Disney Holds Talks To Sell ABC To Nexstar Media, Report Says - Forbes

Topline

Entertainment behemoth Walt Disney Company has held exploratory discussions on selling ABC and other TV networks to local broadcaster Nexstar Media Group, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter—the latest development in Disney’s efforts to offload its linear television assets.

Key Facts

The talks are still in a preliminary phase and haven’t yet provided a specific valuation, one of the people told Bloomberg.

An acquisition could have complications as ABC shares broadcasts with other Disney-owned networks like ESPN.

Nexstar is only interested if it gets what it considers a good price, according to Bloomberg.

ABC’s programming includes popular series like Grey’s Anatomy and General Hospital, its national news programming as well as reality television like Dancing With The Stars and American Idol.

Forbes has reached out to both Disney and Nexstar.

News Peg

Disney CEO Bob Iger said during an interview with CNBC in July that the company was looking to sell off many of its properties in linear television,—the traditional television viewing style involving channels with scheduled programming lineups—stating the properties “may not be core to Disney.” Iger, who rose up the ranks of Disney after being an executive at ABC, called the linear television business model “definitely broken.” Meanwhile, Nexstar has been on the hunt for legacy media properties. During a presentation at a Bank of America Securities conference Wednesday, Tom Carter, Nexstar’s former president and now an adviser to its CEO and board, said the company was looking to purchase assets from large media companies that are trying to restructure.

Key Background

This comes amid a transformational period for the television and entertainment industry. Netflix, Disney+ and other streaming services overtook traditional linear TV as the most common way viewers watched television in July 2022, according to data from Nielsen. In June, PwC predicted the linear television industry will lose $30 billion in subscription and advertising revenue by 2027, as more viewers cut cable and switch to streaming. Disney launched its streaming service Disney+ in November 2019 and is in the process of purchasing Comcast’s 33% stake in Hulu, which, because the company already owns the other two-thirds of the platform, would give it full control over the streaming service. That deal is slated to be completed September 30.

Big Number

200. That’s how many broadcast stations Nexstar owns. In October 2022, the company purchased a controlling share—75%—of the CW Network, and in September 2019, it purchased Tribune Media, which made it the country’s largest local television broadcaster.