Telecoms firm Telia Company is to buy the Swedish media firm Bonnier Broadcasting, which owns Finnish television station MTV3 and pay channel C More.
In a statement, Telia Company CEO Johan Dennelind said that it was a natural move for the firm.
“We have a clear view on how to maintain journalistic impartiality in the future,” said Dennelind.
In Finland Bonnier Broadcasting is composed of MTV Oy, which owns the media brands under MTV3, and Mediahub Helksinki Oy, which produces news content. The firm employs some 250 people in Finland, with around 1,200 employees across Finland and Sweden.
The deal, which includes Swedish media TV4 and TV4 Play, values Bonnier Broadcasting at 888 million euros.
MTV CEO Jarkko Nordlund was positive about the sale.
“We’ll be able to develop Finnish content and develop our own channels,” Nordlund said in an interview with MTV.
Nordlund said the deal will improve MTV’s ability to compete.
“It demands muscles, it demands investment in content,” said Nordlund. “We believe that the deal helps us compete internationally.”
Nordlund added that news operations would remain under MTV’s control. Competition authorities will have to approve the deal, with a final decision expected towards the end of 2019.
