MILAN (Reuters) – Italian broadcaster MediaForEurope has submitted a non-binding offer for a controlling stake in French TV company M6, two sources familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Milan-listed MFE, owned by the family for former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, has teamed up with a French industrial partner which is not currently present in the TV sector, the sources said, without elaborating.
Initial offers for RTL’s 48.3% stake in M6 were expected by Friday afternoon after a planned tie-up between the company and fellow French broadcaster TF1 collapsed last week.
Previously known as Mediaset, MFE is pursuing growth in European to tackle competition from streaming services such as Netflix.
RTL and its German parent company Bertelsmann are being advised by JPMorgan.
(Reporting by Elvira Pollina, editing by Silvia Aloisi)
