MLB's Commissioner's office is "looking into a
potential conflict that would arise with a pair of pending
acquisitions" of SFX Entertainment and AMFM Inc. by Clear
Channel Communications, according to Murray Chass of the
N.Y. TIMES, who wrote that the "conflict centers on ... the
role" of Rangers/Stars Owner and Clear Channel Vice Chair
Tom Hicks. With the deal for SFX Sports, Clear Channel
would represent MLB players, "including about half a dozen"
from Hicks' teams. An MLB official, on Hicks' association:
"We have some concerns about it." But Hicks said, "I can
see the potential for conflict, but we'll set it up where
there is no conflict." Hicks said that the "agent part" of
Clear Channel's business would represent "about" 1% of the
company's total business, or about $25M out of $2.4B.
Hicks: "I talked to [NHL Commissioner] Gary Bettman the
other day and I said, if need be I'd recuse myself from any
board actions relating to that 1 percent line of business."
Hicks said that he would "pledge" not to have any day-to-day
operations of the sports agency, though he hadn't "spoken to
anyone" in the commissioner's office (N.Y. TIMES, 3/12).
