Channel 10 confirms takeover offers

IT’S looking more and more likely that Channel 10 will be owned by someone else next year.

Masterchef Judges Gary Mehigan, Matt Preston, George Calombaris Picture: Supplied

NETWORK Ten has confirmed it is forging ahead in a potential takeover of the TV network.

Ten released a statement to the market this morning which said its consultant, Citigroup, has received a series of “non-binding, conditional proposals” from several parties.

Ten said these proposals will now be considered by its board of directors. It’s the first time Ten has confirmed a takeover was in play. It has previously only said that it had appointed Citigroup to consider a number of “strategic” options for the company.

However, Ten has stressed that it may reject the offers and there’s no guarantee a deal will be done.

For weeks, media reports have circled around Ten’s future and who may be interested in buying the third-placed TV network.

Ten has struggled for audiences and advertising dollars in recent years, however it has mounted a small recovery this year. It has grown its audience in the key 25-year-olds to 54-year-olds demographic by 2.2 per cent in 2014 while its total audience has grown 2.6 per cent, according to OzTam figures.

Ten won’t say who the takeover offers are from but a joint bid from US cable giant Discovery and Foxtel (which is half owned by News Corp, publisher of news.com.au) was speculated to be the strongest contender.

US media conglomerate Time Warner has also been mooted as a potential bidder, along with several investment and private equity groups.

MORE: What’s really going on with the Ten takeover drama?