All Quiet: Terry Semel Not Talking About Possible IMG Takeover
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Semel Says He Has Not Heard Back From
IMG About $3B Offer To Take Over Company |
Former Yahoo CEO TERRY SEMEL while at the Allen & Co. media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, "seemed to be actively avoiding reporter questions [about] the possibility of a takeover" of IMG, according to Dan Cox of the HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. Semel: "I made a bid for the company, and I don't know the result. You saw the stories. It looks like no." Semel apparently bid $3B for IMG, but he indicated IMG Chair & CEO TED FORSTMANN "has not been forthcoming" with a response. Semel: "We have other things in the hopper that we're looking at, so we'll continue to look at those. I wanted to take their management firm and turn it into a media company with a focus on digital distribution." Semel denied that he had "solicited or collected any money from Dubai or the United Arab Emirates for the venture" (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, 7/11). Meanwhile, sources tell SportsBusiness Journal that Semel is no longer in the running to buy IMG. An IMG spokesperson declined to comment on Semel, but said the company is not for sale despite repeated reports to the contrary. Since acquiring the sports talent and media company in '04 in a deal that valued the company at $750M, Forstmann has quickly added programming and non sports assets, while shedding some of the core athlete representation businesses. A legendary buyout exec, Forstmann has long been thought to want to unload IMG for a quick profit. However, that may not be the case, with his ownership of IMG now approaching four years. (Daniel Kaplan, SportsBusiness Journal).
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