Bulgarian Commission for Protection of Competition Allowed Businessman Domuschiev to Buy Nova Broadcasting Group

The Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) has allowed Advance Media Group, controlled by Kiril and Georgi Domuschievi, to acquire control over Nova Broadcasting Group. The agreement between Domuschievi and the Swedish MTG was signed on February 22, reports money.bg

The transaction value is € 185 million. The agreement reached is to acquire 100% of Nova TV and a majority stake in the online media group Net Info. We recall that the previous deal for New Brookcasting Group was stopped by the regulator. Last year, the CPC did not allow Czech businessman Petr Kellner, who bought Telenor's Bulgarian assets, to acquire the company. His offer for the group was also 185 million euros, but it was for the acquisition of 95% of the company. The proposal was significantly below the price paid by MTG for television in 2008. Then the deal was for 630 million euros.

According to documents published in the Commercial Register, the Domuschievi brothers signed a loan agreement with four banks: DSK, UBB, UniCredit Bulgaria and BNP Paribas. The total loan amount is € 100 million. According to the regulator's decision last year, "Nova Broadcasting Group" JSC owns a significant market share in the television market and between 40% and 50% of the value-based advertising market. The considerable number of mass media available to the unified group will give it a significant advantage over other media service providers, the CPC decision said. In January, owner MTG announced that it had refused to sell New Broadcasting Group to Petr Kellner.

Through the acquisition of New Broadcasting Group AD, Domuschiev will also have indirect control over the subsidiaries: Net Info, Attica Eva, Prospekt Group, Financial Markets, Grabo Media, Darik News, , Info Im, and Vbox,...