• The Hollywood Reporter, Thursday, January 4, 2007 12:15 PM

Around this time last year, we were hearing sweeping pronouncements about the imminent demise of big media, but 2006 belonged to the old media firms. As they adjusted, they dipped their toes into new media with smart acquisitions and savvy new strategies. Wall Street responded very favorably, as old media generally posted impressive turnarounds across the board.

Disney, News Corp., and Time Warner led the way in 2006, with 44.3%, 34.7% and 26.3% rises respectively. CBS Corp., considered the "old media" arm of the newly split Viacom Corp., rose 22.3%, while the supposedly younger and lighter new Viacom grew a scant 2.5%. Other heavy-hitters in 2006 included cable giant Comcast Corp., whose shares jumped 64.7%, and Dreamworks SKG, which advanced 20.1%.

For new media, 2006 was generally a mixed bag, especially for the Internet industry bellwethers. After an up-and-down year, Google posted a modest 11% rise, while Yahoo plummeted 35.3%, eBay fell 32.5% and Amazon.com's stock sunk 18.5 year over year. The few really bright spots for new media were Real Networks Inc., up 39.8%, and Barry Diller's IAC/InterActive Corp., up 29.6%.

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