CME has sold the most popular Croatian TV channel.
Central European Media Enterprises (CME) announced on Monday that it has sold for 230 million euros its media operations in Slovenia and Croatia to Slovenia Broadband, a subsidiary of United Group. They expect that the transaction will be completed by the end of the year, reports Večernji List on 10 July 2017.
The CME portfolio includes Nova TV in Croatia and POP TV in Slovenia.
The transaction price, according to the CME's statement, amounts to 230 million euros, and the joint operating profit of Nova TV and POP TV amounted to 13.8 million dollars.
“This is a transformational moment in the history of CME. We have always had a great set of assets, and this transaction underscores the continuing attractiveness of television companies in the region. When the transaction is concluded, this sale will speed up our debt reduction plans,” said executive director of CME Michael Del Nin.
CME is a media company operating in markets of six Central and Eastern European countries, comprising about 50 million people.
Earlier this morning, it was announced that the United Group, a telecommunications and media group owned by US investment companies KKR and EBRD, will take over CME's Slovenian and Croatian media portfolios. The KKR's statement says that the portfolio of assets includes leading TV channels in Slovenia and Croatia, the two economies in which GDP growth of more than 2 percent is expected in the period from 2016 to 2018.
United Group will continue to invest in these channels to further develop their local production capacities and expand their reach beyond local markets.
The statement also says that KCB has invested more than eight billion dollars in the telecommunications, media and digital sector globally, and has particular expertise in supporting companies to grow and develop. Since 1996, KKR has invested in 58 companies in these sectors in Europe, and on 31 March it had more than 20 billion dollars in invested long-term capital.
“By investing in quality local and international content, we will support teams of United Group to continue to offer diverse and attractive content to all customers in the region. KKR, EBRD and United Group will closely cooperate with all relevant authorities to ensure a smooth transition in line with European standards,” said the director of KKR Jean-Pierre Saad in a statement, adding that this transaction was subject to appropriate regulatory approvals.
