Kassan himself was key, the perpetual presence at industry events, everyone’s best friend. At the start, that was an important role.”
“Even if it was limited to his client set, it was an important filter because there were so many new entrants seemingly every day. “In a world where there is so much change going on in terms of new entrants and ad technologies, Michael built a curated vehicle by which important media and advertising executives could get some filter - someone to provide context for them with respect to which companies to meet,” said Keith Richman, president of Defy Media, a former MediaLink client. In Kassan’s telling, MediaLink became the “membrane” of the industry. If someone could make sense of it all, media companies - and later, advertisers - would be willing to pay. In the decade that followed, MediaLink was able to take advantage of an increasingly complex market with all the new digital media sellers looking to knock down doors and pull in as many brand dollars as they could. Kassan, a former ad exec with his share of controversies in his past career, was connected throughout the media, entertainment and tech industries. Kassan launched MediaLink in 2003 as a small shop that was focused on consulting to media companies. This account is based on interviews with over 20 industry executives, both former and current clients of MediaLink, and current and former employees of the firm. As the industry changes yet again, MediaLink, too, is changing as it seeks to retain its role as the power broker. Its business model is to put itself at the center of an industry in flux and take a piece of the action from many, if not quite all, sides.
MediaLink’s pivotal role at Cannes - a Vox Media dinner tonight will begin with a toast to Kassan and partner Wenda Harris Millard - is a great window into what the company does, which, at its essence, is transacting on relationships. Throughout the week, MediaLink will be hard to avoid. MediaLink’s banner - featuring its tagline “We turn potential into practice” - is prominently displayed on the Carlton Hotel, the epicenter of the media, marketing and tech world’s annual networking fest. During Cannes alone, MediaLink says it will set up 800 meetings for clients. In an industry still based around connections, MediaLink has built a tidy business being the foremost broker.
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