Comcast Corporation to acquire General Electric’s 49% stake in the NBCUniversal

February 13, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

comcastComcast Corporation is to acquire the 49 percent of NBCUniversal that it doesn’t already own from joint venture owner General Electric for approximately $16.7 billion.  Also, NBCUniversal will purchase from GE the properties used by NBCUniversal at 30 Rockefeller Plaza and CNBC’s headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, NJ for approximately $1.4 billion. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of this year.

“This is an exciting day for Comcast as we have agreed to accelerate the purchase of NBCUniversal. The management team at GE has nbcbeen a wonderful partner during the past two years and their support has been very valuable. Our decision to acquire GE’s ownership is driven by our sense of optimism for the future prospects of NBCUniversal and our desire to capture future value that we hope to create for our shareholders,” said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO, Comcast Corporation. “We believe the terms of the transaction are attractive and have planned for this event by taking a number of financial steps to prepare our balance sheet. We believe we are in a strong and unique position to continue to grow and build value in our combined company.”

The transactions will be funded with $11.4 billion of cash on hand, $4.0 billion of subsidiary senior unsecured notes to be issued to GE, $2.0 billion of borrowings under Comcast and/or subsidiary bank credit facilities and $725 million of subsidiary preferred stock to be issued to GE.

Morgan Stanley was financial advisor to Comcast and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP was the Company’s legal advisor.

USA, Philadelphia, PA & Fairfield, CT

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AdVantage Networks acquires Travora Media

February 13, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

travora1Advertising technology company AdVantage Networks has acquired Travora Media, a travel and lifestyle media company. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Headquartered in New York City. Travora is the second largest travel information network with hundreds of travel publishers delivering desktop and mobile solutions that attract 30 million unique visitors while generating 1.3 billion monthly mobile page views. Travora offers exclusive publisher solutions across all stages of the travel lifecycle and represents leading travel brands, including Fodor’s, Viator, and Vayama. Travora delivers turnkey revenue solutions for travel publishers and total access to a travel and lifestyle audience across local, social, and mobile platforms for brands. Travora was previously a portfolio company of StarVest Partners, Rho Capital Partners, and Village Ventures.

Note AdVantage Networks is a wholly owned subsidiary of JMG Exploration. JMG Exploration is soon to be renamed MediaShift.

USA, Glendale, CA & New York, NY

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Yahoo! acquires mobile app creator Alike

February 13, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

YahooYahoo! has acquired Alike, a mobile app that helps people find nearby restaurants and places they’ll like. Alike makes money through affiliate partnerships with third-party providers that aggregate deals for local venues.

Here is how Alike announced the acquisition.

At Alike, we’ve spent the last couple of years working hard to build amazing mobile experiences to delight our customers, which is alike_logo_coral-4fdb275b8fa65a199fecac60239886c7why we’re thrilled to announce some big news: we’re joining Yahoo! Mobile.

We’ve always been passionate about the growing power of intelligent mobile experiences. We believe that distilled information, deeply personalized and made accessible anytime and anywhere, is what makes mobile experiences a part of our customers’ daily lives.

In Yahoo! we’ve found a team as excited about this vision as we are, and who are serious about making it real. We’re super excited to join Yahoo!’s mobile team, where we can march toward that vision faster than ever.

As of today, we will no longer support the Alike Nearby iPhone and Web apps. Thank you to all our customers, partners, investors, and advisors who’ve supported us from day one! We’ve taken a big step on our journey, and we could not have done it without your support.

Looking forward to starting our new chapter at Yahoo!

USA, Sunnydale, CA

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Cox Media Group sells radio stations in six markets

February 13, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

coxmediaCox Media Group (CMG) is to sell radio stations in six markets as part of its broadcast portfolio realignment.

CMG is to sell its Southern Connecticut radio stations – WPLR-FM, WEZN-FM, WFOX-FM, and contract rights for WYBC-FM – to Westport, CT. based Connoisseur Media. CMG is to sell its radio stations in five other markets to SummitMedia, including:

Birmingham (WAGG-AM, WBHJ-FM, WBHK-FM, WENN-AM, WZZK-FM, WZNN-FM, WBPT-FM, and CMG’s contract rights for WALJ-FM)
Greenville, S.C. (WJMZ-FM, WHZT-FM)
Hawaii (KRTR-AM/FM, KPHW-FM, KCCN-FM, KINE-FM, KKNE-AM)
Louisville (WRKA-FM, WVEZ-FM, WSFR-FM, WQNU-FM)
Richmond (WHTI-FM, WKHK-FM, WKLR-FM, WURV-FM)

“These are all important brands powered by talented media professionals who tirelessly serve their audiences, advertisers and communities,” said CMG President Doug Franklin . “We wish all of the employees well and know they will continue to work hard to produce quality entertainment, news and information for their customers and new owners.”

The sales are expected to close during the second quarter following receipt of regulatory approvals.

USA, Atlanta, GA

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AOL reports revenue growth for the first time in 8 years in Q4 2012

February 12, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

aol-logo-3

AOL has reported earnings for Q4 2012, showing revenue growth for the first time in 8 years. Revenues came in at $599.5 million on earnings of 41 cents per share.

Summary below

Full report here

  • AOL Returns to Full Year Adjusted OIBDA* Growth in 2012
  • AOL Operating Income Grows 24%
  • AOL’s 13% Global Advertising Revenue Growth Drives Total Company Revenue Growth
  • AOL’s Search Revenue Grows 17% Driven by Continued Growth on AOL.com
  • AOL’s Subscription Revenue Declines 10%, Equaling Lowest Percentage Decline in 6 Years
  • AOL Properties Unique Visitors in Q4 Grew 6% Year-over-Year
  • Diluted EPS of $0.41 Compares to $0.23 in Q4 2011
  • AOL Paid a $5.15 per Share Special Dividend Completing the Return of $1.1 Billion to Shareholders
  • AOL Reduced Common Shares Outstanding by 19% Year-over-Year as of December 31, 2012
  • AOL’s Board Authorizes the Repurchase of up to $100 Million of Common Stock

“AOL returned to growth and generated significant value for shareholders in 2012,” said Tim Armstrong, Chairman and CEO. “AOL has strong momentum entering 2013 and is positioned to continue on our growth path by executing our strategy to build the next generation media and technology company.”

*OIBDA – Adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization

Click on the table to enlarge it

aol results2 2012

 

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Linkedin reports revenues up 81%

February 12, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

linkedin1LinkedIn has reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2012.

 

Read the full report here

Summary below

  • Revenue for the fourth quarter was $303.6 million, an increase of 81% compared to $167.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.
  • Net income for the fourth quarter was $11.5 million, compared to net income of $6.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP net income for the fourth quarter was $40.2 million, compared to $13.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP measures exclude tax-affected stock-based compensation expense and tax-affected amortization of acquired intangible assets.
  • Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was $78.6 million, or 26% of revenue, compared to $34.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, or 21% of revenue.
  • GAAP diluted EPS for the fourth quarter was $0.10; Non-GAAP diluted EPS for the fourth quarter was $0.35.
  • For the full year 2012, revenue increased 86% to $972.3 million from $522.2 million. GAAP diluted EPS increased to $0.19 from $0.11 and Non-GAAP diluted EPS increased to $0.89 from $0.35. Adjusted EBITDA increased to $223.0 million from $98.7 million.

“2012 was a transformative year for LinkedIn,” said Jeff Weiner, CEO of LinkedIn. “We exited 2011 having successfully revamped our underlying development infrastructure. Based on that investment, we said that 2012 would be a year of accelerated product innovation, and it was. The products we delivered throughout the year drove member engagement and financial results to record levels in the fourth quarter.”

Fourth Quarter Financial Details and Operating Summary

  • Talent Solutions: Revenue from Talent Solutions products totaled $161.0 million, an increase of 90% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. Talent Solutions revenue represented 53% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to 51% in the fourth quarter of 2011.
  • Marketing Solutions: Revenue from Marketing Solutions products totaled $83.2 million, an increase of 68% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. Marketing Solutions revenue represented 27% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to 30% in the fourth quarter of 2011.
  • Premium Subscriptions: Revenue from Premium Subscriptions products totaled $59.4 million, an increase of 79% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. Premium Subscriptions represented 20% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012 and 2011.

Revenue from the U.S. totaled $189.0 million, and represented 62% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012. Revenue from international markets totaled $114.6 million, and represented 38% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Revenue from the field sales channel totaled $178.4 million, and represented 59% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012. Revenue from the online, direct sales channel totaled $125.3 million, and represented 41% of total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012.

GAAP net income for the fourth quarter was $11.5 million, compared to net income of $6.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP net income for the fourth quarter was $40.2 million, compared to $13.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was $78.6 million, or 26% of revenue, compared to $34.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, or 21% of revenue.

Linkedin dominates professional networking on the Internet, and now has more than 200 million members

USA, Mountain View, CA

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Go Daddy acquires M.dot

February 12, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

mdotWeb hosting business Go Daddy, has acquired M.dot, a mobile app for small business website creation and management. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The M.dot app offers mobile website creation based on pre-loaded templates with easy-to-use custom features, such as store location, driving directions, tap-to-call, galleries, business hours and price lists, all in a user-interface designed for mobile device screens. It also includes a blog feature, which allows users to write and insert photos and video with rich text capabilities. It integrates with Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube and Dropbox.

“We’re pleased to welcome M.dot to our growing Go Daddy family,” said Go Daddy CEO Blake Irving, “M.dot’s global vision of a mobile future for small businesses fits beautifully with what our customers need right now.

M.dot was founded by Dominik Balogh and Pavel Serbajlo in June 2012. They have the backing of leading Silicon Valley investors including Floodgate, SV Angel and Archimedes Labs. The company will operate from Go Daddy’s Silicon Valley office.

USA, Sunnyvale, CA

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I-5 Publishing acquires special interest media brands from BowTie Inc

February 12, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

i-5Publishing-52x60I-5 Publishing LLC, a newly-formed joint venture of publishing industry executives David Fry and Mark Harris, has acquired the books, magazines and websites of BowTie Inc., the publisher of special-interest brands such as Cat Fancy and Dog Fancy.

The acquisition, effective February 1, 2013, includes consumer magazines like Horse Illustrated and Urban Farm, trade magazines like Pet Product News International, websites including AnimalNetwork.com and DogChannel.com, and books including Dog Heroes of September 11th and The Original Dog Bible.

“We are thrilled to bring these storied brands under our umbrella,” said Harris, who has been appointed interim CEO of I-5 Publishing. “Combining the talented, passionate teams that have built such a robust content engine with the technology and expertise of our existing joint ventures creates the perfect platform on which to create an infinite variety of special-interest content for delivery in all formats.”

I-5 Publishing is the latest in a series of partnerships between Fry and Harris and their respective companies. Harris is the co-founder and co-owner of National Publisher Services. Fry is the chairman of NPI Ventures, LLC, which owns 50-percent of NPS, and the Chief Technology Officer of Fry Communications.

Harris and Ambrose will be joined on the executive team by former BowTie executives Nicole Fabian, Chief Financial Officer, June Kikuchi, Chief Content Officer and Dolores Whitlo, VP of Consumer Marketing.

USA, Irvine, CA

 

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Liberty Global confirms acquisition of Virgin Media – Deal Terms

February 6, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

Liberty Global have confirmed that they are to acquire Virgin Media in a cash & stock merger.

Deal Terms

  • Virgin Media 2012 results (unaudited)Virgin Media
  • Revenue $6.6 billion
  • OCF $2.7 billion
  • OCF margin 41%

Virgin Media shareholders will receive for each share:

  • $17.50 in cash
  • 0.2582 shares of Liberty Global Series A common stockLiberty-Global-logo
  • 0.1928 shares of Liberty Global Series C common stock

Valuation

  • $47.87 per Virgin Media share
  • 24% premium to closing price
  • Implied Virgin Media equity value of $16.0 billion & enterprise value of $23.3 billion
  • Represents 8.8x 2012 OCF multiple
  • Represents 7.0x 2013E OCF multiple, after adjusting for synergies & taxes
  • Accretive to Free Cash Flow

Ownership

  • Liberty Global shareholders expected to own 64%
  • Virgin Media shareholders expected to own 36%

Path to completion

The transaction is subject to majority LGI & Virgin Media shareholder votes, regulatory approvals & customary closing conditions. The deal is expected to close in Q2 2013.

For full details see the Virgin Media Investor Call Presentation here.

USa, Englewood, CO & UK, London

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Ipreco acquires Debtdomain

February 5, 2013 — Fusion DigiNet

ipreo-logoIpreo, a provider of market intelligence and productivity solutions to capital markets and corporate professionals, announced the acquisition of Debtdomain, a provider of web-based systems for loan syndication. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Debtdomain is a web-based system for managing the loan syndication process from pitch to agency. The solution covers deal setup, pipeline reporting, sole and joint bookrunning, and secure document distribution. Debtdomain also offers an investor CRM tool debtdomainpowered by a database of over 250,000 contacts, and integrated with bookrunning and deal sites. Debtdomain is used by over 150 leading loan market arrangers and agents. Debtdomain was founded in 2000 and has offices in New York, London, and Hong Kong.

The Debtdomain business will become part of Ipreo’s Capital Markets vertical, completing Ipreo’s offering of web-based new-issuance solutions for all types of syndicated products. Ipreo’s capital markets solutions include end-to-end bookbuilding systems, roadshow & conference management platforms, and electronic document delivery. Additionally, Ipreo’s suite of investor prospecting and CRM solutions offers comprehensive institutional contacts data and investor profiles. Ipreo is the only financial services provider to offer solutions across all asset classes including Equity, Fixed Income, Municipal bonds, and Syndicated Loans.

“Syndicated loan solutions are a natural extension of our Capital Markets business, fulfilling our goal of being able to cover all types of syndicated products,” said Scott Ganeles , CEO of Ipreo. “Debtdomain is the preeminent player in the syndicated loan space, with a strong client focus, a winning track record, and an approach to technology that is well aligned with our own.”

Debtdomain co-CEOs Sean Tai and David Levy will both be joining Ipreo’s Executive Committee and together will run the Loan Syndication business under Ipreo’s Capital Markets vertical.

USA, New York & UK, London

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