Australian television network Channel Ten has been saved from its own financial turmoil, after US broadcaster CBS corporation inked a deal to buy them out from administrators KordaMentha and PPB Advisory.
PPB Advisory partner Christopher Hill paid tribute to Channel Ten’s role within the Australian broadcasting landscape over the past few decades and praised the acquisition by the CBS corporation.
“The sale of the business to CBS will allow the iconic broadcaster to move into a new chapter on a strong and stable footing,” Mr Hill said in a statement.
Channel Ten was placed into voluntary administration in June after Ten shareholders James Packer, Lachlan Murdoch and Bruce Gordon decided against guaranteeing a $250 million loan to replace an existing $200m overdraft from the Commonwealth Bank.
CBS Corporation is currently listed on the New York Stock Exchange with a market capitalisation of $US28 billion ($AU35.3 billion).
In addition to the acquisition of Channel Ten, the deal will also see the CBS corporation fully acquire digital channel Eleven, which they already have a 33% ownership stake in. They’ll also own digital terrestrial channel One, and TenPlay.
CBS is currently a key content provider for Channel Ten.
The relationship between the networks is also set to strengthen with CBS launching their on-demand subscription service ‘CBS All Access’ in Australia, which will compete with the likes of Stan, Netflix and Presto.
