Ringier AG is about to buy a 25% stake in Kanal D Romania, a new entertainment-based cable and satellite channel due to launch in the country on February 18. Kanal D Romania will remain majority owned by Dogan Media Group (DMG) and will be the Turkish company’s first TV foray outside its home market. It will also represent Ringier’s first investment in Romania’s TV industry, though the company already has several interests in the print sector including the tabloid newspaper Libertatea. Meanwhile in neighbouring Bulgaria, Novator is preparing to sell its 65% stake in the incumbent telco BTC. Reports indicate that Novator, which is the investment vehicle of the Icelandic entrepreneur Thor Bjorgolfsson, may be prepared to offload the shares in the company, which has a market capitalisation of €1.6 billion, to private equity investors. Late last year Novator disposed of its stake in the Czech transmission company Radiokomunikace (CRa), and it is believed Bjorgolfsson is keen to enter the pay-TV market in Iceland. (CD)
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