German music channel Viva is planning to turn itself into a multimedia brand with multimedia brand with ambitions to expand into the United States. According to chairman Dieter Gorny, the channel will follow the recent launches of Viva Polska and Viva Swizz in German-speaking Switzerland with the possible development of further channels in Italy, Spain and the UK.

Besides extending its presence in Europe, Viva also aims to enter the US market. Gorny explained that a move into the home land of arch rival MTV would only be attempted together with local partners. Viva’s flotation, planned for later this year, is expected to generate DM 200 million of new capital. According to Gorny, the money will be used to turn the TV channel into a multimedia network with the core part being a ‘web TV’ service that launches in August at the Popkomm music fair .