British media company Emap said today it has agreed to buy the remaining 73 per cent of Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH) it does not already own and has offered shareholders 1,088 pence per share in cash.
The deal values all of SRH, which owns Today FM and Dublin's FM104, at about £391 million, and represents a 9 per cent premium to SRH's closing price yesterday.
"The offer delivers significant value for our shareholders, enabling them to realise a premium in cash," said SRH chief executive David Goode.
Emap has also reached a deal to sell SRH's newspaper division, Score Press, to Britain's Johnston Press for £155 million.
Score Press's 45 titles include the Kilkenny People, Longford Leaderand Leitrim Observerin the Republic.
Emap, which said the deal would add to earnings in its first year, made a 1,040 pence per share offer to SRH earlier this year but was rebuffed.
The deal, which comes during a period of consolidation in Britain's radio industry, would combine Emap radio stations such as Magic and Galaxy with SRH stations such as Vibe 101.