Discovery buying another Scandi channel

SBS Discovery Media had inked a deal for Swedish channel TV11 from the TV4 Group.

The sale of the channel follows an internal review of its operations by TV4. Financial details were not disclosed, but CEO Casten Almqvist said it said it will use the proceeds from the sale to increase investment in in-house production and develop its catch-up and on-demand service TV4 Play.

The media company has already sold some ice hockey rights it owned following the strategic review.

The deal for TV11 needs rubber stamping by the local Authority for Radio and Television. Assuming approval is forthcoming, the channel will be part of Discovery’s portfolio from June.

SBS Discovery Media was created earlier this year when Discovery completed the acquisition of the SBS channels. The group is run by former SBS Nordic boss Henrik Ravn and comprises 20 channels.

“We have created a lot of value in TV11 and now after extensive negotiations selling channel,” he said. “The deal gives additional financial scope to further increase investment in our own Swedish productions and in TV4 Play, two areas we prioritise for the future.”

The deal was widely anticipated. Reporting strong results in February, TV4 said it had started the sale process for TV11.

Discovery has hit the international acquisition trail hard, acquiring the SBS Nordic channels and a chunk of Eurosport in recent months.