BeIN finalises acquisition of Digitürk

Turkey’s Saving Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) has completed the sale of pay TV operation Digitürk to Qatar’s BeIN Media Group.

Digitürk was 53.3% owned by Çukurova Holdinga snd 46.7% owned by private equity group Providence Equity.

Digitürk has an estimated 3.5 million subscribers. The sale price has not been disclosed by is reported to be in the region of US$1 billion.

The sale was completed sooner than expected, according to local reports. Digitürk CEO Ümit Önal said in May that he expected the deal to take up to two months to complete.

Çukurova Holdings was the vehicle of Turkish businessman Mehmet Emin Karamehmet, whose stake in Digitürk was seized three years ago by the TMSF, a state-backed body, in lieu of taxes allegedly owed.

BeIN Media in March acquired US Hollywood Studio Miramax for an undisclosed sum, also rumoured to about US$1 billion.

At the time of the initial announcement of the Digitürk deal last year, beIN Media chairman and CEO Nasser Al-Khelafi described the acquisition as a “natural step” for the company, given Turkey’s proximity to its core Middle East market.