Two of Russia's few remaining independently-minded media outlets are changing hands, provoking concerns that press freedom could be further eroded.

Ren TV, the last television channel with national reach whose news service is critical of the Kremlin, is being bought by RTL, the pan- European broadcaster, and Severstal, the Russian steel group. RTL is buying a 30 per cent stake from Ren TV's founders, Irena and Dmitry Lesnevsky, for an undisclosed sum, while Severstal is buying the remaining 70 per cent for $100m (€84m, £57m) from Unified Energy System, the Russian electricity monopoly.