DeAgostini readies deals

Following its unsuccessful bid to acquire Endemol in May, Italian media group De Agostini is closing in on several independent producers as it attempts to create a major new pan-European production player.

Paolo Ceretti, De Agostini general manager, says: "Our growth strategy aims at aggregating other independent producers in both Europe and other strategic countries into a group that would benefit from networking synergies and cross-fertilization opportunities."

This follows its purchase of Italy’s Magnolia and France’s Marathon earlier this year. "We are targeting companies with a strong position both in non-scripted and scripted genres," Ceretti says.