Shane Smith, the co-founder and chief executive of Vice, the online news producer shaking up its old-school rivals, has predicted a “bloodbath” among the world’s biggest media companies as they fight for a future in an industry still coming to terms with digital disruption.
The 46-year-old former punk rocker turned media entrepreneur was speaking before he was set to deliver the prestigious McTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh International TV Festival last night.
Mr Smith said that companies such as Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox, Viacom and Time Warner would look to consolidate as they face dwindling audiences and an increasingly disengaged younger generation of TV viewers.