about time warner : at&t and time warner pitched their merger along similar lines as comcast<u+2019>s union with nbcuniversal<u+2014>that, in today<u+2019>s media landscape, it makes sense to combine content creation with powerful distribution. but as cmo today reports, there<u+2019>s another potential benefit to the proposed $85.4 billion acquisition : <u+201c>addressable<u+201d> advertising. at&t chief executive randall stephenson said the merger, which combines its some 90 million wireless subscribers as well as directv households with time warner<u+2019>s pool of content, will create such opportunities, where companies can target individual households with tv ads that are specifically relevant to them based on income, ethnicity or other characteristics. it<u+2019>s a relatively limited business right now<u+2014>about 1.3% of overall tv ad spending, according to emarketer<u+2014>and there are still plenty of hurdles. <u+201c>addressable advertising has been two or three years away for at least 10 years,<u+201d> said analyst craig moffett at moffettnathanson. meanwhile, as the wall street journal reports, the deal is facing a difficult climate for regulatory approval , and shares of both companies dropped monday as wall street<u+2019>s skepticism revealed itself. break the news : if the deal does go through, at&t would also have control over time warner-owned cable news giant cnn, giving the wireless company an entrance into the journalism business. mr. stephenson has stressed that cnn <u+201c>will remain completely independent from an editorial perspective,<u+201d> telling cnn<u+2019>s brian stelter that <u+201c>you can begin to destroy a brand like cnn if you begin to meddle in its independence.<u+201d> but as cmo today reports, that promise may prove challenging . at least if you ask former cnn president jon klein, who said that <u+201c>self-censorship is a concern<u+201d> when it comes to at&t, which he said was <u+201c>more likely a company to make news and be in the news and be controversial than time warner ever was.<u+201d> at&t might not want to tamper with cnn for financial reasons anyway, since the company is approaching $1 billion in profitability. and maybe it will be less of a headache than john oliver, who has been busy eviscerating various news topics on time warner-owned hbo. i want my mtv : it<u+2019>s been quite some time since mtv was the go-to destination for young people, but the viacom inc. network has pledged to put the <u+201c>music<u+201d> back into music television. however, the executive who made that promise to advertisers at mtv<u+2019>s upfront event this spring, sean atkins, won<u+2019>t be leading the charge anymore. as cmo today reports, mr. atkins has stepped down after just a year at the network . chris mccarthy, who currently heads up vh1 and logo, will add mtv to his responsibilities. mr. atkins joins the growing list of media executives to depart viacom in recent months after a bruising boardroom power struggle and amid the exploration of a possible merger with cbs corp. while mtv has made digital strides with things like its snapchat discover channel, it<u+2019>s a tall order for any executive to return mtv to its former glory. with traditional tv ratings down, viacom is looking to a new bag of tricks, like programming technology that allows viewers to actually become a part of a show in real time, variety reports. new york buys : for many web publishers, old-fashioned affiliate linking<u+2014>where media outlets direct people to retailers<u+2019> sites and take a commission on their purchases<u+2014>has become a growing revenue stream . now the new york times is buying the wirecutter , a tech gadget consumer guide that makes its money from affiliate linking, wsj reports. the deal, valued at about $30 million, also includes the sweethome, a sister site that focuses on home appliances. mark thompson, the times<u+2019> chief executive, said the wirecutter, which was created in 2011 by former gizmodo editor brian lam, has a <u+201c>very attractive revenue model.<u+201d> that revenue model (taking a cut on people<u+2019>s amazon purchases, for instance) is particularly attractive given some of the challenges in online display ads and, of course, print advertising. but the times is betting that having an in-house, modern consumer reports is a solid digital bet. speaking at the wsjdlive conference, netflix ceo reed hastings said he would support the at&t-time warner merger so long as it doesn<u+2019>t give an <u+201c>unfair advantage<u+201d> to time warner networks. [ wsj ] twitter is planning a round of job cuts that could be announced as soon as this week, after potential bidders backed out of its sale process. the company may slash about 8% of employees, or 300 people. [ bloomberg ] donald trump<u+2019>s campaign has launched a new show on facebook live that will air every night, hosted by a conservative commentator and two trump advisers. [ wired ] nielsen is launching a new measurement service to take on one of its biggest blind spots: people who watch television in locations like restaurants and gyms. some networks, particularly those that air sporting events, have long complained that their viewership has been understated. [ adweek ] both time warner and at&t are among the top advertising spenders in the u.s., and their merger would likely result in trimmed-down marketing budgets as part of broader cost-cutting goals. [ cmo today ] gannett is planning to cut 2% of jobs, affecting about 380 people across the company, which owns usa today and 100 other newspapers. the company says it will invest more in acquisitions. [ wsj ] at&t has filed a statement with the sec to clarify that it is buying time warner, not time warner cable. the similar names have caused confusion for years , and continues even after time warner cable was acquired by charter communications. [ sec via shalini ramachandran ] bbc america will stream footage from the <u+201c>orphan black<u+201d> set on facebook live in an effort to stand out from the tv clutter. [ cmo today ] follow us on twitter: @wsjcmo , @digitalshields , @vranicawsj , @jackmarshall , @perlberg , @alexbruell , @srabil , @asharma subscribe to our morning newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox, at http://on.wsj.com/cmotodaysignup . write to steven perlberg at steven.perlberg@wsj.com
cmo today: at&t<u+2019>s ambitious advertising plans with time warner deal - wsj
steven perlberg