A different breed of mogul

摘要

At the Warner Music party at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles last year, a senior private-equity executive made a beeline for Madonna's publicist. He took her by the arm and demanded that she introduce his daughter to the singer. "I'm the new owner of Warner Music," he said. She told him to take his hand off her arm, but made the introduction. The investor is one of many private-equity men newly in charge of entertainment assets. Private-equity firms-which manage big, secretive funds of money, which they use to buy influential stakes in companies-reckon they can bring financial discipline and a better understanding of technology to the business. Media executives, on the other hand, snigger that these newcomers like the glamour but have no idea how showbiz works. Who is right?