When the World Economic Forum last met 12 months ago, the undoubted media stars of the event were Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Aside perhaps from Bono, nobody attracted such attention, adulation or worried fascination as the founders of Google.

This year, however, the disruptive technologists were playing a more reserved role, while the old media moguls whose power they were supposed to have sapped were exhibiting a new confidence.