WINNIPEG – More Turkish radio stations are on the horizon for CanWest Global Communications.
The company officially announced today (which was reported here last month) that subsidiaries of its Turkish partner, Turkcom Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S. (Turkcom) have agreed to acquire Joy FM and Joy Turk FM from The Turkish Savings and Deposit Insurance Fund. The two radio stations serve Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city (population – 11.3 million). The aggregate purchase price for the two stations will be US$5 million. Completion of the acquisitions are subject to certain regulatory approvals.
CanWest believes the Turkish market is a wealth of opportunity and told investors at this morning’s CanWest Investors’ Day that it expects to see a 9.2% increase in ad sales among the several Turkish station it will now own between now and 2009.
Following completion of the acquisitions, CanWest’s Turkish subsidiary will provide certain non-regulated operational, sales representation and advisory services to Joy FM and Joy Turk FM on fee-for-service bases. CanWest will not initially have an equity interest in either of the stations, however its subsidiary will have options to acquire up to a 75% interest in each station, subject to a relaxation in current foreign ownership restrictions and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals.
Joy FM broadcasts a combination of English-language pop, rhythm and blues, soft rock, jazz and Latin music, and appeals to young, upwardly mobile urban dwellers in Istanbul, says the press release. Joy Turk FM broadcasts a mix of traditional Turkish music along with music that appeals to urban listeners in Istanbul as well as to rural listeners in surrounding communities.
This announcement follows two earlier CanWest announcements, as reported by www.cartt.ca, and brings to four – Super FM, Metro FM and now Joy FM and Joy Turk FM – the number of radio stations in Turkey in which companies associated with CanWest and Turkcom have been declared the highest bidders in the auction of the Star Media group’s assets.
"We are extremely delighted that Turkcom has again been the successful bidder for two additional radio stations in the ongoing Star Media auction," said Tom Strike, president of CanWest MediaWorks International. "With two national stations and now two additional stations in Istanbul, we and our Turkish colleagues will be in a good position to develop an integrated business strategy that will appeal to a wide variety of radio audience demographics. We see this as an opportunity to build further upon our international radio strategy that now includes new radio operations in Turkey and the United Kingdom, as well as our well-established radio operations in New Zealand and Canada."
