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1 United States Securities And UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K (Mark One) [ X ] Annual Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 for the Fiscal Year Ended February 29, 2008 [ ] Transition Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 for the Transition Period from _________ to _________. EMMIS COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) INDIANA (State of incorporation or organization) 0-23264 (Commission file number) 35-1542018 (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) ONE EMMIS PLAZA 40 MONUMENT CIRCLE SUITE 700 INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA 46204 (Address of principal executive offices) (317) 266-0100 (Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code) SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(B) OF THE ACT: None SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(G) OF THE ACT: Class A common stock, $.01 par value of Emmis Communications Corporation; 6.25% Series A Cumulative Convertible Preferred Stock, $.01 par value of Emmis Communications Corporation. Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933. Yes [ ] No [√] Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Yes [ ] No [√] Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all documents and reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes [√] No [ ] Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. [ ] Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, or a non accelerated filer. See definition of “accelerated filer and large accelerated filer” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one): Large accelerated filer [ ] Accelerated filer [√] Non-accelerated filer [ ] Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes [ ] No [√] 1 The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant, as of August 31, 2007, the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was approximately $193,964,000. The number of shares outstanding of each of Emmis Communications Corporation’s classes of common stock, as of May 1, 2008, was: 31,193,693 Class A Common Shares, $.01 par value 4,956,305 Class B Common Shares, $.01 par value 0 Class C Common Shares, $.01 par value DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE Documents Form 10-K Reference Proxy Statement for 2008 Annual Meeting expected to be Part III filed within 120 days 2 EMMIS COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES FORM 10-K TABLE OF CONTENTS Page PART I ........................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Item 1. Business ....................................................................................................................................... 5 Item 1A. Risk Factors ................................................................................................................................. 18 Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments........................................................................................................ 24 Item 2. Properties ..................................................................................................................................... 24 Item 3. Legal Proceedings........................................................................................................................ 24 Item 4. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders................................................................. 24 Executive Officers of the Registrant.............................................................................................................. 25 PART II ........................................................................................................................................................................ 25 Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities........................................................................ 25 Item 6. Selected Financial Data .................................................................................................................. 28 Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation .............................................................................................. 30 Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk...................................................... 53 Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data ............................................................................. 55 Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure....................................................................................... 99 Item 9A. Controls and Procedures................................................................................................................ 99 Item 9B. Other Information .......................................................................................................................... 100 PART III ........................................................................................................................................................................ 100 Item 10. Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant ..................................................................... 100 Item 11. Executive Compensation ............................................................................................................... 100 Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners, and Management, and Related Stockholder Matters ..................................................................... 100 Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions........................................................................... 100 Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services ....................................................................................... 101 PART IV ........................................................................................................................................................................ 101 Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules................................................................................. 101 Signatures ........................................................................................................................................................................ 104 3 FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This report includes or incorporates forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. You can identify these forward-looking statements by our use of words such as “intend,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “project,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “continue,” “potential,” “opportunity” and similar expressions, whether in the negative or affirmative. We cannot guarantee that we will achieve these plans, intentions or expectations. All statements regarding our expected financial position, business and financing plans are forward-looking statements. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements we make. We have included important facts in various cautionary statements in this report that we believe could cause our actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements that we make. These include, but are not limited to, the following: • material adverse changes in economic conditions in the markets of our Company; • the ability of our stations and magazines to attract and retain advertisers; • loss of key personnel; • the ability of our stations to attract quality programming and our magazines to attract good editors, writers and photographers; • uncertainty as to the ability of our stations to increase or sustain audience share for their programs and our magazines to increase or sustain subscriber demand; • competition from other media and the impact of significant competition for advertising revenues from other media; • future regulatory actions and conditions in the operating areas of our Company; • the necessity for additional capital expenditures and whether our programming and other expenses increase at a rate faster than expected; • increasingly hostile reaction of various individuals and groups, including the government, to certain content broadcast on radio and television stations in the United States; • financial community and rating agency perceptions of our business, operations and financial condition and the industry in which we operate; • the effects of terrorist attacks, political instability,
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