While the world waits to see whether McCaw Cellular Communications Inc comes back with a higher offer than its current $110 a share tender for LIN Broadcasting Inc – perhaps having to turn to 22% shareholder British Telecommunications Plc for more cash, the big winners if the current best game in town, the merger of LIN’s cellular interests with those of BellSouth Corp seem to be BellSouth shareholders, who as the Wall Street Journal points out should see the value of their existing cellular business reflected in the share price, which it is not at present – and the pact with LIN means that BellSouth gets an option to increase its stake in the combined business to 75% from the initial 50%, and ultimately to buy out the minority altogether.
