Ascent Entertainment announced a "major shakeup" last
week with the resignations of board members James Cronin and
Peter Barton, according to Andrew Backover of the DENVER
POST. Cronin was Ascent's VP, CFO & COO and had been with
the company since '96, while Barton had been on the board
since '97. Cronin will remain as Board Chair for On Command
Corp., the PPV group in which Ascent owns a 57% stake.
Meanwhile, David Holden was promoted to Ascent Exec VP & CFO
"to fill Cronin's position." Other promotions by Ascent
include Arthur Aaron to Exec VP/Business Affairs and David
Ehrlich to VP & Legal Counsel. The Bonham Group Chair Dean
Bonham said the loss of Jim Cronin hurts: "[He] is far and
away the most knowledgeable individual about all of Ascent's
assets. The lack of his presence during this perilous time
as Ascent attempts to get maximum value out of its sports
teams ... could be costly to Ascent shareholders" (DENVER
POST, 1/29). Meanwhile, John Elway, who was part of a group
that bid on the Nuggets, Avalanche and Pepsi Center, said
that he is still eyeing a deal. Elway: "I'm still looking
at it (a deal with Ascent). I'd like to work it out if
everything could come together, but I'm not going to pay
some ridiculous price" (DENVER POST, 1/27).
