The FCC should not levy the same user fee on satellite stations that it does on their mother ships. That is according to station group owners Nexstar and Gray Television in comments filed at the FCC on the commission’s proposed revise of its user fees per a congressional mandate to revisit them. They said to “obliterate” that distinction would boost satellite TV user fees “drastically.”
Between January and May, Nexstar outbid Sinclair three times in an effort to buy Tribune Media, but in the final round on May 6, Sinclair won the prize with with an offer of $43 per share, $2 more than Nexstar, according to an SEC filing, The only other serious bidder was Fox, but it dropped out before the final rounds, the filing says.
Sook: Improved Leverage May Mean M&A
Nexstar Broadcasting CEO Perry Sook is pleased with his company’s reduced debt-to-cash ratio and says that the lower leverage coupled with easing credit markets could put Nexstar in the hunt for strategic acquisitions.
Nexstar Ups Local Programming, 1Q Ads Rise
As far back as 2005, Nexstar Broadcasting was an industry icebreaker in creating the retrans consent revenues that local stations collect. Now the company is onto a second round. Nexstar had 18 retrans deals up for renewal this year — completing seven, while the remainder will be finished by Jan. 1, CEO Perry Sook said.
The group owner offered linked broadcast, e-media and mobile coverage of election night in its 30 news-producing markets.
