French private broadcaster TF1 has agreed in principle to sell its 50% stake in the international news channel France 24. The deal, worth €2 million, is based on a valuation of the multilingual channel of €4 million.
TF1 will sell its shares to the French government holding company Société Audiovisuel Extérieur de la France, which controls France 24 as well as other international broadcasters including TV5 Monde and RFI.
The commercial broadcaster will continue to honour its existing contract with France 24 to supply news footage and programming for the next seven years. The agreement is subject to consultations with labour representatives.
TF1 was originally seeking around €90 million for its stake in the news channel (see Broadband TV News passim), but after having invested only €17,500 in the venture the sale still looks like a good deal for the broadcaster.
Leave a Reply