Russia's Gazprom to buy top Czech TV station?

Russia's largest and best known company, Gazprom, was reported last week to be interested in buying the Czech Republic's leading commercial television station - TV Nova. The DPA news agency quoted a media report which said "several sources" at TV Nova had confirmed the information. However, Gazprom - the world's largest natural gas producer - denies that it is interested in Nova. TV Nova is controlled and partly owned by Czech businessman and media magnate Vladimir Zelezny - who, incidentally, was born in Russia. He was arrested last week and charged with attempting to defraud the company CME, which helped set up Nova in the mid-1990s. The case has been dragging on for some time - last week the Supreme Court said the case would have to start all over again.