December 24, 2008
A Pinch of the Red Sox
The New York Times is looking to sell their share of the Red Sox:
Under pressure from investors to sell noncore assets in recent years, executives of the Times Company have said repeatedly that they were open to selling the stake, but only on the right terms.
But recently, they have been actively shopping the company's stake in New England Sports Ventures, which owns the Red Sox, said the person briefed on the plans, who was not authorized to discuss the matter and was given anonymity. The Times Company informed its partners in the venture of its plans last month.
The company executives have suggested that the central aim of any sale is to protect the company's newspapers, particularly the flagship Times. They have also been reluctant to consider the sale of About.com, an Internet site that is profitable and growing.
Shouldn't they be keeping the asset that is performing well (the Red Sox) and sell the one that is performing badly (the newspaper)? I'll be happy to pay $10,000 for the New York Times!
Posted by David Pinto at
11:17 PM
|
News Media
|
TrackBack (0)
I love it. What to do if you're a newspaper, struggling to make money in a dying business? Sell off the one property you have that's making money.
Nothing wrong with selling the better performing asset so long as they have a plan to turn the core business around. They do not. Bloomberg LLC will own and operate the NYT by this time next year.
Shoot, I was hoping for Rupert Murdoch to buy the Times.
It's funny how they've gone down the tubes since Murray Chass left...just a coincidence, of course.
