ARN offer ‘opportunistic’, says Southern Cross
ARN Media has been “opportunistic” and chosen the “absolute cyclical low” in the media market to launch a surprise takeover offer if its main rival, Southern Cross Austereo, the target’s chairman says.
In his first interview since ARN lobbed a bid for the radio and television broadcaster alongside Anchorage Capital Partners this month, Rob Murray said it could take months to assess the offer. It was, he said, one of the most complex deals he’d seen.
Southern Cross Austereo chairman Rob Murray and chief executive officer John Kelly.
ARN, the owner of the KIIS and Pure Gold radio network brands, spent months plotting its bid after buying up 14.8 per cent of Southern Cross, the owner of the Hit and Triple M networks. It has offered 0.753 ARN shares for each Southern Cross share, plus 29.6¢ in cash and 12.7¢ in franking credits.
The proposal involves shuffling the radio networks between ARN and Anchorage. ARN would take KIIS and Triple M and 88 regional radio stations. Anchorage would own the Pure Gold and Hit brands, as well as 35 regional stations and a regional TV network. They would co-own a separate digital streaming business.
The deal will require an in-depth look at the ARN business, Mr Murray said, as it includes shares in a theoretical company with a mix of assets and talent that, as yet, doesn’t exist.
“What our shareholders are being offered for every Southern Cross share is three quarters of a share in ARN. I can’t tell you what ARN’s worth today. I have some thoughts, but we need to do due diligence on them just as much as they need to do it on us to fairly assess the value of that proposition for our shareholders,” Mr Murray said.
“They’ve come along at the absolute cyclical low in the market. If you view it
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