TVN's sales process is getting fast. According to unofficial media reports, 2 offers have late appeared to acquisition this 1 of the largest Polish tv stations. The owner of TVN, Warner Bros. Discovery, already in late 2024 informed the agency Reuters about the launch of the sales process, citing information obtained from 4 people acquainted with the case.
Warner Bros. Discovery is looking for a fresh owner for TVN
Media giant Warner Bros. Discovery worked with investment advisers from JPMorgan to find a buyer for TVN. The sales process is monitored by the media and financial markets, and respective entities have already expressed interest in buying, including well-known Polish billionaires and global media companies.
Who made bids to buy TVN?
According to Radio Zet, 2 major investors were in the game of taking over TVN. The first 1 is Michał Solovow – 1 of the richest Poles. The businessman made his offer through an Austrian investment fund. This was confirmed by his representative, Maciej Gorzelinski, in an interview with Bloomberg:
– We made a non-binding offer, considering that this is the kind of transaction we should respond positively to.
The second offer was to be made by Virtual Poland, acting in a consortium with another entity. According to media speculation, the WP partner could be Rafał Brzoska, founder and CEO of InPost. A spokesperson for Virtual Poland, Michał Siegieda, did not want to comment on this information. Peaches himself, asked by Bloomberg about a possible engagement in the acquisition of TVN, powerfully denied his engagement in this transaction.
Media For Europe-Mediaset on TVN
In addition to Polish investors, TVN's interest in taking over besides shows the holding company Media For Europe-Mediaset belonging to the Berlusconich family. The Italian agency ANSA reports that the company is examining the anticipation of purchasing TVN while considering another acquisitions, including German tv Prosieben, where it already owns almost 30% of the shares.
Decisions on future acquisitions are to be taken after the February elections in Germany, erstwhile a fresh government will be appointed. The company's president, Pier Silvio Berlusconi, the boy of Silvio Berlusconi, who died in 2023, confirmed last December his interest in expanding to fresh markets, including Poland, Portugal and the Netherlands.
TVN under state protection – actions of the Polish government
TVN's sale takes place in the context of Donald Tusk's fresh government policy, which has taken action to defend key media in Poland from possible "dangerous takeover". In December 2024, Prime Minister announced the inclusion of TVN and Polsat on the list of strategical companies, which aims to defend them from uncontrolled transactions.
– We adopted a regulation by which, on the list of protected entities (...) we added companies specified as Digital Polsat, P4, TVN, Polsat TV, T-Mobile and WB Electronics – informed the Prime Minister on 18 December.
What's next with TVN?
TVN sales will be crucial for the future of the media marketplace in Poland. If the buyer is simply a Polish investor, this may mean the continuation of the station's existing programming line. However, if the acquisition takes place by an global player like Mediaset, TVN can wait for a crucial change of strategy and further europeisation of content.
The marketplace and viewers are following with attention further developments, and the final decision concerning the fresh owner of TVN may affect not only the media landscape, but besides political and economical arrangements in Poland and Europe.
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There are fresh possible buyers of TVN station
