EMPIRE BUILDER; MURDOCH SET TO BUY INTO PRIMESTAR SATELLITE, CABLE FAMILY CHANNEL.Byline: Karen Fessler Bloomberg News News Corp. said it will invest in satellite television provider Primestar Partners LP and cable TV channel operator International Family Entertainment Inc. in transactions valued at a combined $3 billion. The moves will help News Corp. gain a broader U.S. audience for films such as ``Independence Day,'' and TV shows like ``The X-Files.'' Also, News Corp. plans to use International Family's cable channel to carry Fox Kids network, which it jointly owns with closely held A phrase used to describe the ownership, management, and operation of a corporation by a small group of people. In a closely held corporation, the same people often act as shareholders, directors, and officers, and no outside investors exist. Saban Entertainment  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. .
The two investments, which have been a source of speculation for weeks, will limit News Corp.'s expenses as Chairman Rupert Murdoch builds the Australian company's presence in the U.S., some analysts said. News Corp. owns the Fox TV network and 20th Century Fox movie studio, among other things. ``It's the only way Murdoch can get in front of all these eyeballs,'' said Richard Read Richard Read (born 1957) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist. Born in St Andrews, Scotland and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Read graduated from Amherst College in 1980 and worked for a Massachusetts crime commission before moving to Portland, Oregon to , an analyst at Arnhold & S. Bleichroeder Inc. Still, some investors said News Corp. will have a tough time reaching a majority of U.S. television consumers because of competition from other satellite providers and cable TV companies. News Corp. operates the British Sky Broadcasting British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB — formerly two companies, Sky Television and BSB) is a company that operates Sky Digital, a subscription television service in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. It produces TV content, and owns several TV channels. satellite business in Europe. ``Satellite TV will never have the success in the U.S. that it had in the U.K. because of all the competition.'' said Mark Greenberg, a portfolio manager at Invesco Trust Co. in Denver, which owns more than 200,000 News Corp. shares. News Corp. said it will sell its nascent U.S. satellite TV business to Primestar for a stake in Primestar valued at $1.1 billion. The investment is a less costly way for Murdoch to enter the satellite TV business than building a network independently. ``This is an efficient way to deliver content and there's money to be made. It's one less thing that investors have to worry about,'' said Steven Barlow, an analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston Credit Suisse First Boston was originally the trading name of the Financière Crédit Suisse-First Boston, a London-based 50-50 investment banking joint venture formed in 1978 between the First Boston Corporation and Credit Suisse. . News Corp. said its Fox Kids Worldwide Inc. venture with Saban agreed to buy International Family for $1.9 billion, including $150 million to $200 million of assumed debt. The move will add the Family Channel to News Corp.'s fX, Fox News and Fox Sports cable channels. Under the agreement, Fox Kids Worldwide will pay $35 a share for International Family, which will keep its name. International Family shares rose 1 to 31-7/8 before trading in the stock was halted. International Family's Family Channel cable network reaches 68 million people across the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. . It is the ninth-most-popular channel, and will compete against Viacom Inc.'s Nickelodeon and Time Warner's Cartoon Network For Cartoon Network outside of the United States, see . Cartoon Network is a cable television network created by Turner Broadcasting which primarily shows animated programming. . ``This is the kind of programming that they can put on their satellite system all over the world,'' said Barlow. Evangelist Pat Robertson, chairman of International Family; and Tim Robertson, his son and the company's chief executive officer; will sell all of their Class A and Class B shares. The company is based in Virginia Beach, Va. THE NEWS CORP. DEALS PRIMESTAR: THE DEAL: A swap of its nascent U.S. satellite TV business to Primestar Partners LP for a 31 percent stake valued at $1.1 billion. THE PLAYERS: EchoStar, which had a similar deal with News Corp. Disintegrate last month, will challenge the Primestar venture. Primestar, which is second only to DirecTV in the U.S. satellite business, plans to become a publicly traded company publicly traded company A company whose shares of common stock are held by the public and are available for purchase by investors. The shares of publicly traded firms are bought and sold on the organized exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. called Primestar Inc. as part of the transaction. THE GOODS: This gives News Corp. a less costly way to enter the U.S. satellite TV business than building its own service. News Corp. also will gain closer ties to Primestar's cable TV partners, which may help News Corp. win distribution to their combined 40 million households. FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT THE DEAL: Purchase of International Family Entertainment Inc. for $1.9 billion in cash and assumed debt. THE PLAYERS: IFE's founder and chairman is televangelist tel·e·van·gel·ist n. An evangelist who conducts religious telecasts. [Blend of television and evangelist.] tel Pat Robertson. IFE Ife (ē`fā), city (1991 est. pop. 262,000), SW Nigeria. Located in a farm region, the city is an important center for marketing and shipping cacao. According to tradition, Ife is the oldest Yoruba town (founded c.1300). is being bought by Fox Kids Worldwide, a venture between News Corp. and closely held Saban Entertainment. THE GOODS: IFE's Family Channel cable television network reaches 68 million people across the country. That's a whole new pipeline for Fox Kids Worldwide's children's programming and News Corp.'s library of movies. International Family, which will retain its name, also owns FiT TV, a cable health channel; half of Family Channel UK; and MTM MTM Medication Therapy Management MTM Minutes to Midnight (Linkin Park album) MTM Mary Tyler Moore (actress) MTM Made to Measure MTM Motoren-Technik-Mayer MTM Methods Time Measurement , which distributes TV series such as ``Mary Tyler Moore This article is about the actress. For her 1970s television series, also known as "Mary Tyler Moore", see The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Mary Tyler Moore Show'' and ``St. Elsewhere.'' CAPTION(S): Box, Photo Box: THE NEWS CORP. DEALS (See text) Photo: (Color) No caption (Rupert Murdoch) |
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