Cox Shopping Its TV Division
• Cox Enterprises, Inc., the parent company of Cox Media Group announced it’s exploring strategic options for its ownership or other interest in its 14 television stations in nine states, including partnering or merging these stations into a larger TV company. The company’s 61 radio stations and other media assets will not be affected by this move.
“We didn’t take this decision lightly,” said Alex Taylor, President & CEO of Cox Enterprises. “It’s clear that scale is critical for TV affiliates to be positioned well for the future. Our stations are some of the best in the industry and we want them to stay that way.”
Jim Kennedy, Chairman of Cox Enterprises (left) remarked, “Cox’s television stations are and will always be an important part of our company’s history, and we greatly value the contributions of these stations to the success of our company and to the communities where we do business. We are deeply appreciative of the employees at these stations and their dedication to delivering quality, consistent and trustworthy journalism.”
Cox Enterprises says it has no immediate plans for the other parts of its media portfolio and will continue to operate its radio properties, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Dayton Daily News and their affiliated publications and websites, as well as its other businesses Cox Reps, Gamut, Videa and Ideabar. The company is investing in strategic priorities to foster growth within its existing businesses. In addition, Cox Enterprises is investing in new growth areas, including Cleantech and healthcare.
The 14 TV stations in play are: WSB-TV/Atlanta (ABC); WFTV-TV/Orlando (ABC); WRDQ-TV/Orlando (Independent); WSOC-TV/Charlotte (ABC); WAXN-TV/Charlotte (Independent); WPXI-TV/Pittsburgh (NBC); WHIO-TV/Dayton, OH (CBS); KIRO-TV/Seattle (CBS); WJAX-TV/Jacksonville, FL (CBS — CMG provides programming, sales and other operations services for WJAX); WFOX-TV/Jacksonville, FL (Fox); WFXT-TV/Boston (Fox); WHBQ-TV/Memphis (Fox); KOKI-TV/Tulsa, OK (Fox) and KMYT-TV/Tulsa, OK (My Network).
