Weather hubbub around SBS: vulture creates new opportunity? – Volkskrant

Weather hubbub around SBS: vulture creates new opportunity? – Volkskrant

By: Thijs van Soest – 09.09.14, 11:50

© anp.

It is not only quiet around the Dutch SBS channels. The attracted viewing figures of SBS 6 and The enclosed quarrel between shareholders Sanoma and Talpa notwithstanding, is again caused some uproar now a large media company from America transmitter group could take over. But does this American ‘media cowboy “John Malone any chance?

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  © Reuters.

  John Malone

Malone governs as a major shareholder Discovery Communications, the media company behind the Discovery Channel and TLC, and, according to well informed sources from De Telegraaf interested in a takeover of SBS Netherlands, the company behind the Dutch channels SBS 6, Net 5 and Veronica. SBS is now owned by publisher Sanoma and Talpa major shareholder.

Not for sale
The production of John de Mol owns one third of the shares. But interest or not; SBS is not for sale, notify Talpa and Sanoma today united. “Our part is not for sale,” says Talpa that his role as a purveyor of course not want to lose. Sanoma is also clear: “Our strategy is focused on consumer media in Finland and the Netherlands, including SBS, and that has not changed.”

The unanimous shareholders now seem, early this year was quite different. Talpa would then own all shares get their hands because cooperation with the Finns, but not off the ground. Mole made an offer to Sanoma, but the publisher did not respond. It does not depend on SBS because it desperately needs the TV channels in its ambition to continue. Multimedia player format The dispute was resolved with the arrival of the new Sanoma CEO Peter de Mönnink. He was able to reconciling the two. Companies together

SBS 6
In the meantime, it began to run when the hitherto ailing family channel SBS 6. Utopia managed to get the eve stable and also in primetime hit new program titles at last. The rest seemed returned. Until today. For although the official channels are not for sale, it is questionable whether Sanoma withstand the deep pockets of Malone’s Discovery.

The billion company announced to want to grow considerably earlier and added the action to the word. Discovery took last year’s Scandinavian SBS channels from the German ProSiebenSat.1 and got the majority of Eurosport (seen in 54 countries) held this year. Discovery Communications made last year with 197 channels over a billion dollars profit on sales of over $ 5.5 billion.

UPC / Ziggo
In a bid is still unknown. Any acquisition would be the power of “media cowboy ‘Malone – for decades into the cord – strongly increase in the Netherlands. Because in addition to the thriving Discovery channels in the Netherlands and the SBS leg, he is also the owner of Liberty Global, the parent company of cable operator UPC. And with the upcoming acquisition of Ziggo soon he owns almost 90 percent of the cable market and a large part of the stations will be. Them to see

Yet knew Sanoma and Talpa once before holding off an American media company itself: FOX. This global player, including active in the Netherlands with FoxSports, FOX and National Geographic NL, showed last year, interest in a takeover. Even Fox’s bags were well stocked, but the response of the Dutch owners was equally unanimous: We are not for sale.