Modern Times Group has announced it will sell its shopping channel TV Shop to direct response TV company Guthy-Renker Europe for SEK 70.3 million (€7.59m). Following the sale MTG has committed to sell airtime on Viasat channels to TV Shop for a period of two years.
Last year TV Shop generated SEK 348 million of net sales and an operating profit of SEK3 00,000 The company employs 47 people. MTG expects to make a preliminary net gain of SEK10m from the deal, which will be in the company’s results for the second quarter and six months ended June 30, 2007
In a related development German retailer Karstadt/Quelle has acquired home shopping channel HSE24 for a reporte €145 million from Barry Diller’s InteractiveCorp. The channel was launched in 1995 and currently has 1.3 million customers. In 2006 a net turnover of €286 million was achieved. The potential reach via cable and satellite is 39 million households in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.