TOP NEWS IN TMT
* France's Banijay Group SAS is going public through a merger with special purpose acquisition company Pegasus Entrepreneurial Acquisition Co. Europe BV. The production house and gaming site Betclic Everest Group will be part of a listed company called FL Entertainment Group. FL Entertainment will be listed on Euronext Amsterdam on July 1 and have Stéphane Courbit as chairman and François Riahi as CEO.
* Voters in Switzerland will decide in a May 15 referendum on whether to require global streaming services to invest 4% of their revenue generated in the country in local film production and ensure 30% of the streaming content consists of Europe-produced films and TV series, according to Reuters.
➤ US payment platforms adapt to meet consumers' growing use of crypto
The payments ecosystem is evolving as companies take the first steps to offer cryptocurrency payment options to their customers. Progress will be limited until there is greater regulatory guidance.
➤ Consumer Insights: Consumer Insights Industry Overview, Q1'22
Kagan offers its latest quarterly presentation overview examining industry trends and data for the consumer sector.
TECHNOLOGY
* International Business Machines Corp. CEO Arvind Krishna said the company is uncertain about how long it can keep its Russia-based employees on the payroll amid increasing sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, according to Reuters.
* Dutch retail bank de Volksbank NV activated Apple Inc.'s Apple Pay service on iPhones and Apple Watches for customers of their banking brands ASN Bank and RegioBank.
* Netherlands-based semiconductor company ASML Holding NV issued a €500 million inaugural green bond offering of senior notes with a coupon of 2.250%. The senior notes are due in 2032. The company expects to use the proceeds from the offering to finance eligible green real estate projects.
* Swiss telecoms group Swisscom AG announced a multiyear strategic collaboration agreement with Amazon Web Services Inc., which sees Swisscom expanding its established AWS practice over the next few years, among others.
* Luxembourg-based satellite company SES SA's subsidiary SES Government Solutions Inc., in partnership with Planet Labs PBC, secured a contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the U.S. to help develop and demonstrate near-Earth communication services.
INTERNET & OTT
* Meta Platforms Inc. said the German competition regulator's order requiring it to secure user consent before combining data it collected from its main platform with that of messaging services and third-party sources, was "clearly flawed" as it had far-reaching restrictions on Facebook's data processing, Reuters reported, citing company lawyer Hans-Georg Kamann.
* Alphabet Inc.'s Google LLC began blocking the accounts of Russian parliament members, including Nina Ostatina, covered by sanctions, Telecompaper reported.
* The EU, the U.K. and the U.S. said Russia is responsible for several cyberattacks, including one on Viasat Inc.'s operations in Ukraine, since the former launched its military offensive against Ukraine.
* Russian video-hosting platform RuTube CJSC went down for a second day after being targeted by a cyberattack that started on May 9, Reuters reported.
* Starz LLC's Starzplay streaming service acquired the reboot of the U.K. series "Queer as Folk" for the U.K., Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, the Netherlands and the Nordics, among others, Variety reported.
* Roku Inc. and German streaming provider waipu.tv struck a strategic partnership allowing all waipu.tv channels to run on Roku devices, DWDL reported.
MEDIA
* The British government proposed to repeal Section 40 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013 as part of a media bill, which would require new publishers to pay for the costs of court judgments if they are not members of the approved regulator, regardless of the outcome of the court judgment.
* French game publisher Ubisoft Entertainment SA named Marie-Sophie de Waubert as senior vice president for studios operations.
* Comcast Corp.'s Sky Ltd. named Tom Barry as commissioning editor in documentaries and factual commissioning, starting June.
* The British Broadcasting Corp. retained the audio commentary rights for top-tier soccer Premier League for BBC Radio 5 Live for the 2022-23 to 2024-25 seasons.
* Sweden's Modern Times Group MTG AB repurchased 232,198 own class B shares under its newly launched share buyback program.
* Lagardere SA is exploring a project aimed at confirming the autonomy of its radio division, which includes Europe 1, Virgin Radio and RFM. These could be grouped under a partnership limited by shares controlled by Arnaud Lagardère. A decision will be made by summer.
* U.K. publisher Future PLC acquired digital-only women's lifestyle publisher WhoWhatWear from Clique Brands Inc. for an undisclosed sum.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
* United Group BV and PPF Group NV are still in the running to acquire Telekom Romania Mobile Communications SA after Bulgarian entrepreneur Spas Roussev scrapped talks after Russia invaded Ukraine, Telecompaper reported, citing Ziarul Financiar.
* Telecom Italia SpA is on track to obtain state guarantees for a credit facility worth as much as €3 billion, Reuters reported, citing three sources. Several banks, including UniCredit SpA, BNP Paribas SA, Crédit Agricole SA and Banco Santander SA have reportedly preapproved the financing.
* Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG reduced CO2 emissions by 97% in 2021 compared to 2015. In the same period, electricity consumption per byte fell by 78%.
* U.K. communications infrastructure company Arqiva Group Ltd. named Chief Commercial Officer Shuja Khan as its next CEO, effective June 1. Khan will replace Paul Donovan.
FILM & TV
* France Télévisions SA and Six Nations Rugby reached an agreement to extend their partnership, which sees the French broadcaster secure exclusive rights to air all Guinness Six Nations games and TikTok Women's Six Nations fixtures from 2023 to 2025.
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Anne Freier, Amanda Kelly, Koen Pijnappels and Gerard O'Dwyer contributed to this report.
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