Diller and Malone have settled their litigation, leaving IACI free to complete its restructuring:
UPDATE 1-IAC, Liberty reach agreement over IAC spin-offs
Tue May 13, 2008 5:49pm EDT
NEW YORK, May 13 (Reuters) - Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI.O: Quote, Profile, Research) and its controlling shareholder, John Malone's Liberty Media, have reached an agreement on spinning off four of IAC's largest businesses, putting to rest a dispute that took the two top executives to court.
Liberty said it now backs a proposal by Diller that the spun-off IAC units operate under a single-tier share structure, a move that would dilute Liberty's control but, Diller argued, would make them more attractive to outside investors.
IAC plans to spin off its HSN cable shopping network, Ticketmaster box office service, Interval time share exchange and LendingTree online mortgage business. The remaining IAC will focus on its Internet media and advertising businesses.
Liberty agreed to drop an appeal, filed last week, of a Delaware court decision from late March over the spin-offs and said it would support IAC's proposed control structure for the units as independent entities.
A dispute over the spin-off plan had pitted IAC Chief Executive Diller against Liberty Chairman Malone, his long-time friend and business partner, in court.
"I am pleased that we were able to amicably resolve our dispute with IAC," Malone said in a statement. "Liberty supports the proposed restructuring of IAC and looks forward to the ongoing success of each of the new entities and IAC."
Liberty owns about 30 percent of IAC but holds 62 percent voting control through a two-tier share structure. (Reporting by Michele Gershberg; Editing by Andre Grenon, Gary Hill)
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