Liberty Digital Inc. closed its agreement to acquire 50 percent of Game Show
Network from Sony Pictures Entertainment, the companies announced Monday.
Under terms of the deal, Liberty shelled out $275 million: $125 million in
cash, $50 million in Liberty Digital stock and a $100 million note payable to
Sony Pictures Entertainment, which also owns 50 percent of the network.
It's too early to say whether there will be management changes at GSN now
that the deal has closed, spokeswoman Carrie Gerlach said.
Multichannel News reported last month that former Fox Family Channel
president Rich Cronin had been approached about taking a job at the network.
Executives said at the time that no final decisions had been made.
'As part of a public company and our due diligence, we're looking at every
aspect of the business,' Liberty Digital CEO Lee Masters said last month. 'As
painful as it is to discuss, management would be part of that. We want to be
sure we're firing on all cylinders.'
After six years of operation, GSN counts 32 million subscribers.
'We are hard at work with Lee and his team developing the strategy to fuel
the next stage of GSN's growth,' Len Grossi, president of Sony's Columbia
TriStar Television unit, said in the announcement of the closing.
'We are excited to be partnered with Liberty Digital and the Liberty family
as we enhance the network's growth and continue to transform GSN into
television's first fully interactive game-based network,' Grossi
added.
