Outdoor Says Kroenke Deal 'Superior'

Gives InterMedia four days to put forth better offer

By Mike Farrell, Multichannel News -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/8/2013 12:44:15 PM

Outdoor Channel's board of directors has determined that a $227 million last-minute offer to buy the network outright is superior to an earlier deal with InterMedia Partners, telling the parent of the Sportsman Channel that it has until March 12 to sweeten its bid.

Kroenke Sports, owned by billionaire Stan Kroenke, offered $8.75 per share in cash for all outstanding Outdoor shares on Feb. 27, a deal that appears to far outweigh InterMedia's $208 million bid, which includes a mixture of cash ($8 per share) and stock in a new publicly traded entity.

In a statement March 7, Outdoor said that the Kroenke Sports deal, which has no financing contingencies or other restrictions, "constitutes a superior proposal."

Outdoor has given InterMedia until March 12 to come up with a better deal. If InterMedia does not best the KSE proposal by that time, "Outdoor Channel expects to terminate the InterMedia Agreement and to enter into the merger agreement with KSE," the company said.

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