Financial Briefs
Comcast Corp. has obtained retransmission rights for broadcast stations owned and operated by Capital Cities/ABC Inc. and Hearst Corp. as part of its distribution agreement with ESPN2, a new sports channel owned 80% by CapCities/ABC and 20% by Hearst. The agreement provides for a substantial rollout of ESPN2 on Comcast's systems in the next four years. Cablevision Industries, Helicon, Prime Cable and Viacom Cable signed similar agreements with CapCities/ABC.
New York 1 News, Time Warner's all-news cable channel, said Fortune magazine will produce daily business reports for the channel starting Sept. 7. The reports will include market updates and stories about business and economic news of interest to New Yorkers.
Rogers Cable, the largest cable operator in Canada, posted a net loss of $ C 35.3 million (25 cents a share) for the second quarter ended June 30 vs. a $ C76 .5 million (54 cents) net loss a year ago. Revenues were $ C336 million vs. $ C 293.7 in the comparable quarter.
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Warner Communications Inc. has called for the redemption, on Sept. 10, of about $ 138 million in outstanding principal on 11% debentures due 1999. Redemption price is 103.3% of principal plus accrued interest. The debentures were originally issued by Lorimar Telepictures Corp.
Great American Communications Co. reported a net loss of $ 12.4 million (22 cents a share), for the second quarter ended June 30. That compares to a net loss of $ 14.5 million (26 cents). Revenues for the Cincinnati-based company slid to $ 55.9 million from $ 56.7 million in the same period. Revenues increased 2% in the broadcast stations group.
