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The legal fallout between MediaLink founder Michael Kassan and its owner, United Talent Agency (UTA), has caught the world’s entertainment and advertising industries by surprise, including many within the management consultancy itself.
Now MediaLink, without its figurehead, is facing questions about its leadership plans moving forward, as the succession plan for Kassan has long been an unresolved issue.
At the heart of the dispute is a “Special Expenses” account that Kassan had requested in the Purchase and Sale Agreement during the 2022 $125 million sale of MediaLink by Ascential to UTA. Kassan alleges breach of contract in a $25 million lawsuit filed against UTA, CEO Jeremy Zimmer and two other executives that UTA backtracked on giving him the $1.5 million expense fund to “create new business opportunities for MediaLink.”
UTA provided ADWEEK with a copy of its lawsuit against Kassan, alleging that the fund has been misused by Kassan to pay off debts and other personal expenses.
Following news of Kassan’s departure and subsequent legal action, UTA released a further statement from its counsel, Bryan Freedman.
“Michael Kassan was terminated by UTA on March 7 and made aware well before that that UTA had grounds to fire him,” Freedman said. “His claim against UTA has no merit and is an attempt to divert attention from the misappropriation of company funds that led to his termination.”
The consultancy holds a unique place in the industry, helping brands work through marketing transformation projects, conducting agency reviews and placing executives in new marketing roles. While Kassan had built a team around him to handle the client work, he’s been the relationship builder who’s made MediaLink into the industry leader in the space, and industry execs are skeptical MediaLink will be as attractive to CMOs without him.
“There is a strong executive leadership team in place at MediaLink that continues to carry the business forward,” said a UTA spokesperson when asked about a succession plan. The company declined to explain further who will lead the business.
A perfect match goes south
In a 2023 interview with Beet.TV at CES, Kassan spoke about how he saw his role as being “in the middle of a lot of conversations” within the marketing and media sectors. He also spoke about his relationship with UTA after five years with Ascential.
“I saw a better life for MediaLink in a different environment and what UTA promised me, and delivered in spades … was the proximity to the creator economy. The proximity of content creation … and the proximity to the most important people who create the content in the world,” he explained.
