Strictly Business

The “Let’s Make a Deal” host talks about his ambition to build a consulting business based on the tenets of comedy improv: active listening, openness to collaboration and the ability to think fast on your feet. Brady, also a regular on “Whose Line Is It Anyway,” sees the “Yes and” philosophy of improv as a framework for helping youths develop self-confidence and critical thinking skills. He draws...

The Sony Music lifer has met more than his share of challenges since assuming the chairmanship in 2019: from making the right hires to see the company’s vision through to banking on talent and not just “hits” to segueing to a subscription-driven business to getting through a global pandemic and responding to the call for social justice -- all this as borders cease to exist in this new global music...

The celebrated chef and “Chopped” star discusses his growing Corner Table Entertainment banner that is busy producing TV shows for Food Network and other outlets, in addition to podcasts, charity telethons and a Tribeca Enterprises documentary about the pandemic’s devastation of New York’s restaurant scene. Zakarian offers his thoughts on the differences between launching a restaurant and launchin...

The cutting edge of film and TV production technology is getting cornered by the videogame biz. Miles Perkins and Connie Kennedy of Epic Games, creator of the global phenomenon "Fortnite," discuss how their Unreal Engine software is increasingly being used during the pandemic to shoot with a new set of tools loosely known as virtual production. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.ihear...

Cameo CEO Steven Galanis says his company is part of a rising wave of direct-to-fan platforms enabling a much broader range of talent beyond A-listers to make money online. He explains how Cameo built a booming business by selling bespoke video shout-outs recorded by its roster of tens thousands of celebs. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/...

Charles King, CEO and founder of Macro, explains how the content company behind “Judas and the Black Messiah” has grown quickly with a focus on creating opportunities for underrepresented storytellers. King details the business deal that Macro and partners made with Warner Bros. on “Judas” and how he feels about the film’s day-and-date premiere in theaters and on HBO Max.  Learn more about your ad...

The co-founders and leaders of Alcon Entertainment detail the business backstory of the Syfy/Amazon fantasy drama “The Expanse,” a series that Alcon owns outright thanks to savvy dealmaking by the seasoned producer-financiers. Kosove and Broderick, known for movie hits including “The Blind Side,” “The Book of Eli” and “Dolphin Tale,” also speak frankly about the state of the film marketplace and w...

Blake Chandlee, VP of global business solutions and head of ad sales for TikTok discusses the social media platform's meteoric rise and how its many tools kept more than 100 million users engaged during lockdown conditions. He details TikTok's unique ability to connect its creators with blue-chip marketers to generate new innovative forms of advertising. Learn more about your ad-choices at https:/...

Hear more about big deals the senior VP of its platform business landed with Warner Media, paving the way for subscribers to enjoy HBO Max, and Quibi, which will bring the defunct mobile app's content to Roku. It's all a part of the company's big effort to evolve ad monetization on its platform, particularly through the fast-growing Roku Channel. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.ihe...

Bart Spiegel, U.S. entertainment and media deals leader for PWC, offers his 2021 outlook on dealmaking in an industry that has buffeted and buoyed by pandemic conditions. Spiegel points to the rise of videogame usage and a “repositioning” of assets held by traditional media giants as trends to watch in the year ahead. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omn...

Each week, Observer senior entertainment reporter Brandon Katz and Hollywood Reporter contributor Jean Bentley highlight the new Netflix titles they're excited about. Recent guests: Daniel Fienberg from The Hollywood Reporter, Joanna Robinson from Vanity Fair, and Megan Vick from TV Guide. Click  Must Watch: Netflix Edition  to follow the show on your podcast app. Learn more about your ad-choices...

Aryeh Bourkoff, CEO of LionTree, offers insights into how the pandemic has reshaped the marketplace and what that means for media dealmaking in the near term. The veteran investment banker, who is on speed dial for such notable, media moguls as John Malone and Shari Redstone, weighs in on the convergence trends that he sees coming for Big Media and Big Tech, and he explains why LionTree is closely...

Instead of the usual guest interview, this episode features co-host Andrew Wallenstein offering his no-holds-barred assessment of everyone who competed in streaming video in 2020, from the stratospheric rise of Disney+ to the ignominious end of Quibi.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jessica Lessin, founder and editor-in-chief of The Information, discusses the growth of the eight-year-old outlet that has distinguished itself through deep-dive reporting, analysis and scoops in the tech and media worlds. Lessin also offers her perspective on trends for the coming year at Facebook, Google, TikTok, and she weighs in on the prospect of some Silicon Valley stalwarts facing regulator...

Thomas Dey, president and CEO of ACF Investment Bank, discusses the dealmaking landscape in media and entertainment, predicting that networks and services stuck between those with massive scale and those with niche audiences will get "washed away." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The veteran unscripted TV producer and entrepreneur behind Wheelhouse discusses the building blocks of his three-year-old venture. Montgomery, the producer behind “Pawn Stars” and other cable hits, explains why Wheelhouse has expanded beyond TV production to investing in tech startups, digital media, marketing and merchandising efforts for promising talent talent such as TikTok phenoms Hype House....

For just $20 a month, Philo offers consumers more than 60 cable channels. It's a simple value proposition that has helped this venture stand out in a crowded marketplace of so-called virtual MVPDs. And as Philo CEO Andrew McCollum explains, he's not about to make the mistake that has the prices of many of his competitors soaring.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwor...

Sinclair Broadcast Group has taken the streaming wars to local markets. The TV station giant is expanding its ad-supported STIRR platform designed to help its nearly 200 stations better monetize digital viewing of newscasts and syndicated programming. Adam Ware, Sinclair's VP and general manager of national networks and platforms, talks about the growth of the streaming service and why local TV is...

Michael Moses and Dwight Caines reflect on how they rewrote the theatrical promotional playbook over the course of the global pandemic as the first studio to bypass theaters , strike the only deals with major exhibitors to shorten the theatrical window, and introduce a new hybrid window . Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Mellody Hobson, co-CEO and president of Ariel Investments, explains why she’s bullish on the media sector at a time of great transition for traditional TV and film giants. The respected investor and former DreamWorks Animation board chair asserts that the most important way for media giants to pursue diversity and inclusion goals is to start by counting. "If it matters, it’s counted," she says of...

Lauren Neustadter, head of film and TV for Hello Sunshine, discusses the growth of Reese Witherspoon’s content production banner. One of the company’s first employees, Neustadter explains the guiding principles for projects tackled by the company – including Apple’s “The Morning Show” and Hulu’s “Little Fires Everywhere” -- and how Hello Sunshine has navigating the exploding global marketplace for...

The veteran comedy writer/producer/performer is back with another talk show on the Peacock streaming network, where he's up to the challenge of finding the humor amid bleak political headlines. Wilmore also traces his evolution through a 30-year TV career.   Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Netflix’s co-CEO and chief content officer discusses the global scope of the streaming giant’s business during a wide-ranging Q&A. Sarandos details how the company decides when to invest big in local language production, and the metrics that Netflix uses to evaluate the success of original and acquired content. The long-serving Netflix executive also weighs in on the controversy in the U.S. ov...

Carlos Watson, co-founder and CEO of Ozy Media, started his company in 2013 as a digital magazine venture that was dubbed by one reader “the love child of Vice and the Economist.” Watson’s ambition for Ozy Media has grown to include TV series, podcasts and a traveling festival featuring top thinkers and entrepreneurs. The former McKinsey & Co. analyst turned journalist discusses how his San Fr...

Wattpad Studios head Aron Levitz and his team comb through the nearly 1 billion stories that members of Wattpad’s 80 million-plus monthly users have shared on the app. His goal: to find the unique narratives that resonate with fans, and then turn them into TV shows, movies and books. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...