De Agostini Eyes Endemol Stake

MADRID, February 21: Italy’s De Agostini, which owns a majority stake in Spain’s Antena 3, is planning a bid for Telefónica’s 75-percent stake in Endemol, according to wire reports.

De Agostini now joins a fray that includes fellow Italian group Mediaset, former Endemol chief John de Mol and investment firms like Apax Partners. Disney and News Corporation had previously been bandied about as possible investors in Endemol, and both have dismissed those rumors.

Telefónica is expected to offload its majority interest in the Dutch format giant for about 2 billion euros.