The purchase of 45 per cent of TV3 for £38.05 million (€48.31 million) is pretty small beer for Granada Media which announced in July that it was going to pay £1.75 billion for the television interests of its rival United News and Media. Granada now effectively controls ITV and produces 47 per cent of the network's output. The deal with United added the Meridian and Anglican franchise to Granada TV and LWT.

Last July, the company was floated on the London Stock Exchange by Granada Compass, the hotel and hospitality business built by Donegal-born Mr Gerry Robinson. Mr Robinson remains as a consultant to the company and is a non-executive director of Granada Media. Although he had no direct involvement in the talks with TV3 the company would not rule out the possibility of Mr Robinson joining the board of the Irish company as a director. Shares in Granada Media rose 2 per cent in London on the news of the link with TV3, before falling back in line with the market to close at 592p sterling (€9.70), valuing the group at just under £9 billion.

Although small, the TV3 move is the first step in the company's declared strategy of expanding into Europe as further growth in the UK is limited by regulations on ownership. It also represents a blueprint for further deals in which the company will use its valuable programming assets to make deals.

Granada has extensive interests outside ITV, including eight pay television channels and a broadband business which forms the basis of its online and new media ventures. It also owns 50 per cent of ONdigital, the British terrestrial television operator. In Australia it owns 50 per cent of Redheart, the country's largest programme producer and also a 10 per cent stake in Channel 7.

CanWest, the Canadian Group that owns another 45 per cent of TV3, also has interests in Northern Ireland with a 29.9 per cent stake in UTV.