Polsat to acquire Polish web portal Interia

Polish commercial broadcaster and pay TV group Polsat is to acquire leading Polish-language internet portal Interia from Bauer Media Group.

The group said that the acquisition of the portal, which will be incorporated into broadcast arm Televizja Polsat, was a strategic move to build its presence on the web.

Interia is ranked as one of the top three domestic portals in Poland in terms of users and page views, and reaches almost 60% of internet users in the country, according to Polsat, with page views over 1.3 billion per month.

The group said that the acquisition would strengthen its position in the online advertising market and serve as an additional distribution channel for content provded by its stable of 34 TV channels.

It said that Interia would also serve as the main focus of intenet marketing across its entire portfolio of services and products, including Plus, Cyfrowy Polsat, Ipla, Netia and Telewizja Polsat, while its own ad sales arm, Polsat Media, would support the sale in Interia’s advertising inventory.

Completion of the deal is subject to agreement by Polish regulator the UOKiK.

“We are a Polish company and we are proud to be the leader in the media and telecommunications market in Poland. The purchase of the Interia Group is another strategic investment and part of the development of our Group. The Interia Group is a leading player in this segment. We are excited about the huge scale of possibilities and synergies that this investment creates. We count on dynamic development of Interia,” said Mirosław Błaszczyk, president of the management board of Cyfrowy Polsat and Polkomtel.

“We are buying a well-run business with a strong position in the internet market. This perfectly fits the strategy of Telewizja Polsat. We want to provide attractive content through all possible distribution channels. Thanks to Interia, our content will gain another avenue of exploitation. Our offer for advertisers will be enriched with very effective wide-ranging internet advertising formats. We want to have a strong position in the dynamically growing online advertising market. We count on both the potential of the Interia Group and its employees, their expertise and experience, which will allow us to successfully achieve our ambitious goals,” said Stanisław Janowski, president of the management board of Telewizja Polsat.