Liberty/iHeart Merger Set to Weaken Competitors

  • Now that the DOJ has given Liberty the greenlight to buy up to 50% ownership of iHeart, the new satellite, streaming, podcasting, terrestrial radio and live events behemoth will target Beasley, Entercom, Cumulus, Saga and smaller operators.
  • None of Liberty’s potential competitors joined the public interest groups in fighting the DOJ’s approval – and now they will pay.
  • Liberty will pay down iHeart debt and then use a shrewd tactic to eliminate most local radio costs including programming, sales and management while competitors fail to keep up with their own debt payments and are forced to restructure.
  • The feared “Malone Bundle” will put pricing control for the entire radio industry squarely in Liberty’s hands.
  • And radio groups not named iHeart or Liberty will be frantically searching for non-radio merger partners – here’s what that looks like.

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