Thursday, September 21, 2006
Webinar Goes Well, Fridays with Frank, BN-CVO Heats Up, Mag Circulation Doesn't, HP Spies on the Media, and Other Stuff
Yesterday's webinar went quite well, and can be downloaded at
http://members.whattheythink.com/home/webinars/webinar060920.cfm
There are also prose answers to questions that we did get to during the call. This was one of the better webinars as far as I was concerned. Gosh, finally got it right on the 9th try :)
Thanks again to Kodak and WhatTheyThink
Now it can be told: Frank Romano is replacing me on Fridays at WTT, and I shift over to Mondays as previously announced.
http://members.whattheythink.com/home/wttnews060921.cfm
Unintentionally funny line (if out of context) in the release, quoting Frank: "I have always gone where the industry goes." A joke about restrooms comes to mind.
Randy Davidson is quoted as "Our editorial mission from day one has been to have the best minds in the industry writing for our audience." Somehow, he must have slipped when he let me in.
Banta-Cenveo is heating up. Burton sent a rather nasty, belligerent letter, but by now it's almost an endearing quality which we have come to expect, and would be disappointed if we did not see, kind of like when the hiccups finally stop.
Letter http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/09-20-2006/0004436250&EDATE=
Banta says they got the letter http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060921/cgth044.html?.v=71
The Cenveo letter is absolutely hilarious, kind of like a Star Trek episode "you dare challenge my powers?" threat to the safety of the Enterprise. The $16 special dividend Kryponite isn't going to work against Burton. M&A mavens in the industry keep telling me the deal will happen and that Burton is just relentless in these matters. The fact that Banta's ownership is mainly institutions makes them relatively easy prey. It's easier to make a deal look good in Excel to people more concerned about which of the thousands of stocks they pick once they cash out of Banta. I haven't done work for Banta for years but I can only imagine that the prospects of selling are just frightening and hard to deal with. Cooler heads seem to be prevailing in their measured responses to date, however. It may go for $50-$52 I suspect, but I still think Banta has more surprises up their sleeve, and I would not be surprised if someone like Quad shows up with a bag of money, some phasers, and some proton torpedoes. And don't be surprised if the logistics division sneaks out on the shuttlecraft.
Magazine subscription volume is down, despite the rise in titles.
http://www.circman.com/viewmedia.asp?prmMID=2470
...over the last ten years, total industry subscription volume is down by 12 percent, even as the number of titles is growing, which indicates that new titles are taking circ away from existing titles. The industry is not creating new magazine buyers...
HP was spying on two CNet reporters, and even sending them false story leads! Good thing printing industry vendors don't have budgets big enough to hire investigators!
http://news.com.com/HP+targeted+reporters+before+they+published/2100-1014-6117497.html?part=dht&tag=nl.e703
For years, media choices were mainly print and broadcast. Doesn't it seem strange that big newspaper publishers like The New York Times are now selling their broadcast properties and buying Internet properties? It would seem to me that they know broadcast is dying, and that ondemand news video over the Internet will be, in the long run, the broadcast model of the future. They most likely feel they've milked broadcast TV for all it's worth. The Times even got out of its co-branded cable channel with Discovery.
GDUSA stock image survey. Stock photography was one of the most exciting markets in the late 1990s with the activities of Getty Images and Corbis (a company that Bill Gates owns as a personal investment).
http://www.gdusa.com/issue_2006/09_sept/survey/StockSurvey.pdf
http://members.whattheythink.com/home/webinars/webinar060920.cfm
There are also prose answers to questions that we did get to during the call. This was one of the better webinars as far as I was concerned. Gosh, finally got it right on the 9th try :)
Thanks again to Kodak and WhatTheyThink
Now it can be told: Frank Romano is replacing me on Fridays at WTT, and I shift over to Mondays as previously announced.
http://members.whattheythink.com/home/wttnews060921.cfm
Unintentionally funny line (if out of context) in the release, quoting Frank: "I have always gone where the industry goes." A joke about restrooms comes to mind.
Randy Davidson is quoted as "Our editorial mission from day one has been to have the best minds in the industry writing for our audience." Somehow, he must have slipped when he let me in.
Banta-Cenveo is heating up. Burton sent a rather nasty, belligerent letter, but by now it's almost an endearing quality which we have come to expect, and would be disappointed if we did not see, kind of like when the hiccups finally stop.
Letter http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/09-20-2006/0004436250&EDATE=
Banta says they got the letter http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060921/cgth044.html?.v=71
The Cenveo letter is absolutely hilarious, kind of like a Star Trek episode "you dare challenge my powers?" threat to the safety of the Enterprise. The $16 special dividend Kryponite isn't going to work against Burton. M&A mavens in the industry keep telling me the deal will happen and that Burton is just relentless in these matters. The fact that Banta's ownership is mainly institutions makes them relatively easy prey. It's easier to make a deal look good in Excel to people more concerned about which of the thousands of stocks they pick once they cash out of Banta. I haven't done work for Banta for years but I can only imagine that the prospects of selling are just frightening and hard to deal with. Cooler heads seem to be prevailing in their measured responses to date, however. It may go for $50-$52 I suspect, but I still think Banta has more surprises up their sleeve, and I would not be surprised if someone like Quad shows up with a bag of money, some phasers, and some proton torpedoes. And don't be surprised if the logistics division sneaks out on the shuttlecraft.
Magazine subscription volume is down, despite the rise in titles.
http://www.circman.com/viewmedia.asp?prmMID=2470
...over the last ten years, total industry subscription volume is down by 12 percent, even as the number of titles is growing, which indicates that new titles are taking circ away from existing titles. The industry is not creating new magazine buyers...
HP was spying on two CNet reporters, and even sending them false story leads! Good thing printing industry vendors don't have budgets big enough to hire investigators!
http://news.com.com/HP+targeted+reporters+before+they+published/2100-1014-6117497.html?part=dht&tag=nl.e703
For years, media choices were mainly print and broadcast. Doesn't it seem strange that big newspaper publishers like The New York Times are now selling their broadcast properties and buying Internet properties? It would seem to me that they know broadcast is dying, and that ondemand news video over the Internet will be, in the long run, the broadcast model of the future. They most likely feel they've milked broadcast TV for all it's worth. The Times even got out of its co-branded cable channel with Discovery.
GDUSA stock image survey. Stock photography was one of the most exciting markets in the late 1990s with the activities of Getty Images and Corbis (a company that Bill Gates owns as a personal investment).
http://www.gdusa.com/issue_2006/09_sept/survey/StockSurvey.pdf
