Bewkes: 'Every Option is On the Table'

At the Dow Jones/Nielsen Media and Money conference today, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes said he plans to spin off the cable and publishing divisions ASAP.

Just kidding! Nah, Bewkes didn't really say much of anything. What'd you expect? The guy just got the job two days ago.

Still, interviewer Alan Murray, executive editor of The Wall Street Journal Online, dutifully asked about the rumors that Bewkes will carve up Time Warner, and Bewkes dutifully evaded the topic.

"It's a good question. It's one that we have and will continue to consider," he said. "Every option is on the table. We're not religious about having it this way."

"We're aware of the considerations," he added. "We're not going to tell everyone the way that we weigh it and the timing, when we'll arrive at our views."

Given the widespread belief that Bewkes will take a far less sentimental view of Time Warner's structure than his predecessor, Dick Parsons, it seemed at times he was almost playing devil's advocate in defending the rationale for the current marriage of studios, networks, magazines, websites, cable systems and an internet access provider. For instance, he said, Time Warner would never have been the first to offer video on demand if it hadn't owned a cable system. "Because we knew what the architecture and capability of an advanced cable company could do, we did that," he said.

Asked whether the jobs of Time Warner chairman and CEO will continue to be held by separate people after next May, when Parsons's contract expires, Bewkes indicated that they won't, if he has his way.

"We don't think [separating the jobs is better], nor does Dick, but we think for a transitional period that it will help us."

And here's what Bewkes had to say about...

-the writers strike: "We don't think it has any material financial adverse impact on us this year, and we hope and expect it will get resolved reasonably before next year."

-the "most important decision" he's made: "I'm glad we green-lit The Sopranos. That was a good one."

-why News Corp.'s market capitalization surpassed Time Warner's: "They have a bigger jet."

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