Report: Discovery withdraws from TEN bid
Media reports claim Discovery Networks has rejected an alternative offer from TEN board.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
Discovery Networks has reportedly withdrawn from a joint offer with Foxtel for the TEN Network.
Fairfax reports it has walked away from an offer after rejecting the TEN board’s alternative offer that it take only a 15 per cent stake and a board seat.
Discovery is understood to have grown frustrated with the sales process and surprised by the level of detail in local press coverage monitoring the high-profile auction, it reports.
Meanwhile The Australian also reports TEN chairman Hamish McLennan asked the directors to sign affidavits late last year following a series of leaks that appeared in The Australian Financial Review.
It claims some directors, growing frustrated with confidential board responses to bids being aired in newspapers, have discussed calling an investigation into the leaks.
There is speculation the company could run out of money within two years if it does not receive a cash injection.
TEN spokesman Neil Shoebridge said: “We don’t comment on board matters.”
4 Responses
Dear Mr Gordon
Please buy Ten.
Best regards
The people of Australia
This was most likely Network TEN’s last hope to avoid an official bankruptcy. They will surely not avoid one now. They have managed to irritate all the previous bidders Saban Capital Time Warner and others who thought of investing but now their is no one at the table. I doubt Foxtel has the money to own the company outright. i guess Bruce Gordan got what he wanted all along. Lets see if his plan works. The clocks ticking. The next AFL rights agreement will be interesting.
Pertinax – I would add that Discovery may have been promised some better platform or trading terms (maybe). That said, they are astute buyers and a well respected company and Ten looks increasingly like it has lost the plot – it needs cash to survive.
The fact that ratings have dropped since I’m A celebrity and BBL have finished (after stacking the first survey) and that ratings have dropped back to 9% spells alarm.
As management have said time and time again -“Revenue always follows Ratings”. Conclusion – revenue will soon fall in line with ratings.
I suspect that ten did not make money from either BBL nor Celebrity given the expensive formats – so fairly worrying.
Discovery is a privately owned company and likes go about making billions quietly. Getting into bed with News both here and in the US may have looked like an easy way to make money but Murdoch has made plenty of enemies in the media. They will report any rumour about him and his business dealings true or not.