VEVO: BATTLE OF THE
BEHEMOTH BUYERS?

We noted recently that Jimmy Iovine is rumored to be eager to purchase VEVO, which could become a vital piece of Apple-Beats Music’s forthcoming, major content play. But who else is kicking the tires of the music-video streamery, which could well see its asking price—most recently around $800m—skyrocket?

Google seems like Apple’s most likely rival. Its YouTube depends on music for about 80% of its views, and takes 35% of ad revenue off the top. With the current licensing deal with VEVO set to expire in 3.5 years, Google has the most to lose—and certainly has enough cash to buy it without breaking a sweat, even if its price increases tenfold.

That 35% is an inflated amount given what YouTube now brings to the table. Under the current deal, VEVO co-owners UMG and Sony don't enjoy the benefits they'll be able to reap when the term expires and they can renegotiate with Google, Apple or any other possible owner.

Apple, meanwhile, reportedly spent about 1.5% of its cash on hand in acquiring Beats, and would easily spend multiples of that just to fuck Google up. And since VEVO is already integrated into Apple TV and other Cupertino content structures, its absorption would be relatively seamless.

YouTube’s value has been estimated as high as $45 billion, but should VEVO be subtracted—and major-music licenses with it—it could lose a huge portion of that value, given that music-related content is said to account for about 80% of YouTube activity.

In other Apple news, further indication of Iovine's importance to Apple's overall strategy comes with Claire Atkinson's story in today's New York Post, which suggests Apple is considering parting ways with advertising agency TBWA Media Labs after 30 years. Iovine, the story notes, could be the man to retool Apple's sagging ad/marketing profile against Samsung and other upstarts.

The success of Beats' World Cup campaign, which saw its gear adorning so many footballers that event sponsor Sony banned it from matches, is cited as evidence of the sort of strategic marketing savvy that Iovine could bring to Apple's competitive imaging. Will they build him an in-house agency for the task?