Headline: India's Television Eighteen signs jv with CNBC
BOMBAY, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Television Eighteen India Ltd, a
local producer of television programmes, had formed a joint
venture with CNBC in India, an official said on Monday.
"CNBC owns 51 percent of CNBC India and the rest is owned
by us," Television Eighteen's executive director Sanjay Ray
Chaudhuri told reporters.
CNBC, General Electric Co's (NYSE:GE) business news channel,
buys Indian content for its programmes from Television Eighteen
which is in the market to raise 492.4 million rupees through an
initial public offering opening on Thursday.
"This joint venture is a major opportunity for the company
(Television Eighteen) and we need capital for expansion," the
company's chairman G.K. Arora said.
The company is offering 2,736,000 equity shares of 10
rupees each at a premium of 170 rupees to the public. Shares
are also being offered on a firm allotment basis to four funds
of the Alliance group at a price of 180 rupees per share.
A part of the receipts from the IPO will go into making the
company a content provider on the Internet. Television Eighteen
is set to to launch a portal in February 2000.
The firm expects to earn a net profit of 113.68 million
rupees ($2.61 million) on a turnover of 302.21 million rupees
($6.95 million) in the year ending September 30, 2000.
It posted a net profit of 36.05 million rupees, on sales of
175.3 million rupees in 1998/99 (October-September).
22-264-1699, uday.khandeparkar@reuters.com))
Copyright 1999, Reuters News Service |
