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Nexstar...again


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  • 1 month later...

This coming May 6 would be the one year mark since they filed the paperwork, but one year ago TODAY was when Nexstar formally announced their proposed acquisition of ComCorp. And as you see, they are still waiting for that greenlight from the FCC.

 

This May 6 would be the longest period I've seen where a deal is still waiting on that greenlight in recent memory. The last time a deal had to wait this long was that proposed Schurz acquisition of South Bend's 3 LPs from Weigel, and after a year of inactivity from the FCC (they did approved one of the three LP apps), they'd called off that sale in 2009.

 

Of course this is not helping them much, because since the FCC made that letter that they would be closely scrutinize deals involving sharing arrangements and last month's JSA attribution vote, they'd only made one small amendment on one of those deals. They made an amendment on KLJB application (which is the only station from the Grant deal that's going to Mission), but they'd only removed its option agreement on March 24. But it still have a "Form of Agreement to Sale of Commercial Time" (just like all the other related deals) which I think that constitutes as a joint sales agreement.

 

But if there's any good news, Yesterday, Nexstar did get the greenlight on its acquisitions of WMBB & KREX and its satellites from Hoak, where Gray spun off its stations to Nexstar back in December. But they sit have to wait for the greenlight on KFQX going to Mission. And let's not forget, KREX & KFQX have a grandfathered LMA which dates back to 1994.

 

Of course they still have a long way to go......

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  • 2 weeks later...

Here we are. May 6. Exactly one year after the paperwork of the ComCorp deal was posted.

 

Now we'll see if we're still going to be in this holding pattern within the next six months. I believe this deal, along with WICZ & the Grant deal would probably hit their outside dates around that time as well, this fall?

 

And I forget to mention on my last posting above about the JSA attribution vote, Nexstar holds the most stations that are involved in these sharing arrangements (20). So it will be interesting to see what Nexstar has to say when they announce their Q1 earnings on Thursday.

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Here we are. May 6. Exactly one year after the paperwork of the ComCorp deal was posted.

 

Now we'll see if we're still going to be in this holding pattern within the next six months. I believe this deal, along with WICZ & the Grant deal would probably hit their outside dates around that time as well, this fall?

 

And I forget to mention on my last posting above about the JSA attribution vote, Nexstar holds the most stations that are involved in these sharing arrangements (20). So it will be interesting to see what Nexstar has to say when they announce their Q1 earnings on Thursday.

 

Why can't they just leave KMSS, KSHV, WEVV and KPEJ out of this? Then the deal would for sure go through (unless the FCC wants to see WVLA/WGMB and KETK/KFXK broken up). It seems so simple.

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This is a bit random but who designs Nexstar's sets?

 

From my limited understanding, I think they have an in-house designer based at KARK. I think they then hire local companies to actually fabricate and install the set. Before that, they used to use Modular Broadcast Design for at least the old WROC and WBRE sets.
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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

BREAKING NEWS!!!!!

 

TVNewsCheck has announced the Nexstar is selling three stations to a newly-formed, Minority-owned broadcaster Marshall Broadcasting headed by Pluria Marshall, Jr. for $58.5M.

 

The stations involved are Fox Affiliates, KLJB in Davenport, KMSS in Shreveport and KPEJ in Odessa. Of course these are the stations that are involved in the ComCorp and Grant deals, which are still waiting for the greenlight from the FCC.

 

MBG will be acquiring the FCC licenses and significant assets of the stations, including program contracts, equipment, and real estate interests in connection with studio and tower sites and will enter into agreements whereby Nexstar will provide sales and other non-programming services to MBG. The services agreements will be a critical vehicle for cost savings, allowing MBG to use Nexstar personnel for engineering support, master control, traffic and billing, and other administrative functions that do not relate to control of the stations or their programming.

 

Under the terms of the proposed services agreements between Nexstar and MBG, MBG will be entitled to 70% of the revenue from advertising sold by Nexstar on the stations and will not provide for any bonus payments to Nexstar for achieving revenue goals. It will not be a fixed-fee payment; as total revenues increase, so does MBG’s share. This transaction structure, the companies said, “provides MBG with incentive to seek the best programming and thus maximize station advertising revenue while providing significant cost savings benefits to MBG related to the use of Nexstar resources that are not associated with control of the stations or their programming.”

 

MBG said it plans to roll out an aggregate 24.5 hours of additional local news and sports programming on the stations, with more to be developed. MBG also said it intends to develop a minority-oriented public affairs program that will air on its stations and be syndicated to other television stations nationwide. In addition, Nexstar said it will add 13.5 hours of local news and public affairs programming on the stations it owns in those three markets.

So it looks like Nexstar want to play to have a JSA waiver card. I'm not too sure if this would fly. Sincrap was unsucessfully tried to pull that same thing with HSH's for WMMP & WABM, and it didn't go anywhere. Luckily enough, Nexstar have until the fall to close on these deal, or those deals will meet their outside dates.
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Still not going to fly. It's going to be a shell. Remember the FCC cracking down on newly formed JSA's? The concept of the crackdown was to put an end to the agreement and gave existing agreements two whole years to wind down.

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Still not going to fly. It's going to be a shell. Remember the FCC cracking down on newly formed JSA's? The concept of the crackdown was to put an end to the agreement and gave existing agreements two whole years to wind down.

Which, as S!nclair is doing by proposing the moving of WBMA+ and WCIV to subchannels of their existing stations, exposes the fatal flaw in Tom Wheeler's JSA scheme. (Or is that more of an intentional 'poison pill' than a fatal flaw?)

 

I would not be shocked in the least if, months from now, Nexstar withdraws those sales to Marshall and makes a proposal to move KLJB, KMSS and KPEJ to subchannels of an existing station they own, and simultaneously handing in those three licenses in to the FCC - thus, completely skirting the JSA rules altogether.

 

Obviously they can't do it now because of what S!nclair just did, but they should if not to expose Tom Wheeler for the utter fool and telecom shill he is.

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So they're not going to do anything about WEVV? That's the biggest one holding them up.

 

I think that goes to a legit third party. As much as they're a reclamation project, WEVV would fit like a glove with LIN/MG's other Indiana stations.

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  • 2 weeks later...

 

NABOB says "we like the deal, but...": The National Association of Black-Owned Broadcasters wants the Marshall deal to go through but also wants to see annual reporting requirements, examining things like sales personnel, payments to the brokering stations, terms for guarantees, etc.

 

The NABOB really wants to makes this JSA waiver requirement as thorough and transparent as possible. And they'll be the ones that will say (within the next year or two after consummation, or the station's revenue be good enough), whether Marshall to operate the station independently and without any JSA with another in-market broadcaster. That's what going to go down to.

 

It won't be the last we heard from the NABOB.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

 

Wonder why the change of heart?

 

Also wonder what this means for the Sinclair/Allbritton deal.

 

I think the structure of the deal is such that Mission bought the stations and then will assign them to Marshall.

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On the first page of that document it states: "DIGITAL TV APPLICATIONS FOR ASSIGNMENT OF LICENSE DISMISSED".

 

Those applications that said ComCorp to Mission were dismissed, after they'd filed new apps for those two from ComCorp to Marshall.

 

I'll tell you one thing; some people might not like how Nexstar runs their stations, but they have developed a good knack for making them look good, however.

I'll tell you, they weren't like that a few years ago. But I'm happy they've made a substantial effort this time.

 

Didn't know where else to post this, so...

 

WETM in Elmira, NY has a new logo and what appears to be a new set. I can only see a little bit from their Facebook. With WENY updating graphics and set and such not long ago, this will make Twin Tiers TV very nice.

NO!!!! I loved that "18" logo.

 

Can't say I didn't see this coming. End of an era.

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