Update TV9, SunTV deny that there is any talk of a sale

IndianMascot

IndianMascot

Core Member
It seemed like a juicy development. And it appeared to be factual because it was being published in one of the few publications, which has some credibility left - The Hindu Business Line. Sun TV is acquiring TV9 for Rs 150 cr, read the headline.

Now the Sun TV group, venture capitalist Srini Raju who owns a majority stake in ABCL (the holding company of the TV9 channels) and TV9 have come out vociferously against the report.

While Sun TV’s CFO SL Narayan has termed the news item as total rubbish, venture capitalist Srini Raju has said that it was totally false. “Sun TV group never approached me with such an offer, and there’s not an iota of truth in it,” Raju told Mint, from the Hindustan Times stable, a short while ago.

The TV9 senior management has termed it as totally speculative, saying there are no talks with Sun Network for a stake sale.

A company spokesman clarified to indiantelevision.com that, “at no point of time were any talks held with Sun Network. It is totally wrong to speculate on the price of Rs 150 crore which is only a fraction of our annual turnover. Any person with knowledge of such deals would naturally appreciate that companies are not sold for fractions of their turnover but are sold in multiples of their annual turnover.”


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IndianMascot

IndianMascot

Core Member
Previous News :

Sun TV eyeing TV9 channels in Rs 150-cr buy

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The Kalanithi Maran-controlled Sun TV Network Ltd is close to acquiring Hyderabad-based Associated Broadcasting Company Pvt Ltd (ABCL), which manages a chain of regional news channels under the brand TV9.

ABCL has six news channels — one in Telugu, two in Kannada, and one each in Gujarati, Marathi and English. According to sources, the Mauritius-based private equity firm Saif Partners has substantial stake in the company, and is looking to exit.

“The deal may be struck for approximately Rs 150 crore,” a person close to the development told Business Line.

TV9 is the market leader in the news genre in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, with a considerable lead over other news channels.

TO SUN’S ADVANTAGE

Sun Network, with a Rs 16,000-crore market capitalisation, has a strong presence in the South with 32 channels across all genres in the four regional languages. While its Tamil bouquet is the market leader by a wide margin, its lead in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka is more modest. In Kerala, it trails Asianet.

According to an industry analyst, if the TV9 deal goes through, Sun TV’s market share in the news genre will get an immediate boost. It could also lead to a consolidationin the South as smaller players with low TRP shares are in danger of losing out when the TRAI-mandated cap on advertising comes into effect, in October.


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