And the PR release from Roman Hospitality;
Ryman Hospitality's response: https://ir.rymanhp.com/news-release...properties-inc-addresses-recent-media-reports
Wow.
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Bloomberg reporting Ryman Hospitality exploring sale of Opry and WSM
- Thread starter sjs1959
- Start date
And the PR release from Roman Hospitality;
Ryman Hospitality's response: https://ir.rymanhp.com/news-release...properties-inc-addresses-recent-media-reports
Wow.
Clarifying that it's "Ryman" and not "Rymsn" (as in the subject line) or "Roman" (as in the description of the PR release.
I think it is most likely they will be sold separately. Also, the WSM site is likely worth and incredible sum if it isn’t historically protected. Probably many many times more than even a good class a is worth.
Interesting story. To put it in context, three years ago, Disney was rumored to be selling ESPN
Turns out they were just testing the waters. The company then turned around and bought MLB Network and the NFL Network to diversify its revenue streams.
That could be what's going on here. You really don't know what something's worth until you put it on the market. That's what Zaslow did with WBD, and look at what happened. That's not likely to happen here.
You may be referring to the tower site. Yes it is a protected site. The studio recently moved to the grounds of the Opry House.
What that move did was take WSM out of the Opryland Hotel, which is the main property of Ryman Hospitality. The synergies that existed between the hotel and the Opry aren't as obvious anymore. The reason the hotel was built was so Opry fans would have a convenient place to stay. That's not as big a problem now as it was 50 years ago.
Turns out they were just testing the waters. The company then turned around and bought MLB Network and the NFL Network to diversify its revenue streams.
That could be what's going on here. You really don't know what something's worth until you put it on the market. That's what Zaslow did with WBD, and look at what happened. That's not likely to happen here.
You may be referring to the tower site. Yes it is a protected site. The studio recently moved to the grounds of the Opry House.
What that move did was take WSM out of the Opryland Hotel, which is the main property of Ryman Hospitality. The synergies that existed between the hotel and the Opry aren't as obvious anymore. The reason the hotel was built was so Opry fans would have a convenient place to stay. That's not as big a problem now as it was 50 years ago.
I figured the REIT status would play in, and the press release from Ryman confirms this.
A REIT is limited in how much revenue they can make from activities other than Real Estate investments, or else they lose tax incentives. Ryman converted to this structure about 15 years ago, when they renamed themselves from "Gaylord Entertainment" to "Ryman Hospitality."
There were some small tweaks to the tax laws surrounding REITs in Pres. Trump's tax law passed last year, but I don't know enough details to know if that could have spurred changes for Ryman executives.
A REIT is limited in how much revenue they can make from activities other than Real Estate investments, or else they lose tax incentives. Ryman converted to this structure about 15 years ago, when they renamed themselves from "Gaylord Entertainment" to "Ryman Hospitality."
There were some small tweaks to the tax laws surrounding REITs in Pres. Trump's tax law passed last year, but I don't know enough details to know if that could have spurred changes for Ryman executives.
They are still investing in new real estate, enlarging their "Ole Red" restaurant chain to Las Vegas, and Indianapolis next year:
Ole Red Is Coming To Indianapolis - Ole Red
Boxcar Development and Opry Entertainment Group announce partnership to bring Blake Shelton’s Ole Red to downtown Indianapolis Fieldhouse District. Country superstar […]
olered.com
The restaurants are owned by OEG, which makes sense since they're built around a partnership with an Opry member.
Same as Category 10 and Luke Combs.
Live Music, Rooftop Bar, & Line Dancing - Category 10
Luke Combs’ Category 10 is his fan-first, next-level bar, restaurant, live music and entertainment venue at 2nd and Broadway in Nashville.
www.category10.com
Yep, couldn’t edit, sorry
And now it is on the market, per WKRN:
I don’t see anything new in that article.
Disney never bought MLB Network, and they've never owned any piece of it either.
ESPN bought MLB-TV:
The reason I brought this up is I suspect Ryman Properties is looking for additional investors. I really don't expect them to sell the Opry.
I Cant wait to see what happens when WSM is eventually sold and or changes formats. It almost happened.. what was that..about 2 decades ago? Most refuse to understand WSM is not the cash cow people think, but most here know it only exists to promote the grand ole opry, etc
My GM in at KIYU in Alaska was the PD of WSM at the time who floated the idea of a format change when he was there... and i have this fuzzy memory he instituted paid streaming but that didnt last
My GM in at KIYU in Alaska was the PD of WSM at the time who floated the idea of a format change when he was there... and i have this fuzzy memory he instituted paid streaming but that didnt last
There would be a large outcry even in 2026. Artists/fans would torch social media. What could you flip WSM to? After changes a few years ago, it’s not too terribly expensive to run. I do wonder what mornings will sound like now.
No idea, but I cant imagine WSM will be country forever
About 15 years ago, a key person involved with WSM, shared the Opry generated about $800,000 a year for the station. I don’t recall the total revenue for WSM but it was around $ 1 million per year, total. Even then I was surprised how low it was and it dawned on me the station and the Opry itself might have a limited shelf life. I also remember they just had the tower painted and it cost $24,000, best I remember. Again, that’s 15 years ago. I think it’s safe to assume the revenue totals are less and the painting cost is more. Sadly, there is likely less shelf life for the enterprise.
We've discussed this before. The radio station doesn't exist as a stand-alone thing. It is integrated with the Opry. It's studios are adjacent to the theater, the station hosts are announcers during the show, and the commercials are sold as a package with the Opry. They actually read the commercials from the stage during the show. So the radio station is part of the Opry. Also WSM is more than the 50KW transmitter. They also operate a video streaming channel plus they broadcast on Sirius. They have done a lot to make this much more than a typical AM radio station.
All that is well and good but none of it needs a 50 kW AM station with an expensive to maintain 800 ft tower which sits on multi-millions valued interstate frontage real estate.
The investment bankers who’ ll end up owning Ryman don’t give one iota about history or heritage. The business model of the Opry is outdated as the architecture of the Opry House and Opryland Hotel in the Cumberland River floodplain. The Ryman downtown has a much longer runway and will always be an integral part of Nashville’s country music scene.
The investment bankers who’ ll end up owning Ryman don’t give one iota about history or heritage. The business model of the Opry is outdated as the architecture of the Opry House and Opryland Hotel in the Cumberland River floodplain. The Ryman downtown has a much longer runway and will always be an integral part of Nashville’s country music scene.
Sure if a time comes when AM is completely obsolete, an aspect of it will disappear. I can easily see them selling the tower location and moving it to the Opry House property.
I agree and that's why Ryman Properties and Collin Reed will not sell 100% of the Opry and WSM to a bunch of investment bankers who don't care about history or heritage. Collin takes his responsibility for that heritage seriously. There is an Opry Trust that oversees a lot of this heritage. There are financial arrangements in place to protect the history & heritage.
Their current partner is NBCUniversal. That company was just spun off from Comcast. I imagine they'd like to cash out their investment. So now Ryman is looking for a replacement investment partner.