Viacom wins by losing

Viacom Inc. (VIA) may finally be starting to emerge from Wall Street's dog house even if its second quarter results stunk.

Net income at the parent company of MTV Networks and Paramount Studios fell 32 percent to $277 million, or 46 cents per share, compared with $406 million, or 65 cents, a year earlier. Revenue at the New York-based media conglomerate fell 14 percent to $3.3 billion. Excluding one-time charges such as severance costs, profit was 49 cents a share beating Wall Street estimates. Revenue failed to top the estimates of $3.56 billion.