Mobile phone ring-tone provider Hurray Holding yesterday announced it would merge with China's largest private television program producer Enlight Media to create the country's largest independent media content provider.

Under the terms of the deal, Enlight Media would inject all of its assets into the NASDAQ-listed Hurray, which would then change its name to Hurray Enlight Media Group Ltd.

The new company would be 42 percent owned by Enlight Media, and its share could grow up to 65 percent in two years if the average share price exceeds $8.5 for 60 consecutive trading days.

Enlight Media's president Wang Changtian would become president and CEO of the new company, while Hurray's president Wang Shaojian would become CFO.

Both sides refused to disclose the deal's value, but the Wall Street Journal estimated yesterday that the deal could have been valued at about $160 million, citing anonymous sources.

In recent years, Hurray - like all of China's wireless value-added service providers - has been striving to reduce reliance on content providers and telecom operators, such as China Mobile, which have actively tapped the wireless sector to compensate for declining revenue from traditional voice services.

The company has acquired several music production companies and game developers in China in hopes of boosting diminishing revenues.

After the deal, Hurray's business in music, games and Internet and wireless channels would be incorporated with Enlight Media's traditional content and channel resources, creating a media and entertainment conglomerate comparable to News Group, Viacom or Disney, Wang said.

"China has already had many world-class companies, such as Bank of China and China Mobile," Wang said. "We believe there will be some Chinese media and entertainment giants befitting the country's increasing importance in the world economy in the near future."

He said the new company would operate on a scale equal to its foreign counterparts in the next decade.

Established in 1998, Enlight Media is China's largest independent television program producer. It produces four hours of TV programming daily and also operates in the fields of music, film and soap opera production.

In recent years, Enlight Media has been seeking an independent IPO but gave up after the deal with Hurray.

The company's annual revenue reached about 200 million yuan in 2005, according to Wang.

(China Daily November 20, 2007)