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Activist shareholder ValueAct is pushing the New York Times to sell more subscriber bundles. And, it turns out, that's what the media company has been prioritizing, Kerry writes. 

Why it matters: The fact that ValueAct's thesis is in line with what the company is already doing suggests that this is more of a cooperative engagement than a precursor to a proxy fight. 

Driving the news: Per Bloomberg, ValueAct's letter to shareholders about NYT seems to call for a more aggressive push of its bundle offerings.

"Our research suggests that most current readers and subscribers are interested in the bundle and would pay a large premium for it but are not aware the offering even exists," the letter said. 

The demand comes amid a renewed focus on bundling in other parts of the media business, particularly entertainment.

State of play: NYT has been focused on strengthening its bundle through its recent acquisition of The Athletic, the digital sports publisher. 

NYT chose to add The Athletic to its bundle free of charge, intended as a way to entice new subscribers.

When asked in June if the company was eyeing other subscription offerings, CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said sports was "a clear missing piece" in its bundle offering, but "we don't feel like there's a gaping hole in the portfolio at this point."

Yes, but: NYT only offers minimal bundle options.

People can subscribe to basic digital access for news or to individual non-news products like Cooking or Games. Or, they can get all of the above by paying for all access. Print subscribers also get all access.

But there's no option to bundle just The Athletic and Wirecutter, for example. 

What NYT is saying: "As we do with other shareholders, members of our management team have had conversations with ValueAct to hear their views and share ours," Danielle Rhoades Ha, SVP of external communications, said in a statement to Axios. 

1 big thing: ValueAct wants NYT to keep it up

Illustration of a New York Times print newspaper with The Athletic logo on the front page

Charter Communications plans to shut down Spectrum Originals, its scripted content division, Deadline reports.

Why it's the BFD: Telecoms are continuing to evolve their businesses as cord-cutting and other streaming services compete for subscribers.

Details: The shutdown comes as Katherine Pope, who launched the original division in 2018, is leaving to become president of Sony Pictures Television Studios.

The division's shows included "LA's Finest," starring Jessica Alba and Gabrielle Union, and the revival of "Mad About You."

When Spectrum Originals launched, YouTube and Facebook also were invested in high-end scripted originals. But both of those companies have stepped back from that expensive endeavor, Deadline notes. 

What's next: "[T]he May announcement of Comcast and Charter's joint venture to expand the reach of Flex signals a potential strategic shift for the cable giants to become a dominant aggregator of streaming video, competing against the likes of Roku, Amazon, Samsung and other streaming distribution companies," Deadline's Nellie Andreeva writes.

2. The BFD: Charter to scrap originals

Illustration of a collage featuring an old TV, parts of dollar bills, and a TV test pattern.

IMG acquired a majority stake in Barrett-Jackson, a collector car auction and live events group, for $261m in a cash and stock deal. https://axios.link/3zRSNcr

Electric Entertainment closed a $100m loan credit facility with the Bank of America. https://axios.link/3bQ7gNX

Deutsche Telekom plans to buy a majority stake in T-Mobile US, CEO Timotheus Hoettgas said. It owns 48.4%. https://axios.link/3PkXvFl

3. Deal flow

Allen Media Group promoted Christopher Malone to CFO. https://axios.link/3QDdOhx

Hartbeat, Kevin Hart's production company, hired former Disney executive Brian C. Price as SVP, head of branded content and creative partnerships, and Candisse Williamson, former general counsel at Skybound Entertainment, as EVP, general counsel. Mike Stein was promoted to head of TV and audio and Monti Sehmi to EVP, head of finance and operations. https://axios.link/3AbNbKj

EssenceMediacom appointed Jill Kelly as its U.S. CEO. She was previously GroupM's Global CMO. https://axios.link/3vZ1Abj

Jon Batiste is leaving "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" after serving as bandleader for seven seasons. Louis Cato will take over. https://axios.link/3zTL25K

LAist Studios hired former Entertainment Weekly editorial director Shana Naomi Krochmal as VP of the studio and former LA Times'  Sophie Chap as communications director for Southern California Public Radio. https://axios.link/3QdTqE1

Range Media Partners hired Lisa Wolfe as SVP of operations and Sam Drake as director of A&R and publishing. https://axios.link/3bQoFWE

Fox News named Shannon Bream as the permanent host of "Fox News Sunday," succeeding Chris Wallace. https://axios.link/3PnQu6q

4. Movin' on up (or out)

How Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Hollywood can weather a recession as streaming competition rages on (Insider)

"It's been a decade-plus since the Great Recession, which hit in tandem with the 2007-2008 writers' strike, and the town is in a much different place than it was then, particularly as it recovers from pandemic shutdowns," Elaine Low writes.

"The streaming wars are over because subscriber growth has come to a halt," MoffettNathanson senior analyst Michael Nathanson said. "You're fighting a war in a land that has no more resources in it."

Why'd that movie disappear? Welcome to streaming's memory hole era (THR)

"The streaming generations may never give 'physical media' a full-on embrace, but a few fans must be thinking of buying back-up copies of their treasured titles as a hedge against the caprices of the digital overlords," Thomas Doherty writes.

5. Channel surfing

Illustration of a television with a tie dye pattern on the screen.

🗣️ Quote of the day: "Consumers are not going to have 300 OTT apps for watching content. There's no way someone's gonna have 300 subscriptions to 300 different platforms," Tim Armstrong told Digiday. 

@tim_bays: "A League of Their Own" on Amazon Prime Video. How long until they say the line? You know the one I'm talking about.

@kerrymflynn: Rage Against The Machine and Run the Jewels at Madison Square Garden. Third concert in five days. This is another 2020 postponement. 

Thank you for reading Axios Pro Media Deals! Please ask your friends, colleagues and bundle lovers to sign up.

August 12, 2022

1 big thing: ValueAct wants NYT to keep it up