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BCE bidding for TV network
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February 25, 2000: 10:19 a.m. ET
Bell Canada parent offers C$2.3B for CTV, leading Canadian network
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - BCE Inc., Canada's largest telecom company, Friday announced a bid for CTV Inc., one of the leading television networks in the country.
The all-cash offer is worth 2.3 billion Canadian dollars, or US$1.6 billion. BCE would pay C$38 a share for CTV, a premium of 22 percent over the close Thursday of C$31.25.
CTV issued a statement saying simply it has been notified of the offer and that its board of directors would be meeting shortly. The company owns and operates 25 stations, reaching 99 percent of Canada's English-speaking households.
BCE, which owns 80 percent of Bell Canada as well as nearly 40 percent of equipment manufacturer Nortel Networks, said the purchase of CTV would fit its corporate growth strategy.
"Ownership of CTV significantly enhances BCE's consumer strategy of providing our customers with integrated information, communications and entertainment (ICE) services," said Jean C. Monty, president and chief executive of BCE.
"The strength of the CTV brand, its strong programming line-up, and its award-winning expertise in the areas of news and sports will squarely place BCE as a leading player in the converging broadcasting and new media industries," Monty said. "The management of BCE and CTV will form a strong partnership to jointly pursue the opportunities presented by this convergence."
Shares of BCE (BCE: Research, Estimates) fell C$2.45 a share to C$164.55 in early trading on the Toronto stock exchange, while in New York shares were down 1-15/16 to 112-7/8. Trading of CTV shares in Toronto, where it trades under the symbol TV, rose C$7.25 to C$38.50. 
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BCE Inc.
CTV Inc.
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