$30M to Inflate TFN’s Ball

Cornell Capital Partners L.P. will provide The Football Network with $30 million in funding through a standby equity-distribution agreement, the network said Tuesday.

TFN must first register with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The network, which has been off the air, had carriage agreements in place with Cox Communications Inc., Time Warner Cable and the National Cable Television Cooperative Inc.

TFN and the state of Louisiana also entered into a partnership in May 2003 whereby the state and other private Louisiana entities invested approximately $23 million in cash, equipment, services and building the network’s studio.

“We believed that there was a place for TFN within the world of cable television,” TFN CEO Jerry Solomon said in a prepared statement. “While we still have several hurdles to cross before this deal becomes final, with Cornell's support, we feel that we can pick up where our soft launch left off last December.”