TIML CEO AP Parigi, who's parked in London for the last six weeks, spoke to Shuchi Bansal on why the acquisition makes sense.
Why a radio station abroad?
We had been looking for geographical expansion for the last four years. The promoters have been pushing for size and scale in the mainstream media abroad. Scottish Media Group's core business is television and it wanted to shed its radio business.
What's so special about the station that you agreed to fork out Rs 448 crore?
It has the license for the rock format. It has a listenership of 2.7 million. It has a strong FM signal in London and it's available on AM (frequency) in the whole of UK. It is available on the Digital Audio Broadcast as well as the BSkyB platform.
The station has the best creative minds and it measures up on reach, frequency and technology.
What about the financials?
It is a profitable company. It has a turnover of