In mid-January, Imagicomm Communications confirmed it was selling all of the stations it acquired as Cox Media Group spinoffs linked to the non-consummated Standard General acquisition of TEGNA. The first deal involved Marquee Broadcasting. On April 2, Todd Parkin’s Rincon Broadcasting struck a bigger deal. Now, Imagicomm’s remaining properties have found a buyer, with Kalil & Co. serving as a strategic advisor.
Imagicomm properties in Alexandria, La. (KLAX-31); Binghamton (WICZ-40) and Syracuse, N.Y. (WSYT-68); Idaho Falls, Idaho (KPVI-6); and Greenville, Miss. stations WABG (ABC), WABG-HD2 (FOX), WNBD (NBC), and WXVT (CBS) — properties once owned by Brian Brady and his Northwest Broadcasting — are being sold to Deltavision Media.
It’s an entity owned and operated by Webb Collums, who has a strong family history in media in southwest Mississippi and is currently invested in the Mississippi Delta region.
How much is Imagicomm, the South Carolina-headquartered parent of MVPD-distributed channel INSP led by CEO David Cerullo, earning from the sale?
That’s not yet known, with paperwork to be filed with the FCC for its regulatory approval the source for the financial details.
What is known is that Imagicomm is poised to exit broadcast ownership some three years after it stunned many in the industry with its $488 million transaction to purchase the CMG spins. And, it is believed Cerullo opted to exit because of costs associated with ATSC 3.0 transition and retransmission consent questions linked to at least some of the stations.
