General Atlantic backs PPF in ProSiebenSat.1 takeover battle, rejects MFE Offer

General Atlantic accepted PPF’s €7 per share cash offer, defying ProSiebenSat.1’s management, which last week recommended shareholders support the higher, partly share-based bid from MFE-MediaForEurope, the Italian media company controlled by the Berlusconi family.

ProSieben had recently abandoned its resistance to MFE’s sweetened takeover proposal, valuing the broadcaster at around €1.8 billion and promising €150 million in annual synergies. PPF, however, has reiterated that it will not raise its cash offer in response to MFE’s latest move.

MFE’s bid is part of a wider ambition to build a pan-European media group capable of competing with U.S. streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. The contrasting approaches — PPF’s all-cash bid versus MFE’s cash-plus-share offer — underscore the strategic divide among ProSieben’s shareholders.

Neither General Atlantic, PPF, MFE, nor ProSiebenSat.1 have commented publicly on the latest development.

Legal advisers Kirkland & Ellis, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Hengeler Mueller continue to guide the parties in this high-profile bidding war, which could reshape the European television landscape.