Liberty Media. iHeartMedia, and the Braves

[jabba17]

If Liberty takes control of iHeart, would there be a good chance that the Braves would move to one or more iHeart stations, such as WGST plus an FM side, once the existing contracts expire? If so, what FM would be the most likely candidate? 105.7?

 

[BoboKnight]

Wasn’t the purchase of the Braves just a tax move by Liberty? My guess is they’ll unload them before the contract with Dickey Broadcasting expires in 2026.

 

[TheBigA]

My sense is Malone's not buying all these things because he wants to be in the hardware business. He wants content, and owning the Braves gives him access to content.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

My sense is Malone's not buying all these things because he wants to be in the hardware business. He wants content, and owning the Braves gives him access to content.

As mentioned above, Dickey Broadcasting has a contract with the Braves through 2026.

I read a quote in an article about Liberty Media's baseball holdings, i.e. the Braves and their minor league system, in a business magazine. Liberty has been successful in getting new ballparks built for every one of their teams. The quote was to the effect of, "We used to think we were in the sports business. Now we realize we're in the real estate business."

 

[TheBigA]

The quote was to the effect of, "We used to think we were in the sports business. Now we realize we're in the real estate business."

That's where the real money is. It's one of the reasons why they're based in Colorado, not New York.

The bad news for Malone is that iHeart already sold off all of their tower real estate.

 

[jabba17]

As mentioned above, Dickey Broadcasting has a contract with the Braves through 2026.

I read a quote in an article about Liberty Media's baseball holdings, i.e. the Braves and their minor league system, in a business magazine. Liberty has been successful in getting new ballparks built for every one of their teams. The quote was to the effect of, "We used to think we were in the sports business. Now we realize we're in the real estate business."

Sounds like what Ray Kroc & Co. said about McDonald's.

 

[TheBigA]

Sounds like what Ray Kroc & Co. said about McDonald's.

Seems to me when he bought in, all he got was licensing to the name. The real estate came later with franchising.

I've been fortunate to never work in the fast food business, so I don't know if corporate or the francise owns the land.

 

[jabba17]

Wasn’t the purchase of the Braves just a tax move by Liberty? My guess is they’ll unload them before the contract with Dickey Broadcasting expires in 2026.

IIRC it was a tax move by Time Warner, who wanted to unload the Braves while avoiding cap gains taxes on the Bravos going back to when Ted bought the team in the mid-70s. They found a willing partner in Liberty, who had a big chunk of TWX stock that Time Warner wanted back and could use in an asset swap.

And, yes, 2026 is a LONG way off.

 

[jabba17]

Seems to me when he bought in, all he got was licensing to the name. The real estate came later with franchising.

I've been fortunate to never work in the fast food business, so I don't know if corporate or the francise owns the land.

That's correct. Pretty much all he got from the McDonald brothers was the IP. One of his colleagues suggested the real estate model because he couldn't make enough between the royalty payments he was getting from the franchisees based on sales alone and what he owed to the McDonald brothers. The "The Founder" movie is sympathetic to the McDonald brothers; the true story is that the brothers could give as good as they got with Kroc.

Corporate does own the land and leases it to the franchisee, which gives them a lot of control over the franchisee (and the real estate itself; you rarely see a repurposed McDonald's).

Some folks have called McD's a REIT in disguise. The stock has performed slow and steady, much like a REIT.