OREANDA-NEWS. On February 01, 2007 CTC Media, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTCM), Russia’s leading independent television broadcaster, announced that it has signed a definitive share purchase agreement to acquire a 20% participation interest in Channel 31 and majority ownership positions in affiliate companies that will provide the advertising sales function and programming content for Channel 31, reported the press-centre of CTC Media.

Subject to the receipt of applicable regulatory approvals, CTC Media expects the transaction to close in the first quarter of 2008 and to commence broadcasting in the CTC format on Channel 31 later in the same quarter.

As a result of the acquisition, CTC Media will obtain a 60% of the economic interest of the Channel 31 Group which will enable CTC Media to consolidate the financial statements of Channel 31 Group with its own. The purchase price for the acquired interest shall be equal to $65 million payable in cash.

Commenting on the acquisition, Alexander Rodnyansky, Chief Executive Officer of CTC Media, said, “We are pleased with our progress in Kazakhstan and are excited about the opportunity this market presents. In addition to the significant potential for future growth in Kazakhstan's television advertising market, television viewership is remarkably high among young audiences, with viewers younger than 35 years old comprising nearly half of the total television audience in the country. Thus, CTC's focus on younger demographics, together with our programming expertise, provide us with an attractive opportunity to expand the channel’s audience share and deliver highly coveted younger audiences to advertisers. We believe that with our Kazakhstan partners, a prominent team of professionals led by journalist and executive Armanjan Baitasov, we are well positioned to deliver a unique and high quality entertainment offering to Kazakhstan audiences.”

Alexander Rodnyansky further commented, “We continue to view the countries of the former Soviet Union as attractive strategic opportunities for CTC Media. We plan to continue to execute on our expansion strategy by extending the reach of our brands to other markets in the region that are poised for robust growth and where Russian content is a proven success with audiences.”
Channel 31 is based in Almaty, Kazakhastan, and has been broadcasting since 1992, with a television network comprising 11 stations, and approximately 60 independent affiliate stations. The channel is currently the fourth largest in Kazakhstan in terms of audience share, which averaged 7.1% in the second half of 2007.

Kazakhstan has a population of more than 15 million people and a fast-growing economy. The country's television advertising market is the third largest among the countries of the former Soviet Union behind Russia and Ukraine.