Viasat / Canal Digital fusion godkendt af EU
EU kommissionen har godkendt fusionen af Viasat (Nent Group) og Canal Digital (Telenor). Nent Group og Telenor vil hver eje 50% af det nye fælles selskab og aftalen ventes nu at blive gjort endelig 5. maj.
Man forventer nye synergier og bedre rentabilitet samtidigt med man får et stærkere produkt til kunderne. Kombinationen forventes at give årlige omkostningssynergier på ca. 650 mio. SEK med fuld virkning fra 2022.
Navn og logo offentligøres når aftalen er helt endelig og det nye selskab vil have hovedkvarter i Stockholm og Oslo, hvor det skal fungere efter armslængdeprincippet fra de to bagvedliggende organisationer Nent og Telenor. Naturligt nok så skal det fælles selskab tilbyde Viasats kanaler, der for flere kanalers vedkommende skifter navn fra Viasat til V fra juni. Det vil også give adgang til Viaplay og Nent Groups såkaldte Free TV kanaler. Alle disse ejes fortsat alene af Nent Group, men den fælles platform vil naturligvis også indeholde kanaler fra andre distributører.
Integration og andre relaterede omkostninger forventes at udgøre ca. 900 mio. SEK og stammer primært fra flytningen af Viasat kundebase over på Telenors platform på 1 grad vest. Pressemeddelelsen indeholder ingen detaljer om det rent tekniske, altså tv-bokse og kodningsplatform samt kommende tv-pakke struktur.
Det nye fælles selskab får følgende ledelse:
Bjørn Ivar Moen, Chief Executive Officer (currently Chief Executive Officer of Canal Digital and Telenor Broadcast)
Jonas Gustafsson, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Operations (currently Chief Executive Officer of Viasat Consumer)
Mahmoud Mustapha, Chief Commercial Officer
Anna Pradzynska, Chief Marketing Officer
Jon Espen Nergård, Chief Technology Officer
Michael Bärlin, Chief Content Acquisition Officer
Elisabeth Monrad-Hansen, Chief People Officer
Helge Olav Bergan, Chief Legal Officer
Bestyrelsen har delt repræsentation fra NENT Group og Telenor med et roterende formandskab.
Anders Jensen, NENT Group President and CEO: “We are delighted to receive the European Commission’s approval for this game-changing joint venture. The business and customer rationales are compelling. We are creating a large-scale player that can compete on a Nordic level, make sustained investments in content and technology, deliver even better combined customer offerings, and generate substantial revenue and cost synergies. Our talented Viasat Consumer employees can now look forward to joining forces with the Canal Digital team at the new company, while NENT Group will be able to focus even more on the expansion of our fast-growing Viaplay streaming service. Such innovative partnerships are the way forward for the more traditional parts of our industry, especially at times of acute change such as today.”
Gabriel Catrina, NENT Group Chief Financial Officer: “The need for consolidation in the Nordic satellite pay-TV market has been clear for some time. This joint venture will create significant value both for customers and owners, while changing NENT Group’s financial profile and further accelerating the growth of Viaplay. It has the potential to become a model for similar partnerships in other parts of the industry.”
“We are delighted to receive the approval from the European Commission to complete the transaction for creating a new and strong Nordic company within the TV industry. The joint venture will combine the respective strengths of Canal Digital and Viasat Consumer, leveraging synergies for the benefit of our customers and shareholders”, udtaler Jørgen C. Arentz Rostrup, CFO, Telenor Group.
