ITV to pay up to €1.1bn for producer of ‘The Voice’

ITV has agreed to pay as much as €1.1 billion to acquire Talpa Media BV, the producer of The Voice singing competition. Dutch billionaire John de Mol, who created one of the first modern-day reality TV shows Big Brother and founded Talpa in 2004, will initially receive €500 million in cash, London- based ITV said yesterday.

Additional payments will depend on Talpa’s business performance, and ITV will use a mixture of cash and debt to finance the transaction.

Under chief executive Adam Crozier, ITV is expanding in content production to complement its UK channels. Talpa will strengthen the ITV Studios arm, which has key offices in the US and UK. Some of ITV's popular shows include Mr Selfridge.

"It makes ITV into a truly global force in content," Ian Whittaker, an analyst at Liberum Capital said in a note.

ITV shares rose 1.1 per cent to 249.80 pence in morning trading in London, taking the advance to 26 per cent in the past 12 months.

ITV itself has long been cited by analysts as a potential target, given its production capabilities and relatively small amount of debt.

– (Bloomberg)