Business of Media
Kerry Stokes said to have blocked Southern Cross/ARN Media deal
Former Seven West Media management lobbied the board of the broadcaster to buy Southern Cross Media Group and ARN Media with its own shares but was blocked on embarking on the move by billionaire chairman Kerry Stokes, sources say, reports The Australian’s Bridget Carter.
The understanding is that by acquiring ARN Media and/or Southern Cross, which was up for discussion within the headquarters of Seven West before both ARN Media and Southern Cross were in talks for a merger themselves, would dilute the size of Seven Group Holdings’s 40 per cent position in Seven West.
Seven Group is 57 per cent owned by Stokes, and he did not want to dilute his interest in the free-to-air broadcaster and streaming service provider that also owns the West Australian newspaper.
Former BBC star Huw Edwards admits making indecent images of children
Huw Edwards has admitted being sent a string of indecent photos of children – including a “moving image” of a boy as young as seven. The former BBC presenter, 62, received the pictures on WhatsApp between December 2020 and August 2021, reports News Corp’s Holly Christodoulou.
Edwards, 62, today pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.
Westminster Magistrates Court was told seven of the 41 images fall under category A – the most serious classification.
Huw Edwards’ fall comes 14 months after career peak
A measure of the speed and depth of Huw Edwards’ reputational collapse is that his appearance at Westminster magistrates court on Wednesday came just 14 months after he reached his career peak, presenting the king’s coronation. The presenter has already suffered disgrace and career ruin and could, when sentencing occurs on 16 September, face jail, reports The Guardian’s Mark Lawson.
As always after such public catastrophes, the question quickly arises of to what extent the events were predictable or preventable. Last July, I fell out with a friend who is a senior figure at the BBC, to the point of not speaking for some time. He said it was completely unimaginable that early reports about his behaviour in the Sun could be true, let alone what has now emerged.
Meta has run hundreds of ads for cocaine, opioids and other drugs
Meta Platforms is running ads on Facebook and Instagram that steer users to online marketplaces for illegal drugs, months after The Wall Street Journal first reported that the social-media giant was facing a federal investigation over the practice, reports The Wall Street Journal’s Salvador Rodriguez.
The company has continued to collect revenue from ads that violate its policies, which ban promoting the sale of illicit or recreational drugs. A review by the Journal in July found dozens of ads marketing illegal substances such as cocaine and prescription opioids, including as recently as Friday. A separate analysis over recent months by an industry watchdog group found hundreds of such ads.
Andrew O’Keefe fights sentence over ‘degrading’ attack on woman
A lawyer representing Andrew O’Keefe has told a court a woman’s evidence of a “frightening and degrading” attack by the embattled former TV personality was “highly controversial”, reports News Corp’s Nathan Schmidt.
The former Deal or No Deal host appeared before Downing Centre District Court on Wednesday afternoon as he appeals his convictions over a string of domestic violence and drug charges.
The 52-year-old was found guilty and sentenced to a 12-month and three 18-month community corrections orders in January by magistrate Lisa Viney, who also imposed fines on the former TV star.
Pinterest plunges as gloomy forecast dampens revenue rebound hopes
Pinterest shares tumbled nearly 10% on Wednesday after a muted third-quarter outlook dashed expectations for a stabilization in its revenues, as heightened competition in the digital advertising space hurt the company despite broad-based recovery in the sector, reports Reuters’ Deborah Mary Sophia.
The photo-sharing platform on Tuesday projected current-quarter revenue below analysts’ estimates, as it struggles to keep up with bigger rivals including Meta’s Instagram and Facebook and Alphabet.
Netflix raising $1.8B in new debt offering
Netflix is raising cash, seeking to secure $1.8 billion in a new debt offering, reports The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin.
The company says it will use the cash to refinance existing debt that is coming due in the next year, and for “general corporate purposes,” per a securities filing filing. The streaming giant, it should be noted, is expanding its content offering over the next year to include the WWE (to the tune of around $500 million per year) as well as a pair of NFL games on Christmas Day, which will cost it low to mid nine figures.