E.W. Scripps has bought the Katz broadcast networks for $302 million, the company says in a Tuesday release.
Scripps will get four national over-the-air networks including, Bounce, Grit, Escape, and Laff. Each of the networks reach more than 80 percent of U.S. households, Scripps says.
Since Scripps already owns 5 percent of the business, the net purchase price of the deal is $292 million.
“In today’s fragmented television ecosystem, a growing number of viewers are consuming content from new over-the-air networks as a complement to over-the-top services,” Rich Boehne, president and CEO of Scripps, comments. “The entrepreneurs at Katz were among the first to take full advantage of this resurgence in over-the-air viewing. We were early investors in the company, and it’s a strategy and team we know well.”
“Acquiring these innovators will increase our opportunity to serve the nation’s largest advertisers, who see tremendous value in the networks’ content and the large, targeted audiences they draw,” he adds.
Bounce is an African-American oriented network with a lineup featuring original dramas, off-network series, and movies. Grit focuses on Western, war, and action films, while Escape features investigative and mystery programming. Laff is a comedy network.
Together the four networks are estimated to generate $180 million in revenue and about $30 million in segment profit this year, Scripps says.
Founder Jonathan Katz will remain in his leadership role over the Katz networks business.
The deal, which is subject to Hart-Scott-Rodino clearance and customary closing conditions, is expected to close by Oct. 2.
