Take-Two Interactive beat revenue expectations and reaffirmed the target release window for GTA VI, while Paramount Skydance topped sales estimates despite missing net profit targets. Meanwhile, Meta faced a $567 million court order in child safety litigation, and Trump Media unwound its recent crypto venture following substantial asset markdowns.
Trump Media terminates deal with Crypto.com for CRO token treasury
Trump Media and Technology Group terminated its planned Cronos (CRO) venture with .com and Yorkville Corp., abandoning an initiative intended to create a publicly traded vehicle to accumulate and stake billions of dollars in tokens. Crypto.com's native token CRO fell as much as 5% to $0.051 following the news. Under interim CEO Kevin McGurn, the company is unwinding its 2025 expansion—which included $105 million in direct CRO purchases—after markdowns contributed to a $406 million quarterly loss earlier this year. The partners also scrapped plans to integrate "Truth Predict" prediction markets into Truth Social, replacing back-end infrastructure development with a simple marketing agreement that refers users to .com. Saturation in corporate digital drove the retreat. Instead of managing complex crypto vehicles, Trump Media is focusing on data licensing for high-frequency trading clients and completing its planned with fusion energy company TAE Technologies before the end of 2026. The firm remains the 14th-largest corporate holder with 9,542 BTC on its , though it transferred 2,628 of those tokens—worth $165 million—to .com custody addresses without selling them.
Why this matters
Corporate crypto treasury models face severe earnings volatility, forcing media and platform firms to abandon capital-intensive balance sheet bets for higher-margin software and data distribution strategies.
HCLTech Completes Acquisition of HPE's Telco Solutions Business
HCLTech has completed its of Hewlett Packard Enterprise's Telco Solutions business, bringing nearly 1,400 specialized telecom engineers across 39 countries into its organization. The transaction, originally disclosed in December 2025 and finalized on August 1, 2026, builds on HCLTech's 2024 integration of HPE's Communications Technology Group. Under the deal, the IT services firm absorbs HPE's software intellectual property, client contracts, and integration frameworks for telecommunications networks. The target unit equips HCLTech with proprietary software for Operational Support Systems, 5G Subscriber Data Management, and Home Subscriber Servers. HCLTech is targeting telecom operators that are converting legacy infrastructure into software-defined, -managed networks. The integration expands the company's nearshore delivery operations across Japan, Spain, Romania, Italy, India, and Latin America. HCLTech reported $14.8 billion in consolidated for the twelve months ending June 2026.
Why this matters
Tech services firms are acquiring specialized software IP and engineering talent to capture high-margin telecommunications modernization spend as network operators transition away from legacy hardware.
Myspace Eyes Comeback as Antidote to Social Media Fatigue
Myspace owners Tim and Chris Vanderhook are planning another relaunch of the legacy social network, according to cnbc.com reporting on their appearance in the documentary "Myspace." The brothers, who co-founded Viant Technology and bought the platform in 2011, previously attempted a overhaul in 2013. That effort failed to retain advertisers or stop user migration to Facebook. It generated over $150 million in cumulative losses. Myspace peaked in 2008 with 115 million monthly visitors before falling into irrelevance. The owners have not disclosed a timeline or detailed product specifications for the rollout. To survive, any new iteration must attract Gen Z and older users alike to generate advertising against dominant incumbent platforms.
Why this matters
Repeatedly recapitalizing a legacy ad-supported network tests whether brand nostalgia can overcome the structural ad-unit discount non-dominant platforms suffer against established identity-graph incumbents.
Rest of the brief
4 more stories in today’s Media & Telecom, with the figures and the framing that go with them.
