Lead-In Ripley: Sinclair Needs to Grow to Survive TV Group’S Head Says Tribune Deal Is Vital to Survival Among Telecom Giants
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Lead-In Ripley: Sinclair Needs To Grow To Survive TV group’s head says Tribune deal is vital to survival among telecom giants BY DIANA MARSZALEK wishes we were back piquing interest. Any plans for a in the 1950s, and there Sinclair news network? I don’t think AST WEEK’S Sinclair/Tribune were only three televi- the world needs another cable news acquisition deal, which would sion stations. But we channel. make Sinclair mind-bogglingly can’t turn back time and Lbig, sent some industry ana- the world moves on. With the near-national footprint a lysts and political pundits reeling with Tribune purchase would give you, conjecture over what Sinclair, the Why now? This is the Sinclair could have the scale to country’s largest station group, really 21st century, and a big support a new broadcast network. wants to get from shelling out $3.9 part of why we did We already have national networks, billion to get even bigger. Ask Chris this was to speed the and we have a whole cadre of emerg- Ripley, Sinclair’s president and CEO, development of next- ing networks that live over-the-air that question, however, and the whole generation advance and on cable — The Tennis Channel, thing seems pretty clear-cut. “It’s all services [enabled by Comet TV, Charge, TBD, and, with about the spectrum,” Ripley said in ATSC 3.0]. It’s all about Tribune, Antenna TV. I think we can an interview with B&C contributing the spectrum. We need make them more attractive by ratio- editor Diana Marszalek. Where it gets to have a better plat- nalizing their distribution and their infinitely more complex is when you form so we can actually content, and they will move forward start factoring in what a company the speak to personal and to full distribution over the next two size of an expanded Sinclair could mobile devices because or three years and start rivaling the do with the spectrum it would get that’s where viewership cable channels. along with Tribune’s 42 TV stations is heading, and if you’re — particularly under ATSC 3.0, the not getting content to There’s been a lot of noise out Chris Ripley, Sinclair president and CEO, says the broadcast next-generation broadcast standard — industry is too small relative to its telecom rivals. personal devices then there — articles, editorials — that as well as the reach and influence that you are not in the game. acquiring Tribune will give Sinclair comes with it. As we upgrade, we will more leverage in pushing a conser- In an edited transcript of the won’t survive in the land of giants if do everything we do today plus a lot vative agenda. That’s just patently interview, Ripley explains Sinclair’s it doesn’t scale up. The [broadcast] more. And a lot more means mobil- false. We produce over 2,000 hours of rationale behind buying Tribune, what industry is entirely too small relative ity, speaking directly to personalized news a week, and with Tribune it will it means to the larger broadcasting in- to the rest of the telecommunications devices … targeted advertising so we be probably over 3,000 hours, and the dustry, and why things have to change. industry. We were peanuts compared are getting more relative ads to con- notion that we are centrally influenc- to Verizon or an AT&T or a Charter. sumers. It means subscription-based ing or controlling that is preposterous. If the Tribune acquisition deal is Those are our counterparts in negotia- services where you could pay to skip Local news doesn’t have a bunch of approved, Sinclair will reach 72% tions, and it’s important to level the ads or pay to get special content. opinion pieces; it doesn’t tilt one way of U.S. households, which critics playing field and scale, which helps We are excited about that and the or another. It’s focused on the nuts say is just too big. Do you agree? the economics in about every aspect services we will be able to roll out are and bolts of reporting. We wouldn’t The special interest groups are just in our business. Our industry is mas- going to be game-changers. be successful economically if we had anti-media consolidation, but they sively undersized due to old rules that a broader political agenda we were miss the bigger picture: This industry don’t make sense anymore. Everyone The future of WGN America is trying to push through. PROMETHEUS FIRES AWAY AT UHF DISCOUNT Familiar foes of broadcast media ownership The previous FCC last year eliminated Prometheus, deregulation have surfaced once again to try and the discount, which dates from analog joined by other anti- block a deregulatory move under a Republican days when UHFs were weaker than VHFs, consolidation groups commission, signaling they plan to take the FCC grandfathering existing groups that including the Office to court. would have exceeded the 39% cap but of Communication of The target is the FCC’s vote last month to rein- saying those groups could not be sold the United Church of state the UHF discount. with the discount intact. Christ, have asked the FCC to stay the UHF resto- That vote, when it becomes official 30 days The familiar foe is Prometheus, whose chal- ration rule until a court can review it. That would after publication in the Federal Register, allows lenge to the 2003 broadcast ownership deregu- either be the Third Circuit that issued the initial an owner of UHF stations to count only half of latory proposal of then-FCC chairman Michael 2003 stay of the Powell rules or perhaps another those stations’ audience reach toward the 39% Powell resulted in a court stay and an almost court if the groups file a new challenge. national ownership reach cap, and paves the way 15-year fight over how and whether limits on An attorney for Prometheus et al said what for broadcast merger activity, including Sinclair’s reach and cross-ownerships and small-market form the judicial challenge would take has yet to bid to buy Tribune stations (see above). duopolies should be relaxed or eliminated. be decided. — John Eggerton BROADCASTINGCABLE.COM MAY 15, 2017 BROADCASTING & CABLE 3 0515_LeadIn.indd 2 5/12/17 3:34 PM Lead-In FATES AND FORTUNES As president, Gambelli will oversee EXEC MOVES sales for Fox News Channel and Fox STATOFTHEWEEK Business Network, which have been OF THE WEEK bleeding advertisers amid company n (1) ANTHONY VINCIQUERRA has been allegations of sexual harassment and named chairman and CEO of Sony Pic- other human resources complaints. n $540.3M tures Entertainment. Vinciquerra, who (3) VICTOR OQUENDO has been tapped — Record revenue Nexstar Media reported in Q1 2017. previously served as the president and as a correspondent for ABC News. Nexstar saw a 111% year-over-year increase in the CEO of Fox Networks Group, succeeds Oquendo has been serving as the 1 quarter, which was the first to include the Media Michael Lynton. n Hulu has tapped pro- weekday evening anchor for ABC General properties the group acquired in January. gramming veteran JOEL STILLERMAN as affiliate WPLG Miami. n MICHAEL chief content officer. Stillerman, who O’LEARY has been named senior VP was most recently president of origi- of public affairs and policy for 21st nal programming and development for Century Fox. O’Leary, who has been AMC and Sundance TV, will oversee the principal of O’Leary Global Solu- Hulu’s overall content strategy, including tions, will concentrate on intellectual THEY SAID IT acquisitions, originals development and property, innovation and market ac- content partnerships. n JOE MARCHESE cess. His appointment came on the “I see the skinny bundle in 200 has been named president of advertis- heels of the announcement that JAMIE countries. There is no skinny bundle ing revenue for Fox Networks Group. 2 GILLESPIE has joined 21st Century Fox here. The skinny bundle in the U.S. Marchese, who joined Fox in 2015 when as VP of the public affairs and policy 21st Century Fox acquired his company group. Gillespie was previously VP of is a fiction. The idea you have a $40 true[X], will report to Randy Freer, presi- government relations at the National offering filled with regional sports, dent and COO of Fox Networks Group. Association of Broadcasters. The an incomplete package and then you n (2) MELINDA BENEDEK will retire from company also bolstered its informa- her post as executive VP of business af- tion security team, naming MELODY have to buy broadband on top of it. In fairs and production at Showtime. Bene- HILDEBRANDT global chief informa- the end I think the market dek, who has been with the company for tion security officer. Hildebrandt joins will be rationalized.” 22 years, will leave the network at the from Palantir Technologies. O’Leary, end of the year. n MARIANNE GAMBELLI Gillespie and Hildebrandt are all set — Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav said May 9 3 during the company’s earnings conference call. will helm Fox News’ advertising sales. to start at 21st Century Fox in June. THE WATCHMAN Deputy editor Michael Malone’s weekly look at the programming scene ‘Great News’ For Vicki Lawrence, and ‘Ask This Old House’ Hits 50 IT’S THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY of Conway, as the “Harvard school going on these 50 states. So they made plans to The Carol Burnett Show, and there of comedy.” days. She’s a visit Alaska, Kentucky and Hawaii, to may just be something in the works The Carol Burnett Show de- spokesperson knock off the remaining three.