According to CNBC via Deadline Hollywood, an insider trading lawsuit has revealed that Disney may be selling ABC.

Disney Close to Selling ABC, According To Insider Trading Lawsuit'

An insider trading arrest may hold clues to Disney’s plans for selling ABC. A potential sale had been rumored for awhile and as recently as March Disney CEO Bob Iger said that “there are no guarantees in terms of what will remain part of our company and what will not” when asked whether Disney will sell the broadcast network. But now a criminal complaint and a SEC civil suit stemming from the Wednesday arrest of a Disney employee by the FBI in Los Angeles alleges such plans may be more advanced than previously thought. According to a CNBC report, the legal complaints state that Bonnie Hoxie, secretary to the head of Disney's corporate communications, and her boyfriend Yonni Sebbag, allegedly offered hedge funds information about Disney's quarterly earnings report, due out in May. The most intriguing part of the couple's claims: that Iger was in "serious and advanced negotiations" with two private equity firms to sell ABC. According to CNBC, the two were arrested after attempting to sell the information to undercover FBI agents, for which they allegedly accepted a $15,000 payment. As for ABC itself, it’s expected to go for $6-$7 billion if put on the market.

http://www.deadline.com/2010/05/disney-close-to-selling-abc-according-to-insider-trading-lawsuit/#more-43865

So if Disney were to sell ABC, what would it mean for the ABC soaps?

God, I hope so. I've always thought ABC was much better pre-Disney. There was much more variety and 90% of the primetime schedule wasn't an in-house production.

Don't know what it means for the soaps, and at this point, I no longer care, sadly.

Probably that they would stop catering to teens. No more musicals on OLTL. Woo!

The storylines would be more adult like they were when Capital Cities owned ABC.

Frons would probably be out!!!!

Deadline just updated. Disney issued a statement and are denying that they are trying to sell ABC.

Damn, do it Disney! Do it! Sell it!

If Disney ever sold ABC, I doubt anything would change. The television landscape, as a whole, has changed since the days when Cap Cities owned the network.

Disney can deny whatever they want. I'm a shareholder in Disney and it's been evident from the yearly investment prospectus that they've been gearing up to sell ABC. The network is in a good position to be sold, I say go for it Disney, ABC was far better when Capital Cities owned it.

And yes, I am willing to bet that if ABC sold Disney, Frons would be fired. I don't think anything would be done with the soaps for at least a year of ownership.

Who's going to buy it?

Good question.

Steve Jobs, perhaps?

Good question.

Steve Jobs, perhaps?

So it'll now be called Apple TV?

Better than "the CW", if you ask me.

Who's going to buy it?

Apparently there are 2 private equity firms who are interested.

Better than "the CW", if you ask me.

+1.

I was going more the Larry Ellison route, LOL. But Jobs would be good.

Apparently there are 2 private equity firms who are interested.

Which would be for the better, IMO.

It's strange to think a television network would be owned by a corporate entity that wasn't in-and-of-itself an industry titan, but that's what "Merger Mania" does to your way of thinking, I guess.