Wolf Theiss advised on the Sale of Rtl Croatia to Central European Media Enterprises

Wolf Theiss advised RTL Group, a Luxembourg-based international media conglomerate, on the sale of 100% of its shares in RTL Croatia (RTL Hrvatska) to Central European Media Enterprises (CME, part of PPF Group).

The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2022. The total consideration to be paid at closing amounts to €50 million. In addition, RTL Group will benefit from royalties under a long-term trademark license agreement with CME. RTL Group’s shareholders will benefit from the cash proceeds in line with the stated dividend policy. RTL Group was the majority shareholder of RTL Croatia since its foundation in 2004 and has fully owned the company since July 2015.

RTL Group is a Luxembourg-based international media conglomerate, with another corporate centre in Cologne, Germany. The company operates 68 television channels and 31 radio stations in Germany, France and other European countries.

RTL Croatia’s three free-TV channels – RTL Televizija (family, general interest), RTL 2 (classic movies, series and sports) and RTL Kockica (children) – form the leading family of TV channels in Croatia, which is complemented by the pay-TV channels RTL Living, RTL Passion, RTL Crime and RTL Adria as well as RTL Croatia World, a dedicated channel for Croatians living abroad. The business unit also operates the streaming services Play and Play Premium, several digital services and the music label RTL Music.

PPF Group N.V. is a Czech financial and investment group incorporated in the Netherlands. PPF Group invests in multiple market segments such as financial services, telecommunications, biotechnology, real estate and mechanical engineering. The reach of PPF Group spans from Europe to North America and across Asia.

For RTL Group, J.P. Morgan acted as transaction advisor and Wolf Theiss as legal counsel for the transaction.