on hold) and regional-language channels, a breakup in roles is the need of the hour.

"It wasn‘t practical for Chawla to oversee the whole of Bahl‘s empire. His operational role at Viacom18 at times was uncalled for and led to a quiet unrest," says a senior executive who has left the company on condition of anonymity.

Bahl Wednesday announced the hiring of Sudhanshu Vats, a senior executive at HUL, as the group CEO of Viacom18 Media. Under
 him will fall Colors, Comedy Central, MTV, Nick, Sonic, Vh1 and Viacom18 Motion Pictures. He has already recruited Anuj Gandhi, an industry veteran, to spearhead IndiaCast‘s growth.

Bahl‘s new structure will mean that the non-ad sales business falls under the care of Gandhi while Vats gets to groom the entertainment networks and Sai Kumar to directly nurse the news and web businesses while continuing his role as Network18 and TV18 Group CEO.

"Earlier, everybody was reporting to Chawla. Now the reality is that each of these lines of businesses need individual management and are too expanded to be operationally under one CEO," the source says.

Take IndiaCast, for example. The new distribution company, under which also resides the syndication business, is already having a turnover of Rs 4.30 billion. Bahl‘s ambition is to scale this up to the size of the biggies, particularly in a digital environment where there is going to be exponential growth in subscription revenues. Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) reported domestic subscription of Rs 9.22 billion in FY‘12 and Rs 1.32 billion through other sales and services (syndication sales, playout & transmission services and facility usage income).

Bahl has given IndiaCast a wider playground, bringing under its umbrella content asset monetisation across geographies, platforms and mediums. The other channel distribution companies do not have such a broad canvass and content syndication falls outside their functional zones.

"Bahl believes that IndiaCast has enough leg room to grow and become a Rs 10 billion company over the next few years after digitisation of cable TV spreads," a media analyst at a broking firm says.

Vats will also have his plate full as the group expands its regional footprint and comes out with a Hindi movie channel and other entertainment products that are sure to launch in a digitised environment.

Kumar will have a tough task cut out for him as he tries to beat slow revenue growth for news channels. The web properties will 

also have to be guided to a scale that will make it comfortable for Bahl to tap the American market for raising capital through a public float.

After being rescued from a debt overhang by RIL, Bahl is laying out the new leadership structure that will provide fertile ground for new growth.

Also Read:

Sudhanshu Vats joins Viacom18 as Group CEO

MUMBAI: CBS Broadcasting, the most watched television network in US, has finalised its upfront deals for 2012-13 attracting $2.7 billion in ad sales.

The broadcasting network sold its primetime ad inventory at a 9 per cent premium versus last year?s rates, thereby missing analyst projection of 10 per cent growth.

Closely following CBS at the second spot is News?owned Fox Network with 8 to 9 per cent growth over the year ago period.

Walt Disney-owned ABC Network has secured 6 to 8 per cent higher ad rates while NBC witnessed the slowest growth among the four networks with a 5.5 to 6.5 per cent increase in ad rates.

ABC is reported to have sold about $2.5 billion in upfront ad sales which is the same as previous year.

The CW Networks and Viacom cable networks have already finished their upfront sales while Turner Broadcasting is said to be 70 per cent sold.

The upfront sales process for the period began in May with all television networks showcasing their content line-up to advertisers.

Sectors like retail, financial services, technology, telecom and quick-service restaurants are believed to have saved the day for US broadcasters with an economy which is looking less than buoyant.