The LBOing Of Media Business

Mine is bigger than yours..the LBO’s increasing creep into the media business is analyzed in this WSJ story, in light of the Clear Channel-in-talks-to-go-private deal. It brings out an interesting issue: many of the same PE players chasing Clear Channel are either in the hunt for other media assets or already partial owners of them. That could complicate matters, because of federal rules aimed at making sure no one voice controls too many media outlets.
One example: Providence Equity Partners is part of a group trying to win control of Clear Channel…Earlier this year, Providence was also part of a group that purchased Univision, and is also part of a group weighing a bid for Tribune. Providence already owns stakes in movie library MGM, Warner Music Group and Freedom Communications. As the story says, even if Providence ends up with just part of Clear Channel, it would have a huge interest in big markets around the country.
For PE investors, there are ways to avoid triggering the anti-trust/FCC rules, the story says, and that’s probably what will happen in this case.

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