CMA CGM agrees to buy Altice Media to expand media empire

The French container liner CMA CGM has sealed a put option deal with Altice France for the acquisition of 100% of the share capital of Altice Media, the leading live news player in France.

Altice Media would be jointly acquired by CMA CGM, for a 80% stake and Merit France, its Family Holding, for a 20% stake, for a total enterprise value of €1.55bln.

As it is revealed by CMA CGM its aim is to establish a “long-term, leading Media Division.”

The container liner top management says Altice Media is complementarity with CMA CGM’s existing Media Division and its renowned medias, La Provence, Corse Matin, La Tribune et La Tribune Dimanche, will be a key strength. 

Through Altice Media’s brands, mainly BFM and RMC, and with La Provence, Corse Matin, La Tribune, and La Tribune Dimanche, the new entity would be present across all distribution channels: digital, broadcasting, video, print and B2B editorial events.

“The contemplated project would be done in total continuity with the current editorial policy at Altice Media, which drove the success of its TV channels and radio stations. To ensure such continuity, CMA CGM has offered Altice Media current management team to remain in place,” reads CMA CGM’s statement.

Altice Media, founded 20 years ago, is France’s third largest private-sector media group and the reference news brand with over 13.2 million of daily viewers in January 2024.

Altice Media gathers a young audience through BFM and RMC, its two brands, and a differentiated offer focused on news.

Over the last three years, Altice Media has developed a content-centric and multiformat distribution strategy across three national, ten local TV channels, three radio stations, a replay platform and an online news platform.

The completion of the transaction remains subject to the consultation of the relevant employee representative bodies of Altice France companies and the approval from the customary regulatory bodies.

Rodolphe Saadé, chairman and chief executive of the CMA CGM Group, said: “Through this contemplated acquisition, we have the ambition to pursue our long-term development into the media sector. Altice Media is a reference media group, with strong growth, talented teams, and iconic brands.”

^{Source: CMA CGM}