Belo CEO: Newspapers' pace of decline will slow
By Leah McBride Mensching, Thursday 31 January 2008 at 18:39 :: Newspaper Data :: #1182 :: rss
Although Belo Corp.'s pace of revenue decline increased during the last three months of 2007, that pace will slow in 2008, Robert Decherd, Belo chairman and CEO, announced Wednesday.
Decherd made the announcement in New York, where he is attempting sell his plan to spin off Belo's newspaper divisions into a separate publicly traded company from its television stations. Overall in 2007, Belo's newspaper revenue dropped 9.7 percent. During the last three months of the year, however, that revenue dropped 11.5 percent, according to preliminary figures, The Dallas Morning News reported late Wednesday.
“2008 isn't going to be a pretty year for any newspaper company,” said Decherd, according to The Dallas Morning News. However, “while the industry is presently undergoing profound and fundamental changes, there will always be demand for the high-quality, in-depth local news and information that our newspapers provide.”
Belo plans to spin off its newspaper division to a new company, called A.H. Belo Corporation, a move the media company's board approved earlier this month, and is scheduled to take place Feb. 8. A.H. Belo will publish four dailies, including The Dallas Morning News, while Belo Corp. will keep its 20 television stations.
Also earlier this month, Belo disclosed it expects to reap US$51.9 million from the spinoff of its newspapers into a separate publicly traded company. Following the spin-off, Belo will owe $18 million in federal income taxes, as well as state tax, on the gain, according to a regulatory filing.
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