Competition To Buy Ten Heats Up As Multiple Parties Circle The Broadcaster

**FILE*** A Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010 file photo the Sydney Head Office of Network Ten in Pyrmont, Sydney. Network Ten's Wake Up program and its early, morning and late news will be axed from Friday. (AAP Image/Lee Besford) NO ARCHIVING
B&T Magazine
By B&T Magazine



Network Ten’s administrator expects the struggling free-to-air broadcaster to be saved from receivership, confirming that he has received expressions of interest from multiple parties to buy or recapitalise it.

Speaking at Ten’s first meeting of creditors in Sydney, Mark Korda from restructuring firm Korda Mentha said he was confident that the network could stay afloat.

“Ten is cash-flow positive at the present time,” he told the ABC.

“Ratings are good, collected all our debts, so it’s pretty much business as usual as far as advertisers, employees and programs are [concerned].

“What we have is a bit of a balance sheet problem that needs to be fixed via a recapitalisation process.”

Korda said he expects this to occur over the next couple of months, regardless of whether the media laws are changed. If this is the case, Lachlan Murdoch and WIN TV owner Bruce Gordon – who are on Ten’s creditors’ committee – will be able to buy Ten.

However, Korda said the Murdoch-Gordon bid is just one option, with the administrator revealing that he has received expressions of interest from multiple parties to buy or recapitalise the broadcaster, according to Fairfax.

One of those is rumoured to be US broadcaster CBS (which happens to be a creditor of Ten), while New York hedge fund Anchorage Capital Group had already shown interest in Ten before it was put into administration, Fairfax reported.

It is also possible that Ten’s secured creditor, the Commonwealth Bank, will put the broadcaster into receivership.

Ten effectively has a $200 million loan from CBA that is set to expire in December, and the major bank could appoint corporate restructuring specialist PPB Advisory to take control of the sale of Ten, according to Fairfax.




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