A third company is rumoured to have an interest in buying Black Entertainment Television (BET), according to the New York Times.

Group Black, a Black-owned media group based in Miami, is contemplating a bid with CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in Luxembourg. According to its website, the private lender has more than US$100 billion in assets under management.

The media company, co-founded by its CEO, Travis Montaque, has begun reaching out to artists and Black entrepreneurs to partner in the venture, according to sources close to the situation.

Tyler Perry, the owner of Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta and the creator of the “Madea” play and movie franchise, is also rumoured to be interested in buying BET.

Byron Allen, the Black billionaire who owns The Weather Channel, has also expressed interest, according to the New York Times.

The news comes as efforts to bring BET under Black ownership have intensified. The deal to sell BET, headed by then-founder Robert L. Johnson, to Viacom — also known as Paramount — a white-owned network, was highly controversial at the time.

But for a $2.34 billion price tag, the sale made Johnson the first Black billionaire in the U.S.

As interest in cable TV declines and viewers flock to streaming services, there is a thirst to bring the network back under Black ownership if Paramount entertains official offers, reports say.

Lauren Williams, the founder of Capital B, told the New York Times there is “real interest in having the independence to do the things that you want to do for your community and not having to answer to white people to do that.”

Those close to the situation say the move could also represent a shift for Black media owners as independence and authentic storytelling capture audiences, according to the New York Times.