• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

It's Official: Cox Radio Was Sold

R

RoddyFreeman

As had been rumored, Apollo Global Management, which recently acquired most of Cox TV, has purchased Cox Radio. The AJC will remain separate.

The announcement about the TV sale stated a new company based in Atlanta will be formed. Apollo decided to name the company...get ready for it: Cox Media Group.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
Do you know why they are divesting a station in Orlando and one in Tampa?
Click to expand...

My guess is they were grandfathered for some reason, and now the ownership change removes that protection.

I saw in other reports the reason given was to satisfy FCC ownership limits.
 
Last edited:
this one's a biggie - not just in Atlanta, but as far west as San Antonio (KONO AM and FM) and as far north as my home state of NY (WBLI - Top 40; and rocker WBAB)
 
So what does Cox still own?

AJC
Cox Automotive (AutoTrader, Mannheim, KBB)
Cox Cable

If I had to guess, I would guess that Cox Cable is up next if Anne Cox Chambers & Co. are still selling.
 
Not a peep from Rodney Ho? He also didn't mention WSB-TV getting a new ND.
 
jabba17 said:
So what does Cox still own?

AJC
Cox Automotive (AutoTrader, Mannheim, KBB)
Cox Cable

If I had to guess, I would guess that Cox Cable is up next if Anne Cox Chambers & Co. are still selling.
Click to expand...

I doubt that will happen. Cox reportedly wants to stay in all of those businesses.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
I doubt that will happen. Cox reportedly wants to stay in all of those businesses.
Click to expand...

I was reading up on Cox Cable and they are now the third-largest cable operator (behind I assume Comcast and Charter). If they are #3 then they are well-positioned. I thought they were a smaller player in cable than that.

Automotive has been their "growth" business for a while, and I'm assuming they're hanging on to the AJC for sentimental reasons.
 
BIGSTICK said:
Good, maybe some format changes???
Click to expand...

Why? Cox's stations in ATL lead the market and have for a long while. I suppose WALR could be considered for a flip because they're in a crowded format/demo, but it still has numbers that other stations would kill for.
 
jabba17 said:
So what does Cox still own?

AJC
Cox Automotive (AutoTrader, Mannheim, KBB)
Cox Cable

If I had to guess, I would guess that Cox Cable is up next if Anne Cox Chambers & Co. are still selling.
Click to expand...

Cox Communications revenues are in the billions. They're not going to mess with that.

Alex Taylor, the great-grandson at the helm, wants to diversify the company further and open up a healthcare division. Selling off CMG gives them the capital to do it.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
Apollo decided to name the company...get ready for it: Cox Media Group.
Click to expand...

Better that than some made-up word that get you sued by every company that has even one syllable that sounds the same.
 
jabba17 said:
I was reading up on Cox Cable and they are now the third-largest cable operator (behind I assume Comcast and Charter). If they are #3 then they are well-positioned. I thought they were a smaller player in cable than that.

Automotive has been their "growth" business for a while, and I'm assuming they're hanging on to the AJC for sentimental reasons.
Click to expand...

I have always been surprised that we don’t have Cox Cable anywhere here in Metro Atlanta with Atlanta being home to Cox. In 1996, GCTV (Atlanta/Dekalb) and Wometco (Metro Atlanta) all went to MediaOne then AT&T Broadband in 2001, then ended up being Comcast in the mid 2000s.
 
TheBigA said:
Could be a legal thing. Concentration of media in one market.
Click to expand...

I think you're right--you can't (or couldn't) own a cable company and a broadcast station in the same market. Not sure if and how that works today with Comcast and all of the NBC O&Os.

Cox was already pushing it with the AJC and WSB-TV as it was, with waivers and grandfather clause invocations kicking that can down the road until the FCC got rid of the TV/newspaper cross-ownership rule.
 
RadioDoogie said:
I have always been surprised that we don’t have Cox Cable anywhere here in Metro Atlanta with Atlanta being home to Cox. In 1996, GCTV (Atlanta/Dekalb) and Wometco (Metro Atlanta) all went to MediaOne then AT&T Broadband in 2001, then ended up being Comcast in the mid 2000s.
Click to expand...

Scripps Cable (which had DeKalb north of I-85 and other parts of the metro area) also went to Comcast eventually. Parts of outlying Gwinnett and other outlying areas wound up in the hands of Adelphia after a series of sales, which got absorbed by Charter when Adelphia went broke.
 
There was some speculation about this company buying the radio group when TV was purchased. A lot of the conversation was about Apollo trying to squeeze more out of the properties by cutting cost. For the Atlanta radio group, any idea what that will look like?
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.
Back
Top Bottom