Credit Suisse

SES and Intelsat reportedly in merger talks

Satellite operators SES and Intelsat are in merger talks, according to a report in the FT. According to the paper, the pair are in talks in a move to ensure they are not left behind by industry consolidation in an environment where new entrants such as Elon Musk’s Starlink. Citing unnamed sources, the FT said […]

Report: Netflix makes push into ‘interactive TV’

Netflix is set to allow users to choose how a TV episode or movie will end as it pushes further into interactive TV, according to a Bloomberg report. The first project to take part in the initiative will be Black Mirror, which is due to launch an interactive episode at the end of the year. Netflix animated […]

Axel Springer-ProSieben deal would face regulatory issues

Analysts have said that the mooted merger of German media giants Axel Springer and ProSiebensat.1 would face serious regulatory obstacles. Investment bank Credit Suisse said that regulatory approval is unlikely to be forthcoming should the pair push ahead and attempt to merge. “Given the combined ad market share (we estimate 20% of total German market) […]

ITV posts strong results

ITV reported an 8% increase in overall revenues £1.8 billion (€2.3 billion) and a 7% increase in broadcast and online revenues of $1.4 billion in its third quarter results. ITV CEO Adam Crozier said: “Our broadcast business has performed strongly with advertising revenues up 6% in the first nine months. We expect to be up […]

Sky faces Premier League risk, says Credit Suisse

The forthcoming English Premier League auction poses significant risks for BSkyB, according to Credit Suisse, which has maintained the pay TV operator’s previous ‘underperform’ rating in its latest note.  Assessing BSkyB’s plan to consolidate the German and Italian Sky-branded platforms under the Sky Europe banner, Credit Suisse said German growth prospects looked good but that […]

Retransmission fees worth £1.5 billion to ITV

Retransmission fees would add about £1.5 billion (€1.88 billion) to the value of ITV, according to analysts. The UK commercial broadcaster has started a concerted lobbying effort for retransmission fees from the UK’s pay TV platforms – with the pay TV companies lined up in opposition. Channel 4 has also publicly backed ITV’s calls for […]

Credit Suisse: Sky faces earnings risk as football auction looms

The next round of auctions for rights to English Premier League football will be critical to BSkyB’s future and its battle with BT will likely lead to a large inflation in costs, according to an investment note from Credit Suisse. Maintaining its ‘underperform’ rating on Sky, despite what it admitted were results that exceeded expectations, […]

BSkyB could be looking at TV subs fall, say analysts

Analysts at Berenberg and Credit Suisse expect BSkyB to report a decline in traditional pay TV subscribers for the first time when it reveals its second quarter figures tomorrow.  Analysts at the pair reportedly estimate that Sky lost between 5,000 and 15,000 pay TV customers in the quarter to March. Sky now reports a single […]

Ziggo to refinance debt with €800m loan

Dutch cable operator Ziggo has received loan commitments from a number of banks to raise €800m, which it said it would use to partially refinance its existing debt.  The new credit facility will be provided by ABN Amro Bank, BNP Paribas Fortis, Cooperative Centrale Raiffeisen Boerenleenbank, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, ING-DiBa, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, […]

More cable consolidation expected

Liberty Global’s US$23.3 billion (€17.9 billion) buyout of Virgin Media could lead to more consolidation in the European cable space, predicts Virgin chief operating officer Andrew Barron.  Speaking to DTVE at Cable Congress last week, Barron said that consolidation was a “fundamental truth of our industry,” citing recent activity in the German and Polish markets. […]