THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 21, 1996 TAG: 9603210340
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: DOW JONES NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Short : 42 lines
International Family Entertainment Inc. said Wednesday it will sell its majority stake in its British cable network to minority owner Flextech PLC in a cash and stock deal valued at about $50.7 million.
International Family will receive about $4.6 million in cash and 5.8 million of Flextech's convertible shares, now valued at about $46.1 million. International Family's 61 percent stake in the network, Family Channel (UK), will be consolidated into Flextech's 39 percent interest.
Flextech is a United Kingdom provider of television programming.
International Family, which was founded by broadcaster Pat Robertson and operates the Family Channel in the United States, has agreed to hold the Flextech shares for one year. After that, it has the option of offering them to Flextech's majority owner, Tele-Communications International Inc., for redemption in cash. Tele-Communications International is a unit of cable giant Tele-Communications Inc.
If Tele-Communications International declines to redeem the shares for cash, International Family will have two options: convert half the shares to Flextech voting shares on a one-for-one basis and half into Tele-Communications International shares, or convert all the shares into Tele-Communications International shares.
The sale, which includes International Family's television production studio in Maidstone, England, is expected to close by the end of April. Completion is subject to approval of Flextech's shareholders and the board of Tele-Communications International.
International Family said Flextech's presence in Europe should result in wider distribution for the network, which will continue to be called the Family Channel as part of a licensing arrangement. by CNB