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☆ Ozy dropped its lawsuit against Semafor founder Ben Smith after CEO Carlos Watson was found guilty of fraud
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-25 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Ozy dropped its lawsuit against Ben Smith, Semafor, and BuzzFeed. It originally alleged Semafor co-founder Smith stole ideas following BuzzFeed merger talks. Ozy cofounder Carlos Watson was found guilty of a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme this month. Ozy sued the media company Semafor, its cofounder Ben Smith, and BuzzFeed in December. It alleged Smith plundered Ozy's business ideas when, as the editor in chief of BuzzFeed News, he participated in merger talks with Ozy.

Persons: Ozy, Ben Smith, Semafor, Smith, Carlos Watson, — Organizations: Service, BuzzFeed, Ozy, Business Locations: BuzzFeed

☆ Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson convicted in New York fraud trial
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-16 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Ozy Media and founder Carlos Watson were convicted of fraud by a Brooklyn federal jury on Tuesday, in a case accusing them of lying to investors about the now-defunct startup’s finances and sham deals with Google and Oprah Winfrey. Watson, a former cable news anchor and investment banker, and Ozy were each convicted of securities fraud conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy, while Watson was also convicted of identity theft. The verdict follows a six-week trial that featured testimony by two former Watson deputies, who pleaded guilty to fraud. Ozy folded shortly after The New York Times reported on former chief operating officer Samir Rao’s impersonation of the YouTube executive. He said prosecutors’ view of Ozy’s finances was simplistic and failed to appreciate the nuances of media industry dealmaking.

Persons: Carlos Watson, Oprah Winfrey, Watson, Ozy, Goldman Sachs, Prosecutors, “, Breon Peace, Samir Rao’s, Rao, Alex Piper, Sundar Pichai, Watson’s, “ That’s, that’s, ” Organizations: Ozy Media, Google, “ Ozy Media, New York Times, YouTube, Ozy Locations: Brooklyn, California

☆ Ozy Media Founder Takes the Stand to Deny Fraud Allegations
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-01 | by ( Danielle Kaye | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Carlos Watson, a co-founder of the digital media start-up Ozy Media, testified on Monday at his fraud trial that he had not conspired to trick investors. Instead, he said, his young media company employed strategies to build partnerships, secure advertising revenue and draw in investors. “We really thought we had a chance to do something special that could be around a long time,” Mr. Watson told the jury. Mr. Watson’s testimony is the center of his defense against charges that he misrepresented his company’s financial results, fund-raising and audience data to investors and lenders from 2018 to 2021. The prosecution has called a variety of witnesses, including prospective investors who testified that Mr. Watson had misled them about the company in an attempt to secure funding.

Persons: Carlos Watson, “, ” Mr, Watson Organizations: Ozy Media

☆ Google C.E.O. Testifies in Ozy Media Founder’s Fraud Trial
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-14 | by ( Danielle Kaye | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sundar Pichai, the chief executive of Google, said in a New York courtroom on Friday that he never discussed a possible takeover of Ozy Media. The government alleged in court filings and at trial that Mr. Watson falsely claimed to a prospective investor that Ozy had received a $600 million takeover offer from Google. Mr. Pichai said he interviewed Mr. Watson in February 2021 for a full-time role managing Google’s relationships with news publishers. To accept the role, Mr. Watson would have had to step down from Ozy, which Google recognized could harm the digital media start-up, another Google executive testified on Thursday. As part of the hiring discussions, Google considered investing about $25 million in Ozy “to help with the transition,” Mr. Pichai testified when he briefly took the stand.

Persons: Sundar Pichai, Pichai, Carlos Watson, Ozy, Watson, “, Mr Organizations: Google, Ozy Media Locations: New York, Ozy

☆ The fraud trial of Ozy Media cofounder Carlos Watson has begun. His attorneys have argued race played a role in his indictment.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewAttorneys began jury selection in the criminal fraud trial of Carlos Watson, the cofounder of the fallen digital media startup Ozy Media. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Carlos Watson is a Black man and Ozy Media was majority-owned by people of color." AdvertisementAttorneys for Watson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider on Monday. Semafor co-founder, former New York Times columnist, and BuzzFeed News editor in chief Ben Smith and Ozy co-founder Carlos Watson.

Persons: —, Carlos Watson, Watson, Watson's, Semafor, Ben Smith, Ozy, Dia Dipasupil, Kimberly White, Marc Lasry, Laurene Powell Jobs, Ron Conway, Axel Springer, Smith, Samir Rao, Suzee Han, Goldman Sachs Organizations: Service, Ozy Media, Business, Prosecutors, Apple, Google, Vice Media, New York Times, Goldman Locations: Brooklyn , New York, Buzzfeed

☆ Fraud Trial to Begin for Ozy Founder Carlos Watson
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Benjamin Mullin | Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The 2010s were a frothy time for digital publishing. Billions of dollars flowed into publishers like BuzzFeed and Vice, with big media companies and venture capitalists betting those start-ups would eventually make lots of money. The jury trial of Carlos Watson, who is charged with trying to defraud investors in the digital media start-up he co-founded, Ozy Media, is scheduled to begin Monday with jury selection in federal court in Brooklyn. Mr. Watson has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him. It remains unclear what Mr. Watson’s defense will be when the trial begins, or whether he will take the stand.

Persons: BuzzFeed, Carlos Watson, Watson, bluffing ” Organizations: Ozy Locations: Brooklyn

☆ Ozy CEO Carlos Watson arrested and charged with fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailOzy CEO Carlos Watson arrested and charged with fraudCNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin reports on the latest media executive to be arrested.

☆ Premarket stocks: Why today's inflation report is so important
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Recent data has shown that inflation is still hot, and that the economy is rip-roaring. On Thursday, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon publicly expressed his doubt in the central bank’s ability to control inflation. This, in turn, can help make it easier for the central bank to achieve its inflation targets. Blackrock analysts wrote in a note Thursday that “we think we are going to be living with inflation. Watson was accused in a federal indictment of having “engaged in a scheme to defraud OZY’s investors, potential investors, potential acquirers, lenders and potential lenders.”The charges said that Watson committed the fraud “through material misrepresentations and omissions” about Ozy Media, including the company’s finances, investors, business partners, contracts, and potential acquisitions.

☆ Ozy CEO Watson's fraud case: What you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailOzy CEO Watson's fraud case: What you need to knowBen Smith, Semafor co-founder and editor-in-chief, joins 'Squawk Box' to react to the arrest of Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson on fraud charges on Thursday. Watson, however, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment and was released after posting a $1 million bond.

☆ Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson Arrested After a Former Executive Pleads Guilty to Fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ozy Media Chief Executive Carlos Watson was arrested Thursday morning after a former executive with whom he founded the embattled startup pleaded guilty to fraud charges in a secretive federal court proceeding. Mr. Watson was taken into custody and is expected to be arraigned in a Brooklyn, N.Y., federal court on charges of conspiring to commit securities fraud and conspiring to commit wire fraud, according to a law-enforcement official. Ozy came under federal scrutiny for its business practices after the New York Times reported in 2021 that its then-chief operating officer, Samir Rao , impersonated an executive of Alphabet Inc.’s YouTube during a fundraising call with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

☆ Ozy Media, CEO Carlos Watson Charged With Fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Ozy Media Chief Executive Carlos Watson pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Thursday and was released on $1 million bond. Ozy Media and Chief Executive Carlos Watson were indicted on charges of repeatedly lying to investors and lenders about core aspects of the company’s business, a crippling blow to a once-promising startup that had early backing from big-brand advertisers and venture capitalists. Mr. Watson, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker and MSNBC anchor who hosts some of Ozy’s television shows and podcasts, was arrested Thursday morning in a Manhattan hotel. He is accused of falsifying information about Ozy’s financial performance and audience size, altering and fabricating contracts for some of its television shows and inflating its projected earnings, in an effort to secure tens of millions of dollars in investments and loans to offset the fledgling company’s mounting debt, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday.

☆ Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson arrested and charged with fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Carlos Watson, the founder and chief executive of the embattled Ozy Media, was arrested and charged with fraud this week, according to federal court records. Watson was accused in a federal indictment of having “engaged in a scheme to defraud OZY’s investors, potential investors, potential acquirers, lenders and potential lenders.”The charges said that Watson committed the fraud “through material misrepresentations and omissions” about Ozy Media, including the company’s finances, investors, business partners, contracts, and potential acquisitions. A spokesperson for Ozy Media did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday morning. The charges come after The New York Times published an exposé in 2021 pulling back the curtain on some of the alleged deceptive practices Ozy Media engaged in. Semafor reported earlier this month that Ozy Media was attempting a comeback.

[1/8] Carlos Watson, CEO of Ozy Media, departs U.S. Federal Court in Brooklyn after being arrested and charged with fraud in New York City, New York, U.S., February 23, 2023. REUTERS/David Dee DelgadoFeb 23 (Reuters) - Ozy Media and its CEO Carlos Watson have been criminally charged for scheming to defraud investors of tens of millions dollars by misrepresenting the company’s debts, financial performance and audience size, Brooklyn federal prosecutors said Thursday. Watson and Ozy Media are charged with securities fraud and wire fraud. Rao, who was initially charged under a pseudonym, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and identity theft. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission separately filed a civil case against Ozy, Watson and Rao on Thursday.

☆ Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson charged with fraud in alleged fundraising scheme
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson was charged with two federal criminal counts of fraud and one count of identity theft, according to court documents released Thursday. The news came after former operating chief Samir Rao and chief of staff Suzee Han pleaded guilty in the case. The Securities and Exchange Commission also accused Watson and Ozy of widespread fraud. For example, Sharon Osbourne told CNBC that Ozy Media had lied about the Osbourne family investing in the startup. CNBC was the media partner for Ozy Media's Ozy Fest 2019, which was canceled due to extreme heat.

☆ Embattled media company Ozy's CEO Carlos Watson was arrested and faces fraud charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson was arrested on Thursday. Watson is facing conspiracy charges in New York federal court. A New York Times report in 2021 said Ozy's other cofounder masqueraded as a YouTube executive on a call. Watson was arrested and is facing criminal charges in New York federal court, The Wall Street Journal first reported. Watson announced the company shut down in 2021, but has since said it was opening for business, with new hires.

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