France Telecom To Buy 49% Of Dailymotion For EUR58.8 Million
January 25 2011 - 3:20AM
Dow Jones News
France Telecom's (FTE) Orange Tuesday said it entered in
exclusive talks to acquire a 49% stake in French video-sharing
website Dailymotion for EUR58.8 million, the second deal announced
in a week under the group's new content strategy.
"This operation once again illustrates the role that Orange
intends to play in the content value chain. Although we are no
longer publishers ourselves, we are strengthening our position in
the fields of aggregation and distribution," France Telecom's Chief
Executive Stephane Richard said in a statement.
The deal should allow Orange to gradually increase its
shareholding in Dailymotion to 100% from 2013, and should allow for
the integration of new business partners, the company said.
A final agreement is expected in the coming months.
Last week, France Telecom said it will form a joint venture with
Canal Plus Groupe, a unit of Vivendi SA (VIV.FR), to merge its
cinema channels with Canal Plus's movie channel TPS Star.
The latest deals are part of France Telecom's strategy to
establish partnerships with content providers as it seeks to
attract new clients and find alternative sources of revenue.
Companies Web sites: www.orange-ftgroup.com;
www.dailymotion.com
-By Ruth Bender and Geraldine Amiel, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1
4017 1740; ruth.bender@dowjones.com,
geraldine.amiel@dowjones.com;