The YankeeNets merger, which was announced last
February, "overcame its final obstacle" when MLB team owners
approved the deal during yesterday's league meetings,
according to Richard Sandomir of the N.Y. TIMES. MLB
Commissioner Bud Selig: "There were some changes made over
all, although [Yankees Owner] George [Steinbrenner] is still
clearly running the New York Yankees. We approved the
transfer of some control to the YankeeNets board." While
the Yankees and Nets "are looking into creating a new cable
channel to carry their games," they could instead choose to
re-sell their TV rights to MSG and Fox Sports N.Y. The
Yankees' 12-year, $486M deal with MSG ends after next
season, and the Nets' contract with FSNY is up in 2002. Now
that the merger has been approved, YankeeNets is "expected
to announce" that former Turner Sports President Harvey
Schiller will become President of the holding company (N.Y.
TIMES, 12/1). Sportscorp President Marc Ganis: "Once they
get the financing committed, I think they'll either create
their own local network with Time Warner, which can be done
more easily now that YankeeNets is hiring Harvey Schiller.
Time Warner makes so much sense. It already has a
distribution system in the New York area, so start-up costs
would be less" (NEWSDAY, 12/1). Steinbrenner's
spokesperson Howard Rubenstein: "The resulting company
[YankeeNets] intends to become a significant sports and
entertainment entity" (Mult., 12/1).
THE BOSS KNOWS BASKETBALL? In Newark, Don Burke writes
that Steinbrenner "is now more likely to throw his already
considerable weight around the team's basketball operations"
(Newark STAR-LEDGER, 12/1). In NJ, John Brennan writes that
Nets co-Owner Lewis Katz "is believed to be receptive to
suggestions offered" by Steinbrenner (RECORD, 12/1).
