Entercom Shareholders Approve Merger
• It only took four people to make it official, but Entercom Communications Inc. shareholders have formally approved the merger with CBS Radio that is expected to close Friday, transforming the Bala Cynwyd, PA-based Entercom into America’s second-largest radio operator.
According to Philly.com, only four people attended the Wednesday meeting that was chaired by company Founder Joseph Field, 85, the father of Entercom President & CEO David Field. Entercom has said it will cut about $100 million in costs as part of the merger. In interviews on Wednesday at the Hotel Sofitel, David Field said, “We will not take one cent away from the quality of the listener experience or the value we provide to advertisers.”
Field, who has called radio “the most undervalued medium in the U.S.” added that Entercom will “reinvest tens of millions of dollars into brand and into our data analytics.” He said that CBS Radio was not “broken” as a company but had been “under-managed.”
The newly merged Entercom-CBS Radio will own and operate 235 radio stations in 48 of the top 50 markets. Field says Entercom has the right to use CBS Radio branding for a year after the deal closes.
