Equity firm makes Flextech bid

European private equity firm Cinven has made a bid for Telewest's content division Flextech, the Telegraph reported on Sunday.

Cinven joins a long list of bidders for Flextech; ITV, Channel 4, RTL, Liberty Media, Sparrowhawk Media are among UK and international broadcasting companies believed to have submitted offers for the unit. Previous reports indicate that offers are being accepted for Flextech's constituent parts: the unit's completely owned-and-operated channels including LivingTV, the UKTV joint-venture with BBC Worldwide, and the recently acquired Sit-Up TV operation.

Speculation still remains, however, that the Flextech bidding process is a value-building exercise by Telewest ahead of its long-awaited merger with NTL.