Liberty Media (LMCA) and Discovery Communications (DISCA) are in talks to acquire a minority stake in global racing circuit Formula One, according to a New York Post report on Monday. <\/p>\n
Media mogul John Malone is working to make a deal happen through Liberty Media and Liberty Global (LBTYA), hoping to buy as much as 49% of Formula One from private equity firm CVC Capital. <\/p>\n
The report said talks between Liberty, Discovery and CVC Capital are in an early stage and could still fall apart. <\/p>\n
A Discovery spokesperson declined to comment. Representatives of Liberty Media and CVC didnt respond to inquiries from FOX Business. <\/p>\n
A Formula One deal would put Malones cable entities in a position to better control rights fees for sports content. Liberty Media owns U.K. cable giant Virgin Media and holds a 27% stake in Charter Communications (CHTR), which is in a fight to buy larger rival Time Warner Cable (TWC). <\/p>\n
Liberty Media is also the owner of Major League Baseballs Atlanta Braves and controls 29% of the voting power in Discovery. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Discovery recently agreed to up its stake in international sports network Eurosport to 51% from 20%. Chief executive David Zaslav indicated that Discovery would look to bolster Eurosport with more rights to programming. <\/p>\n
Formula One Group, which operates 19 races around the world each year, generates annual revenue of more than $1.5 billion. The Monte Carlo Grand Prix in France is said to be worth $7 billion to $8 billion alone, the Post reported. <\/p>\n
Longtime Formula One chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, 83, resigned from the board last month. He is facing bribery charges in Germany. <\/p>\n
Shares of Liberty Media fell 2% to $129.02 in recent trading. Discovery was down 1.6% at $78.50. <\/p>\n
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Report: Liberty, Discovery in Talks for Formula 1 Stake<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Liberty Media (LMCA) and Discovery Communications (DISCA) are in talks to acquire a minority stake in global racing circuit Formula One, according to a New York Post report on Monday. Continue reading