By Andrew Ross Sorkin The New York Times May 1, 2007
Cablevision Systems Corporation is near a deal to sell the company to its founding family, the Dolans, for about $10.5 billion in cash, according to people involved in the discussions.
The board of Cablevision is currently meeting to finalize the deal, these people said. They warned, however, that it remained possible the deal could collapse or be postponed. If a deal is struck, an announcement could come within the next several hours, these people said.
The deal, worth about $36 a share, would come after three earlier failed efforts by the Dolan family to buy out the public shareholders of Cablevision, which includes Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers.
The Dolans, a colorful dynasty based in Bethpage, N.Y., had made an offer to break the company in two and buy Cablevision's cable television assets in 2005. But they were forced to withdraw the offer before the board formally rejected it. The family, led by the founder, Charles F. Dolan, and his son James, then offered to buy the company for $27 a share last year and later sweetened the offer to $30 a share. That bid was formally rejected by the board after a bitter public battle.
The latest buyout, if it goes through, will be an agreed deal.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/business/media/01dealcnd.html
Cablevision Systems Corporation is near a deal to sell the company to its founding family, the Dolans, for about $10.5 billion in cash, according to people involved in the discussions.
The board of Cablevision is currently meeting to finalize the deal, these people said. They warned, however, that it remained possible the deal could collapse or be postponed. If a deal is struck, an announcement could come within the next several hours, these people said.
The deal, worth about $36 a share, would come after three earlier failed efforts by the Dolan family to buy out the public shareholders of Cablevision, which includes Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers.
The Dolans, a colorful dynasty based in Bethpage, N.Y., had made an offer to break the company in two and buy Cablevision's cable television assets in 2005. But they were forced to withdraw the offer before the board formally rejected it. The family, led by the founder, Charles F. Dolan, and his son James, then offered to buy the company for $27 a share last year and later sweetened the offer to $30 a share. That bid was formally rejected by the board after a bitter public battle.
The latest buyout, if it goes through, will be an agreed deal.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/01/business/media/01dealcnd.html
