Middle Easterners Ready to Pounce on U.S. Media

MIDDLE EASTERNERS READY TO POUNCE ON US MEDIA
[SOURCE: TheStreet.com, AUTHOR: Liz Rappaport]
Middle Eastern investors are interested in more than just plowing money into U.S. financial firms such as Citigroup. They're looking to break into the U.S. media arena. Commercial real estate investment firm Blumberg Capital Partners is planning to launch its first fund to invest in U.S. media companies, and its investor base will consist of Middle East-based entities. The fund, for which CEO Philip Blumberg says there is interest amounting to at least $500 million, would target newspapers as well as Hollywood movie studios, online media outfits, broadcast news and possibly radio businesses. Including the use of leverage, the fund will have buying power of approximately $1.5 billion and could kick off by the second quarter next year, Blumberg says. The interest in U.S. media firms from the Middle East comes as foreign investors take advantage of a deflated U.S. dollar to buy into cash-strapped U.S. entities or firms that appear cheap.
http://www.thestreet.com/s/middle-easterners-ready-to-pounce-on-us-media...