WASHINGTON D.C.—The FCC has requested for a variety of recent paperwork as a part of its evaluation of the $8 billion merger of Apollo Global Management, Standard General L.P., and Tegna. The merger has been criticized by pay TV suppliers for doubtlessly giving the station group an excessive amount of energy in transmission consent negotiations and by public curiosity teams (opens in new tab) and unions as doubtlessly hurting native information protection.Standard General has pushed again in opposition to these arguments (opens in new tab) in filings with the FCC, contending that its “proposed acquisition of Tegna and the associated transactions, together with Standard General’s sale of eight TV stations to CMG [Cox Media Group], will yield important public curiosity advantages with none countervailing public curiosity harms.” In an Sept. 30 assertion emailed to TV Tech, Standard General stated “Standard General, who would be the sole proprietor of Tegna, has persistently confirmed that its plans for post-closing TEGNA don’t contain station-level layoffs”In one other electronic mail assertion concerning the continuing FCC course of, Deb McDermott, the longer term CEO of Tegna stated that “We simply want to be handled like everybody else.”In its request for added paperwork, FCC requested for monetary paperwork introduced to monetary establishments and potential lenders that might make clear potential employees cuts and funding plans. It can be asking for detailed data on native information operations, retransmission consent negotiations and the merger agreements. At the very minimal, the brand new doc requests point out that the FCC could not approve the deal earlier than the tip of October and that the method may drag on past that. The deadline for the brand new paperwork is October 13. If the proposed $8 billion merger of Apollo Global Management (AGM), Standard General L.P., and Tegna is permitted, Standard General would purchase Tegna’s 61 full energy tv stations and two radio stations throughout 50 markets. Apollo will management the licenses of 31 full-power tv stations in 26 markets and 54 radio stations in 11 radio markets.More particularly, the FCC is asking for this data: “All paperwork, together with displays to AGM and another monetary lending or funding establishments, addressing every firm’s analysis of this transaction (in addition to various transactions thought of among the many firms), the motivating causes for every firm becoming a member of within the transaction, the the reason why the transaction can be advantageous to every firm, and, particularly, paperwork discussing the chopping of employees, the diminution or displacement of native content material, and the growth of nationwide content material;All paperwork, together with with out limitation providing memoranda or prospectuses, used to safe funding, or to market to, or focus on the proposed transactions with, potential buyers;All analyses supporting or quantifying the Applicants’ competition that the transaction will facilitate funding in native content material and manufacturing capabilities, together with particular enterprise synergies and efficiencies that may facilitate such funding or in any other case assist the operation of Standard General and CMG [Cox Media Group] have been the transaction to be consummated;All analyses and paperwork regarding projected future capital expenditures, personnel headcounts, and programming plans for every of the published stations included within the Applications;For every station acquired by Standard General or CMG throughout the final 5 years, present documentation and information with respect to the addition of native and information programming, particularly breaking out, for every station, the weekly addition (or loss) of hours of (a) native information, (b) different native programming, and (c) information and curiosity segments not originated by the station. Provide paperwork or, if not in any other case obtainable in doc type, a story response describing the connection between centrally originated programming by Standard General and CMG and any necessities for native stations to air such programming, together with with out limitation any written agreements or correspondence between Standard General and CMG and the stations with respect to such programming; Describe intimately how a Washington, D.C. newsroom might be built-in with native stations and the extent of native station editorial management over ensuing information protection; present all paperwork regarding any such proposed integration.All paperwork regarding any precise or potential consolidation of reports operations or companies, together with impacts on personnel headcounts;All analyses and paperwork regarding Standard General’s overview of the CMG retransmission agreements presently in place, together with calculations of post-transaction charge will increase, or, alternatively, an announcement that Standard General has not reviewed such agreements; All correspondence from Deborah McDermott or different Standard General executives to TEGNA workers addressing how the proposed transaction could have an effect on staffing or situations of employment.”The FCC can be asking for he following schedules to the Merger Agreement:“Section 4.2 – Capital Stock and Indebtedness Section 4.4(a) – Consents and Approvals; No Violations Section 4.4(b) – Consents and Approvals; No Violations Section 4.11(a) – Employee Benefits Plans Appendix 4.11(a)(i) Appendix 4.11(a)(ii) Section 4.11(e) – Multiemployer Plans Section 4.11(g) – Post-Employment Benefits Section 4.15(a)(iii) – Tax MattersSection 4.16 – Employment and Labor Matters Appendix 4.16(c) Section 4.20 – MVPD Matters Section 4.21 – Finders or Brokers Section 6.5(a) – Employee Matters Section 6.6(e) – Regulatory Approvals, Efforts” In addition it has requested the next schedules to the Contribution Agreement: “Section 1.01 – Permitted Liens Section 3.04 – FCC and Programming Distribution Matters Section 3.13 – Financial Statements Section 4.05 – FCC and Programming Distribution Matters Section 4.06 – Taxes Section 4.12 – Employees; Labor Matters; Employee Benefit Plans Section 4.15 – Financial Statements”
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