TW would consider NBC acquisition

But there are no immediate plans, Bewkes says

By Georg Szalai

June 9, 2008, 06:30 PM ET

Time Warner has no immediate plans to acquire NBC but might consider a deal if the network became available, TW president and CEO Jeffrey Bewkes said Monday, further opening the door for a buzzed-about potential deal.

"We don't need to (own a broadcast network) or have a particular agenda," Bewkes said at a Deutsche Bank investor conference. After joking that it depends on which network they were talking about, he acknowledged that NBC has been the subject of market chatter and added, "We'd have to look at that if and when it came up."

Bewkes suggested that cable networks, the key driver of growth at NBC Universal of late, were the GE entertainment arm's core media businesses, signaling that he might not be ready to buy all of NBC Uni.

There has been on Wall Street, but GE executives repeatedly have said that the NBC Uni was not for sale.

Also at the conference, Viacom Inc. president and CEO Philippe Dauman discussed his firm's acquisitions outlook.

For Viacom, the era when big deals meant great value creation is "largely over," he said, adding that smaller tuck-in acquisitions with higher returns are his main deal focus.

TW would consider NBC acquisition

But there are no immediate plans, Bewkes says

By Georg Szalai

June 9, 2008, 06:30 PM ET