Donna on WBZ

[Garrett Wollman]

<<On Thu, 28 Apr 2011 22:16:20 -0400, "Doug Drown" <revdoug1@myfairpoint.net> said:

> While we're on this subject, does anyone know if CBS or the spin-off company 
> Westinghouse Electric (the "new" Westinghouse) has any plans for WBZ's 90th 
> anniversary this September?  They had a big celebration for KDKA last year.

The principal "new" Westinghouse -- which is essentially a nuclear
reactor maker -- is a subsidiary of Toshiba; I'd be be surprised if
they either knew or cared about WBZ.

The other "new" Westinghouse is a paper tiger that exists solely to
gain favorable tax treatment for CBS's trademark licensing deals using
the Westinghouse name; it was founded in 1998 and has no operations.
This is a tax dodge now used by many companies engaged in
out-licensing, because Delaware does not tax income attributable to
licensing.  (The other part of the tax dodge, not in evidence here, is
that the company assigns its trademarks to the subsidiary and licenses
them back at exorbitant rates; most states allow this to be recorded
as an expense, thereby reducing taxes in the states where the company
actually has taxable income.  Many states are moving to close this
loophole.)

So I think it's CBS or nobody.

-GAWollman