Tribune Media Sells Gracenote To Nielsen For $560 Million

Sold To Nielsen

TRIBUNE MEDIA COMPANY has agreed to sell substantially all of its Digital and Data business operations, comprised of GRACENOTE video, music and sports, to the NIELSEN COMPANY for $560 million in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments.  The sale is expected to close during the first quarter of 2017.

"We are extremely proud to have grown our Digital and Data business into a vibrant global enterprise, with talented and creative people who deliver outstanding service to blue-chip clients around the world," said TRIBUNE Pres./CEO PETER LIGUORI.  "From a strategic standpoint, however, we are pleased to be streamlining our company so that we can focus even more intently on seizing future opportunities for our local television and entertainment business. Further, our intention to pay a special dividend, continue our share repurchase program and repay debt reflects our long-standing commitment to returning capital to shareholders while maintaining a balanced approach to our overall capital structure."   

"Over the last three years, under TRIBUNE's ownership, we've transformed GRACENOTE into a global data powerhouse and NIELSEN's acquisition ushers in an exciting new chapter for our people, products and customers," said Gracenote CEO JOHN BATTER. "NIELSEN is a natural home for GRACENOTE. Both companies have entertainment data at their core and have spent years delivering services to the world's top media brands. Bringing together our data for driving discovery and tune-in with NIELSEN's deep insights about what people are watching, listening to and buying makes a formidable combination."

“GRACENOTE’s metadata and content recognition technology fuels the interfaces of the major video, music and in-car infotainment systems that consumers engage with every day. This acquisition provides NIELSEN with a significant asset in our mission of measuring and understanding consumer behavior,” said NIELSEN Pres./Expanded Verticals KARTHIK RAO.

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