Jon Stewart is worth $100 million: Ex Yahoo CEO

Jon Stewart's brand could generate $100 million annually, former Yahoo CEO and current member of Scout media has told CNBC's “Fast Money: Halftime Report.”

“There is a generation of fans who would follow Jon Stewart probably anywhere,” said Ross Levinsohn.

He said while Stewart would want to take some time off, he could make millions of dollars he chooses to go directly to consumers.

“If he goes direct to consumers; think of it in this context, 50 cents a day to watch Jon Stewarts, 50 cents a day, half the price of the New York Post and he does four days a week, 8 bucks a month for subscribers, you get a million subscribers; that is almost $100 million a year in subscriber fees not to mention advertising, commerce things he can create,” Levinsohn said.

“This is a franchise; this is a man who can create the next generation of a Viacom or a Time Warner,” he added.

Stewart told his studio audience at the end of last Tuesday night's episode that he will leave his job as host of Comedy Central's parody newscast “The Daily Show” later this year.

Stewart, 52, who has starred on the show since 1999, said he had no specific plans for his next career move, but was thankful for the opportunity to host the program.

“It's been an absolute privilege,” said an emotional Stewart. “It's been the honor of my professional life, and I thank you for watching it, for hate-watching it, whatever reason you are tuning in for.”

The announcement came after Comedy Central's other big name, former “Daily Show” contributor Stephen Colbert, ended his tenure as star of companion show “The Colbert Report” and left the network in December to succeed the retiring David Letterman as host of the “Late Show” on CBS.

The New York-based “The Daily Show,” which airs weeknights at 11 p.m. on the Viacom Inc-owned Comedy Central, is expected to continue, the network said, but a replacement for Stewart has yet to be named.

[With Reuters]