Did DirecTV just buy VOOM....?

[mithcman333]

I'm hearing rumors that DirecTV bought VOOM - TWiT podcast (Leo LaPorte).

No way right..? Must be a rumor, no mention of it on various boards....

Mitchman

[garys]

Dish is part owner, so they could only be part owner. Have not heard anything concrete but rumor has been out for several months.

[pbrown]

Well, it's a little more complicated then that statement. Right now, Liberty Media is in the process of purchasing DirecTV from News Corp. That deal is on it's way to closing in August or September, but is not completed. There are rumors (http://biz.yahoo.com/seekingalpha/070104/23429_id.html?.v=1) that Liberty is pursuing Rainbow Media as well, which owns Voom and several other outlets. If both deals eventually close, then both entities would be owned by the same company, but you still couldn't really say that DirecTV "Owns" Voom.

[seenett]

More info here http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16608255/site/newsweek/

[Stewart Vernon]

Meanwhile, just a reminder... Dish does not own Voom. Rainbow Media owns Voom. Echostar bought their Rainbow-1 satellite and renamed it into the Echostar family of satellites... and right now is the only carrier of the Voom lineup... Dish may even have invested some money in Voom to help with the transition for all I know... but last I was aware Echostar did not own a stake in Voom at all.

[Mike D-CO5]

From the article it clearly says: "Malone is also hunting for Hd channels to buy, reportedly including those of Rainbow MEdia , a unit of Cablevision that operates the 15 channel Voom Hd network , WHICH IS PARTLY OWNED BY ECHOSTAR and carried ONLY on that service." So yes Voom is part owned by Echostar the parent company of DISHNETWORK.

It also says that Malone wants to do the same thing I said to do over a year or two ago. That is to create a third company part owned by both Dish and Directv for all HD . Spread the costs and to compete with cable without all that redundant duplication of hd channels in limited bandwith. Another idea is that both companies join to produce their own high def programs.

[david803sc]

Whomever buys Rainbow Media will have a lot of clout in the market with both Satleite companies, cable companies and IPTV companies, as Rainbow owns the following channels;

VOOM HD

AMC (American Movie Classics)

IFC (Independent Film channel)

Fuse

WE tv

RSN (Rainbow Sports Networks)

They also own and operate to Regional Fox Sports Affiliate Stations.

FSN Bay Area, FSN New England

And finally they provide VOD services for many cable companies.

[Stewart Vernon]

From the article it clearly says: "Malone is also hunting for Hd channels to buy, reportedly including those of Rainbow MEdia , a unit of Cablevision that operates the 15 channel Voom Hd network , WHICH IS PARTLY OWNED BY ECHOSTAR and carried ONLY on that service." So yes Voom is part owned by Echostar the parent company of DISHNETWORK.

Just because that article says it... doesn't make it true!

Last I knew, Rainbow Media (a subsidiary of Cablevision) was the sole owner of Voom. Don't believe me? Look up Rainbow Media and go to their Web site and I bet you don't find any mention of Dish or Echostar being a part owner... because they are not.

[James Long]

When Voom was put on E* it was noted that E* had a financial investment in the channels. One might have to dig into the annual reports to find it, and I would say it was charactarized as more of an investment than part ownership. But E* has a stake in Voom beyond the resale markup.

[Stewart Vernon]

That's what I remember too... Dish giving some money... but nothing in the way of even partial ownership.

Bill Gates gave some money to Apple a while back in the interest of competition and to avoid some anti-trust suits by showing he supported the competition... but Microsoft does not own Apple now as a result.

[Mike D-CO5]

Just because that article says it... doesn't make it true!

Last I knew, Rainbow Media (a subsidiary of Cablevision) was the sole owner of Voom. Don't believe me? Look up Rainbow Media and go to their Web site and I bet you don't find any mention of Dish or Echostar being a part owner... because they are not.


As always you are free to believe anything you need to , even when other sources tell you different. That's what free will is all about. :sure:

[koji68]

That's what I remember too... Dish giving some money... but nothing in the way of even partial ownership.

Bill Gates gave some money to Apple a while back in the interest of competition and to avoid some anti-trust suits by showing he supported the competition... but Microsoft does not own Apple now as a result.

Reuters says in their site: "Rainbow Media Holdings also holds an 80% interest in Rainbow HD Holdings LLC, which owns and operates the Company's VOOM HD Networks programming channels."

So who owns the other 20%?

Check edgar-online.com for the 10-Q filling of 5/10/2005 from Cablevision and it says:

"In April 2005, subsidiaries of Cablevision and CSC Holdings entered into agreements with EchoStar Communications Corporation ("EchoStar") relating to the launch and operation of the business of Rainbow HD Holdings, LLC, the Company's VOOM 21 high-definition television programming service. Under those arrangements, EchoStar will initially distribute a portion of the Rainbow HD programming service and, beginning in 2006, if the contemplated transactions have been completed, will carry all 21 of the channels included in the Rainbow HD programming service. In connection with the arrangements, EchoStar would be issued a 20% interest in Rainbow HD Holdings, the Company's subsidiary owning the 21 channels included in the Rainbow HD programming service, and that 20% interest would not be diluted until $500,000 in cash has been invested in Rainbow HD Holdings. The issuance of the 20% interest in Rainbow HD Holdings to EchoStar and EchoStar's agreement to distribute all 21 of the channels included in the Rainbow HD programming service are subject to customary closing conditions, and the closing of the sale of the Company's Rainbow 1 satellite to EchoStar."

[Mike D-CO5]

So 20% = part owner of VOOM by Echostar. Actually any percentage would make Echostar a PART owner. Not the majority owner in terms of stock or percentage , but without Dish there would have been no Voom to be distributed on and they would have goon BOOM last year instead of VOOM.

[Stewart Vernon]

Well... in that case, I own IBM! Because I own a few hundred shares of IBM stock.

Technically... if you own stock, then you do have partial ownership... however, that (especially not at 20%) doesn't mean Dish/Echostar have any real say in anything like a buyout by another company for instance.

[Richard King]

I don't recall seeing anyone above claim that Dish owns Voom. All I see is people stating that they are a part owner, which is true. Making things more interesting, John Malone was appointed a board member of VOOM in March of 2005 and has been a board member since. I have found nothing stating that this is true for the Dish/Voom situation, but usually when a company makes a 20% equity investment in another company, such as Dish did with VOOM, they get to appoint a person to the board of the company, meaning that they have input to corporate decisions.

[Stewart Vernon]

My main interest was going back to one of the earliest replies in the thread that said Liberty could not buy Voom because Dish was part owner.

I agree that Dish has a stake in Voom/Rainbow, but nothing that prevents someone else from buying the company. That was the main point I was going for whenever I see the oversimplified "Dish owns Voom" creep into things.

Not trying to completely flatten the dead horse though :)

[James Long]

:beatdeadhorse: :D

[Amherst]

James, very funny. I just hope no animals were killed or injured in the making of your post.

[Stewart Vernon]

James, very funny. I just hope no animals were killed or injured in the making of your post.

That reminds me... Every time I watch a movie where they have people eating a hamburger, for instance, then I see that quote at the end about "no animals were injured or killed during the making of this film"... I wonder if it applies to the hamburger as well?

[colavsfaninnwia]

It could have been Tofu.:whatdidid