In Denver, Dusty Saunders writes the new NHL team is close
to signing both TV and radio deals, including a deal for about 25
games on Prime Sports and similar deal with a regional broadcast
channel. The "leading radio" station is KKFN-AM if "conflicts
with Nuggets coverage can be worked out" (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS,
6/19)....ITT Corp. Chair Rand Araskog is profiled in the current
NEWSWEEK. Araskog "relishes being a sports magnate, and may
become a megamogul if ITT ... purchases a TV network" (NEWSWEEK,
6/26 issue). Chase Carey, Chair and CEO of Fox Television, is
the focus of a piece in the current BROADCASTING & CABLE. Carey
on the goal of News Corp. Chair Rupert Murdoch: "He is willing
to take the bets necessary to build the business. Our biggest
challenge is to fulfill that vision for him" (BROADCASTING &
CABLE, 6/19 issue)....Prime Deportiva will televise live nine
games of the Copa America soccer tournament exclusively on cable
TV. The channel will produce the entire 26-game tournament, 17
of which will be distributed in conjunction with Reiss Media
Entertainment on Request TV and Viewer's Choice pay-per-view
services (Prime Deportiva)....America Online expects to have five
million subscribers by the end of the year, up from 2.3 million
subscribers currently (VARIETY, 6/20)....Turner Sports President
Harvey Schiller says that the Salt Lake Games could get as much
as $400-500M in TV rights fees, close to the number expected for
Sydney 2000. Fox Sports President David Hill, the "only one in
Budapest to meet with Sydney Olympics head Gary Pemberton,"
agrees that Salt Lake could affect Sydney's payout. Former CBS
Sports President Neal Pilson pitched the Salt Lake Bid Committee
on representing them in TV negotiations (Rudy Martzke, USA TODAY,
6/20).
