Pro7 could raise €2.5b from int’l channels sale

German broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 could raise up to €2.5 billion (US$3.4 billion) from the sale of its international channels.

A number of global media companies including John de Mol’s Talpa and the Telegraaf Media Group have been linked with the channels in Benelux and Scandinavia.

This comes after the company’s chief executive Thomas Ebeling told German press that the company was considering selling its international assets if they could get the right amount of cash for them.

The company operates free and pay TV channels in the Benelux and Nordic regions under the SBS banner.

Analysts Morgan Stanley estimates the Benelux operation has a value of between €980 million and €1.23 billion. The Nordic operation, meanwhile, is valued at between €1 billion and €1.3 billion by the investment bank. ProSieben is understood to be reluctant to offload both assets, making the sale of one a more likely scenario.