ITV battles UTV for stake in Irish channel

flogen

DMC wrote:

Um, I think you might be mixing a few things up...

The state of play is that UTV are the Channel 3 Licence holder, granted by Ofcom (and the ITC before it), which has nothing to do with ITV plc. except that it shows the programmes on a federal basis. UTV pay the going rate for income/size of audience to ITV to show their programmes. As this wasn't that important decades ago, you can be sure that it is a big thing in the years to come.

My mistake; I wasn't sure if it was ITV or someone else that made the decision on UTV etc.... Thanks for clearing that up

As I see it, UTV are planning their exit strategy from Channel 3 licence holder. A hard thing for them to do, on the face of it, as it is run like it was a family company for so many years, and still is their bread and butter. But with such a big buy such as The Wireless Group (TalkSport) and a big noise in Radio down here (LMFM, Limerick's Live 95 FM, Cork's 96/103FM, Q102 in Dublin) and in NI now (U105 in Belfast) it's hard not to see whats being planned in Havelock House.
All that has to be done, is ITV to name their price and UTV agree.

So you think that they'll drop ITV programming in favour of homegrown and imports, using their radio income to back it all up? What would that mean for TV3 if they bought it? Would they try and keep the ITV franchise there or drop that too, with ITV coming in to NI (and as a result RoI) after all?

DMC

What I'm thinking, is that ITV will buy the Channel 3 licence for NI off UTV in some way, and UTV's radio assets will be retained by UTV's shareholders.

If ITV took over UTV in that fashion, and had TV3... I can't see it being played anyway different, tbh. Each area is controlled by whatever legislation and whatever jurisdiction.

If UTV took over TV3, different kettle o' fish, but could be more of the same. And its hard to see what UTV would do different. TV3, like UTV, pay ITV for their programming, but I can't help but think that the costs might go up.
UTV, within the tight constraints of the ITV1 network schedule, do a lot of opt-outs, such as not taking the networked 5pm offering in favour of World's Dumbest Animals and UTV Life. Also, until last year, they did the Kelly show in prime time Friday night. I'd fancy that UTV would up the home produced content on a UTV owned TV3.

But, as I said before, I wouldn't buy TV3, as its licence will be up within 2 years.

It's a lot of if's and but's...

Elmo

But these licences were given out in analogue days, and over the past few years, ITV have been pressurizing the UK govt and Ofcom to relent a bit on their PSB commitments, because, come 2012, ITV won't be one channel in 5, it will be one channel in at least 30 or more. Those licences will not be offered again.

Hence the problem with ITV taking over TV3. ITV want Ofcom to "relent" on their PSB commitments, thus we have a futher dumbing down of ITV and it becomes more and more like Five and TV3. ITV would have no plans to make any TV in Ireland. And the little that TV3 do produce under ITV will be made for a British Audience. TV3 present BallyKissangle Blah Blah Blah.

UTV would possibly make more Irish TV, but would prob produce it all up in the North, I would if the BCI would have a problem with that or would they be happy that they where meeting their Irish Requirements.

But, as I said before, I wouldn't buy TV3, as its licence will be up within 2 years.

2008 10 years on. A handful of programming coming from Ireland. Starts out with 155 employees hasn't increase it's employee base all that much they are at around 180 employees at this stage. And at least €50,000,000 a year coming from advertising revenue (The Sunday Tribune put there revenue at around €70,000,000).

In 2008 the BCI will have to put down the law and increase the number of Hours of Irish TV coming from TV3 during Prime Time.

I am sure that ITV wouldn't like more requirements for one of their core assets. Its bring them in at least 30,000,000 a year (Dividends and TV Rights). If they where to spend 120,000,000 on the other 55% it might not look like such a good investment come 2008.

flogen

Elmo wrote:

Hence the problem with ITV taking over TV3. ITV want Ofcom to "relent" on their PSB commitments, thus we have a futher dumbing down of ITV and it becomes more and more like Five and TV3. ITV would have no plans to make any TV in Ireland. And the little that TV3 do produce under ITV will be made for a British Audience. TV3 present BallyKissangle Blah Blah Blah.

Surely ITV, or anyone who buys would have to follow BCI rules on Irish productions; not that TV3 make a hell of a lot as it stands.

Interesting to see if NI-made programming would be classed as homegrown, or would the BCI demand the shows be produced in the Republic?
As it stands they only have news, sport and breakfast and even if ITV or UTV planned on simulcasting their existing broadcast on TV3 they could continue to have those shows created

If only the BCI would crack the whip, but I don't see that happening.

DMC

More news today... 3 way fight... and a lot of my thinking appears at the end of the story

Bidders battle it out over Ireland's TV3

http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,,1764001,00.html

8am
Lisa O'Carroll
Tuesday May 2, 2006

Three bidders are in the running to become ITV's partner in Irish broadcaster TV3, with Ulster TV the favourite to win the race.

UTV and two private equity firms - Doughty Hanson and Veronis Suhler Stevenson - have made it to the final stage to buy out ITV's partner, Canadian media giant CanWest, which put its 45% stake on the market earlier this year.

All three lodged bids at the end of March valuing the station at more than £180m and a preferred bidder will be chosen this week.

Under its shareholder agreement, CanWest must then give ITV the opportunity to match the bid. If ITV decides not to, it must exit the channel completely, effectively giving the new shareholder a chance to gain 90% of the channel.

The prospect of a private equity group emerging as the winner will do little to calm nerves at TV3 because it will almost certainly mean another unsettling sale a few years down the line.

ITV plc acquired the stake through Granada, which bought into the station five years ago, helping its prime time ratings rocket with household favourites such as Coronation Street and The X Factor.

Doughty Hanson, an international group, has three distinct operations - private equity, real estate and technology ventures. Among its investments are sportswear giant Umbro and the Priory group of rehab clinics in the UK made famous by former patients including Paula Yates and Paul Gascoigne.

Doughty bought the Priory in 2002 for just over £306m and sold it for a handsome £875m in 2005 after fattening up the business and cutting operating costs. Veronis Suhler, a New York based equity firm, has long associations with the media - it engineered the merger of Rupert Murdoch's Sky TV and the loss-making British Satellite Broadcasting in 1991 and have continued to take an interest in British media ever since.

It recently backed the acquisition of a Dutch newspaper by Ulster newspaper man David Montgomery and in early April ITV sold VSS its educational publishing unit, Granada Learning, for £53m.

TV3's future was put in the balance earlier this year when CanWest put its 45% stake up for sale. Under its shareholder agreement, the UK broadcaster, ITV, was given pre-emption rights on the stake. A source at ITV said: "If someone is desperate enough to get control and put silly money on the table we will sell."

The commercial process put in train by CanWest amounts to a sale of the entire channel because - under 'do or die' clause in the shareholder agreement - ITV is obliged to sell its own stake too if it decides not to buy out its partner.

The sale and valuation of TV3 has been complicated by a separate programme supply agreement between ITV and the Irish station to provide prime time hits including Coronation Street. ITV is obliged to supply the programmes for up to two more years, but after that TV3 has to no rights to the soaps or Saturday night hits that have helped grow its ratings and advertising revenues.

Unlike the private equity houses, UTV is in a key strategic position to make a commercial success of TV3 with or without ITV. UTV was once a backer in the founding TV3 consortium and it has long harboured ambitions to operate an all-Ireland TV channel and many believe it is only time before UTV is snapped up by ITV plc in the UK.

Analysts say the UTV boss, John McCann, is already working on a survival strategy beyond this day, which has seen Ulster building up larger assets in the radio sector - it bought TalkSport radio last year.

TV3 fits neatly into such a strategy into this and could form a part of a longer-term negotiation for control of UTV by ITV. The sale of TV3 will mean a windfall for the remaining shareholders including the station's chairman, James Morris, accountant Ossie Kilkenny and U2 manager Paul McGuinness.

Elmo

I was thinking about the "silly money" for TV3.

The media is suggesting that the company is valued at 200,000,000 to 300,000,000 euro.

TV3 currently get 70,000,000 in advertising revenue according to the media, I would put it at around 50,000,000.

Even still "silly money" would have to be very silly for ITV not to take over the company.

If UTV sends in a bid for 300,000,000 ITV would pre-empt that bid, after all they would recoup their 165,000,000 investment by 2010 at least, and even if UTV put up a bid for 400,000,000 ITV could easily expect to get back their pre-emption bit of 220,000,000 by 2012 or there abouts.

Just a thought.

SRB

Given the programming deal only having 2 years to run, I'd say it's likely UTV and ITV will "come to an agreement" over TV3. UTV could take TV3 on and run it as is, until the end of the programming agreement and then off load UTV and TV3 to ITV. It would give ITV income from the station and UTV could milk it for all it's worth while snapping up more radio stations. I really couldn't see UTV wanting to keep TV3 once the programming agreement ended as, let's face it, they don't actually have programmes of their own to fill the schedule with.

Elmo

UTV have been trying to avoided a buy out from ITV so it is unlike that UTV would want to be taken over by ITV.

UTV are a big company, a TV station, a broadband service, a telephony service and radio services across Ireland and Britain.

Ulsterman 1690

flogen wrote:

Then again, even if UTV were to simulcast completely (including news), someone could argue that programming made in NI is still Irish programming... they just wouldn't say it loud enough so the Unionists could hear them

ahem ahem......:D

byte wrote:

Is there ever any chance that UTV could be forced to be removed from cable lineups?

It was proposed before (by the BCI's predecessors) but I agree with Watty that it would hardly be legal under EU law. Besides the cable companies would lobby against it especially with UTV being FTA on satellte and available terrestrilly in border areas and on deflectors.

The most that they could do is insist that UTV only be carried on digital cable and that it have a less prominent EPG slot than TV3

Mind you if UTV acquire TV3 without divesting themselves of all those radio stations they own they will end up controlling a mighty big chunk of the Irish media (not that the BCI will do much about it mind !)

marksi

Elmo wrote:

UTV have been trying to avoided a buy out from ITV so it is unlike that UTV would want to be taken over by ITV.

I'm not sure what you're basing that on, I reckon the board of UTV have been waiting for a big fat deal from ITV for quite some time now hence the transformation into a radio rather than television focussed company.

Ulsterman 1690

Elmo wrote:

I am looking forward to ITV Play. How low can TV go?

There was a discusson on Radio 4 (BBC) last night about the legality (or otherwise) of gaming channels and whether they were covered by the lotteries act

Elmo

I'm not sure what you're basing that on, I reckon the board of UTV have been waiting for a big fat deal from ITV for quite some time now hence the transformation into a radio rather than television focussed company.

Canwest sold there stake in UTV and as far as I know ITV where interest but UTV didn't want them. Unfortunately I have not evidence at the moment but I am fairly certain.


Sale of UTV by Canwest
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/archive/index.php/t-170990.html

ITV couldn't buy them then. My mistake

There was a discusson on Radio 4 (BBC) last night about the legality (or otherwise) of gaming channels and whether they were covered by the lotteries act

Oh so the BBC can show the Lotto but ITV cann't have a TV station. Typical, Typical BBC propganda

Ulsterman 1690

Elmo wrote:

Oh so the BBC can show the Lotto but ITV cann't have a TV station. Typical, Typical BBC propganda

Legally it isint the same thing

Doesnt mean its not a good point mind !

SRB

Elmo wrote:

UTV have been trying to avoided a buy out from ITV so it is unlike that UTV would want to be taken over by ITV.

UTV are a big company, a TV station, a broadband service, a telephony service and radio services across Ireland and Britain.

No, UTV have just been waiting until ITV make an offer they know their shareholders won't turn down. As for the TV side of things everyone knows the CH3 franchaise is not going to make as much money in the all digital world as it has done in the past, so it makes perfect sence for them to "milk the cash cow" for as much as they can, while they can, then get shot of it. The reason they have bought so many other companies is to pave the way for the U without the TV.

DMC

SRB wrote:

No, UTV have just been waiting until ITV make an offer they know their shareholders won't turn down. As for the TV side of things everyone knows the CH3 franchaise is not going to make as much money in the all digital world as it has done in the past, so it makes perfect sence for them to "milk the cash cow" for as much as they can, while they can, then get shot of it. The reason they have bought so many other companies is to pave the way for the U without the TV.

Couldn't put it better myself

robert muldoon

Do I understand that we will hear this week of who wins out in this auction or is it going to go on forever??

Elmo

While I know that I quote boards.ie in my last point. Do you have any evidence to support your theory?

Legally it isint the same thing

McDowell might allow it down here????
At least it would keep the violence in doors

mrdtv

I think its now clear UTV made a big mistake in not buying TV3 in the early days. They could have had it cheap, negotiated a programme supply deal with ITV, been on the Irish Sky EPG years ago(instead they had to wait for ITV plc to go FTA and they are still not listed), and rubbed out TV3 as a competitor in Ireland. A sign of poor and indecisive management.... In addition they could have dictated the agenda on any Irish DTT service which now seems as far away as ever. Once C4 and C5 go clear on satellite this will finish off the deflector's, seriously dent NTL and eliminate the raison d'etre for Chorus. Its a sad fact of life but Irish media policy, in relation to digital distribution is now dictated from London.

robert muldoon

When can we expect more news on this,I thought we should hear something this week?

Elmo

From the Sunday Business Post

14 May 2006 By Ed Micheau
Private-equity firm Doughty Hanson has emerged as the favourite to buy Irish television station TV3 for more than €250 million.

The London-based Doughty Hanson is expected to be selected by CanWest as the preferred bidder for the 55 per cent stake in TV3 put up for sale by the Canadian broadcaster and the Irish station’s founders. The remaining 45 per cent stake is held by British broadcaster ITV.

Under a complex shareholders’ agreement, ITV will then have 90 days from the date the bid is accepted to match or beat the likely offer from Doughty Hanson. ITV has so far not indicated or commented on its intentions towards the Irish television station.

flogen

So if ITV keep their mouths shut for a bit we won't know until the end of the year?

Would be interesting if neither ITV or UTV came out on top, but it would mean another sale down the line

byte

Going off topic a bit, but could somebody tell me what a private-equity firm is or what it does?

Woudl I be right in thinking that if this company bought TV3, it would only be so that it could sell it later on and make a profit?

Either way, we'll have to wait another 3 months or more before we hear more.

DMC

At its simplest, its a broad term, but normally they are like venture capitalists, but not on the stock market. Private equity dealers deal outside of the stock market, eg TV3 itself doesnt have shares openly traded on the stock market, and so any deals concerning it have to be dealt with the private shareholders, in this case ITV plc, CanWest and the other boyos.

Venture capitalists, on the other hand, are a type of equity dealers, but they will look at the stock market for dealings, like Babcock and Brown looking at Eircom.

byte

Ah, thanks for that DMC.