The former CEO of social-networking site MySpace says he will seek a non-controlling stake in Dow Jones & Co., the parent company of The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s and Marketwatch, through a $60-per-share “Dutch auction,” reports Stephanie Kang of The Journal.
Kang wrote, “An investment group led by Internet entrepreneur Brad Greenspan sent a letter to the board of directors at Dow Jones, stating that it would buy about 25% of Dow Jones common stock at $60 per share. In the so-called Dutch auction, Dow Jones shareholders could choose to tender their shares at $60 per share. The investment group would buy shares at this price until it had acquired about $1.25 billion, about a 25% stake in Dow Jones.
“Mr. Greenspan called the proposal an ‘attractive alternative to the current options.’
“‘I have successfully built a number of Internet franchises, including MySpace, and in studying the assets of Dow Jones, I believe the potential exists to significantly enhance the company’s presence and revenue streams in electronic media.'”
Read more here. A release from Greenspan can be found here. He’s also put up a Web site for his Journal proposal.
