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In an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Time-Warner's CEO, Dick Parsons, said the "whole media sector right now is in a little bit of a malaise."
The whole sector? That doesn't seem to be the case with companies like YouTube.com. Then again, these companies are creating their own categories in media.
So it's ironic that today Ted Turner left the board of Time-Warner. Of course, he's legendary in media. He did things that many thought were absolutely crazy – such as launching a 24-hour news channel.
No, the media industry is not in a funk. It's just the "malaise" of CEOs like Parsons. They don't have the guts – like Ted Turner – to make big bets.
As for Parsons, he is doing the typical things: small acquisitions, stock buybacks, division sell-offs, and so on.
Why not try something daring?
What Parsons needs to do is galvanize the troops. So, why not try something that would get some real attention? Hey, why not buy YouTube.com?
But, saying the environment is one of "malaise" certainly won't do it....
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-22-2006 @ 10:22AM
JDaggitt said...
Jimmy Carter was given a public drubbing when he blamed the country's problems on a "malise." Dick Parsons should get the same reward.
I agree that Parson's has failed to bring any sense of vision to TWX, but more importantly, Parson's has failed to force or cajole the various factions within TWX to work together. You need not look further than Road Runner & AOL.
TWX could take some lessons from Fox's American Idol. There are constant plugs for other products from the Murdoch empire. Why is there no real cross promotion between TWX properties?