WEBVTT - The Operator: Joe Ianniello Carves a New Path With a Media-Focused SPAC 0:00:07.960 --> 0:00:12.639 Welcome to Strictly Business Varieties, weekly podcasts featuring conversations with 0:00:12.720 --> 0:00:17.000 industry leaders about the business of media and entertainment. I'm 0:00:17.040 --> 0:00:20.919 Cynthia Littleton, co editor in chief of Variety Today. My 0:00:21.000 --> 0:00:23.759 guest in New York is Joe iyan Ello, chairman and 0:00:23.800 --> 0:00:28.240 CEO of Argus Capital Ayannello was a top executive at 0:00:28.240 --> 0:00:31.440 CBS for more than twenty years when he found himself 0:00:31.440 --> 0:00:34.040 out of a job in early twenty twenty after via 0:00:34.120 --> 0:00:37.920 common CBS tied the knot again. Ianello gathered a number 0:00:37.920 --> 0:00:40.760 of colleagues who were in the same position. They set 0:00:40.760 --> 0:00:43.360 off on a mission to create a better spack deal 0:00:43.680 --> 0:00:48.120 for buying and operating media and entertainment assets. As he 0:00:48.159 --> 0:00:51.879 explains in our conversation, Argus aims to capitalize on the 0:00:51.920 --> 0:00:56.319 disruption all around the industry. The largest media companies are 0:00:56.320 --> 0:01:00.760 shifting priorities and funneling resources to build new streaming platforms. 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:06.760 Ianello sees quote fantastic businesses and quote being neglected. He 0:01:06.920 --> 0:01:09.480 thinks he has an irresistible offer for those in the 0:01:09.520 --> 0:01:12.920 seats that he used to occupy, sell or spin off 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:16.160 a big piece of a solid business to the argustine 0:01:16.440 --> 0:01:20.319 and let them run it with relentless focus. Given that 0:01:20.360 --> 0:01:24.320 Ianello is surrounded by CBS alumni in this venture, it's 0:01:24.360 --> 0:01:27.880 no surprise that he still uses US an hour when 0:01:27.880 --> 0:01:33.280 referring to anything involving CBS. Ianello sees Argus as becoming 0:01:33.360 --> 0:01:37.960 a Bolton management team or key advisors for young public companies. 0:01:38.800 --> 0:01:41.640 It's an intriguing vision of the near future for media 0:01:42.040 --> 0:01:45.160 if he can pull it off. That's all coming up 0:01:45.200 --> 0:01:58.520 on today's episode of Strictly Business. Joe Ianello, chairman and 0:01:58.600 --> 0:02:02.120 CEO of Artists Capital Corp. Thank you so much for 0:02:02.200 --> 0:02:05.080 coming to Brian Park and doing this in person. What 0:02:05.240 --> 0:02:08.080 a treat. It's great to be here with you, Joe. 0:02:08.320 --> 0:02:13.960 You have recently you have joined the wave of spack 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:16.320 deals that have been out there in the marketplace. That's 0:02:16.320 --> 0:02:18.560 been a really interesting development. We're going to talk about 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:20.400 the back of it all in a little bit, but 0:02:20.480 --> 0:02:23.720 just to start, tell us about Argus Capital Corp. You 0:02:23.840 --> 0:02:27.720 recently raised about two five million and you have brought 0:02:27.760 --> 0:02:30.000 together a number of former colleagues that you worked with 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:33.600 at CBS. You've got the band back together, You've got 0:02:33.960 --> 0:02:37.320 you've got some money in your coffers. What is what 0:02:37.520 --> 0:02:42.079 is the goal and why did Argus Capital come together? Now, yeah, 0:02:42.080 --> 0:02:44.520 I think the timing was there's such change going on 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:49.480 in the broader t MT sector really again driven by 0:02:49.560 --> 0:02:53.440 technological advancements. So we see lots of opportunities you know, 0:02:53.480 --> 0:02:56.520 of ahead of us, and you know, I'm fortunate enough 0:02:56.560 --> 0:02:59.960 to put together really again a unique group. Again, these 0:03:00.000 --> 0:03:03.560 are these are kind of fortune one hundred c suite 0:03:03.600 --> 0:03:08.280 executives that happened to be all available at the same time, 0:03:08.320 --> 0:03:11.360 which is really again unique certainly in the spack world, 0:03:11.400 --> 0:03:14.600 but even in corporate America to have that breadth and 0:03:14.680 --> 0:03:20.520 depth of talent around me, and so so what exactly 0:03:20.639 --> 0:03:25.200 exactly so so so we we studied the vehicle, the 0:03:25.240 --> 0:03:29.000 spack vehicle deeply before we we entered you know, the 0:03:29.480 --> 0:03:32.440 marketplace and what it does. It really gives us the 0:03:32.520 --> 0:03:36.080 ability to choose to deal we want to do where 0:03:36.120 --> 0:03:39.040 we can add the most amount of value. So that's 0:03:39.040 --> 0:03:42.480 why again, it's why why is back and why you 0:03:42.520 --> 0:03:47.320 know now, was the team was available again in in 0:03:47.040 --> 0:03:50.320 a in a space that we know something about and 0:03:50.520 --> 0:03:53.840 a bit and leslie all of the change that's going 0:03:53.920 --> 0:03:58.880 on that creating a lot of these opportunities. For sure, 0:03:59.000 --> 0:04:02.600 there is, there is so much movement right now, but 0:04:02.640 --> 0:04:07.200 among media entertainment, it really is an industry in transition. 0:04:07.320 --> 0:04:10.240 I sometimes I feel like the winds around me sometimes 0:04:10.240 --> 0:04:13.560 it is literally in transition. Um And I know one 0:04:13.600 --> 0:04:15.200 of the things that you've talked about is that you 0:04:15.240 --> 0:04:17.040 feel like there's going to be a lot of moving 0:04:17.040 --> 0:04:19.520 and shaking, a lot of divesting, a lot of things 0:04:20.200 --> 0:04:24.720 coming off of larger entities that may be reevaluating. Can 0:04:24.760 --> 0:04:27.680 you talk about that and why that's happening now in 0:04:27.720 --> 0:04:29.760 this market? Yeah? I think. I think. Look, I think 0:04:29.800 --> 0:04:33.240 when all of these conglomerates you know, getting together, right, 0:04:33.279 --> 0:04:36.240 you're putting a lot of asset groups together, you know, 0:04:36.800 --> 0:04:41.159 cable nets, with broadcasting, with streaming, with film companies. And 0:04:41.200 --> 0:04:44.080 I think what investors really want is they want focus. 0:04:44.720 --> 0:04:46.640 You know, when they're investing in a company, they want 0:04:46.680 --> 0:04:50.800 to know how the management team is prioritizing, how they 0:04:50.839 --> 0:04:54.600 allocate capital. And now, because a lot of companies are 0:04:54.600 --> 0:04:57.120 over the top, you know, direct the consumer whatever you know, 0:04:57.279 --> 0:05:00.480 you know, call it the Netflix model, if you will, Right, 0:05:00.839 --> 0:05:03.760 it's all of that content, all of that content, you know, 0:05:03.880 --> 0:05:06.800 is being distributed directly to the consumer, and that takes 0:05:07.160 --> 0:05:09.320 you know, capital to do that. So then I think 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.479 investors are gonna push so then why are you in 0:05:11.560 --> 0:05:14.839 this business or this business or that business? Again, I 0:05:14.880 --> 0:05:17.360 just always use the example of you know, I look 0:05:17.360 --> 0:05:20.320 at Hulu and Hulu is owned by Disney and Comcast. 0:05:21.040 --> 0:05:25.679 Yet Disney and Comcast also have streaming services, right Disney 0:05:25.680 --> 0:05:29.359 Plus and Peacock. So when they're making a piece of 0:05:29.360 --> 0:05:34.160 premium content, where does it go? Does it go on Peacock, 0:05:34.800 --> 0:05:36.880 does it go on Hulu? What does it go on 0:05:36.920 --> 0:05:39.960 Disney Plus? And I think as an investor, I think 0:05:40.000 --> 0:05:43.040 part of this process, you know, uh, when we left 0:05:43.080 --> 0:05:45.760 the after the merger, we really started you know, thinking about, 0:05:46.040 --> 0:05:48.600 you know, what we're doing more as an investor and 0:05:48.640 --> 0:05:51.279 really prioritizing how you do that, I think is what's 0:05:51.279 --> 0:05:55.240 gonna These investors are going to force companies again to 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:57.680 kind of choose where you want to be. And so 0:05:57.839 --> 0:06:01.080 therefore that leads to a lot of what I we're calling, 0:06:01.120 --> 0:06:04.480 you know, corporate divestitures or carve outs, where there are 0:06:04.480 --> 0:06:10.000 fantastic businesses buried inside conglomerates where their capital, you know, 0:06:10.080 --> 0:06:13.520 priority isn't top of the list, so they would be 0:06:13.520 --> 0:06:18.520 better served as a separate entity where folks are dedicated 0:06:18.760 --> 0:06:22.000 to setting up the capital structure appropriate, you know, meaning 0:06:22.080 --> 0:06:23.880 how much death does the company has, does it pay 0:06:23.880 --> 0:06:27.080 a dividend, how does it prioritize its shoes? And letting 0:06:27.160 --> 0:06:31.760 investors invest in that company specifically. And again I think 0:06:31.760 --> 0:06:33.719 it's a win win for both. I think it's fantastic 0:06:33.720 --> 0:06:36.720 for the companies because again they get to unlock value right, 0:06:36.800 --> 0:06:41.080 these corporate carve outs and the the the asset class 0:06:41.080 --> 0:06:44.240 get investors get closer to it, right. And so I 0:06:44.320 --> 0:06:47.080 go back to our gust capital A lot of time 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:49.440 sitting in that chair, you know, we we came to 0:06:49.480 --> 0:06:55.960 this with our radio division or outdoor division. Yes, yes, 0:06:56.360 --> 0:06:59.760 and so um, what we didn't have the we didn't 0:06:59.760 --> 0:07:02.000 have the right public company management in place. We had 0:07:02.040 --> 0:07:04.960 fantastic divisional management that we could help, but we had 0:07:04.960 --> 0:07:08.359 to augment that with public company management. As you know, 0:07:08.480 --> 0:07:11.280 that's very different than running a business when you're dealing 0:07:11.280 --> 0:07:14.520 with public company investors quarter at a quarter. So again 0:07:14.560 --> 0:07:16.440 I come back to, is the team that we have 0:07:16.600 --> 0:07:19.600 together can actually help in that role. And that's where 0:07:19.600 --> 0:07:23.200 you're not seeing where we saw avoid in spacts because 0:07:23.200 --> 0:07:27.200 spacts were you know, um, really, I say, one man band, 0:07:27.280 --> 0:07:30.320 really a smaller shop. But because of the breadth and 0:07:30.360 --> 0:07:32.680 depth of the team we put together, we think a 0:07:32.920 --> 0:07:36.520 corporate carve out is really an interesting solution for some 0:07:36.600 --> 0:07:40.000 of these conglomerates that they can effectually kind of have 0:07:40.280 --> 0:07:44.320 us as the as an overlay. Two again, a solid 0:07:44.360 --> 0:07:48.920 management team right to help tell that story and execute uh. 0:07:48.920 --> 0:07:51.600 In the public markets, do you see a scenario where 0:07:51.640 --> 0:07:54.800 maybe you would buy like eight percent of something from 0:07:54.800 --> 0:07:56.600 a company and they might have a small piece of 0:07:56.600 --> 0:07:58.200 it and you run it. Yeah, I think I think 0:07:58.200 --> 0:08:00.200 it's I think it's actually different. I think we would 0:08:00.240 --> 0:08:03.200 only own a very small piece. So earlier you said 0:08:03.200 --> 0:08:05.480 to sixty five. So just so you know, we raised 0:08:05.480 --> 0:08:08.320 three or five. That includes the green shoe, so the 0:08:08.480 --> 0:08:12.000 underwriters get to exercise a green shoe and over allotment, 0:08:12.360 --> 0:08:14.680 and so we've raised a little over three hundreds. So 0:08:15.040 --> 0:08:17.200 when we look at the size of the companies were 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:22.240 kind of targeting, and we we're talking multibillion dollar companies, mathematically, 0:08:22.280 --> 0:08:24.720 we're going to only own a small piece of that 0:08:24.760 --> 0:08:28.520 and that's okay, But but we're aligned with that conglomerate. 0:08:28.640 --> 0:08:30.840 So for in an instance, if somebody takes a ten 0:08:30.880 --> 0:08:34.640 billion dollar asset and wants to separate it. Right, they're 0:08:34.640 --> 0:08:38.840 going to actually own the vast majority of that asset 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:41.240 because if this is worth again ten billion, and we 0:08:41.320 --> 0:08:44.000 have three hundred you know million, we're going to own 0:08:44.040 --> 0:08:47.079 a small piece of that. But the company then it 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:50.079 would it provides for the company, is right, strategic flexibility, 0:08:50.200 --> 0:08:54.640 separate capital structure, investors at, separate management, and then they 0:08:54.640 --> 0:08:57.120 could do whatever they want thereafter, they can then sell 0:08:57.200 --> 0:09:00.959 the remaining shares um they to the public, do an 0:09:00.960 --> 0:09:04.280 exchange offer, which we've done before because of some tax basis. 0:09:04.720 --> 0:09:09.119 So the spack vehicle allows a lot of that flix exactly. 0:09:09.160 --> 0:09:13.480 I'm learning as thank you, Joe and so so Yeah, look, 0:09:13.520 --> 0:09:15.880 I think I think part of this is I don't 0:09:15.920 --> 0:09:19.840 think it's well understood. I think spats are more institutionalized today, 0:09:19.880 --> 0:09:21.520 but I still think there's a way to go to 0:09:21.600 --> 0:09:25.760 really understand the advantages of a spack. And you know 0:09:25.800 --> 0:09:27.880 what I see it is like again, when we look 0:09:27.880 --> 0:09:29.760 at it to ourselves, here's what we ask ourselves, and 0:09:29.760 --> 0:09:33.200 we always have the target in mind, is happens he said, 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:36.960 Should this target be a public company? That's the first 0:09:37.040 --> 0:09:38.600 question you should ask, and there's got to be a 0:09:38.640 --> 0:09:41.280 hard question and question. And we've seen a lot of 0:09:41.280 --> 0:09:45.400 things that had no business being a company to oh 0:09:45.480 --> 0:09:47.679 they're not ready yet, or they didn't have the right 0:09:47.760 --> 0:09:50.480 you know, counsel and you know in coaching available to it. 0:09:50.520 --> 0:09:52.480 And so so you've got to ask yourselves. And again 0:09:52.600 --> 0:09:54.520 back to the depth of the team. I think we'll 0:09:54.559 --> 0:09:56.559 get to the right answer when we ask ourselves that, 0:09:56.679 --> 0:10:00.240 but again putting the targets hat on. And so if 0:10:00.280 --> 0:10:02.319 the answer to that is yes, then we have a 0:10:02.400 --> 0:10:04.600 couple of more questions we want to ask. It's like, well, 0:10:04.640 --> 0:10:08.280 does timing matter? You know, if you're if you're in 0:10:08.320 --> 0:10:10.200 a business that has growth, and you you have good 0:10:10.280 --> 0:10:12.880 organic growth, but there's also m and a growth, you 0:10:12.960 --> 0:10:15.280 might want to have a currency out there to start 0:10:15.440 --> 0:10:20.640 rolling these things up. So timing could be important. Uh B. 0:10:21.280 --> 0:10:25.240 You know is does does projections matter to you? Meaning 0:10:25.880 --> 0:10:29.000 is it you tell your story better by future numbers 0:10:29.120 --> 0:10:31.640 or historical numbers? Again, a lot of times, you know 0:10:31.679 --> 0:10:34.319 when I p O is you don't use projections right 0:10:34.440 --> 0:10:37.280 in a spac you can use those projections if that 0:10:37.360 --> 0:10:41.440 tells a better story to reflect the current value of 0:10:41.520 --> 0:10:44.040 the enterprise. Right. A lot of times when you see, 0:10:44.120 --> 0:10:45.760 you know, how did its facts kind of come come 0:10:45.760 --> 0:10:48.720 to be? When I POS doubled, you know, in the 0:10:48.720 --> 0:10:52.840 first day of trading, that's very good for investors. That's 0:10:52.840 --> 0:10:55.800 not so good for the target company because the company 0:10:55.800 --> 0:10:59.000 didn't double in value from yesterday to today. The bar 0:10:59.120 --> 0:11:02.280 just got raised the whole incredible lot. So what happened there, 0:11:02.320 --> 0:11:06.240 well because it wasn't priced appropriately, And again a lot 0:11:06.240 --> 0:11:08.720 of times it wasn't price appropriate because what numbers were 0:11:08.720 --> 0:11:11.120 you looking at? And so again as fact what we 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:14.160 call it price discovery, you get to kind of find 0:11:14.200 --> 0:11:17.319 where market the market is with us fact because again 0:11:17.360 --> 0:11:19.200 you tell your story, you still have to go to 0:11:19.280 --> 0:11:21.400 the investors and they still have to buy into the 0:11:21.440 --> 0:11:26.240 deal at that value. Right, and we'll talk about you know, 0:11:26.320 --> 0:11:29.440 this thing as a blank check, which is is really 0:11:29.480 --> 0:11:32.800 a misnomer. But the investors and you have a negotiation. 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:37.520 The target gets to negotiate that right, you know, different 0:11:37.520 --> 0:11:40.240 than the I P O. So if that matters, you know, 0:11:40.679 --> 0:11:43.199 um to you, you use the forward projections, you hit 0:11:43.240 --> 0:11:46.920 the market uh quicker and then what I think most 0:11:46.920 --> 0:11:50.480 important for argus, right, then you get the benefit of 0:11:50.720 --> 0:11:54.199 hundreds of years of experience of the Argus team right, 0:11:54.240 --> 0:11:57.840 again very different than others, but again not available in 0:11:57.880 --> 0:12:00.080 an I P O. Do you have to make in 0:12:00.120 --> 0:12:02.760 those conversations? Do you I would imagine it? Who view 0:12:02.800 --> 0:12:04.880 to make the case? Here's how we're going to run 0:12:04.880 --> 0:12:06.360 in and here's how we're going to do it better 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:10.920 or more efficiently or with more yeah, strategy. We listened 0:12:10.960 --> 0:12:13.160 to the targets company, you know, the management team of 0:12:13.200 --> 0:12:15.920 the current ownership and what their vision is. And if 0:12:15.960 --> 0:12:18.520 we could take a good idea and make it a 0:12:18.559 --> 0:12:21.240 great idea, then we're adding some value and then we 0:12:21.280 --> 0:12:23.839 have to help them execute it along the way. So 0:12:23.960 --> 0:12:25.800 a lot of times, again there's a lot of great 0:12:25.800 --> 0:12:28.720 companies that you know, probably have a great CEO and 0:12:28.840 --> 0:12:31.480 great manager, which is totally fine, and we're going to 0:12:31.559 --> 0:12:35.480 help them with the public investor story. But if there's gaps, 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:39.520 we could help and drop some executives into operating roles 0:12:39.720 --> 0:12:42.360 as necessary. Um. But a lot of times, a lot 0:12:42.400 --> 0:12:45.079 of times, these companies they have a good framework, they 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:47.120 just need a little bit of more direction of you know, 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:49.560 how to get there. And I think our collective experience 0:12:50.080 --> 0:12:54.079 can really help them again achieve you know, their objectives 0:12:54.160 --> 0:12:56.000 really at the end of the day. But look, like 0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:58.400 I said, is they have to see the value we 0:12:58.480 --> 0:13:00.760 bring to that. And again I go back to the 0:13:00.840 --> 0:13:04.719 experience that you have when you have decades of experience 0:13:04.720 --> 0:13:07.640 with public investors. You know what I always say with 0:13:07.640 --> 0:13:09.559 public investors, you have to you have to tell them 0:13:09.559 --> 0:13:11.160 what you're gonna do, and then you have to do 0:13:11.200 --> 0:13:14.079 what you say, right, and then then the value. You 0:13:14.360 --> 0:13:16.440 don't decide what the value is. They decide what the 0:13:16.520 --> 0:13:20.080 value is. But if you execute that plan again, you 0:13:20.120 --> 0:13:23.600 know you should be increasing value if you're hitting all 0:13:23.640 --> 0:13:26.920 of your metrics. I know you can't talk super specifics, 0:13:26.960 --> 0:13:30.199 but the types of assets you're looking at and guessing 0:13:30.280 --> 0:13:33.280 networks content. Yeah, and I would say, look, it's obviously 0:13:33.280 --> 0:13:35.560 in the broader t MT space, but you know, think 0:13:35.760 --> 0:13:39.079 think O, t T think direct to consumer any any. 0:13:39.160 --> 0:13:41.040 The way we like to describe it is called tech 0:13:41.200 --> 0:13:46.959 driven media, where technology is enriching the consumer experience. Right, 0:13:47.000 --> 0:13:49.160 so we know something about you know, how to do that. 0:13:49.240 --> 0:13:52.680 It obviously can be new sports entertainment, right, so anything 0:13:52.720 --> 0:13:55.599 that has a you know, any live events, you know sports, 0:13:56.080 --> 0:13:59.960 you know, Um, I think again, we have some credibility 0:14:00.080 --> 0:14:02.680 in in our experience of running those types of companies. 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:05.000 So so when we're what we're looking for is good, 0:14:05.080 --> 0:14:08.400 solid businesses. Again, they could be kind of late stage VC. 0:14:08.720 --> 0:14:12.840 They could be owned by private equity portfolio companies or 0:14:12.960 --> 0:14:15.680 these kind of corporate carve outs that we call them, 0:14:15.679 --> 0:14:21.120 but good you know, solid businesses, category leaders, strong fundamentals. 0:14:21.520 --> 0:14:24.720 They may be at a strategic inflection point, you know, 0:14:25.040 --> 0:14:29.040 they may be going from lineator, digital, all of those things. Again, 0:14:29.240 --> 0:14:31.840 where we can say is we have experience doing that. 0:14:32.160 --> 0:14:34.840 So I love the streaming, you know aspect of it 0:14:34.880 --> 0:14:38.280 because you know, we were one of the first companies, 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:42.320 you know, traditional media companies to launch a streaming service 0:14:42.320 --> 0:14:46.440 called CBS All Access back in Access. I signed up 0:14:46.480 --> 0:14:48.440 I think the first week and I still use it. 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:52.280 I used it this morning. Right, It's not Paramount plus 0:14:52.320 --> 0:14:54.800 e grot Bound Amount plus. But but if you just 0:14:54.840 --> 0:14:58.400 think about that for a second, ten that's five years 0:14:58.400 --> 0:15:02.360 before Disney plus Peacock on the our other piers launched 0:15:02.600 --> 0:15:07.080 their services ago. So so so that's what so when 0:15:07.120 --> 0:15:10.040 you have started, when you start at zero and then 0:15:10.040 --> 0:15:13.000 you build it, you get a lot smarter on you know, 0:15:13.360 --> 0:15:15.800 you know, why do subs come in why did they 0:15:15.880 --> 0:15:18.880 churn out? You know, where are they spending time? You know, 0:15:18.920 --> 0:15:21.800 I always used the example of he used to say, 0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:26.920 Showtime has been in the subscription business for its entire existence, 0:15:27.280 --> 0:15:30.040 but up until they launched we launched Showtime O T T, 0:15:30.480 --> 0:15:32.960 they never had a subscriber. And people look at me, 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:35.160 they go, what do you mean by that? It was like, 0:15:35.240 --> 0:15:38.600 because the distributors had all of this subscription data on 0:15:38.640 --> 0:15:42.440 the on the the m v P dcast of the world, 0:15:42.480 --> 0:15:46.600 the classic middlemen middle right, and Showtime we just get cash. 0:15:46.680 --> 0:15:48.840 They get you know, a fee for that, but they 0:15:48.840 --> 0:15:52.400 didn't know their their subscriber. And so once we launched 0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:55.280 Showtime over the Top, we got so much smarter. We're 0:15:55.320 --> 0:15:58.560 able to program more efficiently, and in terms of CBS 0:15:58.600 --> 0:16:02.360 All Access, the advertising can be much more targeted, right, 0:16:02.440 --> 0:16:05.600 and so so the efficiency you get by doing that. 0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:08.840 And so look, we saw the trends early. Um, we 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:11.680 saw that's the way consumers were consuming content, and we 0:16:11.720 --> 0:16:13.840 said we had to position the company, you know for that. 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:19.000 So imagine us telling that story to a target company 0:16:19.160 --> 0:16:22.680 who has a subscription service, to say, look at the 0:16:22.720 --> 0:16:25.920 breadth and depth of this team that can help you 0:16:25.920 --> 0:16:28.400 you know, navigate those tricky waters. You know, there are 0:16:28.440 --> 0:16:31.440 streaming wars as you know going on. You know, we 0:16:31.480 --> 0:16:34.160 believe there's not just going to be you know, three 0:16:34.280 --> 0:16:37.640 or four you know, streaming services. We think there's lanes 0:16:37.760 --> 0:16:41.800 for for many they may have two hundred million subscribers, right, 0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:45.000 but you could still make a fantastic business model at 0:16:45.080 --> 0:16:48.680 you know, ten millions subscribers, right. So, so we think 0:16:48.720 --> 0:16:52.000 there will be those pockets of that that that dedicated 0:16:52.080 --> 0:16:55.800 kind of focus us streaming service. So we see there's 0:16:55.800 --> 0:16:57.880 going to be lots of those you know, companies kind 0:16:57.880 --> 0:17:00.200 of coming out of this. And so look that what 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:02.720 we're really kind of focusing on. We're using our our 0:17:02.760 --> 0:17:05.920 collective networks to talk to the right people to make 0:17:05.960 --> 0:17:08.840 sure again it goes through that criteria is like should 0:17:08.840 --> 0:17:11.440 this entity be public and have access to the public 0:17:11.480 --> 0:17:16.119 market's timing? Do we add value? Is? So is this 0:17:16.240 --> 0:17:20.000 kind of actionable and so um so, look, we we've 0:17:20.040 --> 0:17:22.680 we've been we've been excited. It's it's it's so much 0:17:22.720 --> 0:17:28.000 fun really to work with people you you trust, respect, 0:17:28.560 --> 0:17:31.160 enjoy you know, being around. So it's a different kind 0:17:31.200 --> 0:17:34.399 of version for us. It's all a bit new, but again, 0:17:34.440 --> 0:17:39.880 the principle of building a world class you know, organization 0:17:39.960 --> 0:17:43.800 and company and helping another company grow is really kind 0:17:43.800 --> 0:17:49.440 of why we get up every morning. Don't go anywhere. 0:17:50.000 --> 0:17:53.040 We'll be back with more from Argus Capitals Joe ian 0:17:53.240 --> 0:18:03.000 l O right after this message, and we're back with 0:18:03.160 --> 0:18:07.359 more from Argus Capitals Joe I n L. Are you 0:18:07.480 --> 0:18:10.040 to the point where you're calling people, you know, people 0:18:10.119 --> 0:18:12.320 the business associates you know, and it's like, hey, what 0:18:12.440 --> 0:18:15.040 about this? But we do something like is the is 0:18:15.080 --> 0:18:17.960 the market that kind of like just active right now? 0:18:18.119 --> 0:18:21.280 We're in the targeting phase, and so what we do 0:18:21.440 --> 0:18:24.800 is we target companies where again we're putting we're putting 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:27.760 the conglomerate or the targets company had on and we're 0:18:27.800 --> 0:18:31.520 thinking to ourselves, should this company be public or should 0:18:31.520 --> 0:18:34.440 this asset, you know, a group of assets be public, 0:18:34.440 --> 0:18:37.040 shouldn't be separated in some sort of way? What are 0:18:37.080 --> 0:18:40.040 the pros and cons? And again, because we sat in 0:18:40.080 --> 0:18:41.879 the chair, I would say that would be I would 0:18:41.880 --> 0:18:43.959 never do that because X, Y and Z or that 0:18:44.000 --> 0:18:47.480 makes perfect sense. So you're looking for stuff that unlocks 0:18:47.600 --> 0:18:51.840 value right for the for the target right and gives 0:18:51.840 --> 0:18:54.800 them capital. Third, party capital. We're going to bring money 0:18:55.320 --> 0:19:00.000 into this about yeah, about equity, and you'll be equity, 0:19:00.160 --> 0:19:02.520 it could be debt, right, we will bring fery party 0:19:02.560 --> 0:19:05.920 capital north of the we have. So the way the 0:19:05.960 --> 0:19:11.840 projects will be responsible for bringing capital even beyond. That's 0:19:11.880 --> 0:19:15.400 called the pipe exactly exactly, So that's called that's called 0:19:15.400 --> 0:19:19.040 a pipe. Basically, it's a private investment in the public entity. 0:19:19.119 --> 0:19:21.120 And so we will once we know what it is. 0:19:21.480 --> 0:19:23.560 It's hard to go raise money when I don't know 0:19:23.600 --> 0:19:25.240 what the deal is. But once we know what the 0:19:25.280 --> 0:19:28.000 deal is, we would then go and raise more capital. 0:19:28.000 --> 0:19:30.240 That's why I think we can do a very large deal, 0:19:30.760 --> 0:19:37.359 bring infuse significant capital, let that business grow while the parent, 0:19:37.480 --> 0:19:42.000 the target whatever still controls right the entity, and it 0:19:42.040 --> 0:19:46.640 gets again the added value benefit of our collective operating experience. 0:19:46.640 --> 0:19:50.440 So it would be like they would A scenario would 0:19:50.440 --> 0:19:55.000 be that the larger company would keep and then be 0:19:55.040 --> 0:19:57.880 able to consolidate, but it would not have that's try 0:19:57.960 --> 0:20:00.680 and so so so again it gives them strategy flexibility. 0:20:00.720 --> 0:20:02.280 That's why again, if I was sitting in the chair, 0:20:02.280 --> 0:20:06.359 if I was running one of these large media conglomerates today, right, 0:20:06.600 --> 0:20:09.480 I would be thinking about that because that's very interesting 0:20:09.520 --> 0:20:13.080 again because again I know you cannot just say, hey, 0:20:13.240 --> 0:20:15.120 you know, I know the NFL just re re up 0:20:15.160 --> 0:20:19.000 their rights, right, So you saw everybody's rights fees, you know, 0:20:19.400 --> 0:20:23.639 increased significantly. So where is that happen? Where is that 0:20:23.680 --> 0:20:26.440 capital come from? Well, that capital has got to come 0:20:26.520 --> 0:20:29.760 from you know, that balance sheet of that media company. 0:20:29.800 --> 0:20:32.480 Well then where else? I mean, what what's giving you know, 0:20:32.560 --> 0:20:34.919 are you you can you increase revenue at that rate? 0:20:35.000 --> 0:20:37.520 That isn't I don't think so, right, And so so 0:20:37.600 --> 0:20:39.760 that's why you have to make those choices. And that's 0:20:39.760 --> 0:20:42.120 why you see you see companies selling assets, you see 0:20:42.160 --> 0:20:45.040 them you know, divest them. And this is such an elegant, 0:20:45.200 --> 0:20:48.359 a tax free way to do something to bring in 0:20:48.720 --> 0:20:52.160 you know, third party capital, smart money with an experience 0:20:52.240 --> 0:20:56.320 operator led group. Again me, it's it's win win win 0:20:56.640 --> 0:20:58.440 for everybody. Now, the key is that you have to 0:20:58.480 --> 0:21:01.400 price it right, right, you know, if you push the valuation, 0:21:01.440 --> 0:21:03.800 that doesn't work so well. And what I just keep 0:21:03.840 --> 0:21:07.000 saying is, look, let us build it. You know, the 0:21:07.000 --> 0:21:10.240 the the initial merger is just the starting point of 0:21:10.240 --> 0:21:12.959 where the value is. We build it from there. And 0:21:13.000 --> 0:21:15.760 so so we as a as a manager, agree to 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:18.560 lock up our shares, we won't sell shares for multi years, 0:21:18.560 --> 0:21:21.240 and you commit to be operators or the idea that 0:21:21.680 --> 0:21:24.280 over time that just it depends. I think again, it's 0:21:24.320 --> 0:21:27.399 whatever the target needs is really the gap we're gonna 0:21:27.560 --> 0:21:30.919 fill if they need one or all as operators, if 0:21:30.920 --> 0:21:34.400 they need maybe it's sitting on the board, or maybe 0:21:34.400 --> 0:21:36.760 it's just as an investor. And so to me it's 0:21:36.800 --> 0:21:40.399 like again we're here. We're here to help again the 0:21:40.440 --> 0:21:44.160 company along again, manage the public markets and in certain 0:21:44.200 --> 0:21:47.560 instances manage the company if necessary. But you wouldn't have 0:21:47.640 --> 0:21:51.840 as much of a timeline for returns as a more 0:21:51.920 --> 0:21:54.879 traditional quit. No no, no, no, no. Again, we're a 0:21:54.880 --> 0:21:56.680 long time. We're used to get you know, we're used 0:21:56.680 --> 0:21:59.119 to receiving you know, an employee stock options right there 0:21:59.119 --> 0:22:01.120 were very low in their four year base and stuff 0:22:01.160 --> 0:22:03.080 like that, with restrictions and stuff like that, and so 0:22:03.560 --> 0:22:05.640 again we're doing this for the long haul. I mean, 0:22:05.640 --> 0:22:08.679 our our objective here is to build a platform to 0:22:08.720 --> 0:22:11.920 allow the company to succeed with our with our knowledge base, 0:22:12.000 --> 0:22:13.600 and we're going to kind of put our money where 0:22:13.600 --> 0:22:15.640