IRVING, Texas and BALTIMORE, March 15,
2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:
NXST) ("Nexstar") and Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI)
("Sinclair"), (together referred to as "the Parties") announced
today that they have entered into a memorandum of understanding
regarding the establishment of a consortium that will promote
spectrum aggregation, innovation and monetization and enhance their
abilities to compete in the wireless data transmission
sector. The consortium, which will be jointly owned and
controlled equally by the founding Parties, has agreed to
collaborate on a non-exclusive basis and the consortium is intent
on exploring the inclusion of other television broadcasting
entities. Nexstar and Sinclair are two of the largest and
most diversified television broadcasting companies in the nation
and collectively own and operate television stations reaching
approximately 60% of the country.
Unlike prior industry efforts which were based on flawed
technology, this consortium has been established in anticipation of
the adoption of the ATSC 3.0 "Next Generation" broadcast
transmission standard and its proven capabilities. The
consortium will promote innovation and develop and explore products
and services associated with ATSC 3.0 and monetization
opportunities such as spectrum utilization, virtual MVPD platforms,
multicast channels, automotive applications, single frequency
networks and wireless data applications, among others.
Upon adoption of ATSC 3.0, consumers will be able to integrate
video content and data across numerous "smart" devices, to more
effectively and efficiently address their information and
entertainment needs. With the proper technology and data
gathering methodologies, Nexstar and Sinclair expect to capture
significant and meaningful information relating to consumers'
actual viewing and consumption behaviors. As a result,
broadcasters will no longer have to rely on expensive third party
measurement services with small sample sizes and unverified
results. The value of this captured data across all Next
Gen-enabled devices and their users can be monetized several
ways. For advertisers, it will provide greater efficiency for
their spend with elevated addressability, personalization and
accountability. Similarly broadcasters will realize greater
efficiencies in reaching and monetizing a significantly larger
advertising market.
Perry A. Sook, Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
commented, "We are delighted to join forces with Sinclair who has
led the industry in advancing the ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard and
its adoption. By establishing a formal collaborative effort
to advance the promotion of spectrum utilization, innovation and
monetization through ATSC 3.0, we can more quickly bring its ground
breaking benefits to broadcasters, viewers and advertisers based on
the new technology's ability to deliver targeted advertising.
With the near-term conclusion of the FCC Incentive Auction, Nexstar
and Sinclair are leading the industry in ensuring that we bring our
respective shareholders appropriate value from increasingly scarce
and in-demand spectrum. In addition, we welcome the
involvement of other broadcasters who share our enthusiasm for the
new technology which will allow our industry to continue to thrive
in today's multi-platform world."
Chris Ripley, President and Chief
Executive Officer of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. added, "Nexstar
shares our vision for broadcast standard innovation and the
benefits of knowing with precise accuracy who is viewing our
programming, what they're watching and when they're watching.
Data gathering, measurement and viewer behavior are critical
considerations for advertisers and our collaborative initiative
will ensure that Sinclair, Nexstar and perhaps other industry
participants are out of the blocks quickly once ATSC 3.0 is
launched. We believe this effort will maximize the value of our
programming and ad inventory while creating new cross platform
revenue opportunities that will benefit our respective
shareholders."
About Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Nexstar Media Group is
a leading diversified media company that leverages localism to
bring new services and value to consumers and advertisers through
its traditional media, digital and mobile media platforms. Nexstar
owns, operates, programs or provides sales and other services to
170 television stations and related digital multicast signals
reaching 100 markets or nearly 39% of all U.S. television
households. Nexstar's portfolio includes primary affiliates of NBC,
CBS, ABC, FOX, MyNetworkTV and The CW. Nexstar's community portal
websites offer additional hyper-local content and verticals for
consumers and advertisers, allowing audiences to choose where, when
and how they access content while creating new revenue
opportunities. For more information please visit
www.nexstar.tv.
About Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:
SBGI)
Sinclair is one of the largest and most diversified
television broadcasting companies in the country. The Company
owns, operates and/or provides services to 173 television stations
in 81 markets, broadcasting 508 channels and has affiliations with
all the major networks. Sinclair is one of the leading local news
providers in the country, as well as a producer of live sports
content. Sinclair's content is delivered over multiple-platforms,
including over-the-air, multi-channel video program distributors,
and digital platforms. The Company regularly uses its website
as a key source of company information which can be accessed at
www.sbgi.net.
Forward-Looking Statements for Nexstar Media
Group
This communication includes forward-looking
statements. We have based these forward-looking statements on our
current expectations and projections about future events.
Forward-looking statements include information preceded by,
followed by, or that includes the words "guidance," "believes,"
"expects," "anticipates," "could," or similar expressions. For
these statements, Nexstar claims the protection of the safe harbor
for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements
contained in this communication, concerning, among other things,
future financial performance, including changes in net revenue,
cash flow and operating expenses, involve risks and uncertainties,
and are subject to change based on various important factors,
including the impact of changes in national and regional economies,
the ability to service and refinance our outstanding debt,
successful integration of acquired television stations and digital
businesses (including achievement of synergies and cost
reductions), pricing fluctuations in local and national
advertising, future regulatory actions and conditions in the
television stations' operating areas, competition from others in
the broadcast television markets, volatility in programming costs,
the effects of governmental regulation of broadcasting, industry
consolidation, technological developments and major world news
events. Nexstar undertakes no obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. In light of these risks, uncertainties
and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this
communication might not occur. You should not place undue reliance
on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the
date of this release. For more details on factors that could affect
these expectations, please see Nexstar's other filings with the
SEC.
Forward-Looking Statements for Sinclair Broadcast
Group
The matters discussed in this news release include
forward-looking statements regarding, among other things, future
operating results. When used in this news release, the words
"outlook," "intends to," "believes," "anticipates," "expects,"
"achieves," "estimates," and similar expressions are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to
a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results in the future
could differ materially and adversely from those described in the
forward-looking statements as a result of various important
factors, including, but not limited to the impact of approval,
adoption and implementation of ATSC 3.0, changes in national and
regional economies, the volatility in the U.S. and global economies
and financial credit markets which impact our ability to forecast,
our ability to integrate acquired businesses and maximize operating
synergies, our ability to obtain necessary governmental approvals
for announced acquisitions, successful execution of outsourcing
agreements, pricing and demand fluctuations in local and national
advertising, volatility in programming costs, the market's
acceptance of new programming, our news share strategy, our local
sales initiatives, the execution of retransmission consent
agreements, our ability to identify and consummate investments in
attractive non-television assets and to achieve anticipated returns
on those investments once consummated, and any other risk factors
set forth in the Company's most recent reports on Form 10-Q, Form
10-K and Form 8-K, as filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. There can be no assurances that the assumptions
and other factors referred to in this release will occur. The
Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the result of
any revisions to these forward-looking statements except as
required by law.
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SOURCE Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.