German media company ProSiebenSat.1 has completed the acquisition of Austrian commercial broadcaster ATV.
The move follows the approval granted earlier by the Austrian competition, anti-trust and media authorities.
ProSiebenSat.1 buys ATV from German media company Tele München Gruppe (TMG) through its Austrian subsidiary ProSiebenSat.1 Puls 4; financial details were not disclosed.
As part of the integration of ATV, ProSiebenSat.1 Puls 4 wants to use synergies, for example in the areas of advertising sales, technical operations, studios and administration. Also, around 70 jobs at ATV will be cut.
ProSiebenSat.1 already operates commercial channel Puls 4 in Austria as well as local advertising and programme windows of its German TV channels.
ATV went on air in 2003, sister channel ATV2 followed in 2011. In 2016, video-on-demand platform ATV Smart was launched.
TMG’s founder and managing director Herbert Kloiber announced his intention to sell ATV in August 2016 due to the broadcaster’s ongoing losses, conceding: “ATV was my biggest mistake.”
