Pulse2 Technology and Social Media News » David Geffen

Why The New York Times Refused Geffen’s Investment

Amit Chowdhry — Sat, 30 May 2009 07:28:51 +0000

The New York Times needed an infusion of cash recently as their stock price has not been doing so great. Harbinger Capital, a company that owns about 19% of NYT stock wanted to unload it to Hollywood exec David Geffen and Google.

Last winter the New York Times decided to get more money out of Mexican telecom billionaire Carlos Slim instead of David Geffen, $250 million to be exact. They did this for a reason. Geffen even offered the same terms for the loan.

The New York Times Chairman told Geffen that the company would rather work with Slim because he already owns a major amount of shares in the company and that “he was reportedly also worried about Geffen’s ambition to take over the company.” Geffen made an offer to completely buy out The New York Times this past September.

Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and his family are the major shareholders in The New York Times. His family has controlled the newspaper since 1896 and the company was founded in 1851. Their family said that they were not interested in selling the company outright, but this is the same sentiments that the Bancroft family had with The Wall Street Journal and the Dow Jones. Both Dow and The WSJ are now owned by News Corp.

[via AllThingsD]

Harbinger Capital Pitched NYT Stake To David Geffen and Google

Amit Chowdhry — Tue, 12 May 2009 14:24:25 +0000

Harbinger Capital is a private investment firm that owns about 19% of the New York Times. They bought the stake about one year ago when the stock price was above $19 and now the company is trading at below $7. Clearly they want to unload their equity in the company for a reason because they have been reportedly shopping around for a buyer. Specifically Harbinger looked in the direction of Google and Hollywood exec David Geffen.

Scott Galloway, a professor at NYU’s business school and one out of two board members from Harbinger that sits on the board at the Times made a pitch to Google co-founder Larry Page. Page took a serious look at the Times before deciding to pass. Geffen on the other hand made an offer, but was reportedly turned down. Geffen is the founder of Asylum Records and Geffen Records as well as the co-founder of Dreamworks SKG. Geffen is worth about $6.5 billion.

Recently the New York Times started looking for other revenue streams such as charging for some content on their web site and on the Kindle. If a deal isn’t made with Geffen, it is likely that the Times might turn to telecommunications conglomerate Carlos Slim.

[via Fortune]