Midway & Viacom

Sure, on paper Midway is its own entity, and the fact that Viacom’s Summer Redstone holds a majority share of 88% (himself and through National Amusements, Inc.) technically has nothing to do with either company’s operations. But you can’t help but wonder if there isn’t some leverage he’s getting out of this. Sure enough the $5.9 million Midway spent on advertising with Viacom in 2005 suggests some collaborative potential.

So, if we then assume there is no connection between Viacom and Midway, what do we make of the exclusive WWII title Hour of Victory Midway is developing for XBOX360? A harmless collaboration, or perhaps an indication that Viacom and Microsoft are working together behind the scenes? I guess what I’m trying to say is that it muddies the ownership structure of these companies and it is difficult to maintain that Midway is not under the rule of Viacom but rather an off-shoot similar to the relationship between XBOX and Microsoft.


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