PROVIDENCE – Providence Equity Group has completed its sale of Witchita, Kan.-based BlueStone TV Holdings Inc. to Bonten Media Group LLC and its affiliates. Terms were not disclosed.
Bonten Media was formed in November by New York-based private equity group Diamond Castle Holdings LLC – in partnership with media veteran Randy Bongarten, a former president of Emmis Television – to acquire and operate network-affiliated television stations in “attractive” U.S. markets.
BlueStone Television – founded in 2002 by Sandy DiPasquale, in partnership with Providence Equity – owns or has sales and service agreements with 14 television stations in eight markets: the Tri-Cities region of Tennessee and Virginia; Greenville, New Bern and Washington, N.C.; Chico, Redding and Eureka, Calif.; Abilene, Sweetwater and San Angelo, Texas; and Missoula, Butte and Bozeman, Mont.
“Under the leadership of Sandy DiPasquale and the entire BlueStone management team, these stations have truly differentiated themselves as leaders in their markets, with high quality news franchises and a strong commitment to the communities they serve,” said Bongarten, Bonten’s chairman and CEO. “We at Bonten Media Group, together with our network partners, will continue to focus on bringing the highest quality news and entertainment to our viewers, and being a valuable resource to our advertisers.”
Dan Wittels, co-founder and senior managing director of Diamond Castle, said: “We are extremely pleased to be partnering with Randy Bongarten and his team of highly accomplished executives to form Bonten Media Group. Our investment in the company underscores our fervent belief in the future of broadcast television as the most powerful advertising medium to reach the local marketplace. The BlueStone stations are a terrific group of assets to acquire as the first step toward achieving our goal to create one of the leaders in the television broadcast industry.”
Diamond Castle Holdings LLC is a private equity group in New York City with $1.85 billion under management. Additional information is available at www.dchold.com.
Providence Equity Partners Inc. is a global private investment firm based in Providence, with offices in New York City and London, that specializes in media, entertainment, communications and information companies. It has raised $21 billion through six funds since its founding in 1990. Additional information is available at www.provequity.com.
