Danish Telco TDC Calls Off Modern Times Group Acquisition
Danish telecoms firm TDC has called off its plans to acquire Modern Times Group’s Nordic group, which includes a raft of channels and production and distribution assets.
The move comes after the Danish firm itself received a takeover bid last week from Australia’s Macquarie Infrastructure and pension firm PFA, ATP and PKA.
It means that the high-profile $2.5B merger of TDC and MTG Nordics, which includes the Viasat pay and free TV channels in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, SVOD service Viaplay, the Nice Entertainment production studio and distribution division DRG, has been cancelled.
The deal had already been approved by MTG’s largest shareholder Kinnevik and was expected to be completed during the second half of 2018. The companies had announced that Pernille Erenbjerg, who is currently CEO of TDC Group, the largest telco in Denmark, would become CEO of the combined company with MTG Executive Vice President Anders Jensen becoming Deputy CEO.
“Modern Times Group (MTG) has been informed by TDC that its Board of Directors intends to withdraw its recommendation of the signed agreement with MTG to combine its Nordic Entertainment and MTG Studios businesses with TDC Group. The combination is subject to, inter alia, the approval by a TDC Group shareholders’ meeting. MTG will provide further information to the market as and when it is received,” the company noted in a statement.
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