Telecom Italia looks at selling major stake

Milan: Telecom Italia will discuss the future of its broadcasting business later this week, the company said, as speculation mounts it could spin off or sell assets in the loss-making unit.

In a statement, Telecom Italia said a board meeting will look at strategic options for its majority stake in Telecom Italia Media.

Over the weekend, news reports said Telecom Italia would decide on the sale of its 77 per cent stake in TI Media which broadcasts the channels La7 and Mtv, and which owns three multiplexes of channels.

Earlier on Monday, a senior journalist at La7 said a spin-off of TV infrastructure operations would be announced soon. "There will be a corporate separation, there is no secret about it," La7 news anchorman Gad Lerner said in an interview.

Lerner said that publishing group L'Espresso had previously looked at TI Media, adding that while it was now cooler on buying TI Media's editorial operations it might join investors in a separate infrastructure company.

"There are no talks for La7," a L'Espresso spokesman said.

TI Media has a market capitalisation of about ¤210 million (Dh1 billion) and net debt of almost ¤139 million. A source close to the matter said the idea of L'Espresso taking part in a multiplex-holding infrastructure company was possible but that it was still premature.

A second source familiar with the situation said Tunisian media businessman Tarak Bin Ammar was very interested while Qatar had expressed an interest. Cairo Communications, which sells advertising for TI Media's channels, was also in the picture, the source said, adding that top investment bank Mediobanca was pushing hard for a sale of the unit.