The TV market in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) has never been high on the list of News Corp’s priorities. However, the company has slowly but surely built up a portfolio of investments that, while perhaps not as prominent as those of CME, MTG and RTL Group, is certainly impressive.
It therefore comes as something of a surprise that it has just asked Lehman Brothers to look into its interests in the region on the grounds that they have attracted interest from prospective buyers.
Whether this will eventually result in the disposal of some or all of its stations remains to be seen.
In Poland, News Corp has managed to establish a foothold in a market dominated by the ‘big three’ broadcasters TVP, Polsat and TVN through its acquisition of a stake in the regional station TV Puls.
In recent months it has changed the terms of TV Puls’s licence, transforming its profile from a socio-religious to a general channel, and increased its coverage. Moreover, only a few days ago it announced plans to launch two HD channels, one offering news and the other entertainment, in the next few months.
However, in a move that took many people by surprise, TV Puls closed its entire news operation earlier this week for what were termed “business reasons.” While this may be little more than an abrupt shift in the station’s focus, it could perhaps be the first step to the station’s eventual sale.
TV Puls is a certainly a long way from challenging the dominance of the ‘big three’, though the same cannot be said of its sister stations bTV (Bulgaria) and LNT (Latvia), both leading players in their respective markets.
Fox Televizija, News Corp’s Serbian operation, was meanwhile the fifth most watched channel in the country last year, while in neighbouring Montenegro News Corp recently returned a national TV licence without even launching a service.
News Corp clearly finds itself at something of a crossroads in CEE. While it is unlikely to leave the region, some disposals – and perhaps even acquisitions – could soon be on the cards.
