Diller quit Fox in 1992 to become an entrepreneur, saying he was turning 50 and no longer wanted to work for someone else. He chose QVC Network, a home shopping service, as his first platform.
He said he saw a bright future in interactive television and shopping.
QVC was also a platform for Diller to go after big media properties. In 1997, he bought most of Seagram Co's Universal Studios TV assets in a complex transaction valued at more than US$4 billion.
In December 2001, almost 10 years after striking out on his own, Diller returned to Holly-wood, agreeing to work for Vivendi's then-Chief Executive Jean-Marie Messier, 15 years his junior and new to the entertainment industry. Messier's Vivendi had recently acquired Seagram, and Diller was named chairman of the company's Vivendi Universal Entertainment, including the studio, theme parks and cable networks.
Messier was ousted last summer and CEO Jean-Rene Fourtou, a former drug company executive, is now looking to Diller to oversee all of his US media businesses, including Universal Music Group and a video-game unit.
That would put Diller closer than ever to heading an entertainment empire rivaling those of his former bosses, such as Murdoch and the late Martin Davis, former chairman of Paramount, investors said.
Some investors are concerned about how Diller would divide his time between Vivendi and USA.
It is "going to be an obvious concern," says Andrew Rittenberry, an analyst at Gabelli Asset Management Inc, which owned 2.18 million Vivendi Universal American depositary shares on June 30, according to regulatory filings. The firm also owned 5.91 million USA Interactive shares in June.
"He's been doing these dual roles since winter and there's been no problem so far," Rittenberry said, adding that he wants more details.
Husic, the fund manager, said that if Diller is put at the helm of Vivendi's US assets and the company is spun off, he'd be interested in buying its shares.
"The idea is very exciting," Husic said.
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