King of Hollywood

Chapter 364: Chapter 88 Enjoyable Harmony

AC Media spent $16 billion to acquire ABC, news which quickly spread throughout the business world. By the end of September and the beginning of October 1995, it became the most shocking news and the hottest topic, even surpassing Microsoft which was soaring due to the release of Windows 95. Though Microsoft had developed over more than a decade to achieve its current success, AC Media, only four years old, had first acquired TBS and then ABC. Such feats could perhaps not be matched by others.

Business media outlets shifted all their attention to Claude Ronris, the young head of AC Media not yet in his thirties. His various business tactics were continually brought up, and the speech he gave at the press conference after the signing was analyzed word by word. Despite Claude’s experience in attending press conferences, he was somewhat overwhelmed by the frenzied journalists.

“I finally understand why you don’t like to be completely in the limelight; those guys are really annoying,” Claude said jokingly on the phone, his tone clearly indicating his excitement.

In addition, he was constantly receiving interview requests from various magazines. Even Time wanted him on the cover of their current issue. Wearing the halo of the youngest media mogul, Claude momentarily outshined everyone. It was said that Old Ronris, talking with acquaintances, was brimming with pride. Many economic commentators also earned handsome fees for their articles about how the acquisition of ABC would affect this emerging media company. TBS, although a cable station, had not yet fully adjusted. There might be conflicts in certain aspects with ABC, and what the media industry would look like today. The impact of this acquisition was a subject worthy of headlines.

At the same time, AC Media was becoming increasingly impactful in the media industry. Even though ABC was still losing money, if TBS could rise a notch after being acquired, who could be sure that ABC would not follow?

“I’ve always been optimistic about them, and the facts have proven me right,” boasted the chairman of Viacom, Redstone. His decision to exchange shares with AC Media, despite the opposition, was undeniably correct.

“Congratulations to them, but they still have a long way to go before ABC can turn a profit,” responded Murdoch, the CEO of News Corporation, providing a more perfunctory answer as he was busy stabilizing internal expectations to emerge quickly from difficulties.

As for Michael Eisner, he had no reaction, but it was said that on the day of signing, he had lost his temper so severely that nobody dared to enter his office, including his friend Michael Ovitz, who faced nothing but frustration. It was no wonder—having been confident in the deal, he was overtaken by an up-and-comer. This upset anyone and had somewhat shaken Eisner’s authority over the year. Inside voices grew more diverse, and turning the Disney board into his echo chamber would require considerable effort from Eisner.

And was there another person forgotten by the media? Of course not. These reporters might not excel at other things, but they were extremely skilled at digging up backgrounds. After all, who was the one who stabilized TBS’s ratings with a TV show? Who planned that reality show that left several major networks feeling miserable? And who created a turnaround during the acquisition battle with the help of popular animations?

Yes, he wasn’t deeply involved in those matters, but everyone knew that television and reality show concepts came from him, and Pixar was precisely what he had advocated acquiring. Moreover, just days after the acquisition, ABC suddenly announced a collaboration with Warner to produce the well-known TV series “Everybody Loves Raymond,” which was also his idea, and Warner agreed without a second thought. Besides, there was another reality show being planned. Even without revealing more details, it was clear whose idea it was.