Cumulus/Citadel meger

[Garrett Wollman]

<<On Sat, 12 Mar 2011 16:16:46 -0500, "Doug Drown" <revdoug1@myfairpoint.net> said:

> I agree with your assessment that the merger doesn't bode well for the 
> industry.   Who's next?   -Doug

I wouldn't cry too much for Farid Suleiman, who by all accounts has
not been the greatest radio CEO ever.

I don't think there's an obvious "next" station group to go: the
Bonneville-Hubbard deal (17 stations) is already out there, and there
simply aren't any big radio groups out there that are for sale.  Clear
Channel still has a bunch of stations that they would like to unload,
but current prices don't allow them to do so; CBS probably isn't
selling any more for similar reasons (remember that huge bath they
took in Denver?).  The new Cumulus will be too big and too debt-laden
to either acquire much or be acquired.  The size of radio groups drops
off precipitously after that.  The largest remaining groups all have
significant individual or family ownership that makes a straight sale
less likely, unless they end up going through bankruptcy and wiping
out the founders' interests.  If a Radio One, Beasley, Lotus,
NextMedia, or even Saga go down, nobody's going to be crying that it's
the end of the world as we know it.

-GAWollman