Arlington Capital Partners Announces Sale of Two TV Stations to Granite Broadcasting Corporation and Malara Broadcast Group by Portfolio Company New Vision Group.Entertainment Editors/Business Editors WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 23, 2004 New Vision Group to Sell WISE-TV and KDLH-TV for $55 Million Arlington Capital Partners, a Washington, DC based private equity firm, announced the signing of definitive agreements by its portfolio company New Vision Group to sell TV station WISE to Granite Broadcasting Corporation Granite Broadcasting Corporation is an African-American-owned broadcasting holding company which owns or operates (via local marketing agreements) 14 television stations in the United States, largely centered in the midwest with a cluster in New York state. and KDLH to Malara Broadcast Group Malara Broadcast Group of Sarasota, Florida, a Delaware corporation, also known as Malara Broadcasting, is a broadcasting holding company. Malara Broadcasting was founded in 2004 by Tony Malara, former president of affiliate relations for CBS. for $55 million. WISE is the NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. affiliate serving Fort Wayne, Indiana “Fort Wayne” redirects here. For other uses, see Fort Wayne (disambiguation). Fort Wayne is a city in northeastern Indiana, USA and the county seat of Allen County. Fort Wayne is Indiana's second largest city after Indianapolis. , and KDLH is the CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. affiliate serving Duluth, Minnesota. "The sale of these two stations represented an attractive opportunity for our company to realize on our investments in WISE and KDLH, and to provide Granite Broadcasting and Malara Broadcast Group the opportunity to build on the operating success of the stations," said Perry Steiner, Managing Director of Arlington Capital Partners. "This is a positive development for the Fort Wayne Fort Wayne, city (1990 pop. 173,072), seat of Allen co., NE Ind., where the St. Joseph and St. Marys rivers join to form the Maumee River; inc. 1840. It is the second largest city in the state, a major railroad and shipping point, a wholesale and distribution hub, and Duluth communities," said Jason Elkin, Chairman and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of New Vision Television. "New Vision believes that it has made marked improvements in the workplace at these stations, and that Granite Broadcasting and Malara Broadcast Group will continue to enhance the operations. We are confident that these companies will continue to build and improve the properties to the benefit of the viewers and advertisers served by the stations." "During our ownership, our management team was able to increase cash flow over 50% by growing revenues, increasing viewership and improving our news product to be the highest rated in the state," said Matt Altman, Vice President of Arlington Capital. "We continue to be committed to building a middle market television station group with New Vision, as well as investing in media properties more broadly," said Perry Steiner. In addition to building New Vision, Arlington Capital Partners established Cherry Creek Radio earlier this year to acquire small market radio stations in the western U.S. "We have identified media, and other advertising based businesses as an attractive area for investment and consolidation strategies." The transactions are expected to close in late 2004, pending FCC (1) (Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC, www.fcc.gov) The U.S. government agency that regulates interstate and international communications including wire, cable, radio, TV and satellite. The FCC was created under the U.S. approval. About Arlington Capital Partners: Arlington Capital Partners (www.arlingtoncap.com) is a Washington, DC-based private equity fund with over $450 million of committed capital focused on middle market buyout and expansion equity investment opportunities in growth industries including: media, business services, outsourcing, information technology, defense/aerospace, and related industries. The firm's principals have a unique combination of operating and private equity experience that enables Arlington to be a value-added investor. Arlington invests in companies with high quality management teams that are motivated to establish and/or advance their company's position as leading competitors in their field. |
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