Saban Prefers to Hold on to ProSieben
February 14, 2006
After Germany's anti-trust office forbid Axel Springer's 2.5 billion euro ($3 billion) acquisition of ProSiebenSat.1, investors expected Saban to look for new bidders for the German broadcaster. Investment bankers J.P. Morgan had reportedly organized bidding process, with France's TF-1 and America's NBC among those reportedly interested.
But positive results for the year ending 2005 were enough to convince Saban that ProSieben might be worth holding onto a little longer. Sales climbed 8.4 percent to just under 2 billion euros, and the pre-tax results rose 30 percent to 418.5 million euros thanks to rising TV ad revenues and falling costs. The company will announce the results next week.
The Saban-led holding company P7S1 released a statement on Monday saying that they would no longer consider bids for the company.
"We consider this as a sign of the trust placed in the company and its potential, and it means stability for the group," said a ProSieben spokeswoman.