Barry Diller Thinks He Knows Why Hollywood Movies ‘Kind of Stink’

Who better to address the issue of Hollywood media consolidation than a veteran consolidator?

During an interview with Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal, IAC head honcho Barry Diller acknowledged that his latest company is indeed an online media conglomerate. And that this same sort of structure on the Hollywood studio side has left an indelible, obvious footprint:

“One of the reasons I think movies kind of stink is because they’re now so low on the totem pole of greater corporate interests. It used to be… when I came to Fox, it was almost totally — it had maybe 20 percent of its revenue came from television — 80 percent came from film.”

“Out of that, look what Fox has become — multiple cable networks, international distribution all over the world, controlling interest in BSkyB. In other words, it’s a multi-diversified company.”

There’s much more provocative media analysis shared in the interview, framed around Diller’s recent entry into e-book publishing with Scott Rudin and Brightline. Including the tacit acknowledgment that Newsweek is indeed a “fading” enterprise. Listen to full audio here.

[Photo courtesy IAC]