Bulgaria

[BG] The First Private TV Channel in Bulgaria Has Been Sold

IRIS 2010-4:1/10

Rayna Nikolova

New Bulgarian University

The News Corporation Inc. announced on 18 February 2010 that an agreement had been reached with Central European Media Enterprises (CME) for the sale of bTV, the first private television channel in Bulgaria.

According to the agreement CME will pay USD 400 million for acquiring 100% of the shares of bTV. The price also includes the other channels of bTV - bTV Comedy and bTV Cinema, as well as 74% of the capital of the radio company CJ.

In its official announcement News Corporation Inc. stated that the sale marks the final pull-out of the company from Central and Eastern Europe and from broadcasting free-to-air TV programmes.

The sale of bTV and the other channels is subject to approval by the Bulgarian Commission on the Protection of Competition.

Once the change in the ownership is registered with the Bulgarian Commercial Registry, the Council for Electronic Media will update its records regarding the legal entities and individuals who exercise control over the company.