MTG acquires Zitius
July 30, 2012
Modern Times Group (MTG), the international entertainment broadcasting group, has signed an agreement to acquire 80 per cent of Zitius Service Delivery from Quadracom AB for an undisclosed cash consideration. The agreement also provides for the acquisition of the remaining 20 per cent of Zitius in 2016.
Zitius is Sweden’s leading independent Open Access Communications Operator, with approximately 150,000 connected fibre households. Of these, over a third currently subscribe to a service via Zitius network.
The Open Access network structure is specific to the Swedish broadband market and provides an open environment where multiple service providers can sign agreements with the network operator to market their services to the end consumer, typically in multi-dwelling residential apartment buildings in towns and cities. Approximately 750,000 homes, or 16 per cent of all Swedish households, are estimated to be currently connected to Open Access networks. The deployment and expansion of the networks since 2000 have been subsidised by Swedish local and national Government and the European Union.
Hans-Holger Albrecht, President and CEO of MTG, commented: “The acquisition of Sweden’s number one operator of Open Access broadband networks reflects our commitment to invest in and support the roll-out of high speed platforms that broaden the availability and increase the consumption of our content. Video is the primary driver of Internet traffic and that demand is only growing. Zitius is a high growth market leader in a fast growing segment that also delivers attractive profitability levels. Our intention is to strengthen Zitius’ market leading position even further, and to continue providing attractive offerings to customers from multiple suppliers in an open environment. We will continue to market our own Viasat channels and Viaplay service to consumers through as many platforms as possible.”