Strictly Business

Industry leaders converse about business deals, strategy and the future of media and entertainment.

Business
TV & Film
176
Pocket.watch Disrupts Kiddie Toy Biz This Holid...
Multibillion-dollar franchises like "SpongeBob SquarePants" used to require traditional media like TV or film as launch pad. But Chris Williams, CEO of the new kid-targeted brand Pocket.watch, is proving with YouTube sensation Ryan's World that the...
31 min
177
David Zaslav: Why Brands and IP Matter More Tha...
The president-CEO of Discovery Inc. offers a candid assessment of the state of traditional TV in a wide-ranging interview. He talks M&A prospects and gives a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes story of Discovery’s $14 billion acquisition of...
41 min
178
E!'s Adam Stotsky on Taking Over the People's C...
After 44 years on CBS, the People's Choice Awards will move over on Nov. 11 to E!, where the network's president, Adam Stotsky, has led a re-imagination of the franchise. It's one of many changes transforming E! under Stotsky's watch, including a...
33 min
179
How the World's Largest Magazine Company Approa...
With its acquisition of Time Inc. earlier this year, Meredith Corp. is home to more iconic magazine titles than ever, from People to Better Homes & Gardens. But as the company's president, Jon Werther, explains, he's as focused on translating...
30 min
180
Why the TV boom makes life harder, not easier, ...
Assembly Entertainment CEO Christina Wayne discusses the dealmaking challenges that producers face even at a time of incredible demand for TV content. The producer first made her mark as the AMC development executive who championed “Mad Men” and...
33 min
181
How Joe Biden Helps ATTN: Aim to Be the 'HBO of...
While the nation waits to hear whether former Vice President Joe Biden will join the 2020 presidential race, he's not quietly sitting on the sidelines. He just launched an episodic series on Instagram's new IGTV created by ATTN:, a company devoted to...
31 min
182
Indie Evolution: Producer Gigi Pritzker on Stay...
Gigi Pritzker, CEO of MWM, details the evolution of her company, formerly OddLot Entertainment, from an indie film production banner to an IP-centric approach embracing TV, digital, VR and AR, live events and theater. Pritzker explains how the seismic...
29 min
183
Viacom's Kelly Day: Buying AwesomenessTV 'Barga...
The digital studio's president gets candid about the acquisitions she's made in her first year on the job, as well as Viacom's efforts to attract young eyeballs to original content across digital platforms.
29 min
184
John Landgraf on the Future of Television
The FX Networks CEO discusses the strategic rationale behind the union of Disney and 21st Century Fox and the industry’s embrace of direct-to-consumer distribution platforms. He also muses He also muses about how the insatiable global demand for...
31 min
185
How Far Funny Or Die Has Come From Its Viral-Vi...
It was hysterical short videos like "The Landlord" that made the Funny Or Die brand an overnight household name when it began 11 years ago. But its business has since evolved tremendously, explains CEO Mike Farah, as evidenced by the 20 TV series the...
27 min
186
Studio71's Reza Izad Gets Real About Digital Vi...
Izad is candid about navigating an ecosystem that has been reeling from one challenge to the next, from the brand safety issues that left marketers skittish to the disappearance of long-form content buyers from the marketplace.
29 min
187
Navigating Hollywood’s New World Order for Writers
Lowell Peterson, executive director of the Writers Guild of America East, discusses the guild’s growth during a dynamic period for the entertainment industry. Peterson details a busy agenda that includes lobbying for a diversity production tax...
34 min
188
David Nevins: How Streaming Has Changed the Pre...
Showtime’s president and CEO talks about new economics of direct-to-consumer streaming and how the transformation of the premium TV business has changed the way Showtime operates. In this wide-ranging conversation, he also offers insights into the...
42 min
189
Timur Bekmambetov: Crafting New Filmmaking Tool...
The Russian director behind "Night Watch,” “Wanted” and “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" is eagerly promoting a new filmmaking software for what he calls “Screenlife." Bekmambetov explains why he thinks this is a wave of the future. He also...
36 min
190
The New Book 'The Business of Television'
Ken Basin gives an inside look at how Hollywood dealmaking is changing in the peak-TV era, from the exorbitant salary increases top talent has been getting to the growing clout of tech companies doing most of the spending.
36 min
191
Josh Sapan: Small is Beautiful for AMC Networks
AMC Networks CEO Josh Sapan discusses the company’s transition from a collection of cable channels — AMC, SundanceTV, IFC, WeTV, and BBC America — to a content-focused enterprise that is experimenting with new forms of distribution and expansion...
35 min
192
Stephen Curry's Right-Hand Man in Hollywood
How does a basketball legend team up with Sony to translate his brand into TV and film content? He turns to Jeron Smith, a veteran of Nike and the Obama-era White House, who explains how Curry is focusing on family, faith and sports as core themes to...
24 min
193
New York Television Festival
The New York Television Festival was ahead of the curve in recognizing the need for independent producers and TV fans to have a forum for celebrating the small screen.  On the eve of the festival's 14th edition, founder and CEO Terence Gray talks...
29 min
194
Pluto TV's Tom Ryan on the Power of Free OTT
The crowded competitive set of streaming services hasn't kept Pluto TV from growing its audience quickly. CEO Tom Ryan explains how his game plan has gotten Pluto TV this far, and what lies ahead for his company.
26 min
195
Inside Dawn Ostroff's Last Days at Conde Nast E...
Dawn Ostroff reflects on seven years of working to bring the magazine giant's marquee brands into the digital age.
27 min
196
Byron Allen: A Born Entrepreneur Fights for ‘Ec...
Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios, founded in 1993 in Allen’s living room, has grown rapidly during the past decade, expanding into cable programming and film distribution. Allen offers an inside look at his recent $300 million acquisition of...
46 min
197
Ep11 - Tyra Banks: How she became a boss in Hol...
Supermodel-turned-entrepreneur Tyra Banks discusses her path from modeling in the early 1990s to becoming one of the new breed of media mavens who are a brand unto themselves. Banks recalls the early life lessons from her mother about embracing her...
33 min
198
Ep10 - Raze Wants to Be the Next Univision
Spanish-language TV giants Univision and Telemundo aren't meeting the programming needs of young Latino audiences, says Raze CEO Emiliano Calemzuk, which opens up a huge opportunity for his company. One year into the relaunch of the venture, Calemzuk...
27 min
199
Ep8 - Colin Callender: Turning the world into h...
Producer Colin Callender is known for his excellent taste and strong relationship with stars, but he's also been an innovator in the financing and distribution of international co-productions. After more than 20 years with HBO, Callender launched...
40 min
200
Ep7 - Group Nine's Ben Lerer on Breeding New Me...
The founder of Group Nine, a portfolio of digital brands including Thrillist, NowThis and Seeker, reflects on his company's first year with the backing of Discovery Communications. While he feels he's bringing the best of traditional and new...
28 min