RBR+TVBR ANALYSIS
WEST PALM BEACH — As most media industry executives know by now, there are two linear media brands that carry the Katz name. The first is Katz Media Group, the iHeartMedia-owned national advertising entity led by CEO Mark Gray. The other is Katz Networks, (pronounced “Cates”) — the Atlanta-based operation founded by Jonathan Katz.
Since late 2017, the latter entity has been wholly owned by The E.W. Scripps Co., and now it will be matrimonially paired with ION Networks, thanks to a blockbuster merger announced early Thursday.
What this means for many other companies, however, is the underreported side of this $2.65 billion transaction. That’s because some of Katz Networks’ offerings are set to migrate, creating a hole in markets such as Miami — and a potential problem for Univision.
