Raphael Stevens

Greek media company the Antenna Group has begun talks to acquire fellow media company Time from Marc Benioff.
No deal is assured and the discussions are still early.
Benioff acquired Time for $190 million in 2018.

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff attends the TIME100 Gala at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York on April 26, 2023.
Dimitrios Kambouris | Getty Images

Greek media company the Antenna Group is in talks to acquire fellow media company Time from Salesforce co-founder Marc Benioff, according to people familiar with the matter.
No deal is assured and the talks are still early, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are private.

“There is no agreement to sell Time,” said a Time spokesperson, who declined to comment on the talks with Antenna. An Antenna Group spokesperson didn’t respond for comment.
Benioff acquired Time in 2018 for $190 million. Early talks with Antenna have centered around a price of $150 million, one of the people said.
The talks come at a particularly turbulent time for legacy media companies, which are trying to stay afloat as digital-first assets amid competition with free services such as YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.
Comcast announced Thursday it is considering a spinoff of its cable network group. The Washington Post, owned by fellow tech billionaire Jeff Bezos, has lost more than 10% of its subscribers in recent days after deciding it wouldn’t endorse a candidate in the U.S. presidential election, according to NPR.
Benioff and his wife, Lynne, bought Time from Meredith Corp., which owned the magazine for less than a year.

“The Benioffs emerged as the best fit, willing to put journalistic integrity ahead of corporate gains,” Alan Murray, chief content officer of the Time Inc. brands at Meredith, said at the time.
The Antenna Group nearly acquired Vice Media in 2022 before the company declared bankruptcy. Most of its investments have been Europe-centric, though it has invested in Arianna Huffington’s technology company Thrive Global.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.
Correction: This article has been updated to correct the name of media company Time.

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Attorneys and advisors to family offices and high-net-worth families said they’re seeing strong demand from clients looking for second passports or long-term residencies abroad.
The American rich have been increasingly interested in leaving the U.S. since Covid-19, and wealth advisors said this time many of their wealthy clients are taking action.

Ferragudo, Portugal.
Gonzalo Azumendi | Stone | Getty Images

A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly guide to the high-net-worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
A growing number of wealthy Americans are making plans to leave the country in the run-up to Tuesday’s election, with many fearing political and social unrest regardless of who wins, according to immigration attorneys.

Attorneys and advisors to family offices and high-net-worth families said they’re seeing record demand from clients looking for second passports or long-term residencies abroad. While talk of moving overseas after an election is common, wealth advisors said this time many of the wealthy are already taking action.
“We’ve never seen demand like we see now,” said Dominic Volek, group head of private clients at Henley & Partners, which advises the wealthy on international migration.
Volek said that for the first time, wealthy Americans are far and away the company’s largest client base, accounting for 20% of its business, or more than any other nationality. He said the number of Americans making plans to move abroad is up at least 30% over last year.
David Lesperance, managing partner of Lesperance and Associates, the international tax and immigration firm, said the number of Americans hiring him for possible moves overseas has roughly tripled over last year.
A survey by Arton Capital, which advises the wealthy on immigration programs, found that 53% of American millionaires say they’re more likely to leave the U.S. after the election, no matter who wins. Younger millionaires were the most likely to leave, with 64% of millionaires between 18 and 29 saying they were “very interested” in seeking so-called golden visas through a residency-by-investment program overseas.

Granted, the interest in second passports or residencies has been rising steadily among the American rich since Covid-19. Whether it’s retiring to a warmer, cheaper country or being closer to family abroad, the wealthy have plenty of nonpolitical reasons to want to venture overseas.
The ultra-wealthy also increasingly see citizenship in one country as a concentrated personal and financial risk. Just as they diversify their investments, they’re now creating “passport portfolios” to hedge their country risk. Others want a non-U.S. passport in case they’re traveling to dangerous countries or regions hostile to the U.S.

Yet the elections and the political climate have accelerated and added to the push by wealthy Americans to consider a Plan B abroad. Lesperance said that for more than three decades, his American clients were mainly interested in moving overseas for tax reasons. Now, it’s politics and fear of violence, with next week’s election turbocharging those fears.
“For some of them, the primary thing is ‘I don’t want to live in a MAGA America,'” Lesperance said. Others are worried about violence if Donald Trump loses, or Vice President Kamala Harris’ plan to tax unrealized capital gains for those worth more than $100 million. While tax analysts say the unrealized gains plan has little chance of passing Congress, even with a Democratic majority, Lesperance said it’s still a risk.
“Even if there is only a 3% chance that it happens, you still want to take out insurance,” he said.

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Attorneys say the wealthy also cite mass school shootings, the potential for political violence, antisemitism, Islamophobia and the government’s soaring debts as reasons to leave.
When it comes to destinations, Americans are looking mainly to Europe. According to Henley, the top countries for Americans looking for residency or second citizenships include Portugal, Malta, Greece, Spain and Antigua. Italy has also become popular for Americans.
“The love affair between Americans and Europe has been going on for very long time,” said Armand Arton, of Arton Capital. “It comes with a price, and they are totally fine investing couple hundred thousand dollars or a half million into a property or a fund.”
The rules and costs, however, are changing fast. While mass immigration has become a hot-button political issue across the world, some politicians in Europe have started to push back against golden visas that give the wealthy citizenship or residency purely based on investments.
Portugal, for instance, faced a backlash after a flood of foreigners poured in the Algarve and bought beach properties as part of the golden visa program. With property prices soaring by 15%, the government changed the rules, increasing minimum investment thresholds and removing residential property as an investment category.
Italy this summer doubled its flat tax on the overseas incomes of wealthy foreigners who transfer their tax residency to Italy, to 200,000 euros ($217,000). The change followed a wave of wealthy new migrants who came for the program and drove up Milan property prices.

For now, Malta remains the go-to second passport for the American rich. While expensive, at about $1 million to $1.2 million all-in, Malta’s investment citizenship program offers citizenship and unrestricted travel and residency in Malta and by extension the European Union, according to immigration attorneys. The EU has been challenging the Malta program in court, but most immigration attorneys expect the country to prevail.
The Caribbean is increasingly popular for Americans who simply want a second passport. Buying an approved piece of real estate in Antigua and Barbuda for more than $300,000 puts you on a path for citizenship, which allows freedom to travel to Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore, the U.K. and Europe, among other countries. St. Lucia is also increasingly popular, attorneys say.
Americans with ancestry in Ireland, Italy and dozens of other countries can apply for so-called lineage citizenship, which is typically far cheaper than an investment visa. Some countries, like Portugal, also offer retirement visas, which allow entry and a path to citizenship.
Don’t expect to get any citizenship or residencies right away. With attorneys and countries inundated with so many applications, and so many different background checks and approvals required, the process can take months or even a year or more. And that waiting list could grow longer depending on the election results.
“It’s getting crowded,” Lesperance said. “And I’m sure I’m going to get a bunch more on Nov. 6 or 7.”

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Starbucks is facing challenges in its China market, as same-store sales in the country plummeted 14% in the company’s fourth quarter.
It’s running up against a low-cost model led by local upstarts and money-conscious consumers, but it has some advantages.

People seen around the Starbucks coffee store in Shenzhen, China.
Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images

On Starbucks’ fourth-quarter earnings call, newly installed CEO Brian Niccol told investors he needed to spend more time in China to understand the challenges.
The company’s same-store sales in the country plummeted 14% as foot traffic and the average spend per customer fell. Niccol told CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin that he plans to visit the country the first or second week of December to better understand the business.

Here’s what he might see when he visits.

A low-cost model led by Chinese upstarts

Chinese upstarts have been growing in popularity in the coffee space, competing with more than 7,300 Starbucks stores in the country.

A Starbucks store is being seen in Shanghai, China, on June 18, 2024. 
Costfoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images

The formerly Nasdaq-listed Luckin Coffee ran into accounting issues and went through a de-listing. But despite that, the Chinese coffee chain has been growing fast in China, with more than 20,000 stores by the end of third quarter.
And it is far from the only one. Other local rivals include Cotti Coffee, Manner, M Stand, Seesaw and Nowwa.
Luckin, Cotti, and Manner are the most aggressive on pricing.

For example, in Beijing, a small latte that costs $4.22 at Starbucks goes for $2.25 at Luckin, $1.75 at Cotti, and $2.11 at Manner. And that’s without the regular steep discounts. One recent day, for example, saw Luckin offering a promotion selling most drinks at 90 cents.

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Many of these Chinese chains have stores that can be cramped and run with maybe two — or in Manner’s case oftentimes only one — barista. Food menus are limited, and seating is little more than a couple of folding chairs. However, the drinks generally consistently undercut Starbucks by half.
Starbucks has an express version of its coffee stores in China called Starbucks Now, where most patrons order drinks on the app for pick up. The interiors are more basic. Even so, there are no special discounts compared to traditional Starbucks.

Money-conscious consumers holding onto aspirations 

Price is an important consideration for Chinese consumers because of the slowing economy. At the same time, many want to maintain similar lifestyles, which means consumers are looking to save wherever they can without compromising too much on quality.
For the coffee competition, the Chinese chains keep their brews interesting by switching up the menu often and experimenting with combos that go well beyond the traditional cappuccino.
Coffees are mixed with fruit juice, scented with flowers, and thickened with rice and even cheese. Chinese-brand Manner boasts that it only uses locally sourced beans and trains its baristas to work semi-automatic coffee machines.

A young barista works on the cold brew bar in Shanghai Starbucks Reserve Roastery. 
Zhang Peng | Lightrocket | Getty Images

M Stand and Seesaw compete on the higher-end of the market with more luxurious concoctions such as an all-time M Stand hit — a latte in an edible oatmeal cookie cup.
For the most part though, with so many choices readily available, coffee drinkers can find something that suits their taste as well as their wallet.

Competition from everywhere

On top of the Chinese coffee rivals, Starbucks is competing with a host of other local chains on tea.
Tea specialty shops like ChaPanda, Auntea Jenny and Mixue Bingcheng sell similar fruit and milk teas to Starbucks for roughly 60% less. In addition to low-cost tea drinks, Auntea Jenny sells lattes for $2.67. Mixue’s version is 56 cents.
With more and more Chinese wanting a daily java fix, grab-and-go coffee is becoming widely available at tea chains and convenient marts.
Starbucks also faces international challengers such as Tim Hortons, Costa Coffee, McDonald’s and KFC.

A Starbucks edge   

Despite the fierce Chinese competition, Starbucks still has its fans.
A major selling point for Starbucks in China remains that it is viewed as a go-to place to hang out with friends or catch up with business contacts.
Unlike many other establishments in the country, Starbucks stores win out as important meeting points with their uniform experience: pleasant interiors, comfortable seating, cleanliness and friendly staff. Starbucks retains its status as a high profile aspirational brand. More

Universal’s “Wicked,” Paramount’s “Gladiator II” and Disney’s “Moana 2” will face off at the Thanksgiving box office, each vying for time on theaters’ biggest screens.
There are currently more than 950 theaters in North America that have these PLF screens, a 33.7% jump from just five years ago.
These screens account for 9.1% of the domestic box office, around $600 million in 2024.

Wicked, Gladiator II, and Moana 2 Movie Posters.
Sources: Universal (L), Paramount (C) and Disney (R)

Three heavyweight Hollywood blockbusters will face off at the box office in November, each vying for audience attention, ticket sales and time on theaters’ biggest screens.
Universal’s “Wicked,” Paramount’s “Gladiator II” and Disney’s “Moana 2” arrive in cinemas within five days of each other, right around the Thanksgiving holiday. All three titles are expected to thrive at the box office, both during their openings and as they run through the rest of the year.

However, at a time when moviegoers are more discerning about how they spend their money and what films they are going to leave the couch to see, box office analysts wonder which blockbuster will benefit most from premium ticket sales.

Going premium

Premium large format screens, often referred to as PLFs, are elevated viewing experiences — like IMAX, Dolby, Screen X and 4DX — that come with a higher ticket price. The physical screens are often bigger than traditional movie screens or have auditoriums that feature higher-quality sound systems or seating options.
“Audiences are gravitating toward the biggest, best and most immersive auditoriums,” said Shawn Robbins, director of analytics for Fandango’s movie division and founder and owner of Box Office Theory. “They are the first to sell out for high-demand movies, and opening day sales often slow down or spill into future days as those screens and their best seats fill up rather than carry over into non-premium, traditional auditoriums which are less attractive to most modern moviegoers.”

General atmosphere during the Imax private screening for the movie “First Man” at an Imax AMC Theater in New York City on Oct. 10, 2018.
Lars Niki | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images

There are currently more than 950 theaters in North America that have these PLF screens, a 33.7% jump from just five years ago, according to data from Comscore. These screens account for 9.1% of the domestic box office, around $600 million in 2024.
“The importance of the growth of PLFs as a percentage of the annual box office over the past few years cannot be overstated,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore. “Notably, coming out of the pandemic, moviegoers have been gravitating toward these higher-cost movie theater options.”

Currently, premium ticket prices average around $16.71 a piece, according to Steve Buck of movie data firm EntTelligence, an 8% increase since 2021, when the company first started reporting these figures. Standard tickets, meanwhile, are around $11.82 each, a 7.4% jump from 2021 prices.
“Premium format is a significant draw for a moviegoer seeking the best immersive experience possible often representing over one-third of the foot traffic on a tentpole’s opening weekend,” Buck said.
Recognizing the growing importance of these types of theaters, the National Association of Theatre Owners revealed in September that the eight largest theater chains in North America would invest more than $2.2 billion to modernize and upgrade cinema locations. This investment will be spread out among updates to laser projectors, immersive sound systems and seating updates, as well as enhancing concession offerings and adding family entertainment options like bowling and arcades.
PLF receipts still represent a small portion of the overall box office, with most audiences seeing films on traditional digital screens. However, it’s no small feat that PLF box office has grown 33% in just five years.

Blockbusters on the biggest screen

The films that benefit the most from PLF ticket sales have been Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters.
Audiences want to see explosive action movies and dazzling spectacles in the most state-of-the-art locations. It’s why films like Universal’s “Oppenheimer,” Disney’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” and Warner Bros.’ “Dune” and “Dune: Part Two” captured a significant portion of the PLF box office during their runs.
Those films were even shot with specialty cameras with the express purpose of being seen on premium large format screens. In fact, both “Oppenheimer” and “Dune: Part Two” saw fans waiting days and even weeks to watch the film in sold-out IMAX locations.

Oppenheimer film billboard in Times Square, NYC on July 29th, 2023.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC

So studios are betting big on franchise films. Partially, this is because audiences have come out in droves for existing intellectual property in the wake of the pandemic — just look at “Deadpool & Wolverine,” “Inside Out 2,” “Despicable Me 4,” “Dune: Part Two,” “Twisters,” and “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” capturing top box office receipts in 2024.
It’s one reason why next year will see between 50% and 70% of the movies from the six major studios — Universal, Disney, Warner Bros., Paramount, Sony and Lionsgate — tied to existing IP.
It’s also why the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday could be tricky. “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” debut first on Nov. 22 and will likely split the available PLF locations evenly. The two films opted out of the Thanksgiving fray in the months after “Moana 2” set its Nov. 27 date.
However, as “Moana 2” enters, those premium screen divisions will change. Studios and movie theater operators strike deals when films are released designating how many theaters a movie will show in, how often and on what kinds of screens. As new movies debut, those arrangements shift. It’s unclear how the PLF screens will be split once all three movies are in theaters at the same time.
“There are periods on the calendar when a release slate is slower than others, allowing one or two films to dominate premium screen ownership, but successful or potentially successful movies can be cannibalized at the box office in times of heavy competition for those top-tier screens,” Robbins said. “That’s what occurred during the ‘Barbenheimer’ craze last year when Oppenheimer notably controlled IMAX screens for a contracted time frame before Barbie was eventually able to expand into that format weeks after its release.”
Many have wondered if “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” could have the potential to repeat the box office highs of 2023’s “Barbenheimer” — the dual release of Warner Bros.’ “Barbie” and Universal’s “Oppenheimer” on the same weekend.
At present, box office analysts have a wide-ranging read on what “Wicked” could do during its domestic opening weekend. On the conservative end is an $85 million haul, predicted by leading entertainment and technology research firm NRG. Meanwhile, others speculate that the first film in a planned duology could top $100 million and capture as much as $150 million during its first three days in theaters.
The divergence of expectations comes as Hollywood has struggled to market and make a profit on movie musicals in recent years, but has also seen fan-favorite IP-driven titles overperform. With “Wicked” being based on one of Broadway’s most popular musicals, box office analysts are finding it tricky to predict where it will land.
Meanwhile, “Gladiator II” is expected to tally between $60 million and $80 million during the same weekend. “Moana 2,” which is already seeing record ticket pre-sales for an animated feature in 2024, is expected to snare more than $100 million for its full five-day domestic debut.
“Word of mouth on a movie itself can still ultimately be the driver in consumer choice to spend their money on movie tickets and popcorn, though,” Robbins said. “After an initial burst of strong reception and a premium screen footprint at release, certain movies transcend format preference and some casual audiences will be convinced to buy a ticket regardless of format.”
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal is the distributor of “Wicked,” “Oppenheimer,” “Despicable Me 4,” and “Twisters” and owns Fandango. More

The new contract includes 38% raises over four years and other improvements.
The unionized machinists walked off the job on Sept. 13 after rejecting an original tentative agreement and last week rejected another proposal.
The walk-out has halted most of Boeing’s aircraft production.

Boeing workers from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 751 gather on a picket line near the entrance to a Boeing production facility on the day of a vote on a new contract proposal during an ongoing strike in Renton, Washington, U.S. October 23, 2024. 
David Ryder | Reuters

Boeing and its machinists’ union have agreed on a new negotiated offer to raise worker pay and potentially end a crippling strike that began seven weeks ago with a vote on the new proposal set for Monday.
The union urged workers to approve the contract.

“In every negotiation and strike, there is a point where we have extracted everything that we can in bargaining and by withholding our labor,” the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 751 said Thursday. “We are at that point now and risk a regressive or lesser offer in the future.”
The union said that asking its members to stay on strike longer “Wouldn’t be right as we have achieved so much success.”
Boeing’s more than 32,000 machinists, mostly based in the Seattle area, walked off the job on Sept. 13 after turning down a tentative agreement. They rejected another proposal earlier this month, extending the strike.
The new proposal includes 38% general wage increases over four years, up from a previous offer for 35%, bringing the compounding pay increases to close to 44%, the union said Thursday. It also gives workers the option of a $12,000 one-time ratification bonus or to choose a previous offer for a $7,000 ratification bonus and a $5,000 401(k) contribution.
Boeing said Thursday at the end of the contract, machinist pay will average $119,309.

“We encourage all of our employees to learn more about the improved offer and vote on Monday, Nov. 4,” Boeing said in a statement.

Read more CNBC airline news

CEO Kelly Ortberg said on his first earnings call last week since taking the top job in August that the company has been “feverishly working to find a solution that works for the company and meets our employees’ needs.” Hours later, the workers rejected a negotiated proposal.
Workers have repeatedly pushed for higher compensation as the cost of living in the Seattle area — where technology giants like Microsoft and Amazon have ramped up staffing — has surged in recent years.
The strike has further pushed back Boeing leaders’ plans to stabilize the aerospace behemoth as it reels from the impact of production flaws and the fallout from safety issues, most recently a door plug that blew out midair from a Boeing 737 Max 9 at the start of the year.
Boeing lost more than $6 billion in the last quarter and warned it would continue to burn cash through 2025.
The Boeing strike impacted Friday’s U.S. jobs report.

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Comcast said it is considering separating or spinning off NBCUniversal’s cable networks.
If Comcast moves forward with the idea, it could kick off a broader media reconfiguration of cable assets.
Cable networks still account for billions in revenue and profit, but both metrics are declining as millions of Americans have cut the cord in recent years.

Mike Cavanagh, president of Comcast Corporation, at center, during the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, July 12, 2023.
David A. Grogan | CNBC

Comcast is thinking about separating or spinning off NBCUniversal’s cable networks. If it moves forward with the idea, it could lay the groundwork for a reconfiguration of the entire American media landscape.
The logic for Comcast is fairly straightforward. NBCUniversal’s cable networks aren’t growing anymore. The company’s energy and focus is on promoting Peacock, NBCUniversal’s growing but still money-losing streaming service. Carving out the cable portfolio could placate Comcast investors by removing declining assets from the balance sheet.

Comcast shares gained more than 3% on Thursday after the company’s third-quarter earnings release and conference call.
“We are now exploring whether creating a new well-capitalized company, owned by our shareholders and comprised of our strong portfolio of cable networks, would position them to take advantage of opportunities in the changing media landscape and create value for our shareholders,” Comcast President Mike Cavanagh said during the call. “We are not ready to talk about any specifics yet, but we’ll be back to you as and when we reach firm conclusions.”
Though executives stressed that the exploration is in the very early stages, it could be a prelude to broader industry consolidation. NBCUniversal’s cable networks, which include Bravo, E!, Syfy, Oxygen True Crime and USA Network, as well as news networks MSNBC and CNBC, could be merged with another media company or could be a catalyst for a rollup, or consolidation, of cable channels at a number of different companies.
The idea of a rollup isn’t new. It’s something media mogul John Malone discussed way back in 2016 when Lionsgate acquired premium network Starz.
“Lionsgate could buy Starz and potentially other free radicals in the industry,” Malone said at the time, referring to cable network groups not owned by larger media conglomerates such as AMC Networks, which is controlled by the Dolan family, or A&E Networks, which is co-owned by Hearst and Disney.

That vision never materialized, in part because the media world’s attention shifted from traditional pay TV to streaming, which devalued cable networks. Earlier this year, Warner Bros. Discovery reported a noncash goodwill impairment charge of $9.1 billion, triggered by the reevaluation of the book value of its TV networks segment.
Still, the loss of value for cable networks has now led to a new opportunity for a rollup, if companies such as Comcast, Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney decide they want to shed declining cable assets in favor of focusing on streaming.
Thus far, media companies have opted to keep their cable networks, which still pump out billions in profit even as millions of Americans cut the cord each year.
Comcast may set a template if it moves forward with a spin and sees a spike in its overall valuation.
Ironically, Starz could again play a role in a media shakeup. The small media company wants to be the vehicle for a cable network rollup, CNBC reported in 2022. Starz is set to separate from Lionsgate at the end of 2024.
There’s broad uncertainty about whether a company that consists of only cable networks has a viable path forward as a publicly traded entity. Equity investors typically aren’t fans of declining assets, even if they’re cash rich.
But even if Starz doesn’t achieve its vision of a cable network rollup, it’s possible a private equity firm may have interest in harvesting a group of cable networks for cash. Apollo Global Management, for one, had late interest in acquiring Paramount Global and has made several media-related investments in recent years, including buying Yahoo.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC. More