banery nc+
According to Rzeczpospolita, when TVN and Vivendi signed an agreement in 2011 under which they would merge their respective platforms n and Cyfra+ to form nc+, it was agreed that TVN would own 32% of the latter.
However, once nc+ was up and running in November 2012, TVN had an option to sell its stake in the platform within four years, with Vivendi having one to buy the stake.
Starting November 30 will be the second and final three-month period during which TVN can realise this option.
TVN, which is one of the leading commercial broadcasters in Poland, now appears to have four choices.
The first is to sell its stake, which could probably fetch around PLN1.5 billion (€338.7 million), with the platform believed to be worth in the region of PLN4 billion.
The second would be to float the stake on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. However, this would be a laborious process and unlikely to be favoured by Vivendi.
The third could see Vivendi give TVN the right to sell the stake to a third party, with the most likely buyers being Orange, T-Mobile or Liberty Global.
The fourth could see TVN remain a shareholder, as has Liberty Global, which retains a 17% stake in nc+.
Ultimately, the decision as to what to do with the 32% stake will be made by Scripps Networks Interactive, TVN’s new owner.
Nc+ had 2.093 million subscribers as of the end of the third quarter, or 9,000 more than in the same period in 2015.
