Disposal
21/12/2001 7:45am
UK Regulatory
RNS Number:0864P
RTL Group
21 December 2001
RTL Group sells Polish TV station RTL 7 to media group ITI
Luxembourg, 21 December 2001. - CLT-UFA, a subsidiary of Europe's leading
broadcaster RTL Group, today announces the sale of its Polish TV station RTL 7
to the media and entertainment group ITI, a majority shareholder of the Polish
commercial TV station TVN. Under the terms of the deal, ITI acquires RTL 7,
its formats, its current film library and its satellite transponder
obligations with Eutelsat. ITI plans to rebrand RTL 7 as a second TVN channel
by March and has applied to the Polish Broadcasting and Media Council for a
satellite-broadcasting license. The exact launch date and program will be
announced shortly.
RTL Group's Chief Executive Officer Didier Bellens commented: "The disposal of
RTL 7 is part of an ongoing portfolio review within RTL Group. We continue to
focus on our strong core businesses while reviewing loss-making activities. By
securing the deal with ITI we meet our satellite transponder obligations with
Eutelsat."
After examining the prospects for RTL 7, RTL Group concluded that due to the
limited technical reach of the channel it is unlikely to move into profit in
the near term. RTL 7 reaches 49% of Polish households. It had an average
audience share of 2.8% in 2001 (16 to 49, January - November) and an
advertising market share of 2.3% in 2000. It made losses of Euro 16.6 million
in 2000. RTL 7 was launched in 1996 and is broadcast by satellite under a
Luxembourg license, held by RTL Group's subsidiary CLT-UFA. ITI is listed on
the Luxembourg stock exchange (ITIH.LU).
Contact:
RTL Group Finsbury
Markus Payer Julius Duncan
+ 352 421 42 5020 + 44 207 251 3801
markus.payer@rtlgroup.com Julius.Duncan@finsbury.com