Oracle’s Media Play: The New Rules of Influence
When a titan of enterprise software, a company built on the impenetrable logic of databases and cloud infrastructure, makes a multi-billion-dollar play for the chaotic, unpredictable world of media, boards must pay attention. This isn’t a vanity project. It’s a seismic shift in the nature of corporate power.
The flurry of activity surrounding Larry Ellison’s Oracle and his son David Ellison’s Skydance—encompassing a merger with Paramount, a potential bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, and the geopolitical crown jewel, TikTok is not a diversification strategy. It is an integration strategy. This is a calculated campaign to rewrite the rules of influence, and for any leader who fails to understand this new game, the consequences will be severe.
Forget everything you think you know about the separation between technology and media. The Ellison playbook reveals a new battlefield where controlling the digital pipes is no longer enough. The ultimate prize is controlling the information and narratives that flow through them. For boards, this isn’t a spectator sport; it’s a direct challenge that requires a new strategic framework.
This is the Business War Room. Here are the new rules of influence your board must understand now.
The New Rules of Influence
Rule #1: From Owning the Infrastructure to Owning the Narrative
For decades, the strategic high ground in technology was owning the infrastructure—the databases, the cloud, the “pipes” of the internet. Oracle mastered this. But in an age of information saturation, the chokepoint of power is shifting.
The new frontier is owning the narrative.
The Ellison strategy is to create a closed-loop ecosystem where they not only host the world’s data (Oracle Cloud) but also create and distribute the content that shapes public and consumer perception (Paramount, Warner Bros., TikTok). This vertical integration of influence is unprecedented. It allows for the seamless alignment of data intelligence with content strategy, turning media assets from simple entertainment products into powerful tools for shaping market behavior.
For the Boardroom: Your company’s most valuable asset is no longer just its product or its data; it’s the narrative surrounding them. A competitor who understands how to manipulate that narrative can neutralize your market advantage without ever competing on product features or price.
Rule #2: The Algorithm is the New Kingmaker
The potential acquisition of TikTok is the cornerstone of this entire strategy. TikTok is not just a social media app; it is the most powerful algorithmic engine for cultural and ideological transmission ever created. Its ability to shape trends, opinions, and purchasing habits in a matter of hours is a force multiplier that legacy media can only dream of.
Controlling this algorithm means controlling a direct line to the consciousness of over a billion people. It is the power to decide what becomes important, what goes viral, and what is ignored. When combined with a vast library of professionally produced content from Hollywood studios, it becomes a system for dictating culture at scale.
For the Boardroom: Your leadership team must develop “algorithmic literacy.” You need to understand how these black boxes influence your customers, your employees, and the perception of your brand. Algorithmic risk, the danger of being negatively targeted or rendered irrelevant by a competitor’s control of these platforms, is now a primary category of strategic risk.
Rule #3: Data is the Ammunition, Media is the Artillery
Oracle’s core business is data. It understands consumer behavior, business trends, and demographic profiles at a granular level. In a traditional model, this data is used to sell more software or cloud services.
In the new model, this data becomes the ammunition for the media artillery.
Imagine the strategic advantage of knowing exactly what a specific demographic is watching, discussing, and feeling, and then being able to produce and promote a movie, news segment, or viral video that is precision-targeted to leverage that insight. This synergy turns marketing into a science and influence into a predictable outcome. It allows the owner of both data and media to not just respond to the market, but to create it.
For the Boardroom: Are you using your data solely for operational efficiency and targeted ads? Or are you using it to understand the deeper cultural currents and narratives that define your market? A competitor who can weaponize this level of insight will outmaneuver you every time.
Rule #4: Geopolitics is the New Playing Field
The intense scrutiny of the TikTok deal by the U.S. government, including the demand for a board seat, signals the final rule of this new era: major corporate strategy is now inseparable from geopolitics.
Controlling a dominant media and technology platform is no longer just a commercial advantage; it is an instrument of national power. The Ellisons’ ability to navigate this complex political landscape and position Oracle as a “trusted” American steward of a critical digital asset is a masterstroke of geopolitical maneuvering. It demonstrates an an understanding that the biggest deals are no longer done in boardrooms alone, but in the corridors of Washington and Beijing.
For the Boardroom: Your global strategy can no longer be blind to geopolitics. You must assess how your company’s assets, data flows, and market positions are viewed through the lens of national interest. Digital sovereignty and the weaponization of information platforms are now permanent fixtures of the strategic landscape.
War Room Briefing: 3 Questions for Your Next Board Meeting
This isn’t just a story about Larry Ellison. It’s a wake-up call. The convergence of data, media, and politics has created a new and dangerous competitive environment. Your board must be prepared.
- Where does our influence truly reside? Beyond brand marketing, what platforms and narratives fundamentally shape our customers’ perception of us? Do we have a strategy to engage there, or are we leaving the field open to competitors?
- What is our algorithmic risk? How vulnerable are we to a competitor or activist group using algorithmic platforms to launch a narrative attack against us? Do we have a plan to monitor and counter this?
- Who are our ‘non-traditional’ competitors? What company from an adjacent industry could, like Oracle, make a play to control the narrative in our market? Are we prepared for a battle of influence, not just a battle of products?
The Ellison playbook is a clear signal that the war for market dominance is no longer just about selling the best product. It’s about telling the most powerful story through the most effective channels. For boards that understand these new rules of influence, the opportunities are immense. For those who don’t, irrelevance is a certainty.
