French broadcaster TF1 has confirmed it is in exclusive discussions with digital publishing house Axel Springer SE about the potential acquisition of the latter’s indirect 78.43 per cent stake in aufeminin S.A., which offers digital products and subscriptions on topics such as fashion, beauty, lifestyle, cooking and health. The shares of aufeminin S.A. are listed […]
T Group Productions has announced it will acquire Big Boots Studios, one of the first studios dedicated to engagement platforms—entertainment and social media experiences rooted in the digital space. Since its founding in 2016 by Roger Mincheff and Anthony Kaan, the company has built digital channels and platforms for major networks, individual celebrities and athletes […]
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has decided to not oppose the proposed merger of Fox Sports and Foxtel after finding the transaction would not substantially lessen competition. Currently, News Corporation owns 100 per cent of Fox Sports and owns Foxtel jointly with Telstra. Under the merger, Foxtel and Fox Sports will be brought […]
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has pushed back the date for its provisional findings into the planned takeover of Sky by 21st Century Fox until January 2018. It had previously said the findings would be published in December, but has now said this will happen in mid-January. Karen Bradley, the Secretary of State […]
Discovery Communications has completed an agreement with Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo to increase its ownership stake in its successful OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network joint venture. Under the terms of the transaction, Discovery paid $70 million (€59m) to acquire an additional 24.5 per cent stake in OWN from Harpo, Inc., after taking into account net debt at the network, […]
Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox has reportedly resumed talks with Walt Disney over a sale of “most” of its business, including its Sky stake. Talks between the two companies were believed to have ended last month but according to a report originating in the Wall Street Journal – in which the Murdoch family has a […]
The European cable industry continued to show resiliency and steady growth in 2016, increasing 4 per cent from the prior year, with gross revenue of €23.5 billion, according to the latest findings from the European Broadband Cable Yearbook – widely-recognised as the definitive guide to the European cable industry – from critical information, analytics and […]
Satellite operator EchoStar, controlled by Charlie Ergen, is sitting on a cash pile of a huge $2.8 billion (€2.36bn), plus another $500 million of marketable securities, and is currently not doing anything with this ‘war chest’. Equity analysts at investment bank Jefferies have carried out a study to examine whether a hypothetical bid for Inmarsat […]
ARRIS International has completed its acquisition of the Ruckus Wireless and ICX Switch business from Broadcom. With this acquisition, ARRIS builds on a leadership position in networking and entertainment for service providers while expanding into new enterprise and vertical markets. ARRIS says the deal strategically positions it for a new phase of growth by leveraging the […]
The BBC is to merge BBC Studios and BBC Worldwide to form a single commercial organisation, to be called BBC Studios, suggesting that at a time of an increasingly competitive and global market for production and distribution, the new organisational structure will bring the BBC into line with the rest of the industry, integrating programme production, […]