Price for Philadelphia’s WKDN – $22.5 million.
Why so much more than the $8.5 million Family Radio got for its D.C.-Baltimore market WFSI (107.9), sold to CBS? This one really covers its market, while WFSI, Annapolis has issues in both of its metros. With the Philadelphia purchase, Merlin knows what it’s getting with WKDN, Camden (107.9) – a full class B. The $22.5 million price works out to about $3.60 per person in the protected contour. That price should reassure a lot of dealmakers about the stability of the market. Both WKDN and WFSI are true “sticks” in the sense that they’ve literally never carried a single commercial. Family Radio filed several months ago to convert them from non-commercial to commercial status. TRI hears that a familiar dealmaker was working on behalf of Merlin’s Randy Michaels – Jerry Kersting. He and Randy bought hundreds of stations when they were partnered at Jacor and Clear Channel (and their friendship dates back before Jacor). Kersting recently left Tribune Company and it’s not clear whether he’s actually working for Merlin Media fulltime. But Merlin backer GTCR of Chicago wants to enter more markets in the top 10 – and that could keep the Michaels/Kersting team busy for quite a while.
Why so much more than the $8.5 million Family Radio got for its D.C.-Baltimore market WFSI (107.9), sold to CBS? This one really covers its market, while WFSI, Annapolis has issues in both of its metros. With the Philadelphia purchase, Merlin knows what it’s getting with WKDN, Camden (107.9) – a full class B. The $22.5 million price works out to about $3.60 per person in the protected contour. That price should reassure a lot of dealmakers about the stability of the market. Both WKDN and WFSI are true “sticks” in the sense that they’ve literally never carried a single commercial. Family Radio filed several months ago to convert them from non-commercial to commercial status. TRI hears that a familiar dealmaker was working on behalf of Merlin’s Randy Michaels – Jerry Kersting. He and Randy bought hundreds of stations when they were partnered at Jacor and Clear Channel (and their friendship dates back before Jacor). Kersting recently left Tribune Company and it’s not clear whether he’s actually working for Merlin Media fulltime. But Merlin backer GTCR of Chicago wants to enter more markets in the top 10 – and that could keep the Michaels/Kersting team busy for quite a while.
