The off-screen battle between television channels for telecast rights, tie-ups, acquisitions is well and truly on with all the big league players looking to outdo each other.

Jumping on is Sony Entertainment Television (SET). Sony Corp's 24 hour hindi entertainment channel could well be paying a sum of $4.5 million to grab a 20 per cent stake in CNBC India. Television Eighteen India Ltd, a television software producer and broadcaster currently has a 49 per cent stake in a joint venture with CNBC in India. TV18 had earlier approved of a plan to divest 20 per cent of its stake in CNBC India to set. Now it confirmed that it had reached an agreement with SET to boost advertising revenue for CNBC India.

Under the agreement, SET will now be the advertising sales representative for TV18 in CNBC India's business news channel as well as its distribution representative. In return SET has the option of picking up the stake of 20 per cent by 31 October 2000. A press release said that the strong performance of the channel and a successful working relationship between the two parties has led to the signing of the pact.