Spanish media group Prisa is struggling to sell its majority 56% stake in local DTH provider Canal+ due to differences over valuations, according to local reports.
The deadline for binding offers was 31 January but this is now reportedly expected to be…
Spanish media group Prisa is struggling to sell its majority 56% stake in local DTH provider Canal+ due to differences over valuations, according to local reports.
The deadline for binding offers was 31 January but this is now reportedly expected to be extended to 24 February after none of the bids met Prisa’s €1bn asking price.
El Confidencial and elEconomista both claim that five parties have held talks prior to the deadline: Al Jazeera, Canal + France, Liberty Global, News Corp and Telefonica.
Of this group, only the Spanish telecoms incumbent is reported to have made a binding offer, but at around half the amount that Prisa has been seeking. It does, though, remain the outstanding favourite to acquire the holding.
Telefonica already owns a 22% stake, having purchased it from Prisa for €470m back in late 2009. The company has made no secret of its desire to purchase the remainder of Canal+ and previously launched a joint bid with Vivendi, the majority owner of the French pay-TV group, in 2008.
Telefonica also purchased €100m of convertible bonds in Prisa in June 2012. The bonds convert to common shares automatically on their maturity in 2014 and would give Telefonica an additional stake of 5-6%.
Prisa is selling media assets to pay down some of its substantial debt burden. The media group has €3.241bn in net debt and, in December last year, agreed to a major debt restructuring with both its main financing banks (which represent 73% of the group’s debt) and the institutional investors that acquired its debt in the secondary market (who hold 11%).
Under the refinancing, the maturity on Prisa’s debt is to be extended by five to six years and an additional two-year credit line of €350m has been provided. In return, lenders will receive a structuring and underwriting fee that will be paid in warrants for the company’s class A shares.
