Of the world’s biggest media companies, the one that might seem in the best position to ride out the recession is Vivendi, whose headquarters in the shadow of the Arc de Triomphe oversees a sprawling empire of music, pay television, video game and mobile phone businesses.

Sony's movie studio has bid $50 million to acquire the worldwide distribution rights to a film based on rehearsal footage for Michael Jackson's "This Is It" comeback concert series.

After selling more than 61 million albums in the U.S. and having a decade-long attraction open at Disney theme parks, the "King of Pop" died at age 50 reportedly awash in about $400 million in debt, on the cusp of a final comeback after well over a decade of scandal.

Like newspaper owners, media moguls are looking for new ways to protect their investment from the ravages of the Internet. And, as with the newspaper industry, the answer remains elusive. What is at stake is perhaps the last remaining pillar of the old media business that has not been severely affected by the Internet: cable television. Aware of how print, music and broadcast television have suffered severe business erosion, the chief executives of the major

Why does the federal government remain in the business of telling cable systems what networks to carry?