NTL is believed to be in preliminary negotiations with Carlton and Granada with a view to making an all-share bid for ITV Digital which is co-owned by the two media companies.
The acquisition of ITV Digital, formerly known as ONDigital, would extend NTL’s subscriber base to 3.8 million throughout the UK, allowing the cable operator to compete more successfully with market leader BSkyB.
ITV Digital lost £121m ($169.5m) in the first half of the year due principally to the sharp drop in advertising revenues that has affected the whole of the media sector.
Though talks are at an early stage, industry analysts believe that any proposed deal would give Carlton and Granada a stake of up to 10 percent in the newly enlarged company, with the firms injecting up to £300m ($420.2m) in the venture before selling it cover rapidly expanding losses.
In response to the rumours, NTL issued a statement denying any offer for the cash-strapped digital terrestrial platform. “ITV Digital’s discussions with virtually everyone in the industry have been well documented as they have looked for ways to improve the situation. Although discussions such as these are regular occurrences in our industry we at NTL remain completely focused on improving our own services, increasing revenues and reducing costs.”
NTL signed a deal last week to carry the new ITV Sport Channel on its cable platform.
Cable company NTL is rumoured to be in talks regarding a takeover bid for the newly branded ITV Digital according to UK newspaper reports over the weekend.
