Sirius XM’s deal with Liberty Media appears to be moving ahead as planned. This morning the company said that it has received the necessary Nasdaq approval to issue Liberty 12.5 million shares of Sirius preferred stock without shareholder approval.
Looks like Sirius XM can shelve that bankruptcy filing it’s been preparing these past few weeks–for the time being, anyway. This morning, the struggling satellite radio company announced an 11th-hour deal with John Malone’s Liberty Media that will allow it to meet a Feb. 17 debt deadline that might otherwise have forced the company into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection or a deal with satellite mogul Charlie Ergen. Sirius shares are up an astonishing 85.89 percent on news of the deal.
Sure, it’s a celebration of Washington and Lincoln–but isn’t it also fitting, given the current president’s attachment to his BlackBerry, that on this President’s Day weekend, one of the most talked-about (or Twittered about) phenomena is Twitter? Not the only phenomenon, though…
Sirius XM is ready to seek bankruptcy protection. The company has warned investors that it’s prepared to file Chapter 11. It has hired bankruptcy and restructuring advisers. And it has filled out the necessary paperwork. But it may never file it. “People familiar with the situation” tell The Wall Street Journal that Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin and satellite mogul Charlie Ergen are moving closer to an accord that would save the struggling satellite radio outfit from having to file Chapter 11.
As entertaining as news of a Sirius XM-EchoStar-Liberty Media three-way might be, research houses don’t appear to be giving it much credence. Already a few have issued notes dubious of the idea of Liberty accepting the white knight role in this debacle.
The Sirius XM fiasco is fast becoming high drama. Hoping to avoid bankruptcy and fend off an unsolicited takeover attempt from satellite mogul Charlie Ergen’s EchoStar, which has been acquiring its debt, Sirius has approached Liberty Media about a possible transaction.
Looks like Mel Karmazin, CEO of embattled satellite broadcaster Sirius XM, would rather file for bankruptcy than yield partial control of the company to Charlie Ergen and Echostar. “People close to the company” tell the New York Times that Sirius may be days away from filing Chapter 11.
Apparently, satellite mogul Charlie Ergen’s run at Sirius XM has been in the works for quite some time. Indeed, “people familiar with the situation” tell The Wall Street Journal that he made an offer late last year to take control of the struggling satellite radio outfit, but was rebuffed.
A quick update on Thursday’s Sirius/EchoStar story. People familiar with the matter tell The Wall Street Journal that the portion of Sirius XM Satellite Radio’s maturing debt that EchoStar now holds is a sizable one. Around $400 million.
Sirius XM Satellite Radio is having its best day at market in recent memory thanks to a report claiming EchoStar has been buying up its maturing debt in preparation for an attempt to gain control of the company. Shares in Sirius are up more than 28 percent at 18 cents on The Wall Street Journal’s claim that EchoStar recently acquired part of a $300 million tranche of Sirius debt that matures on Feb. 17.
Sirius XM Radio caught a lucky break recently when NASDAQ added another three months to a suspension of its delisting rules. With a share price below the $1 minimum price requirement to remain listed on the exchange, the struggling satellite radio broadcaster’s delisting seemed imminent. No longer.
John Paczkowski has been poking fun at the tech industry and the personalities that drive it since 1997. From 1999 to 2007, he wrote the award-winning tech news Web log Good Morning Silicon Valley for the San Jose Mercury News, Silicon Valley's daily newspaper. Read more »
Here is a statement of my ethics and coverage policies. It is more than most of you want to know, but, in the age of suspicion of the media, I am laying it all out.
Best use of the Beeker “meee” ever.
While the technology behind the Telephone is new, the design is reassuringly old-fashioned, reminiscent of a phrenologist’s horn or ear-candle in form. We found the experience far more comfortable than the one we had with the Telegraph.
12:58 AM: Breakfast: Two schools of fish from Tokyo Bay. Calories: 782,000. How I was feeling when I ate this: confused, irradiated, hating my size.
11:37 AM: Exercise: “Taxi Stomp” (alternating legs, for 30 blocks). Calories burned: 148,900,183.
1983. The Beatles announce their first tour in thirteen years, but likewise announce that Michael Jackson will be going on tour with them as a one gigantic mega-concert event.
Best video mashup ever.
A Facebook Memorial
Wow.
Worth it for the Rickrolling photo alone.
Excellent.
Flughumor!
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