News Corp.-MGM talks ‘stall’

LOS ANGELES – News Corp.’s talks on a possible bid for Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. – a company that Providence-based Providence Equity Partners Inc. helped acquire in 2004 – have stalled, according to Bloomberg News.
News Corp., which already owns the Twentieth Century Fox film studio, isn’t agreeing to terms MGM is seeking from bidders ahead of a formal auction, Bloomberg said, citing an unidentified source.
MGM is seeking a buyer because it is almost $4 billion in debt. The studio, which owns about 4,000 movie titles, could fetch between $1.5 billion and $3 billion, some news reports have said.
MGM has said its lenders have agreed to extend forbearance on the debt until Jan. 31, while the company evaluates its options.
MGM was acquired for about $5 billion in 2004 by a consortium that included Providence Equity and another buyout firm, TPG Capital, as well as media companies Sony Corp., Comcast Corp. Each controls 20 percent of MGM, while buyout firm DLJ Merchant Partners holds a 7 percent stake and Quadrangle Group holds 3 percent.
Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. expressed interest in purchasing MGM at a Nov. 12 conference in New York, and Liberty Media Corp. Chairman John Malone said his company would look at the studio, Bloomberg said.