Broadbandindia Magazine

BritishSkyB and Virgin Media have reached agreement for the acquisition by Sky of Virgin Media Television (VMtv), a clutch of channels that include Bravo, Living and Challenge. Sky will pay up to £160 million in cash, with £105 million paid on completion and the remainder paid following the regulatory process. The acquisition will expand Sky’s portfolio of basic pay TV channels and eliminate the carriage fees it currently pays for distributing VMtv channels on .its TV services. Sky will assume responsibility for selling advertising for the newly acquired VMtv channels from January 2011. The companies have, in parallel, agreed to enter into a number of agreements providing for the carriage of certain Sky standard and highdefinition (HD) channels.