UK television network ITV has agreed to acquire 100% of UTV Ltd, which owns the television assets of UTV Media, for £100 million ($155 million).

The company operates free-to-air channel UTV, which holds the broadcast license for Northern Ireland on the UK’s Channel 3, and UTV Ireland, a new television channel for the Republic of Ireland, which launched at the start of this year. On completion of the acquisition, ITV will own 13 of the 15 regional licenses for the Channel 3 network. The deal is subject to regulatory and UTV shareholder approval.

UTV is the market leading commercial broadcaster and the most watched channel in Northern Ireland, broadcasting ITV content alongside high quality local programming. UTV Ireland is already the second most watched channel in peak in Ireland and ITV intends to strengthen the channel further with high-quality programming at its core.