BSkyB Shares Soar On Canal Plus Merger Speculation
Shares in satellite broadcaster BSkyB had surged up 29p to 612˝p by 12:30pm today following speculation that it is likely to resume talks with French pay-TV company Canal Plus. The talks between the two broadcasters stalled in March this year partly because Canal Plus wanted its staff in top management of the merged group and partly because it wanted to remain a French company (see Canal Plus And BSkyB Talks Suspended).
However, under a deal between Canal Plus’ owner, Vivendi, and Pathé (see Sharewatch), Vivendi now takes Pathé’s 17% stake in BSkyB. This makes Vivendi the second largest stakeholder in BSkyB after News International, which holds slightly under 40%.
It is now expected by analysts that Vivendi will push for a resumption of talks between Sky and Canal Plus. A merger of the two groups would create Europe’s largest pay-TV operator.
Hello. We have downloaded cookies on your device. Some of these cookies are essential for the website to function. Others are non-essential and are used for analytics and advertising.
We need your consent for these types of cookies.
To withdraw your consent or change your cookie choices, please do this through your browser settings.
Otherwise, click OK to accept and continue.
