The New York Post yesterday reported that Alden Global Capital principal Randall Smith, owner of roughly 30 percent of the Inquirer & News properties, has remained quiet amid PMN's auction that is expected to reap about $100 million. PMN acquired the dailies out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from Philadelphia Media Holdings (see "TUOL" post 7/11/11).
Romanesko's media blog reported that PMN CEO Greg Osberg discounted the Post story, assuring PMN employees in a memo that shareholders routinely boost or reduce their ownership levels in properties and that a minority owner may only sell his percentage of ownership in the dailies, not the dailies themselves.
Alden Capital and other hedge funds doled out $139 million for their Philly stake (sorry), the Post reported, but it seems that Smith, a major shareholder in a variety of media entities, including Gannett, Freedom Communications and Journal Register Co., may be losing his taste for media empire building.
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