Meredith to Buy Turner's WPCH-TV
Meredith will buy WPCH-TV Atlanta from Turner Broadcasting, with the deal expected to close by June 30, it said in a news release Thursday (FCC application is here). AT&T had said it expects to buy Turner parent Time Warner without…
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any license transfers, thus obviating any need for FCC review of the deal (see 1701060057) and the sale of WPCH had been expected by some (see 1610240046). At Thursday's commissioners' meeting, Chairman Ajit Pai, asked about TW licenses and the AT&T deal, said the agency hadn't yet considered whether any of TW's licenses give it entry to review. Aside from WPCH, TW also holds numerous earth station licenses for CNN operations (see 1610260022). Meredith -- which also owns WGCL-TV Atlanta -- said it has assisted in day-to-day operations at WPCH, doing business as Peachtree TV, since 2011, including advertising sales, marketing and promotions and technical operations. In a note to investors Thursday, Wells Fargo analyst Marci Ryvicker said the $70 million WPCH buy is, from TW's standpoint, "a very small deal that helps remove a big [FCC] overhang" from the AT&T acquisition.