Liberty Media Boosts DirecTV Stake
April 9, 2008 12:28 am NewsENGLEWOOD, Colo. - Liberty Media Corp., a diversified media holding company, said Thursday it has purchased 78.3 million shares of DirecTV to increase its stake in the No. 1 satellite television provider to 48 percent.
Liberty Media (nasdaq: LCAPA - news - people ), controlled by media entrepreneur John Malone, financed the private transaction by borrowing $1.98 billion against a new equity collar on 110 million shares of DirecTV Group Inc. (nyse: DTV - news - people )
“The additional shares and equity collar each increase our exposure to DirecTV’s equity and further align Liberty’s interests with those of the DirecTV shareholders,” Greg Maffei, chief executive of Liberty Media, said in a statement…read more at Forbes.