Mel Karmazin Says He Wants to Be CEO Again

Former SiriusXM CEO Mel Karmazin says he wants to run another media organization. Karmazin, of course, left the satellite radio company late last year after Liberty Media announced plans to take control of the company. He says he's in his “second retirement” following an earlier break from corporate leadership in 2004, and he plans to have a third. Karmazin, 69, offered his comments during a CNBC interview. He said he’s looking for a public company with an independent board and hasn’t found an opportunity that suits him yet, reports Bloomberg. "Karmazin would like to be in a role with control similar to Time Warner Inc. CEO Jeff Bewkes or Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger, although at a smaller company with more 'turnaround' opportunities," writes Bloomberg's Alex Sherman, noting that Karmazin was the CEO of CBS Radio and the president of Viacom until June 2004. He quit after years of tension with Viacom’s then-CEO, Sumner Redstone. Karmazin joined New York-based Sirius later that year and presided over its merger with XM Satellite Radio in 2008. Although he exited SiriusXM with Liberty Media on the verge of taking control of the satcaster, Karmazin was the one who first gave Liberty the opportunity to become involved with the company. Months after the merger of the two former competitors, SiriusXM accepted a $530 million loan from Liberty Media Chairman John Malone, giving Liberty a 40% stake in the company.

Karmazin also said during the CNBC interview that new technologies are putting traditional media companies at a disadvantage but are providing consumers and advertisers with more choices. "I've been a seller of media assets and media stocks over the years," the former satellite radio exec said. "I think the technology that has come around has been very disadvantageous for these existing media companies." "Among the winners, though, are consumers and advertisers who have more choices as content is distributed across multiple platforms," writes CNBC's Justin Menza. "And even as audiences shift to watching their favorite programs on mobile devices, Karmazin doesn't expect the big advertising dollars to be there for the media companies." Karmazin told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" program, "You've heard the cliche about analog dollars, and digital dimes and now mobile pennies. As more and more of the audience goes to mobile, the ability to monetize it becomes even more challenging."

You can view video of the full interview from CNBC at this location.