Polsat makes radio waves

Polsat has added to its portfolio of takeovers this year, as the television station announced last week that it had purchased a majority stake in Warsaw radio station Radio PiN. Earlier this year Polsat acquired TV stations TV Biznes and Superstacja.

The price of the Radio PiN deal has not yet been officially revealed, but according to media-market analysts, the radio station could be worth zł.10-13 million. Polsat would not respond to repeated requests for more details on the deal, which was confirmed to WBJ by Radio PiN officials. Currently the station, which airs only in Warsaw and on the internet, has a steady audience of around three percent of all radio listeners.

Radio PiN's target audience, consisting mainly of young professionals, is one of the reasons that ITI Group and Broker FM (owner of radio station RMF FM) were also reportedly interested in the purchase of the 51-percent controlling  stake.

After the transaction is completed, no changes in the radio PiN's managing board are expected to take place.

Polsat plans to apply to regulators for a change of the station's profile from business-related to general interest. The company also hopes the station will start to air soon in Łódź, Toruń and Bydgoszcz. The development strategy for the station's near future also includes a special emphasis on the selling of digital-radio services to individual customers, which has proven a successful business model in the US. Polsat is already working on the new schedule of TV Biznes, and it hopes that the acquisition of Radio PIN will provide the opportunity to benefit from synergy.