Equity Media Holdings

In the company's annual report for 2007, released on April 2, 2008, Equity said that the company was in default on its credit lines, and that if it could not find additional financing it "will need to cease all or a portion of its operations, seek protection under U.S. bankruptcy laws and regulations, engage in a restructuring or undertake a combination of these and other actions." An earlier indication of Equity's troubles came one month previously when its board of directors appointed its chairman, Henry Luken, to replace Equity founder Larry Morton as president and CEO.[3] Morton remained the chair, president and CEO of Retro Television Network.

Retro Television Network was sold to Luken's company, Luken Communications, on June 25, 2008.[4] Luken Communications continued to operate RTN out of Little Rock, Arkansas as a client of Equity's C.A.S.H. system.

In June 2008, Equity instituted a companywide suspension of news programs.[5]

In November 2008, Equity began attempts to sell all of its TV stations[6] and cut most of the company's top management[7] in a move which Chief Restructuring Officer Paul Brissette believed could allow the company a chance to avoid bankruptcy.

Equity filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 8, 2008, after the company defaulted on a loan worth $41.5 million.[1][8] One of its creditors, Silver Point Finance, soon filed to change the bankruptcy from a voluntary Chapter 11 to an involuntary Chapter 7 in an attempt to foreclose on Equity assets, as they felt that there was no way Equity could reorganize under Chapter 11, nor did they have enough funds to cover payroll.[9]

Silver Point ended its attempts to push the company directly into liquidation on December 23, in return for the appointment of Kim D. Kelly, a new Chief Restructuring Officer (CRO) who exerted near-total control to run the company and handle decisions on the sale of the individual stations.[10]

Trading in Equity Media Holdings Corporation (EMDA.Q) common stock, units, and warrants were suspended on December 18, 2008; NASDAQ announced on January 15, 2009, that the Equity-related securities were de-listed permanently.[11]

The sale of Equity's flagship Little Rock TV station KWBF (now Nexstar Broadcasting Group's KARZ-TV) closed at the end of January 2009; similarly named RTN radio station KWBF-FM had also been sold (to Flinn Broadcasting Corporation) and went silent in November 2008, later returning as KZTS under its new owner. Equity had also unexpectedly terminated a deal with the Southland Conference to carry University of Central Arkansas basketball games on KKYK-DT, effective January 14, 2009.[12]

Silver Point extended a $58 million "debtor in possession" loan on February 2, 2009, to keep Equity on-air under chief restructuring officer Kim D. Kelly, but at a hefty interest rate premium: 8% above the current London Interbank Offered Rate. The chief restructuring officer was not answerable in any way to Equity's board.[13]

On April 10, 2009, Equity announced an auction of all its stations, held on April 16 in Dallas.[2] About 60 stations (counting repeater transmitters) were sold (subject to FCC approval) at a total of $21.3 million.

A trait unique to Equity Media Holdings Corporation was their usage of a centralized group-wide hub (called by Equity the Central Automated Satellite Hub, or C.A.S.H^[Usurped!], system) where all production, programming, and master control is handled from a facility adjacent to the company's headquarters. Though such hubbing is done on regional scales for many groups, no other company had done it to the scale and magnitude of Equity and C.A.S.H.

Various C.A.S.H. stations were available free-to-air throughout North America on Ku band via Galaxy 18 (123°W) [34] or on C band via Galaxy 3C (95°W).[35] The feeds were in a format intended to be fed directly to a terrestrial television transmitter with no further studio processing.

Former logo as Equity Broadcasting

Satellite transponder space was rented from Intelsat, which claimed as of December 2008 to be owed over $580,000.

As much of the free-to air satellite programming in North America consists of ethnic-language or specialised content, Equity's demise represented a significant loss in available English/Spanish-language Ku-band free television in the US.

Under the protection of Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Equity Media Holdings Corporation sold most of these TV stations at an auction in Dallas on April 16, 2009, for a total of $21.3 million.[36] Other stations were sold at later dates or ultimately went dark.

The following stations were pending purchases by Equity Media in 2008 but never completed:[39]

• WBQM-LP- Brooklyn, New York - A Cornerstone Television station
• WMBQ-CA- Cranford, New Jersey - An MTV2 station; since changed to Cornerstone Television

The following construction permits had been issued to Equity before its 2008 bankruptcy filing; the company was unable to build the stations.

• Reno, Nevada (another station)
• West Palm Beach, Florida

• Arkansas RiverBlades (a defunct ECHL ice hockey franchise in Little Rock, Arkansas; Equity owned 51% interest in team; folded in 2003)
• Arkansas Twisters (an af2 arena football franchise in Little Rock; since moved to Allen, Texas and renamed the Allen Wranglers, as part of the Indoor Football League)

In December 2008, Equity's key liabilities included:

• $41.5 million to private equity firm Silver Point Finance LLC of Greenwich, Connecticut.
• $1.3 million to CBS Corporation for RTN programming run during the time Equity owned Retro Television Network.
• $583,931.25 to Intelsat.
• Undetermined additional liabilities to NBC (as a programming supplier) and Univision.

• Retro Jams
• Retro Television Network
• FTA receiver