SiTV to Acquire Fuse Network

NEW YORK: SiTV Media, the parent company of Latino entertainment network NUVOtv, has reached a deal to acquire the U.S. cable music channel Fuse from The Madison Square Garden Company.

MSG will receive $226 million in the transaction, plus a 15-percent stake in the combined company, which is subject to potential reduction based on certain performance goals.  MSG will also gain a seat on the SiTV board.

Fuse is available in 73 million Nielsen homes, delivering original series and specials, interviews, concerts and music videos. At SiTV it will sit alongside NUVOtv, an English-language channel targeting Latinos.

Michael Schwimmer, CEO of SiTV Media and its NUVOtv network, noted: “The acquisition of Fuse represents a transformational event for us and also provides significant benefits to NUVOtv. It enhances our distribution relationships, dramatically expands our aggregate subscriber base, provides substantial economies of scale, affords unique opportunities for programming and cross-promotion and should be extremely appealing to the advertising community as we roll out our plans for both NUVOtv and Fuse.”

Jennifer Lopez, NUVOtv’s chief creative officer and a shareholder in the network, added, “Music is my first love so the acquisition of Fuse is near and dear to my heart.  It’s exciting that between NUVOtv and Fuse we’ll have the ability to deliver a broad array of terrific content both from a Latino perspective and across multiple genres, including music, to a broader audience.  The acquisition of Fuse means we now own two wonderful assets.  It’s a phenomenal time for our company and we look forward to growing both networks in the years ahead.”