RTL Group has emerged as another possible buyer of the Polish national commercial broadcaster TVN, with a sale of a 56% in the latter now looking likely to be completed as soon as the second half of next month.
According to Handelsblatt, the Bertelsmann-backed company is willing to pay up to €1 billion for the stake, which is currently held by Mariusz Walter, Bruno Valsangiacomo and the beneficiaries of Jan Wejchert, who died in October 2009.
Commenting on a possible deal, RTL Group CEO Gerhard Zeiler said: “Poland is an interesting country for us. But to say more would be premature”.
The news of RTL Group’s interest in TVN comes as a report in Kommersant put the value of Russia’s National Media Group (NMG) at $1.4 billion (€970.4 million).
RTL Group entered Russia in 2005 by acquiring a 30% stake in Ren TV.
However, under an asset swap earlier this summer it relinquished the stake in exchange for 7.5% of NMG, whose other interests include the Fifth Channel, 25% of the First Channel and the newspaper Izvestia.
Ren TV is understood to be worth around €247 million.
