Share and share alike

20 February 2006 By Nina Koeppen

Duh? Didn t the US billionaire recently persuade Axel Springer to pay almost 70% more for his unlisted voting shares than for the prefs? Sure, but the bid flopped, and there s no other firm deal on the table. If he wants an exit, a merger of the two shares may be his best bet. Sure, but that deal flopped, and no one else has bid. If he wants an exit, a merger of the two shares may be his best bet.

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Billionaire US media entrepreneur Haim Saban, backed by a consortium of seven private equity groups, controls just over 50% of ProSieben's total share capital. P7S1 holding owns 88% of the broadcaster's voting stock, and 13% of its nonvoting preferred stock.

The group planned to sell its stake in ProSieben to German publisher Axel Springer for about E2.5bn. But the deal was blocked by the German Cartel Office earlier this month.

Following the rebuff, Saban said that the broadcaster was no longer for sale. Despite strong interest expressed by third parties, we have unanimously decided not to pursue another sale transaction," the P7S1 head said in the statement last week.

But media watchers believe that Egyptianborn and Israeliraised Saban is still looking to exit his investment in the next 12 to 18 months.

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