Media entrepreneur Byron Allen struck a deal to acquire the Weather Channel from Comcast Corp. and private-equity firms Blackstone Group LP and Bain Capital for $300 million.
Allen’s Los Angeles-based media company, Entertainment Studios, purchased Weather Group, the parent company of the Weather Channel and Local Now streaming service, for $300 million, according to a person familiar with the terms who was not authorized to comment publicly. It’s the largest acquisition in Entertainment Studios’ history.
The Weather Channel is based in Atlanta and has 400 employees. Entertainment Studios had been seeking a deal for about a year, and talks got serious in the last three to four months.
“The acquisition of The Weather Channel is strategic, as we begin our process of investing billions of dollars over the next five years to acquire some of the best media assets around the world,” Allen said in a statement.
