UTV Media has agreed to sell its television stations and brand to ITV for £100 million. The media company has operated in Northern Ireland since 1959 when it became the first commercial television channel in Ireland.
It launched a station in the Republic of Ireland in January this year. But the new Dublin station struggled to find an audience and is expected to lose almost £12 million this year.
In August UTV Media confirmed it was in talks regarding the potential sale of its television assets to ITV.
The deal, which was confirmed on Monday, excludes UTV Media’s radio businesses UTV Radio GB and UTV Radio Ireland, and its digital media businesses, Simply Zest and Tibus Digital.
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