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ZEE TV EGM PASSES
OFF WITHOUT A HITCH
Zee Telefilms Ltd (ZTL) extraordinary
general meeting held today in Mumbai passed off without
any major hitches. Shareholders cleared all the resolutions
that the management put to them. For starters, the
Rs 10 face value ZTL share (share price: Rs 5,500
plus) can now be split into smaller shares with a
face value of Rs 1. The ZTL authorised share capital
of Rs 750 million will consist of 500 million shares
with a face value of Rs 1 each and 2.5 million cumulate
redeemable non-convertible preference shares with
a face value of Rs 100 each.
Shareholders cleared the resolution
allowing ZTL to invest US$296.51 million to purchase
a 50% stake in British Virgin Islands-based Winterheath
Company Ltd (which owns 100% of Asia Today Ltd), 50%
of Siticable Network Ltd, and a 50% equity in Patco.
50% of the amount (US$148.25 million) is to be paid
to Star Television Business Ltd, Asia Production Limited,
Livewire Programme & Trading Company Ltd, Livewire
and News Television Mauritius Ltd and International
Graphics Ltd in the form of a preferential allotment
of shares in the proportion to their share holding
in the three companies that Zee TV is buying back.
A resolution to raise debt not exceeding Rs 10,000
million over the aggregate free reserves and capital
of the company sailed through without any protests
from shareholders. Finally, the company's resolution
to divest 10% its equity to a foreign investor also
got the investors' nod with the exception of one dissenting
voice representing a foreign institutional investor.
At the meeting chairman Subhash Chandra
said that the company's prediction is that Indian
media and entertainment business is going to touch
$25 billion by the year 2004. He added that the company
is launching Alpha Bengali by December in Europe as
a large Bangla Deshi population in the UK has been
demanding the service. A new channel branded Zee Gold
consisting of a mix of movies and music is being created
for the US market, he pointed out. According to Chandra,
the merged entity of Zee Telefilms and Zee Multimedia
is expected to notch up a turnover of Rs 10,600 million
in financial year 2000 with a Rs 3,000 million profit.
Chandra told shareholders that his
Internet venture was going to set up Points of Presence
in Mumbai, Delhi, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, Chennai, and
Bangalore to offer Internet access its cable subscribers
apart from creating a portal which will offer a one-stop
solution. Besides, Zee Network was also working on
developing infrastructure which will allow Internet
access to a range of devices, right from computers
to television to handheld electronic personal organisers.
The site will offer a mix of Indian media and entertainment,
the co-promoter of the venture, ZTL managing director
Vijay Jindal informed shareholders.
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