Pakistan

ARY announces Bol TV takeover

ARY CEO says there is no agenda behind takeover of Bol TV; channel will be launched within three weeks

Web Desk August 18, 2015

ary founder and ceo salman iqbal aoouncing the take over of bol tv 039 s management photo twitter shehzadhkhan

ARY founder and CEO Salman Iqbal aoouncing the take over of Bol TV's management. PHOTO: TWITTER/@shehzadhkhan

KARACHI: ARY Digital Network CEO Salman Iqbal on Tuesday announced the company's takeover of now defunct Bol TV's management, Express News reported.

Vowing to get the channel on cable, the founder of ARY group said the media group would launch the channel within three weeks.

Terming the move to take over Bol as second biggest revolution in the media industry in Pakistan after the announcement of the launch of channel, Iqbal said the basic aim of the move was to provide job security to the thousands of workers who lost their jobs when Bol TV was not allowed to launch due to its link with Axact. “We cannot let thousands of people stay unemployed,” he added.

Read: Exodus in the making: Senior journalists quit Bol TV as Axact controversy deepens

Addressing the gathering at Bol TV studio, he said, “We are not here to take down anyone.” Iqbal added that their first priority will be to clear Bol TV’s dues.

He further said that there is no agenda behind take over of Bol.

Earlier in May, the information and broadcasting ministry had asked the country’s media regulatory body to block Bol TV transmissions until the investigation into the channel’s parent company Axact is complete.

Read: SHC orders directors of Bol TV to get security clearance again

The inquiry that was launched after a New York Times (NYT) exposé claimed the IT company was running a “fake education empire”, resulted in the arrest of Axact CEO Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh.

COMMENTS (19)

liaqat ali | 9 years ago | Reply I see a hidden hand behind this . Dharna conspirators are still at work.

Zohair | 9 years ago | Reply @Sam: the only people affected were the employees...those people who paid money to get fake degrees knew what they were getting into. There cannot be an innocent Fake MBA/LLB/Masters etc degree holder who has not taken any course but got the diploma.

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FJ | 9 years ago | Reply Hahaha.....Glad it was not GEO acquiring BOL otherwise would've been bombarded with Mubashar Luqman's conspiracy theories and alleged corruption tales.

sabi | 9 years ago | Reply Blithe They are orphans with their masters defeated and kicked out from establishment. As their turn is around the corner you will see them crying in utter pain.New precidenc will be set for -Tent a journalist.

Raheel | 9 years ago | Reply I have been in the IM/IT Industry for quite sometime and one thing i am sure no one bets on a injured horse and there is always a catch behind everything,

Brar | 9 years ago | Reply Will the emlployees be paid as prommised by BOL ?

Abcd | 9 years ago | Reply What exactly does "takeover" mean? Did ARY buy Bol? Did Axact sell it? What does the CEO of Axact have to say about this? I think there might be a controversy in the making here. I hope this was an honest deal with nobody doing what they please... neglecting what is the right thing to do.

Blithe | 9 years ago | Reply Pro establishment mouth pieces . It's only natural that they merge and ARY rescues BOL after the scandal . Establishment has requested them to.

Jibran | 9 years ago | Reply Well the agenda is the increase profits and market share. The investors are not there for charity. There is nothing wrong with it.

Green | 9 years ago | Reply the whole saga is strange: 1) ARY first needs to get current in paying salaries to the ARY network employees. Last I heard they were at least 2 months behind 2) Whats the point of buying a channel that is practically defunct. No revenues/resources or goodwill but only a license to broadcast. May be the license is worth it. 3) Even somebody as powerful as the owner of Bol Network and Axact, Mr D. Ibrahim could not survive this industry

Imran Qadri | 9 years ago | Reply Just like Axact group,ARY too is tainted with corruption charges,from the very start they were famous for nothing but "Gold smuggling" and thats how they have made most of their fortune. So blocking a tainted company from starting a channel and then selling it to another equally tainted company. Besides that they're already running several different channels,I think there is a limit as to how many channels a single group can own. Is there a competition commission working in this country?

Parvez | 9 years ago | Reply This spells....more of the same.....and what we need is quality not quantity.

ysj | 9 years ago | Reply It's a good news but I was confused that why these media channels like ARY, GEO and Dunya TV giving so much air time on Axact controversy. Those days it looks like all channels are brothers in relation. Anyways now I get the point after hearing this news. Well done Kamran Khan you are true genius.

Sam | 9 years ago | Reply Just curious if this should be allowed? Does it mean judgement is already passed on Bol TV? Also, if Bol was funded by the means of wrongfully acquired monies it that money should be returned to folks that were wronged - one option was to let channel operate and refund afectees from profits - this now looks really bad decision from govt and equally corrupt intentions from ARY

M.Saeed | 9 years ago | Reply Will it still be called Bol TV ?

Fawad | 9 years ago | Reply TV company established with ill gotten money, by fake degree by Axact, shouldn't be allowed to sell and make money. It needs to be dismantled then sold to make money for state, not some private beneficiary of Axact.

roadkashehzada | 9 years ago | Reply so thats why "champion of truth" mubashir luqman was still in bol. well played ARY. thats called business. dont call it journalism

Acorn Guts | 9 years ago | Reply Happy for Bol workers; they fought well but something stinks here.

Shariq | 9 years ago | Reply Very nobel thinking behind the take-over

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