Ascent Entertainment "ran up a" $23M bill while selling
the Nuggets, Avalanche and Pepsi Center, according to Erika
Gonzalez of the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS. The $23M includes
investment bank and attorney fees as "well as due diligence
and termination costs for Bill and Nancy Laurie," who
dropped out of the bidding after declining to match Donald
Sturm's $461M bid for the sports properties. Ascent
"expects to report a gain" of more than $150M from the
transaction in the third quarter (ROCKY MTN NEWS, 7/30).
The DENVER POST's Stephen Keating reports $61M of the deal
will be put "aside for a variety of payments." A "big
portion" of that will go toward paying Liberty Media for its
6.5% ownership of the sports assets (DENVER POST, 7/30).
STURM'S PAST PROFILED: In Denver, John Rebchook reports
that Sturm was "involved in an insider stock trading
allegation" in '88 when the SEC "claimed that Sturm ... had
violated its anti-fraud provisions by helping a friend
engage in insider trading." Sturm denied wrongdoing, and
paid back all stock investment profits earned by the friend.
Sturm's attorney Paul Jacobs: "I did know about that and it
has been disclosed to the leagues. It's not an issue at
all." NBA and NHL execs "declined to" specifically discuss
the SEC situation (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 7/30).
