Byron Allen was born in the 1960s in Detroit. As a teenager, he started doing stand-up clubs in LA and eventually became the youngest comedian to appear on ‘The Tonight Show’ with Johnny Carson at 18. He started his own African American brand 28 years ago.
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But according to him the first five years were brutal. Allen admitted suffering foreclosures and poverty as he chased his dream. His hard work and consistency obviously paid off as Entertainment Studios, his company, now has more than 60 shows on ten streaming platforms and networks.
Allen’s company has over 1,000 employees and TheGrio, his African American focused news site happens to be the largest of its kind in the United States. Plus, it’s also among the largest employers of black journalists. Continue reading to discover six main reasons why Byron Allen is a top mogul to watch.
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Innovative Approach
Allen’s approach to cutting-edge storytelling, content creation, and distribution makes him and his digital platform stand out from the crowd. Being a media guy is what he loves, so he has leveraged several digital distribution platforms to reach a wider audience and build stronger engagement.
Be it through a mobile app, social media, or a streaming service, Allen has always explored new mediums to deliver content and engage with viewers. Over the course of his career, he has constantly come up with innovative ideas that helped deliver different forms of content, including stand-up comedy, news articles, and politics.
One such idea is the The Weather Channel en Español. Another idea is the launch of Local Now rolled out by Allen’s technical team in 2019.
Business Acumen
Generally, Allen’s success can be linked to his business acumen. The African American business mogul understands the media industry very well. And his deep understanding of the wider field of audience demographics, the building of direct partnerships, a wide range of topics, revenue streams, and has helped place him among the US media heroes.
Of course, he has put in a lot of work to attain this level of know how, which is one of the reasons his business approach is worth studying by African-Americans and people of other races. Check out these books on Amazon to learn more about Allen’s life, career, and business principles.
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Entrepreneurial Vision
Allen’s entrepreneurial vision is exceptional and it’s one of the driving forces behind is success as a businessman. From his early days as a stand-up comedy to his days as the chairman, chief executive officer, and founder of Allen Media Group (Entertainment Studios), he has shown an in-depth understanding of audience needs and market trends.
Hence his ability to foresee the potential of new emerging platforms and technology has kept him relevant in the industry for more than 20 years now. It has also helped him to coordinate his media businesses, including freestyle digital media in a way that they cover premiere shows.
The proof that he understands the ins and outs of the business is his ability to establish and run:
- Pets.tv
- Weather News Television Network
- Comedy.tv
- Pattern
- This Tv
- Justicecentral.tv
- Recipe.tv,
- Cars.tv
- Es.tv
According to a report on the CNBC website, he’s looking to acquire Paramount Global. You can learn more Byron’s by buying his comprehensive biography on Amazon.
Acquisition Strategy
Besides being a determined and visionary African American businessman, Byron is good at spotting good deals. His strategic acquisition ability has helped him to expand Entertainment Studios’ footprint.
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For example, his acquisition of the Weather Channel in 2018 was a move that added a highly recognized brand to his portfolio and also diversified his Media Group offerings into weather-related content. After the acquisition, the brand received the award for the 2018 Harris Poll EquiTrend TV News Brand for the eighth consecutive year.
The brand also deployed exceptional storytelling with its Immersive Mixed Reality (IMR) technology. The technology drew viewers into detailed and visually stunning weather and climate events.
Before the purchase of the Weather Channel in 2018, Allen bought Freestyle Releasing in 2015, now renamed Allen Media Group Motion Pictures. The brand is a full-service theatrical movie distribution company.
Allen Media Group Motion Pictures produced the shark thriller 47 Meters Down’, 2017’s highest-grossing independent movie. Then in 2018, the brand also produced the historic mystery-thriller ‘Chappaquiddick’ and the critically-acclaimed and commercially successful ‘Western Hostiles’.
In 2019, the media mogul went ahead to establish Allen Media Broadcasting. From then on, he started establishing the broadcast station group which includes four, “BIG 4” stations. Then in February 2020, the group bought an extra eleven stations from the acquisition of USA Television.
Also in 2019, Allen went into partnership with Sinclair Broadcast Group to buy 21 Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) from FOX Corporation and Walt Disney for $10.6 billion. In July 2019,
He bought Bayou City Broadcasting which has 4 television stations. Allen’s old and recent transformative transactions show his ability to spot undervalued assets and capitalize on opportunities in the market.
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Diverse Portfolio
Entertainment Studios’ diverse portfolio shows Allen’s adaptability and version. He founded the company in 1993. While its headquarters is in Los Angeles, it has offices with a robust infrastructure and executive team in Chicago, New York, Atlanta, and Charleston, SC.
His company owns 36 NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX network affiliate broadcast television stations in different United States markets. It also has twelve 24-hour HD television networks serving almost 220 million subscribers.
Additionally, it offers original video packages on cable television networks, broadcast television stations, and multimedia digital, and mobile devices. It’s also known as the first black-owned multi-platform media brand to produce and distribute wide-release motion pictures for all platforms.
High Level of Experience
The mogul isn’t a small player in the United States media landscape. He has a track record of success in the media industry. Allen Media Group has a strong television production, distribution and digital content presence.
Byron Allen is generally among America’s top moguls who have graced the surface of the earth. His passion for media and his business acumen made it possible for him to stand tall in the industry. His ability to spot hidden opportunities is also a defining factor that has contributed to his success. Check out these books on Amazon if you would love to learn more about Byron.
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