MLB owners who could potentially join Malone’s bid include Ken Kendrick and Mark Attanasiokathleen lavine
After adding the owners of the Twins and Pistons to his bid for the Fox RSNs, Liberty Media Chair and Braves Owner John Malone is now "expected to woo other teams as well in the consolidated offer" in a strategy that "includes a promise to team owners that he will continue to sell games to local broadcasters," according to sources cited by Morgan & Kosman of the N.Y. POST. Sources said that other team owners who "could potentially join Malone’s consolidated bid" include the D-backs' Ken Kendrick, the Brewers' Mark Attanasio and the Browns' Jimmy and Dee Haslam. A source also said that a "spinout of the RSNs is still an option if Disney finds the bids unsatisfactory" (N.Y. POST, 2/7). Fox Business' Charlie Gasparino reported the 22 RSNs are "likely to fetch" around a total of $13B, a "far cry from what they initially wanted," which was in the $20B range ("Cavuto: Coast To Coast," Fox Business, 2/5).
UP & DOWN: The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Kimberly Chin notes 21st Century Fox' quarterly profit "rose on gains for the company’s cable networks and movie business and the sale of shares in Sky." Fox yesterday said that it has "made significant progress with the Disney transaction and its spinoff" into New Fox. In the U.S., advertising revenue for broadcast television "rose 15%, largely on the back of sports on the Fox network, while the unit’s overall sales rose 19%." However, it reported an operating loss "stemming from increased spending on rights to air 'Thursday Night Football' games" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 2/7).
