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Ad Age Ad Lib


Nov 1, 2018

This weekend some 60,000 sneakerheads, hip hop aficionados, jocks, gamers, design nerds and foodies will descend on Long Beach, California, for the fourth annual ComplexCon. The consumer-facing pop culture bonanza is the physical expression of media brand Complex, which CEO Rich Antoniello has been driving for the past 17 years. Rich — who is outspoken on just about any topic you can throw at him — joins us today for a wide-ranging conversation covering everything from media’s pivot to revenue diversification (after it’s failed pivot to video) and how Complex’s joint acquisition by Hearst and Verizon in 2016 has been playing out for the brand. We talk about why he’s bullish on over-the-top streaming platforms and how his own background as an agency and print guy left him perfectly unprepared to be a modern media CEO.