Re: New WBZ top of the hour ID

[Mark Shneyder <bostonradio@yahoo.com>]

Yes, Viacom is in the process of buying back 36% of Infinity
stock it doesn't currently own(the radio division will still
be named Infinity, though). It's worth about $15 billion.
Karmazin is buying it back with Viacom stock. Considering how
sharply *all* radio stocks dropped this past week, this may
not be a wise move on Karmazin's part since he's buying a falling
stock(Infinity trades for about half of what Viacom's stock is worth).
Infinity's stock dropped 6% in value just in one day(Wed.) as
a report(from Merril Lynch) came out that radio growth is down a
whopping 15% compared to last year....Other radio conglom's such
as Clear Channel are already reacting by pink slipping people in
their clusters and cutting benefit packages for their employees....

We'll see, but I think Viacom is about to shoot itself in the foot...

In addition, they got some potentially serious labor problems
brewing up on the West Coast next week. All of Westwood One's
syndicated radio hosts/production staffers/ENG at their main
radio center in Valencia,CA have authorized a strike this
week. In addition, they filed federal complaints
alleging failure to bargain in good faith(W1's union has been
without a contract since August of 1999)....Of course, there
are lots of willing scabs who'll gladly take over at half a rate
the union members are getting but the producion values may suffer
in the long run which might impact the revenue as well....

-Mark

--- Dan Strassberg <Dan.Strassberg@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
> And isn't the Infinity name about to be dropped corporate-wide. I had heard
> that Viacom had purchased 100% of Infinity stock and that Infinity as a
> legal entity was about to disappear. did I dream this?
> 
> --
> 
> Dan Strassberg, dan.strassberg@worldnet.att.net
> Phone: 1-617-558-4205, eFax: 1-707-215-6367
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Donna Halper <dlh@donnahalper.com>
> To: boston-radio-interest@bostonradio.org
> <boston-radio-interest@bostonradio.org>
> Date: Thursday, September 21, 2000 11:02 PM
> Subject: New WBZ top of the hour ID
> 
> 
> >So I noticed recently that WBZ's ID' package has changed somewhat, and now
> >their top of the hour says they are an Infinity Broadcasting Station... I
> >wonder why they decided to add that to the ID?
> >
> >
> 


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