“Bloomberg LP would then become by far the biggest part of the New York Times Company, and the eponymous founder would become, by far, its biggest shareholder, with about 83% of the Class A shares and 55% of the Class B shares. In doing so, he would essentially have achieved his decades-long dream of buying the New York Times. (The Sulzbergers, by contrast, would own about 0.6% of the Class A shares, and the other 45% of the Class B shares.)
“The exact breakdown of Class B share ownership would be subject to detailed negotiation, of course. But it’s easy to imagine that Arthur Sulzberger might remain chairman of the vastly-expanded New York Times Company. The deal could be structured so that the Ochs-Sulzberger family would not only become much richer, but could also credibly claim that they continued to own the New York Times. (After all, they have had only a minority economic interest for many years already.)
“Once the acquisition closed, Mike Bloomberg would find it much easier to give away his wealth.”
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