Cash Is King

February 18, 2009 By David Burn Leave a Comment

John Malone, the media mogul living in Colorado, has cash. That makes him king.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Malone used that cash to swoop in at the last minute and save Sirius XM from the clutches of bankruptcy.

By lending Sirius $530 million, Liberty receives a 40% stake in the satellite-radio operator, plus at least two board seats. The loan will also bear an interest rate of 15%.
A cable executive for nearly three decades of his career, Mr. Malone developed a reputation for driving hard bargains, often structuring complex financial transactions to take advantage of distressed situations.
He has collected an assortment of businesses under the Liberty umbrella, including home-shopping network QVC, the Atlanta Braves baseball team and a 30% stake in Ticketmaster.

Filed Under: Brands, Media Trends, Radio

About David Burn

I wrote my first ad for a local political candidate when I was 17. She went on to win her race, and I felt the power of persuasive copy for the first time. Starting in Portland in 1995, I worked my way across the country as a copywriter and eventually became a content director making media products for big packaged goods brands. I returned to Oregon in 2008, and now I focus on building brands for companies that matter, including this one.