Italian broadcaster Mediaset has raised around €284m (US$389m) from selling a 25% stake in local towerco and satellite uplink provider EI Towers.
Around seven million shares were offered to investors at €40.15 each via an accelerated bookbuild….
Italian broadcaster Mediaset has raised around €284m (US$389m) from selling a 25% stake in local towerco and satellite uplink provider EI Towers.
Around seven million shares were offered to investors at €40.15 each via an accelerated bookbuild. Mediobanca acted as sole bookrunner on the sale.
Mediaset expects to settle the offering on 8 April.
The media group, which is controlled by former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, had a 65% stake in EI Towers via its subsidiary Elettronica Industriale before the offering. According to local reports, Mediaset plans to use the proceeds to invest in its core operations, such as securing lucrative football rights.
The media group recently declined to exercise a call option to take over Prisa’s Spanish DTH provider Canal+.
Although that option has now expired, Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica, which like Mediaset currently holds a 22% stake, is still thought to be considering an US$800m acquisition of Canal+.
Meanwhile, Mediaset has been linked as a potential bidder for the acquisition of tower sites from Italian incumbent Telecom Italia. A spokesperson for the telco said a deal could be reached within the next few months.
