Gaping frequencies

The frequency at which NTV broadcasts can be put up for the competition. Clouds are again thickened over the painful metamorphosis of the canal. They say that the ex -president of Russia Boris Yeltsin was offended by NTV: he, they say, was raising the plot in the Sunday program "The M endeons", where the public was presented by the memoirs of another retired - former First Deputy Secretary of State Telbott. The American cited in his book many facts of Eltsin's extraordinary behavior during international negotiations in general and Russian-American summits in particular. However, it is unlikely that the current adversities are explained only by the irritated pride of his former omnipotent patron.

A more plausible version proceeds from the fact that the process of selling NTV has come to a dead end. And the reason for this is the acute rivalry of political and financial clans interested in establishing control over television company.

As you know, on March 15, the Board of Directors of Gazprom postponed the issue of selling media assets for an indefinite time. In early April, the head of Gazprom-Media and NTV general director Boris Yordan said that the actual period of the sale of Gazprom media assets is May-June. At the end of April, the chairman of the Accounts Chamber Sergei Stepashin rushed the NTV management with the organization of the sale, threatening that this topic will be submitted to the government level. “We at one time indicated to Gazprom after our audit: there is nothing to contact and spend a lot of money - $ 300 million - for the maintenance of NTV,” said Stepashin.

On May 22, the chairman of the Gazprom board Alexei Miller tried to dispel the oppressive fears of the public associated with the announced sale of NTV. Gazprom invested $ 1.2 billion in the Media Most, Miller emphasized. Today, the information holding should company more than $ 600 million. "The debt issue in the framework of the transaction (for the sale of Gazprom media assets. - I.G.) must be resolved. We must get this money. This is an economic issue. There is no policy here. For us to fundamentally return $ 600 million, the rest is the assets of" Media Most "; their assessment, as you know, is completed."

The only NTVA control package, the Global American Television company, who declared himself a foreign contender. According to its president, Edward Verzhbovsky, his company "together with another investor" turned to the management of Gazprom-Media with a proposal to buy NTV in February. According to the Moscow Times, this company is connected with Vladimir Gusinsky, and information about the plans of American television producers gives the reason to believe that Gusinsky is going to regain the lost "media-Moscow". In addition, on the way of foreign investors who want to take Russian media assets to their hands, there is an amendment to the media law, adopted on July 6, 2001, according to which foreign capital cannot control more than 50 percent of the shares of federal television channels. And such are considered channels covering half or more subjects of the Russian Federation.

As always, in the list of rumors about potential buyers there are representatives of financial counterparties of competing Kremlin clans.

One of them is the "View" television company. Its president and owner, Alexander Lyubimov, heads the Mediasoyuz (an alternative to the Union of Journalists of Russia) and part -time serves the first deputy leader ORT. Lyubimov also stubbornly attribute close friendship with the head of the presidential administration Alexander Voloshin and the Yeltsin family. As they say, Lyubimov is not quite sure that he will be able to change Konstantin Ernst as the head of Channel One. Therefore, it allows for the "type" the opportunity to compete for NTV if on June 3 the license of this company will not be prolonged and the Ministry of Printing will announce the competition.

Another contender for the "fourth button" is called the ubiquitous interprombank, the owners of which are not averse to adding to the Muscovy television company also NTV. The possible participation of the structures of Sergei Pugachev in the competition for the right to broadcast was already announced in December last year. Then, in December, a lot was written about a certain foreign investor, in pairs with which Boris Yordan (hiding under the transparent sign of his satellite investment fund) planned to buy NTV and even other assets of the Media Most.

However, according to rumors, both Pugachev and Yordan and his unknown public were offered a partner who did not suit the Miller’s team, which in words insists on paying NTV 600-million debt to Gazprom, but in fact spends astronomical amounts on its maintenance. According to the one who wishes to maintain the anonymity of the interlocutor of the Grani.ru in Gazprom, this is a notorious business for top managers from Nummetkin Street.

Undoubtedly, Gazprom will somehow get rid of restless and incomprehensible media assets. But it is not at all the fact that this will happen by the will and in accordance with the plans of the Miller’s team and Boris Yordan who joined it.