Fullscreen Plays With Otter? Must Be True Because They Ditched My Panel!

Leading MCN Fullscreen, long rumored to be in M&A “play” following the Disney/Maker Studios mega-deal, now apparently really is -- this time with AT&T and Chernin Group’s joint venture Otter Media.  The Otter/Fullscreen deal, if it happens, is reported to value the company between $200-$300 million, which is significantly less than the rumored $750 million-ish price-tag a few months back when Relativity Media was reported to be close to paying Maker-like mega-bucks.  If the now-rumored $200-$300 million number holds, perhaps earlier reports were way off.  Or, perhaps, Fullscreen overplayed its hand the first time?  You see, the passage of time is not a friend in M&A for the company that hopes to be bought.  Passing time almost always benefits the buyer, not the buy-ee.  Or, another possibility -- which was voiced to me by a trusted source -- is that maybe, just maybe, Fullscreen really believes that today’s MCN valuations will be considered to be “lows” one to two years from now -- and perhaps this deal (if it happens) would give them the opportunity to let at least a significant amount of their equity ride (while taking some cash off the table).  You see, apparently, this will not be an outright sale; rather, Otter Media is reported to be taking a majority stake in Fullscreen.

In any event, the timing here is funny to me, in a very personal way.  Last week I moderated a high visibility panel at the Siemer Summit that focused on the premium digital video ecosystem.  And, originally, Fullscreen’s COO -- Ezra Cooperstein -- was scheduled to participate.  But, lo and behold -- a few days before, he mysteriously bowed out -- with no real reason given.  Hmm ... deja vu?  The very same thing happened to me a few months back when I moderated an MCN-focused panel at UCLA -- literally just a couple days prior to reports that Disney was in the midst of buying Maker Studios.  Guess who was scheduled to be on that panel -- but also mysteriously bowed out in the days before?  That’s right.  Kevin Mayer -- Head of Strategy for Disney.

Coincidence?  I think not!  I even quipped about this last week when I kicked off my Seimer Summit panel.  One of my first questions naturally focused on the long-rumored sale of Fullscreen -- and why no deal had yet been consummated after all these months.  And, in the process, I joked that some kind of sale must be imminent because Fullscreen was following Disney’s “missing panelist” M.O.  (either that, or my panel moderating skills leave much to be desired).

So, here’s a tip.  If an industry exec is scheduled to participate on a panel, give a speech, or do some other kind of public PR -- and if that person mysteriously bows out the days preceding that event as a result of some undefined last-minute conflict or other ambiguous explanation -- then that person and his/her company are about to be transformed either the good way (M&A, major new gig) or the bad way (termination).

You see, when that seat is empty, the behind-the-scenes PR shenanigans are full.