New MTV3 owner Bengt Braun a strong believer in Nordic TV cooperation

Braun trusts MTV3: "They will be running the show themselves"

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The Bonnier Group President and CEO Bengt Braun, whose company is to become the new owner of Finland’s commercial television channel MTV3, is a firm believer in the benefits of Nordic cooperation in the world of television.
      "Side by side we will be stronger than if we were standing alone. As competition toughens, the cooperative aspect will give us an important edge", said Braun in Helsinki on Thursday, as he visited the MTV3 offices and studios in Pasila.
      In the course of the coming spring, Bonnier will be buying MTV3 and SubTV from the Alma Media Group. The deal will also bring to the joint venture of publishing house Bonnier and the Swedish investment company Proventus a majority holding in Sweden’s own TV4.
      Bonnier says the company’s sights are next set on Denmark’s commercial TV2.
      "Denmark is important to us. After next week’s Parliamentary Elections we shall see what the chances are for a move in that direction, what the conditions would be, and whether the price is right", said Braun.
      The Danish government announced last October a willingness to sell off 51-66% of TV2. If the current conservative administration under Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen wins at the polls, as is currently expected, the plan would go ahead, but in the event of a Social Democrat victory it is unlikely the TV company would be put up for sale.
     
Doubters have already ventured to suggest that Bonnier’s sidestep from publishing into television operations is an error.
      This was the view, for instance, of Ove Joanson, Chairman of the Board of Sveriges Radio, the national public broadcaster in Sweden. He believes Bonnier has wasted its money on securing a majority of the votes in TV4, a company that it already effectively controlled and whose value is declining.
      Braun would not comment on the claims, but reiterated his belief in Nordic TV cooperation.
      He envisages a time around ten years hence when there would be a television operator in the Nordic region with channels operating in the different countries much as the public service broadcasters do today. With its local knowledge and larger market area, the company would be able to compete against the large media corporations, Braun argues.
     
Braun knows MTV3 well, as he has been on the Board of Alma Media since 1998 and has been Chairman since 2001.
      He insists that the new owners will not meddle, but that the channel itself will be given free rein, also in the development of Nordic cooperative links. "They are not going to be forced into anything. They will be running the show themselves."
      The Bonnier President and CEO admitted a measure of regret that his company had to surrender its interest in Alma Media’s newspapers, most particularly the Tampere daily Aamulehti.
      He notes that the way things turned out, with a competing offer in for Alma Media from the Norwegian Schibsted Group, it was necessary to make a choice, as Bonnier did not have the financial resources at the time to remain involved in both sides of the Alma Media operation.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Nearly all shareholders back sale of MTV3 to Sweden (1.2.2005)
  Alma Media wants to sell MTV3 to Swedes (25.1.2005)
  Alma Media to sell MTV3 and Radio Nova to Swedish media group (24.1.2005)

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