European Commission Clears Discovery’s Scripps Acquisition

The European Commission (EC) has cleared Discovery Communications’ proposed acquisition of Scripps Networks Interactive, subject to certain conditions.

The EC’s approval is conditional on Discovery’s commitment to offer third-party distributors the right, on a non-exclusive and unbundled basis, to distribute TVN24 and/or TVN24 BiS in Poland.

Discovery announced in July 2017 that it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire Scripps Networks, and the proposed transaction is subject to obtaining additional antitrust clearances and satisfying other customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close later in Q1 2018.

“We are pleased with the positive decision of the European Commission,” said David Zaslav, the president and CEO of Discovery. “We believe that joining the Discovery and Scripps Networks’ family of brands and assets will allow us to better serve our passionate fans with more content on more platforms worldwide, while at the same time optimizing our business for greater efficiency.”