NTL noses up to Newcastle
Broadcasting group emerges as takeover bidder for Premiere League club
Posted: Thursday December 17, 1998 06:17 PM
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Newcastle United's Phillipe Albert traps the ball as his team is the target of U.S. media and broadcasting group NTL Mike Cooper/Allsport |
NEWCASTLE, England (AP) -- U.S. media and broadcasting group NTL
emerged Thursday as the company planning to take over Newcastle
United.
New York-based NTL announced it had bought a 6 percent share in
the club and had reached agreement with Newcastle's main
shareholder, Cameron Hall Developments, to buy a further 51 percent
if the broacasting company makes an offer.
NTL president and chief executive officer Barclay Knapp said the
company was hoping to gain a foothold in screening live soccer but
did not intend to have a say in the running of the team.
"NTL's approach across its business activities is to be a force
for wider choice, diversity and customer value," said Knapp, who
added that the deal would be done through a subsidiary, Premium TV.
"Through Premium TV, we have been looking at ways of bringing
more quality sport to more viewers and today's deal is in line with
that strategy," he said. "Our involvement will be for the benefit
of football, Newcastle United and its supporters. We believe
strongly that the future success of football will continue to be
developed on the enthusiasm and active support of fans.
"Whilst NTL will not be involved in any way in managing
Newcastle United and will have no influence on the running of the
club, our strategic stake on 6.3 per cent in Newcastle United gives
us a significant foothold in the market for sports television."
NTL services 25 percent of the cable television customers in
Britain and operates three of the five television channels in the
country, channels 3, 4 and 5. It also is a fiberoptic long-distance
telephone carrier and operates one of only five independent telecom
networks in the United Kingdom.
NTL said such a decision depends on a ruling by the government's
Monopolies and Mergers Commission whether BSkyB's takeover bid for
Manchester United contravenes fair trading.
Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB satellite TV company has made a 623
million pound (US$1 billion) bid for Manchester United but the
deal is on hold pending a ruling by the MMC.
When Newcastle announced last week that it was the target of
a takeover, newspaper speculation suggested the company involved
was the Sony electronics firm, with U.S. media group Time Warner
also reported to be interested.
Newcastle's chief executive, Freddie Fletcher, welcomed the
approach by NTL.
"This is good news for Newcastle United, its fans and its
shareholders," he said. "I think this is the way football is
going to develop on a more internationalized basis.
"If the best clubs are to compete with Manchester United in
Britain, and the Milans and Barceloa, they need the strength of a
company like NTL behind them."
The ownership of Newcastle has been in the headlines for the
wrong reasons during the past year.
Cameron Hall Developments is owned by Douglas Hall, a Newcastle
United director who resigned, along with co-director Freddie
Shepherd, after they were caught on tape making derogatory comments
about the women of Newcastle. They also mocked the club's fans and
called Magpies' top striker, England captain Alan Shearer, "Mary
Poppins."
Last week, Hall and Shepherd regained their places on the board
of directors and chairman Dennis Cassidy and directors John Josephs
and Tom Fenton resigned in protest.
The club's stockbrokers, BT Alex Brown, also resigned their
contract with the club because of the return of Hall and Shepherd.
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