Media mogul Bryon Allen told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview he plans to buy CNN News network one day.
“I’m close to the same age when Rupert Murdoch came here to America,” Allen told the Reporter in an interview published July 9. “He was in his 50s. I’m 59. What you see today will be 10,000 times bigger.” When pressed on what would make the ultimate jewel in his crown and, without hesitation, Allen replied, “I’d love to own CNN. But I have to buy AT&T to do that. And I will. Believe me, I think about it every day.”
Allen owns Entertainment Studios, which produces more than 60 syndicated shows, along with The Weather Channel and seven more 24-hour cable TV networks. Allen is coming off of a $20 billion settlement with Comcast Cable that went all the way to the Supreme Court, where Allen lost by a unanimous 9-0 ruling.
The settlement between the two will allow Comcast to launch the free Weather Channel app Local Now on its Xfinity and Flex platforms and the WeLoveWeather.TV website on an authenticated basis. Comcast will also have video-on-demand rights to the three new channels.
Allen still has a case pending with Charter Communications.
Comedian Eddie Murphy told the Reporter Allen’s success has withstood the test of time.
“You know how you can sum up Byron is his chess game,” Murphy told the Reporter. “Byron played a lot of chess back in the early days. There was a group of people in town, like Berry Gordy and Jim Brown, who would fly in good players. I played Byron a lot. I’m a much better chess player than Byron.
“But we didn’t play on the clock — we just played. And that’s Byron’s game. He’s super patient. He takes a long time between every move,” Murphy added. “He does it until you get frustrated — and then you do something stupid, and then all he needs is a little tiny crack. Just a pawn, any type of advantage, and he had you. That is Byron in a nutshell.”