One company, Scripps Networks Interactive Inc., will include the cable networks HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network, Fine Living Network and Great American Country and online comparison shopping sites Shopzilla and uSwitch. The other, E.W. Scripps, will have 10 broadcast television stations and newspapers in 15 U.S. markets, the News Sentinel, Rocky Mountain News in Denver and The Commercial Appeal in Memphis.
The deal will give E.W. Scripps shareholders one share of the new Scripps Interactive company for each share of E.W. Scripps stock, minus a 1-3 reverse split for E.W. Scripps stock.
I'm not real good at math, but does this mean the Scripps board puts the value of their cable/interactive business at three times the value of their broadcast TV and print business?
At any rate, we hope it's not too lonely out there for the newspapers being pushed out to sea on the ice floe. If Scripps goes, Knoxville will be left with, what, the Journal and Knoxville Voice? Not that there's anything wrong with those fine publications, but still.
