Virgin Radio Sale Confirmed

Virgin Radio owners Scottish Media Group have confirmed the sale of Virgin Radio to a consortium including The Times of India Group for £53 million by the end of June.

The station will be renamed, in order to ensure there are no branding restrictions imposed by Sir Richard Branson which could affect the new owners freedom to build online, TV, music and other spin-offs, according to reports in the trade press.

The new brand will be announced in the autumn by The Times of India, who intend to invest £15 million.

Proceeds from the sale will go towards paying debts and returning approximately £30 million to shareholders.

Commenting on the sale when it was first announced earlier this month, Rob Woodward, SMG chief executive, said: “I believe that £53.2 million represents a sound price for Virgin Radio and a good deal for SMG shareholders.” (see NewsLine)

Latest Rajar figures show that Virgin has a weekly reach of 2.46 million for the period ending March 2008, a slight decline on the previous period, which had a reach of 2.47 million (see BBC Radio 2 Sees Weekly Reach Increase).

Scottish Media Group: www.smg.plc.uk