MTG Sells Stake in Swedish Cable Outfit Sappa

STOCKHOLM: Modern Times Group (MTG) has sold off its 50-percent stake in the Swedish cable TV company Sappa to the Finnish telecom operator Anvia for SEK 135 million ($16 million). 

Anvia, which is the fourth largest telecom operator in Finland, now holds 100 percent of the outstanding shares in Sappa. MTG previously picked up its 50-percent holding in the business in 1999. Sappa delivers TV channel packages to 350,000 Swedish households through cable and IPTV networks. 

Jørgen Madsen Lindemann, MTG's president and CEO, said: “We have been a proud partner in Sappa for over 15 years, during which the company has gone from strength to strength. The TV distribution market has changed substantially during this time and we are focused on the provision of entertainment rather than the development of network infrastructure. The business is well established and a good fit for its new owner, so we wish the Sappa team continued success in the future.”