The other day, MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) Judy McGrath was asked about the company’s image in the age of the Jersey Shore, and she talked about reality shows hooking younger viewers, which is the ultimate focus for the network. Today, at the Billboard Music & Money Symposium, Billboard’s Antony Bruno…

It’s not the end of online access to Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert but next week tracking them down may be a little less convenient for those used to watching on Hulu. Viacom (NYSE: VIA) is removing Comedy Central from the ad-supported video portal at 11:59 p.m. March 9 after…

In an interview with NYT TV reporter Bill Carter at the Paley Center, MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) CEO Judy McGrath insisted that despite appearances, TV viewing is still up among its young viewers. Carter prefaced his question about whether online was cannibalizing TV with an anecdote about his own kids…

As MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) ad execs begin meeting with marketers and media buyers for this year’s upfront, the Viacom unit is putting some finishing touches on reshaping its digital team. Later this morning, MTVN will announce that Suzanne McDonnell (image, left) will lead the Digital Fusion unit, while Heather…

With online ad spending slowly coming back from last year’s weakness, MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) hopes to see a further boost in revenues by adding deeper ad targeting across its vast 200 websites. The Viacom unit has been testing a variety of audience monitors for most of the past year…

MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) CEO Judy McGrath says the Viacom unit’s organic growth is “great,” despite its continued signs of weakness as detailed last week in parent company Viacom’s Q4 earnings. The company was hit by the soft ad market as well as lower sales of Rock Band bundles. In…

Viacom (NYSE: VIA), which has seen sales of its Rock Band franchise slow amid the gaming slump, is asking for a refund on its 2007 earnout payment to the Harmonix founders, according to a company 10-K filed earlier today. In October 2006, Harmonix, developer of the Rock Band franchise, was…

Viacom’s profits rose significantly in Q4, as the company posted modest revenue and advertising declines, beating analysts’ expectations. Global ad revenues fell 3 percent, while U.S. ad dollars slipped 4 percent, held down by slight weakness in the Media Networks and Filmed Entertainment segments. The Media Networks’ operating income grew…

		EPS*	Rev. vs Q408	Net Inc. vs Q408
Viacom	Release		3%	301%

* vs. Analysts' Estimates: Beat Met Missed

The groundwork has already been laid and now it’s official: RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) is spinning off music service Rhapsody in the hopes of giving both companies a better chance at success. Real will reduce its interest in the Rhapsody America joint venture to below 50 percent to match Viacom’s, giving…

The amount raised by the Hope For Haiti Now telethon stands at more than $61 million, organizers announced late Monday, up from the preliminary figure of $58 million and likely to keep growing as proceeds from multimedia sales and more donations come in. Nielsen Media Research estimates that more 83…

Music games sales’ tempo may be slowing - but that’s only because instrument ownership is nearing saturation - and anyway, songs bought within titles like Rock Band and Guitar Hero are flying off virtual shelves, MTV’s games SVP Paul DeGooyer told me at the Midem music conference. “Certainly, music games…

A stunning number of networks, sites, cable ops and mobile carriers came together Friday night to distribute the Hope for Haiti Now telethon, raising at least $58 million just that day, according to preliminary numbers via CNN. Repeatedly during the two-hour event, viewers were reminded that helping Haiti is an…

Tuesday night, CNN raised more than $7 million for Haitian relief during an quickly planned telethon on Larry King Live. That was small compared to the massive effort led by George Clooney and MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) will reach across the world. Star-studded telethon Help for Haiti Now will air…

Premium entertainment network Epix is having a good week after a distribution drought. Cable operator Mediacom Communications plans to launch the multi-platform network to its subs in April. No details, though. As was the case earlier this week with the Cox Communications deal, neither company is saying how many households…

MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) is promoting Kevin Arrix (pictured, left) to the role of EVP, Digital Advertising Sales, replacing Nada Stirratt, who jumped to MySpace as chief revenue officer over a month ago. The company will announce Arrix’s promotion later this afternoon. The move comes as Jason Witt has left…

MTVN’s Spike TV launched the first Video Game Awards (VGAs) in 2003, and has been delivering exclusive game trailers and performances to gamers—as well as a highly-engaged audience to video game and CPG advertisers—ever since. Last year, 10 million people tuned in to the awards, with 2.3 million in the…

This is not a surprise considering the continued decline of Rhapsody music service in the face of lots of new competition and the general malaise in the digital music market: MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) and RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) are talking about restructuring their Rhapsody America music JV, according to an…

Catherine Balsam-Schwaber has left her post as a senior marketing exec at MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) to take on a similar role at NBC Universal’s iVillage. This is the second big hire for iVillage within the past two months. In September, publishing vet Joe Lagani defected from Glam Media to…

Mark May is a principal and senior internet and digital media research analyst at Needham & Company, LLC, a full-service growth-company investment bank. Ken Sonenclar’s Leading Voices piece on Thursday titled “Five Media Deals I’d Like To See Happen In 2010” was thoroughly thought-provoking. Here are my own thoughts around…