Kevin Spacey dropped into the TechCrunch studio at Davos, event today and we asked him about his engagement with the tech world.
It’s his first year at the World Economic Forum and he’s partly here because he’s become an investor in cyber security firm Wisekey, which is working the halls talking to big corporate about their solutions.
I asked him if cyber security was a genuine interest of his: “I’ve always been fascinated by the space and now that I’m chairman of Relativity Studios, and in light of the Sony hack last year it’s prudent for anyone in my position and any business… So I’m here to meet and talk with these experts who understand how to create walls to protect you IP and content. It’s just prudent.”
He’s been hugely successful with his serial “House of Cards” which was funded and produced by Netflix, and now the online video streamer has recently launched in many more global jurisdictions.
He noted that it’s no longer the case that stars have to be in LA or Hollywood — for instance — to get noticed, as they can be discovered online. And that tech companies are going to get more into the content world.
“In the next few years Silicon Valley is going to much more involved in content. I would not be surprised if a big tech company would buy a studio… It’s what I thought a few years ago with Yahoo, or Google or Netflix. Those companies who have made a lot of money being a portal for entertainment… if they wanted to complete they would have to start doing their on content so I wasn’t surprised when Netflix stepped up,” he said.