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Howard wants out of job now
It is beginning to look like shock jock Howard Stern's transition from broadcast radio to an upstart satellite service will be anything but smooth, prompting Mr. Stern to explore whether he can make the leap earlier than expected.
With a little more than a year until Mr. Stern jumps to Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. from Viacom Inc.'s Infinity Broadcasting, the popular radio host has gone on the warpath against his current employer.
The issue is that Viacom has withdrawn its financial support from Mr. Stern's legal fight against Clear Channel Communication Inc., which dropped his show earlier this year after the Federal Communications Commission began a crackdown on indecent broadcasts.
The about-face has infuriated Mr. Stern, who has lambasted Infinity management on the air during his past few shows, but without mentioning the legal issue at the root of the squabble. People close to Infinity say that because Mr. Stern was secretly negotiating with Sirius while enlisting the support of Infinity's legal team in a suit against Clear Channel, Infinity no longer feels compelled to back him. Spokesmen for Infinity and Sirius declined to comment; Mr. Stern's agent couldn't be reached.
Mr. Stern is negotiating to get out of his contract with Infinity so he can join Sirius earlier than the 2006 date currently planned. Mr. Stern announced his planned move to Sirius last month, live on his show. Sirius likely would have to pay a steep price to land Mr. Stern early; he brings in some $80 million annually in advertising revenue and $50 million annually in cash flow to Infinity, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Stern's rants have led some close to the situation to believe that he is trying to goad Infinity into taking him off the air, which the company doesn't want to do unless Sirius ponies up to buy out his contract.
At the end of June, Infinity and Mr. Stern filed a $10 million breach-of-contract suit against Clear Channel for dropping Mr. Stern's show earlier in the year. In July, Clear Channel countersued for $3 million, alleging Mr. Stern broke his contract with the company by not conforming to federal decency standards
The Rumors you may or may
not want to know about ...
* Look for a big day 6/30/05 - We hear sirius
will take off to $8.00
* Howard Stern is to announce something regarding Sirius in about two weeks
*
Sony + Sirius Deal? Is it in the works? Seems like a logical move, as Apple didn't want to get involved. Then again we are in Rumorville!
* Stock is rumored to fall until Stern Signs on early
* Howard Stern to quit early? Will he say F*** You to broadcast radio, and make the jump soon to Sirius?
Rumor has it, it may be next month.
*What is up with Sirius & XM lately? The two companies have seemed to merge together in the media. Is a possibly buyout in store? Will Viacom, and
Sumner Redstone
buy both companies?
All statements contained are not verified for their accuracy. The statements may or may not be true and therefore are not to be relied on.
For entertainment purposes only.
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