Gary Gannaway

Last updated
Gary Gannaway
Gary Gannaway.png
Gannaway at the 2009 Digital Hollywood
Born
Albert Carlyle Gannaway III

(1954-07-30) July 30, 1954 (age 70)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s) Chairman & CEO,
Gannaway Holdings
ChildrenSamantha Gannaway Alexis Gannaway
FatherAlbert Carlyle Gannaway II

Gary Gannaway (born Albert Carlyle Gannaway III on July 30, 1954) is an American businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. [1] Gannaway received the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Merrill Lynch, Ernst & Young and Inc. magazine in its inaugural year. [1] [2]

Contents

Early life

Gannaway was born Albert Carlyle Gannaway III in Los Angeles, California on July 30, 1954, the son of Albert Carlyle Gannaway Jr. and Dana Gibson Gannaway. [3] Albert was a businessman. He controlled Gannaway Corporation and produced several well known motion picture films along with the "Stars of the Grand Ole Opry" which featured many legendary country music stars including Chet Atkins, Marty Robbins, June Carter, Minnie Pearl, Jimmy Dickens, and many others. [4] Albert was the first to produce a television series using 35mm color film when television was exclusively in black and white. [4] Albert was a famous songwriter who wrote with Johnny Mercer. Albert wrote songs for artists such as Nat King Cole, Bob Hope, Frankie Lane, Frank Sinatra, and many others. [5]

His mother, Dana Gannaway, is a former Vogue model and Budweiser Girl. [6]

Gannaway is best known for the Grand Ole Opry show. The footage and rights his two grandchildren own. From his father, Gary learned the fundamentals of business. [1]

Gannaway attended Castle Heights Military Academy followed by three years of service in the Marine Corps. [3] [7] In 1974, Gannaway was one of 18 men in the Marines Elite Force Recon. [3]

Career

Early career

After the Marines, Gannaway joined Metromedia Producers Corporation.

In June 1980, Gannaway left Metromedia to start his first company selling his father's show, Country Classics. He went on to sell Time-Life shows as well, including G.I. Diary and Wild, Wild World of Animals. His experience selling syndication led to Gannaway founding Genesis Entertainment less than three years later with his own capital.

Genesis Entertainment

In 1982, Gannaway founded Genesis Entertainment. [8] It is the only company to have launched all pilots and shows it brought to the marketplace. The company owned the rights to Marvel, National Geographic, The Marvel Action Hour , The Whoopi Goldberg Show , National Geographic Specials , Access Hollywood , Spider-Man , Highway to Heaven , Grand Ole Opry Stars of the 50s , CBS' Top Cop , The Judge , Biker Mice from Mars , Paradise Beach , Real Stories of the Highway Patrol, HBO's Tales from The Crypt, ABC's Emergency Call, among others. [9] [10] Genesis sold more advertising than any Hollywood Studio. It is the only company to launch 100 percent of its pilots in an industry where, at the time, only 3 percent of TV pilots made it to series. [11] Genesis was the first syndication company to provide co-op dollars to stations, which were then used to help promote the show. [7] [11]

Gannaway introduced the marketing concept of bartering off-network series in the late afternoon/early evening timeslot with Highway to Heaven in 1989. [12] Instead of paying Genesis in cash, stations would get seven minutes of local advertising per episode and give Genesis five. [3] A number of major series adapted Gannaway model, now an industry standard, including Columbia Pictures Television's hit sitcom Designing Women and Warner Bros. Television's Family Matters have been marketed on a barter basis. [12] Gannaway's marketing efforts and contributions helped Genesis become the largest suppliers of national syndication ad units in the early 1990s. During the 1992-93 TV season, Genesis sold 9,412 30-second spots to national advertisers. [11] [13]

On May 21, 1993, Gannaway merged Genesis with Ronald Perelman taking the company public and later selling to 20th Century Fox. [14] [15]

WorldNow

Gannaway founded Worldnow which became the leading provider of digital content management and monetization platforms, recognized for its patent-pending Studio Gateway platform, which unifies linear and digital workflow. Gannaway founded Worldnow seeing television companies' inevitable shift the digital world. [2] Gannaway beat out its competittors such as ABC,CBS, FOX, and NBC, which provided hardware solutions. Gannaway pioneered a cloud software solution, which is now known as cloud- based computing, along with a new business model, now called software as a service (SaaS). Gannaway's different business approach drove Worldnow's success, which later put his competitors out of business and turned them into clients. Today, all media companies use cloud and SaaS - a concept Worldnow brought to market in 1998. It is now industry standard.

WorldNow's proprietary technology provides media companies the digital tools for all digital and streaming platforms. [2] [9] The patented technology the company developed is a cloud-based, Saas, Paas, IaaS platform that unifies all digital systems into one. It is the only company to develop and integrate its video platform with its content management system (CMS).

Gannaway's company advertising arm became the largest Google advertising client. When Gannaway founded Worldnow, he took page out of his former company, Genesis, and kept half the digital advertising inventory and charged a license fee. On October 7, 2013, the company and Google held a joint conference. In 2015, Worldnow was ranked in the Top 50 largest digital platforms by comScore media matrix - ahead of giants such as Disney and the second fastest growing media company. [16] The company reached over 92% of households and over 100 million monthly unique visitors. [16]

In 2015, Gannaway sold the company to SK Telecom. Gannaway is known for self-funding his companies. Gannaway’s awards include Merrill Lynch and Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. [17]

Awards, recognition and achievement

Merrill Lynch, Ernst & Young, and Inc. named Gannaway "Entertainment Entrepreneur of the Year". [18] It was the first time the trio had ever named an Entrepreneur of the Year from the entertainment business. [12]

Gannaway sat on the board of Johns Hopkins. During this time, Gannaway co-pioneered and funded hypertonic solution to break up brain clots, now considered industry-standard.

In 2009 Gannaway was chosen by Wharton University to participate in its Entrepreneur-in-Residence program, mentoring undergraduates and MBA candidates then considering careers as entrepreneurs. [12]

In January 2015 WorldNow received top honors for its innovation and product advancement by the Business Intelligence Group. Worldnow was awarded for its patent-pending Studio Gateway platform.

Related Research Articles

<i>Grand Ole Opry</i> Country music concert and radio and television program in Nashville, Tennessee, US

The Grand Ole Opry is a regular live country-music radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the time of year. It was founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as the WSM Barn Dance, taking its current name in 1927. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment, it is the longest-running radio broadcast in U.S. history. Dedicated to honoring country music and its history, the Opry showcases a mix of famous singers and contemporary chart-toppers performing country, bluegrass, Americana, folk, and gospel music as well as comedic performances and skits. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world and millions of radio and internet listeners.

The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, game shows, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows. On September 25, 2000, after an attempt to attract younger viewers failed, TNN's country music format was changed and the network was renamed The National Network, and eventually became Spike TV in 2003 and Paramount Network in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metromedia</span> Defunct American media company

Metromedia was an American media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and controlled Orion Pictures from 1988 to 1997. Metromedia was established in 1956 after the DuMont Television Network ceased operations and its owned-and-operated stations were spun off into a separate company. Metromedia sold its television stations to News Corporation in 1985, and spun off its radio stations into a separate company in 1986. Metromedia then acquired ownership stakes in various film studios, including controlling ownership in Orion. In 1997, Metromedia closed down and sold its media assets to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WSM (AM)</span> Radio station in Nashville, Tennessee

WSM is a commercial AM radio station, located in Nashville, Tennessee. It broadcasts a country music format and is known as the home of the Grand Ole Opry, the world's longest running radio program. The station is owned Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. After nearly 40 years broadcasting from a studio within the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, WSM moved to a showcase studio inside the former home of Roy Acuff, just outside the Grand Ole Opry House, in July 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryman Auditorium</span> United States historic place

Ryman Auditorium is a historic 2,362-seat live-performance venue and museum located at 116 Rep. John Lewis Way North, in the downtown core of Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It is best known as the home of the Grand Ole Opry from 1943 to 1974. It is owned and operated by Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. Ryman Auditorium was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and was later designated as a National Historic Landmark on June 25, 2001, for its pivotal role in the popularization of country music. A storied stage for Rock & Roll artists for decades, the Ryman was named a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFLD</span> Fox TV station in Chicago

WFLD is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the market's Fox network outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Gary, Indiana–licensed WPWR-TV. The two stations share studios on North Michigan Avenue in the Chicago Loop, and transmitter facilities atop the Willis Tower.

Edward Lewis Gaylord was an American billionaire businessman, media mogul and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Gaylord Entertainment Company that included The Oklahoman newspaper, Oklahoma Publishing Co., Gaylord Hotels, the Nashville Network TV Channel ; the Grand Ole Opry, and the Country Music Television Channel (CMT) as well as the defunct Opryland USA theme park and a bankrupt airline, Western Pacific Airlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MGM Television</span> Television studio arm of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television, previously known as MGM/UA Television, is the television studio arm of American media company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) specializing in broadcast syndication and the production and distribution of television shows and miniseries.

Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. is a hotel, resort, entertainment, and media company named for one of its assets: the Ryman Auditorium, a National Historic Landmark in Nashville, Tennessee. The company's legal lineage can be traced back to its time as a subsidiary of Edward Gaylord's Oklahoma Publishing Company; however, the backbone of the modern entity was formed with the company's acquisition of WSM, Inc. in 1983. This purchase resulted in the ownership of the Grand Ole Opry and associated businesses, including the company's flagship resort property, then known as Opryland Hotel. As such, Ryman Hospitality cites 1925 as its origin year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RightNow Technologies</span> Software company

Oracle RightNow is an American customer relationship management (CRM) software service for enterprise organizations which is part of Oracle Service. It was originally developed by RightNow Technologies, Inc., which was acquired by Oracle Corporation in 2011 in a $1.8 billion deal.

Nashville! was a commercial radio channel on XM Satellite Radio. It was located on XM 57(previously 11) and plays a wide range of country music hits from the early 1990s through today. The channel was programmed out of Cincinnati, Ohio. Advertising sales are handled by Premiere Radio Networks. It was programmed by Kent Terry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Pittman (media executive)</span> American businessman

Robert Warren Pittman is an American businessman. Pittman was the CEO of MTV Networks and the cofounder and programmer who led the team that created MTV, and is the cofounder of iHeartMedia and Casa Dragones Tequila. Pittman joined iHeartMedia's predecessor company Clear Channel in November 2010 as an investor and the company's Chairman of Media and Entertainment Platforms, was named CEO in 2011 and chairman in 2013. Pittman led Clear Channel's transformation into iHeartMedia, Inc. in September 2014 to reflect its new multiplatform business and expanded mission. Pittman has also been the former chairman and CEO of Clear Channel Outdoor, CEO of AOL Networks, Six Flags Theme Parks, Quantum Media, Century 21 Real Estate and Time Warner Enterprises, and COO of America Online, Inc. and AOL Time Warner.

CrowdTwist was a privately held company headquartered in New York City, New York, purchased by Oracle in 2019. Oracle CrowdTwist is a SaaS based omni-channel loyalty and analytics platform that is designed to allow marketers to acquire, engage and retain customers. The information gathered by CrowdTwist can be used and analyzed by companies to create customer profiles on both an individual and macro level. CrowdTwist investors include StarVest Partners, SoftBank Capital, Fairhaven Capital, KBS+P Ventures and Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments. Scott Matthews serves as CrowdTwist's chief executive officer.

WorldNow was a New York-based software company founded by Gary Gannaway. WorldNow offered an integrated media platform enabling broadcasters, operators, and media companies to create, acquire, manage, analyze, monetize and distribute media assets across all digital platforms and on-air systems in a unified, end-to-end workflow. Through its turnkey multi-tenant software-as-a-service solution, WorldNow unified web content management, IP video management and delivery, mobile, over-the-top, analytics, social and advertising in one integrated solution. WorldNow's customers included CBS, Cox Media Group, Dispatch, Fox Television, Meredith Corporation, Media General and Raycom Media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emperor Group</span> Group of company in Hong Kong

Emperor Group is a diversified group of companies founded by Albert Yeung in Hong Kong. Albert Yeung's father, Mr Yeung Shing, opened a watch shop named "Shing On Kee Watch Shop" in 1942, setting the business foundation. Six companies within the Group are listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. These include Emperor International Holdings Limited, which focuses on real estate investment and property development; Emperor Watch and Jewellery Limited, which specializes in the retail of luxury watches and fine jewellery; Emperor Entertainment Hotel Limited, which concentrates on hotel and gaming businesses in Macau; Emperor Capital Group Limited, which provides a wide range of financial services; and Emperor Culture Group Limited, which principally engages in entertainment, media and cultural development business; and Ulferts International Limited, which is engaged in chain retailing of upmarket European furniture; and New Media Lab Limited ,which provides one-stop integrated digital advertising solutions.

Sprinklr is an American software company that develops a software as a service (SaaS) customer experience management (CXM) platform. The company's software, also called Sprinklr, combines different applications for social media marketing, social advertising, content management, collaboration, employee advocacy, customer care, social media research, and social media monitoring.

Veritas Technologies LLC is an American international data management company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The company has its origins in Tolerant Systems, founded in 1983 and later renamed Veritas Software. It specializes in storage management software including the first commercial journaling file system, VxFS, VxVM, VCS, the personal/small office backup software Backup Exec and the enterprise backup software, NetBackup. Veritas Record Now was an early CD recording software.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oracle Cloud</span> Cloud computing service

Oracle Cloud is a cloud computing service offered by Oracle Corporation providing servers, storage, network, applications and services through a global network of Oracle Corporation managed data centers. The company allows these services to be provisioned on demand over the Internet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circle Country</span> Country music streaming television

Circle Country, previously known as Circle, is a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service owned by Gray Television as part of its PowerNation Studios division. The network's programming consists of country music oriented shows, western films and rural/blue collar themed material, featuring a mix of original and off-network shows sourced from Opry Entertainment Group.

Synamedia Ltd. is a video technology provider headquartered in Staines-upon-Thames, UK. Its products cover content distribution and delivery, video processing, advanced advertising, broadband offerings, and video security.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Archives". Los Angeles Times .
  2. 1 2 3 "WorldNow's Gary Gannaway: TV Stations' Web Guru". Broadcasting & Cable. Archived from the original on 2015-05-08.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Block, Alex (1989). "Gannaways Genesis". Channels.
  4. 1 2 "Albert C. Gannaway Jr. Obituary (2008) New York Times". Legacy.com .
  5. ↑ "Gannaway Spearheads Special Projects". The Courier News. Blytheville, Arkansas. 20 May 1969.
  6. ↑ "Gary Gannaway Preaching the Promise of Genesis" (PDF). American Radio History: Broadcasting Magazine. 28 August 1989. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Speaker Bio: Gary Gannaway". NATPE. 2008. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  8. ↑ https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Channels-of-Communication/Channels-1989-09.pdf
  9. 1 2 "The Web is a Different World Now". TV News Check. 11 March 2008. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "Our Team". IBillow. Archived from the original on 15 November 2014. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 Mandose, Joe (1993). "Genesis finishes what it starts". Advertising Age.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Haley, Kathy (1993). "Genesis Entertainment: A Perfect 10, 19830-1993". Broadcasting & Cable.
  13. ↑ https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Channels-of-Communication/Channels-1989-09.pdf
  14. ↑ "Archives". Los Angeles Times .
  15. ↑ https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Channels-of-Communication/Channels-1989-09.pdf
  16. 1 2 Jessell, Harry A. (2017-11-02). "Gannaway Suing WorldNow Buyer For $15M". TV News Check. Retrieved 2023-12-08.
  17. ↑ Roski, Melanie; Halbfas, Brigitte; Volkmann, Christine (2013-12-31). "The Effects of the Social and Cultural Embeddedness of (FE)Male Entrepreneurs and the Consequences for Regional Policy". Regions Magazine. 292 (1): 19–21. doi:10.1080/13673882.2013.10815621. ISSN   1367-3882.
  18. ↑ INC Staff (1 December 1992). "Regional Entrepreneurs of the Year". INC Magazine.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.