Disney May Be Near Deal to Sell ABC Radio Unit

[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Andrew Sorkin & Laura Holson]
The Walt Disney Company is near a deal to sell its ABC Radio unit to Citadel Broadcasting, the nation's fifth-largest radio broadcaster, for nearly $3 billion. The sale of ABC, which owns and operates 73 stations in many top markets and a syndicated network with programming including "The Sean Hannity Show," comes just as Disney is considering an acquisition of Pixar Animation Studios. Disney has long planned to sell its ABC Radio business, which it does not consider part of its core operations. It put the business up for sale over the summer, and the auction process has dragged on for several months. Citadel is owned in large part by the private equity firm Forstmann Little. A deal would catapult it into the top tier of the industry and give it access to much larger markets. Citadel now owns and operates 155 FM and 58 AM radio stations in 47 markets in 24 states across the country, but most of those markets are outside of the major cities. ABC Radio was founded in 1943 after the Federal Communications Commission forced NBC to sell one of the two radio networks founded by RCA/NBC in 1926.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/23/business/media/23sale.html?pagewanted=all
(requires registration)