Viacom CEO gives upbeat outlook

June 04, 2009 Viacom Inc. is experiencing a "creative renaissance," president and CEO Philippe Dauman argued here Thursday at the company's annual shareholder meeting. In the only question of the meeting, a female shareholder said the video highlight reels Dauman showed were nice, but she asked what she is getting out of it since Viacom's stock is still low in historical comparison and the company pays no dividend. Overall, Dauman argued that despite recurring TV ratings challenges over the past couple of years, which have led to several changes in programming strategy of Viacom networks, and a need to rebuild the Paramount film unit, the firm has under his leadership already succeeded in new franchises and kept existing ones strong.

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