Ackerly selling its radio, TV stations, billboards

By Associated Press

Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — The nation’s largest radio broadcaster, Clear Channel Worldwide, is seeking to strengthen its advertising presence by acquiring The Ackerley Group, a Seattle-based leader in outdoor display advertising and owner of radio and television stations.

The deal values Ackerley at about $800 million, including the assumption of approximately $294 million in debt of The Ackerley Group, until earlier this year the owner of the NBA Seattle SuperSonics.

Clear Channel, which operates about 1,180 radio and 18 TV stations in the United States, already is involved in events promotion and billboard advertising.

Terms of the proposed deal, to be completed in the first quarter of 2002, were not disclosed. It is subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice as well as stockholders of The Ackerley Group.

However, the companies said Ackerley shareholders would receive 0.35 shares of Clear Channel Communications Inc. common stock for each share of The Ackerley Group they own.

At Friday’s closing prices, that would be give Ackerley shareholders about $14.11 a share for each of their shares, a 28 percent premium. Ackerley closed Friday at $11 a share on the New York Stock Exchange, while Clear Channel shares ended at $40.31.

Clear Channel is "a well-respected media company," Chris Ackerley, president of The Ackerley Group, told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. "They could do wonderful things leveraging our assets."

Members of the Ackerley family won’t be involved with Clear Channel once the deal is completed, he said.

The Ackerley Group operates more than 6,000 outdoor displays in the Boston, Seattle and Portland, Oregon markets.

The Ackerley Group was founded in 1975 by Barry Ackerley, chairman and chief executive. He and his wife, Ginger, are the largest shareholders. The company has more than 1,500 employees.

Ackerley was the owner of the Sonics and the WNBA Seattle Storm until the teams were sold in April for $200 million to a group headed by Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz.

Ackerley owns 16 television stations including KVOS of Bellingham. Its radio stations are KJR-AM, KUBE-FM, KBTB-FM and KHHO-AM and it has a marketing and sales agreement for KFNK-FM, all in Seattle.