Univision: The Auction That Wasn’t

“Even by the sometimes turbulent deal-making standards of the media business, it’s hard to match the disaster that the auction of Hispanic broadcasting giant Univision Communications (UVN) has become. How does one of the hottest media companies on the planet become such an object of scorn that three of the best-heeled private equity firms bolt from one group of bidders and the only other bidder lobs an offer that is so much lower than anticipated that Univision more or less rejects it out of hand? And where, for goodness sake, are the so-called strategic investors? Companies like News Corp. (NWS), Disney (DIS), or CBS (CBS) perhaps could use a company that lures more than 12% of the 18-49 Hispanic viewing audience each night, often beating the old-line English language broadcasters.”

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