2010-01-04 Berkery Noyes Releases 2009 Media Merger & Acquisition Trends – Not Half Bad

Media Industry M&A activity exhibited mixed trends in 2009 with a volumetric decline but a rise in aggregate deal value. Volume declined by 37% from 700 deals in 2008 to 441 in 2009. However, aggregate deal value increased by 12% from $32.68 billion in 2008 to $36.51 billion in 2009. This rise in overall value for the year is primarily attributable to the Comcast – NBC Universal deal, announced on December 3, which has a transaction value of $13.75 billion.

Excluding the Comcast – NBC Universal deal, the 2nd half 2009 still showed the first significant rise in activity versus the previous half, as measured by aggregate deal value, since the initial market decline from the peak of 1st half 2007. Half-over-half, aggregate value decreased by 94% from 1st half 2007 to 1st half 2009. However, excluding the Comcast – NBC Universal deal, a significant portion of deal value was regained in 2nd half 2009 when aggregate deal value increased to $17 billion, compared with $6 billion in 1st half 2009, and $96 billion in 1st half 2007, and roughly on par with 1st half 2008 levels.

Volumetrically, while the decline in activity continued through both halves of 2009, 2nd half 2009 showed a decreased rate of decline versus the previous half than 1st half 2009 and 2nd half of 2008 did. Half-to-half, the average rate of decline in activity from 1st half 2007 through 2nd half 2009 was 12%. From 1st half 2009 to 2nd half 2009, however, that rate slowed to a more moderate 7%.

Berkery Noyes provides skilled transaction management to publicly traded and privately held businesses and private equity groups in both sell-side and buy-side mergers and acquisitions. We have managed transactions ranging from several million to more than four billion dollars in value, with an emphasis on mid market transactions of $10 million to $500 million in enterprise value.

Our clients include private companies seeking a buyer, most of the major international information companies, and private equity firms who use the firm’s expertise in locating, analyzing and negotiating with acquisition candidates and in managing divestitures. The firm operates with a staff of forty professionals serving the information industry.

For more information, visit www.berkerynoyes.com or call John Shea or James Berkery at (212) 668-2022.