Univision TV Owners Reportedly Seek Buyer, Sources Say Billionaire Haim Saban and Investors' Price Is Too High
Reports say that the owners of Univision, the largest Spanish-language broadcast network in the U.S., are looking for a buyer.
On Thursday, Wall Street Journal cited "people familiar with the matter" who said that the network's owners have met with several different media corporations including CBS Corp. and Time Warner Inc.
Univision's owners are reportedly asking for more than $20 billion for the network. The owners, comprised of a group of investors, including Thomas H. Lee Partners LP, TPG Capital and Haim Saban, bought the channel for $13.7 billion in 2007. According to a WSJ source, the price tag has been a problem for buyers. Bloomberg Businessweek reports two people saying that CBS and Time Warner were amongst those discouraged.
The company is also said to have reached out to Grupo Televisa, a Mexico-based channel with content on Univision. Grupo Televisa is one of Latin America's largest media companies (its shares rose by as much as 4.4 percent on Friday, Bloomberg Businessweek reports) and made a bid for Univision in 2006. The company currently owns a small stake in the U.S. network.
According to WSJ, none of these alleged meetings have led to anything notable yet. Reports say that the owners of the network are also considering "an initial public offering."
Nielsen data says Univision's ratings have decreased 23 percent in the 18-49 demographic since the beginning of the 2013-2014 season. A WSJ source said that is because of two certain shows not meeting expectations.
The company had a reported 2013 revenue of $2.62 billion with an operating income of $428 million, an improvement from 2012.
Neither network has commented on the reports.
Meanwhile, all eyes continue to watch Comcast Corp., which has offered $45 billion for Time Warner. Randy Falco, Univision Communications CEO, has pointed out that Comcast, which owns rival network Telemundo, does not show Univision's sports programs, including the World Cup.
"Either Comcast doesn't understand that soccer is a passion point for Hispanics or they don't support competitors who have competing services," he said.
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.
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