As expected, the sale between Entercom Communications Corp. and Lincoln Financial Media Co. was finalized yesterday but not before an added twist was included.
The deal initially involved a combined 15 radio stations in the Denver, Atlanta, Miami and San Diego markets. But federal regulators raised questions about specifics of the deal, particularly in Denver, where they called for Entercom to shed some of the stations it was acquiring. Officials were concerned that the deal would impact competition and advertising rates in the market.
As a result, Entercom elected to move four (4) of its Denver brands to Bonneville in exchange for KSWD-FM 100.3 The Sound in Los Angeles and five (5) million dollars in cash.
As it applies to the sports talk format, here is who is now in control of the sports talk stations that were acquired in the deal.
Entercom: 790 The Zone (WQXI in Atlanta) and 104.3/790 The Ticket (WAXY in Miami)
Bonneville: 104.3 The Fan and 1600 The Zone (KKFN-FM and KEPN-AM in Denver)
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
