CNN offering buyouts to 600 in Atlanta

[gregg75]

The sky is falling.......seems to be the reaction of Atlanta media.
Hey guys, they're not leaving town! About 6,000 in the CNN-Time Warner "group" work in Atlanta.

They are cutting staff. First offer is to those 55 and over. I think they are offering an incentive, but the way the local media has covered the story.......it's hard to follow.

 

[ShawnHill1]

I was reading elsewhere that the Turner Sports division is also laying off folks as well, in preparation to renewing their NBA rights deal, which expires in two years. According to Forbes, the NBA is expecting to double their TV income, from the $930 million annually they get from Turner and Disney. If the NBA elects to bring-in a third TV partner (reportedly NBCSN and Fox Sports are in the mix), they'll likely make at least somewhere close to $2.5 billion or so annually--and that's in addition to whatever TV money the individual teams make regionally.

Two teams, the Cleveland Cavaliers (with LeBron back in town) and Los Angeles Clippers (new ownership finally in place), have their TV deals with Fox Sports in their respective markets expire also in 2016. I don't think they'll even get close to or even half of what the Lakers make in local TV money ($150 million a year through Time Warner Cable) for various reasons--Cleveland's a smaller market, and the Clippers don't have the brand name and cache as the Lakers do, even if the Clips are now a better team and have a deep-pocketed owner.

 

[umfan]

I wonder if TNT will walk if the NBA makes such ridiculous demands. Their product is not worthy of such an increase. I have to agree with you on the Clips and the Cavs. I don't see a lot of competition driving those rights deals higher, but the Cavs will command some increase because of the return of James.

As for the Clips, this was a vanity purchase by Ballmer. He'll own the team until he dies and I doubt it'll sell for $2B then. I seriously have to wonder what drives the guy. He's wicked smart and could put that mind and his resources into doing a lot of good, but he's now going to be consumed with running a soso NBA Organization. He's such a Type A, he'll never let the people he hires run the organization without him being involved in every decision. As a result, he'll never retain top level management or coaching for the long term. A brillant guy, but acquiring the team was such an ego driven decision, I don't see this working out for him or the team. He's a decent person, so there will never be Donald Sterling like drama, but the performance of the team isn't likely to be better than it was for Sterling.