KirchMedia, the insolvent arm of the collapsed Kirch media empire, could be carved up and sold off in bits rather than in one piece as originally planned, German press reports suggested on Monday.
The weekly newsmagazine Der Spiegel and the daily Financial Times Deutschland both said that potential buyers might first be able to put in an offer for the firm’s free-TV activities, grouped together under ProSiebenSAT1.
KirchMedia holds a 52,5% stake in the listed entity which comprises the leading private German television channels: SAT1, ProSieben, Kabel 1 and N24.
Then in a second stage, the buyer could have the possibility of acquiring the remainder of KirchMedia — its film catalogue, TV series and the broadcasting rights for top sporting events ? by means of a capital increase, the press reports said.
Nevertheless, the winning bidder for the ProSiebenSAT1 stake would not be obliged to acquire KirchMedia’s other activities, effectively meaning the group might be broken up.
The change in strategy comes after little progress has been made since KirchMedia was put up for auction.
Officially, KirchMedia’s creditors want a deal by the end of August or the beginning of September, but industry experts are sceptical whether that deadline can be met.
The three consortia officially in the running appear to be most interested in the lucrative ProSiebenSAT1 arm, but are wary about acquiring the rest, FT Deutschland said.
Selling ProSiebenSAT1 off separately would therefore allow a much better price to be achieved.
A representative for KirchMedia was not immediately willing to comment on the reports. – Sapa-AFP