Banijay take the Endemol Shine Group

The acquisition, subject to the usual closure conditions, will cover the 120 production brands of Endemol Shine with an estimated 66,000 hours of programming along with more than 4,300 registered formats.

The group Banijay has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Endemol Shine Group, co -ownership of The Walt Disney Company and funds managed by subsidiaries of Apollo Global Management. The acquisition, subject to the usual closure conditions, will cover the 120 production brands of Endemol Shine with an estimated 66,000 hours of programming along with more than 4,300 registered formats.

After the acquisition, the Banijay group will be owner of almost 200 producers in 23 territories and of the rights of about 100,000 hours of content. Total pro-form revenues of the combined group are expected to be approximately 3,000 million euros for the year ending December 31, 2019.

The combined catalog will include some of the best known brands and formats, such as Black Mirror, Versailles, The Millennium Trilogy, Peaky Blinders, Big Brother, MasterChef, Survivor, Temptation Island, Wife Swap and The Island. In addition, with a significantly broader brand portfolio and a broader creative platform, the combined group will be in an even stronger position to create, cultivate and conduct a new intellectual property for both linear broadcasters and for new actors.

The acquisition will be financed through a capital extension of the Banijay group and a compromised debt financing, which includes a complete refinancing of the existing financial debt of Banijay and Endemol Shine, supported by Deutsche Bank, Natixis and Société Générale. After closing, the combined group will be in the hands of LDH (67.1%) and Vivendi (32.9%).

LDH is a portfolio company controlled by Financière Lov (52%), the Stéphane Coubit's investment branch. LDH has the following shareholders: the Italian group of Agostini, with 36% of the capital, and Fimalac, the investment society of Marc Ladreit de Lacarrière, which will possess 12% of the capital through a reserved capital extension dedicated to the financing of the acquisition of Endemol Shine. In addition to a direct investment in LDH, Fimalac will strengthen its long -term association with Financière Lov increasing its participation in Financière Lov from 5.75% to 8.4%.

Marco Bassetti, General Director of Banijay, said assured that “Endemol Shine provides an incredible variety of leader in the industry, world -renowned brands and high quality creative content. The combination of the resources of these two companies will instantly strengthen our position in the global market, and our capacities in all genres will define us even more as an IP supplier of first class throughout the world. Talents of Endemol Shine to our current business will be a sign of better opportunities in the market, and we are all excited about what the future holds to the combined entity. ”

For its part, Sophie Turner Laing, general director of Endemol Shine Group, adds that "in Endemol Shine, we have continually inspired and entertaining and entertaining audiences around the world, a testimony for each of the people of the group. This agreement leads us to a completely new and exciting chapter and a new improved global content house with many opportunities ahead."