Liberty Digital, a subsidiary of the US' Liberty Media Corp, is acquiring a 50% stake in Sony Pictures Entertainment's (SPE) Game Show Network (GSN) for $275m. The two partners said they are joining forces to create what they describe as "the first game-based interactive TV network." The deal is expected to be finalised in fourth quarter of this year.

Liberty and Sony aim to make GSN the world's largest 24-hour TV service dedicated exclusively to games and game shows. Interactive television, in which GSN is already an industry leader, will be a central component of their strategy.

Overseen by SPE's Columbia TriStar Television division, GSN now serves nearly 29 million cable and satellite households, with 9.9 million new subscribers added in the last year alone.