Cooke Hikes Multimedia Bid, Asks Vote by Holders

Washington Redskins’ owner Jack Kent Cooke, reaffirming his desire to gain control of Multimedia Inc., raised his bid to more than $65 a share Friday and challenged the firm’s board of directors to put the $1-billion-plus offer to the company’s shareholders.

“My interest in acquiring Multimedia continues at the highest level,” Cooke said in a letter delivered to the Greenville, S.C.-based company.

Multimedia officials had no immediate response to Cooke’s latest offer.

Multimedia, which produces and syndicates the “Donahue” television show, owns 43 newspapers, five television stations, 10 radio stations and more than 100 cable-television stations.

The company recently turned aside two attempted takeover bids, including a $1.05-billion offer from Cooke in April to purchase the company’s outstanding stock at $63 a share. In rejecting Cooke’s original bid, Multimedia said representatives of the firms’ founding families and certain members of management have approved a recapitalization plan to ensure control of the company.

The firm’s founding families--Peace, Jolley, Furman and Sisk--control about 43% of the company’s common stock.

Cooke accused the families, working through Wall Street investment bankers, of offering institutional investors who control about 8% of the company’s stock the opportunity to buy shares of the reorganized company “advantageously” in exchange for their support of the proposed recapitalization.

“The intended effect of this is to block my attempts to offer stockholders a better price for their shares,” Cooke said.

Under the terms of the recapitalization plan, each Multimedia share will be exchanged for $41.25 in cash and $26.54 face amount of 16% subordinated discount debentures.

Shareholders would have the option to retain an equity stake-stock--in the newly structured Multimedia, equal to about 80% of their current equity stake.

Stockholders who choose to receive the equity would receive 80% of their current equity, plus the debentures and $36 cash, rather than $41.25.