It’s Official: ProSiebenSat Sold

The buyer is Levena Holding 4 GmbH, controlled by private equity funds Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Permira. The deal values ProSiebenSat.1 at €5.8 billion. German Media Partners will trade 50.5% of the registered share capital in ProSiebenSat for €3.1 billion.

Under German law, the transaction triggers an automatic offering for all outstanding shares. This might include those shares owned by German media group Axel Springer, about 12%. Not quite a year ago, Axel Springer thought it had a deal to buy ProSiebenSat. German competition authorities did not approve. So it goes in big business, right?

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After that deal went bad, ProSiebenSat’s principal owner Haim Saban, announced an auction. The Axel Springer bid, €2.5 billion, set a floor price and bids came in from all corners. When Saban called the bidding closed earlier this week, only KKR/Permira, Turkish conglomerate Dogan Yayin and Apax/Goldman Sachs remained.

Axel Springer, winning the “never give up” award, bought 25% of Dogan Yayin’s television unit last month in a transaction viewed generally as a back-door bid for ProSiebenSat. Selling it’s stake in ProSieben to KKR/Permira, Axel Springer will likely recover the cost of buying into Dogan TV.

Saban purchased the bankrupt Kirch Media Group for €7.50 per share three years ago, renamed it ProSiebenSat and, now, sold his shares at €28.50 each.

In documents submitted to German authorities KKR/Permira disclosed intentions to consolidate ProSiebenSat with SBS Broadcasting (SBS), creating a formidable power in European television. ProSiebenSat operates four channels in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and SBS have 19 free-to-air channels and 20 pay TV channels in several countries. SBS has radio holdings in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, persistently rumored to be spun off as the new SBS/ProSieben company will concentrate on pay TV.

Not one to keep a secret, Stoiber told the world Thursday afternoon (December 14, CET) that ProSiebenSat would remain in Munich and become part of SBS Broadcasting. ProSiebenSat’s broadcasting license is located in Bavaria and, though regulatory review must confirm the deal, no difficulty is expected.

KKR and Permira each hold 37% of SBS with Telegraaf Media Groep (TMG) owning 20%.

ProSieben CEO Guillaume de Posch will stay on with most of the current management team. Eventually, as ProSiebenSat and SBS consolidate, a board room battle on infinite proportions will take place among de Posch, SBS CEO Markus Tellenbach and SBS COO Patrick Tillieux.