UPC to Acquire TV3, the Leading Commercial Broadcaster in Ireland

Ireland, July 03, 2015: UPC Ireland, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Global plc (“Liberty Global”) (NASDAQ: LBTYA, LBTYB and LBTYK) and Ireland’s leading connected entertainment provider, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Doughty Hanson to acquire TV3, the leading commercial broadcaster in Ireland, for a purchase price of €80 million with an additional contingent consideration of up to €7 million payable based on TV3 hitting certain targets. The purchase price is expected to be substantially funded through existing liquidity.

On completion of the acquisition, TV3 will become part of Liberty Global, securing its long-term future and demonstrates the confidence Liberty Global has in both TV3 and the Irish TV and production communities.
TV3 operates two free-to-air channels, the flagship TV3 channel and the youth-oriented 3e. In addition, it has TV3+1 on UPC and SKY, and 3PLAYER, the most widely distributed Video-on-Demand platform in the country. TV3 is the number one channel in Ireland after public broadcaster RTÉ1 with an audience share of 12%. In 2014, the TV3 Group achieved its best set of operating results since 2008.

This year, TV3 launched a new schedule, which marked the acceleration of originated programming. In January, it successfully launched a new soap Red Rock, which has been viewed by 2.3m people. TV3 also produces some of Ireland’s most established programmes including Ireland AM and Xposé. This focus on originated content follows the opening in 2013 of the TV3 HD studio, Ireland’s largest TV studio and one of the most technologically advanced in the country.

Magnus Ternsjö, CEO of UPC Ireland, said: “We’re pleased to welcome TV3 to the Liberty Global family. The investment we are making today secures the long-term future of TV3. With its wide range of home-grown programming, TV3 holds a unique place in the heart of Irish viewers. This is a terrific addition to the TV service we offer - which is already the best in Ireland.”
Christopher Fielding, a principal at Doughty Hanson, said: “We are pleased that our investment in TV3 has come to this successful conclusion. David McRedmond and his team have ably steered TV3 through the recession and with our support, grown it for five consecutive years. We wish TV3 and Liberty Global every success in the future.”

This acquisition will be subject to regulatory approval from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission and a separate media plurality test by the Irish Government. It is expected the transaction will be cleared in the coming months.
As previously announced, UPC Ireland became part of Liberty Global's UK subsidiary, Virgin Media, in December 2014. Deloitte acted as corporate finance advisor to Liberty Global.
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About TV3
TV3 is a privately owned free-to-air television network<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_network> operated within Ireland<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Ireland>. The channel is owned by Tullamore Beta Ltd., a subsidiary of Doughty Hanson & Co<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doughty_Hanson_%26_Co>. The channel launched on 20 September 1998, becoming the country's first commercial broadcaster. It is an affiliate of CNN<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNN>.

About UPC Ireland and Liberty Global
UPC is Ireland’s leading connected entertainment provider offering homes and businesses a wide range of technologically advanced products and services including digital TV, high speed broadband and phone. We connect people to the digital world to enable them to discover and experience endless possibilities. At the heart of everything we do, our people are passionate about exceptional customer experience and the most innovative digital services in the industry.

UPC is part of Liberty Global, the largest international cable company with operations in 14 countries. Liberty Global’s market-leading triple-play services are provided through next-generation networks and innovative technology platforms, which connects 27 million customers subscribing to 56 million television, broadband internet and telephony services (at March 31, 2015). In addition, Liberty Global served five million mobile subscribers and offered WiFi access across over five million access points.

Liberty Global’s consumer brands include UPC, Virgin Media, Ziggo, Unitymedia, Telenet, VTR and Liberty Cablevision. The company’s operations also include Liberty Global Business Services and Liberty Global Ventures.