Update 10/19: KSE Radio Ventures will pay Wilks $54 million for Country “92.5 The Wolf” KWOF, Hot AC “Mix 100.3” KIMN and Classic Hits “Kool 105.1” KXKL Denver.

Original Report 10/12: Wilks Broadcast Group is selling its three Denver, CO stations to Stan Kroenke’s KSE Radio Ventures for an undisclosed amount.

Kroenke owns a number of Sports properties including the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, MLS Colorado Rapids, Denver based regional sports network Altitude Sports & Entertainment, Outdoor Channel, Sportsman’s Channel, World Fishing Network as well as the NFL’s St. Louis Rams and Arsenal FC of the UK Premier League. The real estate mogul made his fortune developing properties around father-in-law Sam Walton’s Wal-Mart’s.

Following the divestiture of Country “92.5 The Wolf” KWOF, Hot AC “Mix 100.3” KIMN and Classic Hits “Kool 105.1” KXKL in this deal, Wilks will only retain its clusters in Columbus, OH and Reno, NV. As KSE already operates the radio networks for its three Denver sports franchises we’d expect one of the stations to flip to Sports with the rights to the Nuggets, Avalanche, and Rapids.

Wilks purchased the three stations from CBS for $19.5 million in 2008.

KSE Radio Ventures, LLC, a division of KSE Media Ventures, LLC, announced today its agreement to purchase three Denver radio stations from Wilks Broadcast Group LLC, an affiliate of The Wicks Group of Companies, L.L.C. The Denver stations are KIMN (FM), KXKL (FM), and KWOF (FM). Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“When these stations became available and were offered to us, we thought they would be a great addition to our media holdings,” said Matt Hutchings, President and CEO of KSE Media Ventures. “These stations have excellent local management and staff, which we look forward to welcoming to our family. We are excited with this opportunity to continue the success of these stations that Jeff Wilks and his company have built.”

“We are pleased to announce the sale of our Denver radio stations to KSE Radio Ventures,” said Jeff Wilks, Chief Executive Officer of Wilks Broadcasting. “We think the Kroenke media group will be a great owner for these assets given their experience in the Denver market.”

The transaction is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory and other approvals.

About KSE Radio Ventures, LLC and KSE Media Ventures, LLC
KSE Radio Ventures, LLC is a division of KSE Media Ventures, LLC, a Denver-based company that owns and operates multiple media businesses, including Altitude Television Network, Outdoor Sportsman Group of companies (Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel, and World Fishing Network, as well as 15 publications, 17 websites, and other outdoor related business), Skycam, Winnercom, and their television network operations center, based in Centennial, Colorado.

About Wilks Broadcast Group
Wilks Broadcast Group, LLC and certain affiliated companies have been established as a platform to acquire and operate radio broadcasting stations in attractive mid-size U.S. markets.

About The Wicks Group
The Wicks Group of Companies, L.L.C. is a private equity firm based in New York City that invests in lower-middle-market companies operating in selected segments of the information, education and media industries. Since its founding in 1989, Wicks has invested over $1 billion of capital in 31 platform companies and approximately 100 add-on acquisitions. The firm has applied a consistent investment strategy since its founding, partnering with high-quality, experienced management teams to build businesses both organically and through acquisitions.