Johanna Fuentes

WATCH NOW ☕ Perception Box: Corner Office - Episode 2 💼 🌟 The Next Chapter in the Short Form Series Co-Produced with The The Wall Street Journal and Unlikely Collaborators 🌟 🔥 In this episode, sit down with another trailblazing leader, Bob Stiller, to explore what lies beyond the titles, achievements, and success. 💭 What happens when you challenge the stories you tell yourself? ✨ This series dives deep into the Perception Box, unearthing insights that redefine leadership and personal growth. 👇 Watch now and share: What’s a story you’ve had to reexamine and rewrite about yourself? 💬 #Leadership 💡 #SelfDiscovery 🔍 #PerceptionBox 🧠 #WSJSeries 🎥

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When John Landgraf talks, I tend to listen. The Mayor of Television who coined the term “Peak TV” as the long time CEO of FX, Landgraf appeared at Variety‘s Business Managers Breakfast this past week espousing old-school TV shows ‘along the lines of procedural dramas and multi camera sitcoms fell far out of favor with the creative community… but viewers never gave up on these tried and true forms,’ per Variety’s own coverage. We dug into this shift in programming format a couple weeks ago (https://lnkd.in/gTdswjCq), reflecting the increased viewership and cultural resonance of shows like the rebooted Matlock, Happy Place and High Potential. To further anchor this, our friends at National Research Group did a deep dive into why audiences are returning to older content like Sex in the City, Friends, Suits or Gilmore Girls, citing a number of factors that I think execs like Landgraf are seeking to instill into their new programming, namely: comfort (literally the study cites the ‘reduction in anxiety’ as a top reason for choosing older content), consistent quality, good for background viewing. Just connecting the simple dots here - broadcast-like content created for (nearly) everyone that is easy to digest, significantly lowers decision fatigue and provides the mostly-mindless TV viewing experience our parents hemmed-and-hawed about endlessly throughout the whole later half of the 20th century. And for the networks - a show that runs five to ten seasons that can be licensed again and again and again and again providing tangible, high margin economic value for decades. It’s how this business was pretty much built. https://lnkd.in/gm33bNEP

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Range Media Partners just raised big $$ from Liberty Global, Wildcat Capital Management. It's an M&A warchest so they don’t fall behind their peers.  Let’s break it down… BACKGROUND ON RANGE • Mgmt and prod co founded in 2020 by Peter Micelli and other top agents from CAA / WME / UTA • Goal = extend beyond trad film / TV representation • Has expanded into music, sports, gaming, digital, music pub M&A + CAP MARKETS HISTORY • Merged with film / TV prod co Automatik in Jan 2023 • Bought upstart athlete mgmt co Stoked Management Group in Sep 2023 • Existing investors incl Steve Cohen’s Point72 Ventures and A+E Networks (also has prod deal) NEW INVESTMENT • Last week closed significant minority investment by John Malone’s Liberty Global, TPG founder’s Wildcat Capital, and family entertainment co Playground Productions • Former CAA film finance exec Rick Hess, and The Forest Road Company were also involved (either as investors or advisors, can’t tell exactly from press release) • Use of Funds: M&A, scale in US, int’l growth, add more talent rep and prod services What you need to know about this deal 👇... It's not surprising when you consider all the other fundraising and M&A amongst Range’s peers in talent representation.  The influx of capital and high dealmaking volume is driven by a belief that outsized returns will go to rep firms who are fastest to scale, in a winner-take-most market. Because scale makes it easier to sign more talent clients, work with the largest brand marketers, hire the best talent agents and managers, package up the largest Hollywood projects, and launch the most exciting new talent-led ventures. Particularly in a world where scaled access to audience (which talent and influencers bring in a post ATT world) is the top driver in capturing share of high-growth IM spend, which is est at $7B in 2024, up 15% YoY. So it’s a race to the top. And that race is being fueled by large M&A war chests from big investor backers… Companies to watch here are: - Crestview-backed Gersh (just bought A3’s digital team) - Coral Tree-backed Loaded (just bought GG Talent) - Providence-backed Wasserman (13 deals in 2 years) - TCG-backed Night (just bought LFM and Roost Podcast Network) - The big 3: CAA, UTA, Endeavor And after last week, I expect Range Media to ramp up its acquisition activity. Particularly in athlete and digital-native representation. Curious to see what they do next with the $$. Will definitely add them to our buyers list as we bring more deals to market. —- I’m the founder of RockWater Industries. We do M&A and strategy advisory for media, agencies, and creator economy. My DMs are open. #media #agency #creatoreconomy

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UTA just promoted 24 new partners. What's driving this? Promotions can be part of a retention strategy as competition for talent, and their reps, heats up. Particularly when new firms like Range Media Partners, which was the result top agent defections from the Big 3 Hollywood agencies in 2020, are growing fast and raising growth capital (see my analysis 👇). Some questions worth asking... - How is the agency's employee retention rate trending? - How does the % of promotions compare to prior years? - What agency depts are seeing more promotions? e.g. fast-growing areas like digital? - What are the benefits of being a partner? - What type of commitment is required from partners, if any? - How does all this compare to peer agencies? Many talent reps are thinking through decisions about staying VS leaving at bigger co's, starting their own firms, staying independent, and more. This is important info to track. For both those starting out their agency careers, and more seasoned agency execs thinking about their next career step. #media #agency #creatoreconomy

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Today's marketers are turning to nontraditional advertising formats to garner consumer attention, thanks to a highly fragmented marketing environment where mass media moments are few and far between. Mother New York strategist Evan Giordano sums it up nicely: "You can’t rely on advertising around a piece of culture anymore and expect that anyone and everyone will see it, because they won’t.” #Marketing #NontraditionalFormats #MarketingTrends

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Bob Bakish steps down as CEO of Paramount Global. Amid the M&A drama enveloping Paramount Global, Bob Bakish is stepping down as CEO after eight years at the helm of Shari Redstone's media empire. Bakish resigned under pressure. The executive has been with Paramount and its predecessor Viacom since 1997. He was hired by Redstone in 2016 to help bring stability to the company amid a public legal battle between shareholders and a fight for control between Redstone and former Viacom CEO Philippe Daumanamd. The Wall Street Journal is the first media source to report the situation with Bob Bakish. Paramount's board is currently in exclusive takeover talks with Skydance Media and RedBird Capital. Another group, Sony Pictures and Apollo Global Management, is poised to make a formal all-cash offer for the company next week as the May 3 expiration date of the exclusive negotiation window with Skydance approaches. As Skydance talks have dragged on for months, it's become clear that Skydance CEO David Ellison would take the helm of the enlarged Paramount-Skydance operation, while RedBird executive Jeff Shell, formerly CEO of NBC Universal and a longtime Comcast executive, would serve as Ellison's No. 2, overseeing day-to-day operations. There was no pretense of carving out a role for Bakish. Bakish will step down as CEO when the sale is completed. Whoever acquires Paramount Global does not matter. The company has been through the wringer over the past year. A falling stock price, losses in the company's streaming division, weak earnings in consecutive quarters - these are the main reasons to say goodbye to Mr Bakish. CNBC reported that Bakish's exit was hastened by his opposition to the merger plan with Skydance. Let me know, what are your thoughts about this topic. You can find a link to the full article in the first comment under this post. Follow my profile to stay up-to-date when it comes to industry news, technology updates, and market analysis. #SzymonKarbowski #StreamVX #BobBakish #ParamountGlobal #ShariRedstone #Viacom #SkydanceMedia #RedBirdCapital #SonyPictures #ApolloGlobalManagement #TheWallStreetJournal #CNBC #NBCUniversal #Comcast

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AI may be the future, but the ancient art of storytelling is not going away. Far from it, communicating your message in authentic, compelling, human ways is what we think will define the second half of the ‘20s. Because while AI is changing how we live, work and communicate, it still is - and always will be - as advertised: artificial. We’re launching Goldcomm to be the exact opposite: authentic. Focused on telling our financial services clients’ stories in real, authentic ways, and being unapologetically honest about the counsel we give to make that happen: that is our mission. We believe the human mind will always be better at communicating than machines. Give us a call so we can prove it. #financialservices #publicrelations #Goldcomm

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This hits so true as we (I) determine what brands and people we want partner with at Doe-Anderson - the oldest indie agency in the US! "Independence registers in a deep sense of partnership. We treat our client’s success with the utmost care....any indie that considers pitching or running your business is investing its most precious and limited resources to do so—time, energy, focus, and heart." https://lnkd.in/gf9uf2iJ

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Mega-mergers like Omnicom and Interpublic should raise serious concerns for companies navigating sensitive public policy and PR challenges. When a single corporate conglomerate owns agencies representing BOTH SIDES of a conflict, how can you be sure your strategy stays protected? Conflicts of interest and blurred lines seem inevitable. In the high-stakes world of public affairs and PR, discretion and loyalty are non-negotiable. That’s why so many organizations turn to independent firms like Sachs Media for: ✔️ Conflict-free representation ✔️ Strict confidentiality with no shared parent company ✔️ Direct, senior-level attention without competing priorities In a world where influence is everything, your voice should never be just another account on a balance sheet. Choose partners working only for YOU.

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Insightful deep dive into news mis/disinformation today at Google. As we navigate the largest election year in history, the importance of fact-checking, debunking, prebunking, and fostering media literacy across all ages is more critical than ever.

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IYKYK. This is how we harness the chaos for brands and agencies. And it’s why we are the #1 multiscreen video provider in our markets. Spectrum Reach #builtforwhatsnowandwhatsnext

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A recent report by Sounds Profitable and CoHost showed that Branded Podcasts is finally taking shape in CMO's marketing planning. High Satisfaction: 90% of brands are satisfied with their podcast’s performance, showcasing its effectiveness in marketing. Brands Need Support: 42% of brands feel under served in podcast marketing and competitor research, highlighting opportunities for industry innovation. #brandedpodcasts #audio #media #impact #authenticity BrandAudio Branded Podcast Media

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The ~$28bn European music industry is projected to continue growing as live music has fully rebounded from the pandemic and streamers are focusing on profits. The Independent record labels make up ~40% of the share with over 7,400 independent record labels in Europe. In line with best practice in other relevant sectors, we see an opportunity for consolidation to represent local music at scale, benefitting from significant economies of scale, increased reach & influenced synergies to enhance return. In this context, what is the investment opportunity for private equity firms? 👇 FTI Delta FTI Consulting #PrivateEquity Pierre-Jean (PJ) Sebert Murray Steinhobel

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Next round! Did you know that the music industry is proving to be a lucrative investment for funds? According to a recent article by Music Business Worldwide, the value of 1% in the Hipgnosis Songs Fund is worth a staggering $15.1 million. That's not bad at all! With Concord still bidding on the fund for $1.51 billion, it's clear that the value of music is not to be underestimated. #musicindustry #investmentopportunities #hipgnosissongsfund#musicacquisition#

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Streaming Services- Fumbled? Danny Chan Barbara Ross This post is from a discussion started by Danny and Barbara regarding the current state of streaming services and what should happen. #Netflix is the 800 pound gorilla, but every service in this space needs to do something about the model. Cheap or expensive? It just needs to be good. The plethora of films available proves quantity is not a path to success. The content must be engaging. Rules of economics are at play. To be in demand something must have value. If the item of value is scarce it has greater value. So more, even if good, reduces value. More mediocre product kills value. And there you have the streaming conundrum. I admit to having favorite movies that are sub-par by most standards. That stated, they are the in the minority on my list of best films. Certain stories and performances sometimes just click with me. I am always glad people got work no matter how bad a production might be. However, my business sense says streaming concepts and models at this stage, call it their teenage years, are not developing into a viable mature model. Disney knows this. Paramount knows this. HBO knows this. Does Peacock? I watch one event (sports) a year on Peacock. They must do better with their engagement strategy. There is a Paradox of Choice (Barry Schwartz) that clouds the interface where choices of what to view takes hold. The search algorithms based on what I have previously viewed deliver muddy results and merge all the product (films, TV etc.) together. How can that be? The films may populate a genre, but the same film in the eight or nine categories Netflix (and others) exhibit makes them totally generic (admittedly, as some of these films are). It is correct in calling it advertising (poorly executed) but it also exposes a lack of confidence in understanding what might appeal to me. When I was a kid, Playdough had several individual colors. After I played with them it always ended up in a grey mass without distinguishable color character. Such is the case with streaming channel user experience. After all the marketing efforts to position the film, the film brand ends up diluted. #Paramount #Disney #Amazon #HBO #Hulu #Peacock

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✅🖥️ Variety (10/2): “NBCU and Charter announced a new multiyear distribution deal that will make the Peacock Premium ad-supported streaming service for “no additional cost” to Spectrum TV Select video customers. The addition of Peacock to the Spectrum TV lineup comes after Charter inked similar deals for Disney+ and ESPN+, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max and Discovery+, Paramount Global’s Paramount+ and BET+, AMC Networks’ AMC+ and Univision’s Vix. All told, according to Charter, through the programming deals reached over the past year, the cable operator will soon provide Spectrum TV Select video customers up to $65/month of retail direct-to-consumer streaming value. Charter is understood to be paying a per-subscriber wholesale fee to the media companies for the rights to bundle their streaming services with Spectrum TV. So while the streaming services are “free” to some of Charter’s cable TV customers, it seems likely that the company will be raising monthly subscription rates to account for the additional linear-plus-streaming programming. Charter also will allow video customers to upgrade to the the ad-free Peacock Premium+ tier. In addition, the operator will make both Peacock products available for purchase to its broadband-only customers in 2025.” ⬇️ #streaming #ctv #ott #avod #mvpd #cordcutting #svod

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The Meaning of vinyl outselling CDs • Physical sales keep growing but there is a hidden problem about streaming music that labels are about to address. • 3 strategic ideas music radio stations can employ to get in on the trend. • How young consumers are in the midst of changing the way they enjoy music (again). • The user-generated tools that will soon become available to allow music fans to control the speed of the music they hear and these other factors. • TikTok and Instagram Reels have forced a new approach that will make sure labels get paid. https://lnkd.in/eX4aKwQc

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Our subscribers are reading exclusive deepdives about what the €10bn sell-off means for Axel Springer and its quest for global news leadership, and about Endeavor Business Media's next challenge. You can join us in two minutes. Why not now? Friday will never be the same. Flashes & Flames: The Global Media Weekly

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