TOP NEWS IN TMT
* An amended Portuguese law imposing a 1% tax on the revenues of streaming platforms operating in the country, including Netflix Inc., Amazon.com Inc.'s Prime Video and Walt Disney Co.'s Disney+, came into force Jan. 1, Telecompaper reported, citing Lusa. The streamers will also have to pay €1 million annually along with an investment commitment of up to €4 million in local films and audiovisual productions.
* Russia will require Netflix to stream 20 state TV channels in the country beginning March, after it registered the streamer as an audiovisual service in the week of Dec. 27, 2021, Engadget reported.
➤ Data Dispatch: Telecom capital markets activity remains stagnant in November
Capital markets activity by publicly traded telecommunications companies in the U.S., Canada and Bermuda recorded its third-lowest numbers for the year in November 2021, with the sector raising $16.5 million in total.
TECHNOLOGY
* Microsoft Corp. and Telefónica SA unit Telefónica Tech SLU will offer confidential hybrid cloud solutions to Spanish public administrations including defense and companies in regulated sectors.
* French IT company Atos SE named Rodolphe Belmer its new CEO, effective Jan. 1.
* Dutch semiconductor company ASML Holding NV reported a fire incident at its factory in Berlin.
* The Russian government will spend 30.4 billion Russian rubles on mobile devices with a locally developed operating system by 2024, Telecompaper reported, citing Cnews.ru. The mobile devices will be for state officials' use.
INTERNET & OTT
* Germany's Federal Cartel Office is examining whether it can fine Amazon for alleged preferential treatment to brand manufacturers following a similar ruling by the Italian antitrust authority that imposed a fine of over €68 million on the e-commerce platform, Internet World reported.
* Private equity company Antin Infrastructure Partners plans to sell Spanish fiber-optic company Lyntia Networks SA at a potential valuation of over €4 billion, Dow Jones Newswires reported, citing Expansion. The sale process will reportedly start in the second week of January.
* The British Broadcasting Corp. unveiled its new mockumentary series "Cunk on Earth," set to premiere on BBC Two and the BBC iPlayer streaming platform this year. The series will also be available on Netflix outside the U.K. and Ireland.
* Nordic Entertainment Group AB's streaming service Viaplay placed PDC Darts broadcasts behind a paywall in the Netherlands, effective immediately, TotaalTV reported.
* Danish fiber solutions company Roblon A/S agreed to acquire Czech fiber converting services VAMAFIL spol. s r.o. for €8 million.
* Mobile and fixed internet providers in France are now required to detail the carbon footprint of the user's data consumption on the invoice as of Jan. 1, Franceinfo reported.
MEDIA
* Métropole Télévision SA, or Groupe M6, increased its stake in estate agents network Stéphane Plaza Immobilier to 51% from 49%. The deal values the company at €125 million.
* Performance marketing company Gambling.com Group Ltd., which operates from offices in Ireland, the U.S. and Malta, completed its acquisition of Roto Sports Inc.
* U.S. investor TPG Real Estate Partners acquired German production studio Studio Babelsberg AG. The latter will become a part of the investor's Cinespace Film Studios Inc.
* A hacking attack targeted the websites of Impresa - Sociedade Gestora de Participações Sociais SA-owned Portuguese newspaper Expresso and broadcaster SIC TV, Reuters reported.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
* Norwegian telecom operator Telenor ASA agreed to sell its 51% stake in Myanmar-based mobile financial services provider Digital Money Myanmar Ltd., which does business as Wave Money, to a consortium led by Singapore's Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd. for a cash consideration of $53 million, Nikkei Asia reported.
* The boards of Italian telco Tiscali SpA and Linkem SpA's retail unit approved a merger deal to create the fifth-largest fixed network operator in Italy.
* Italian state investor Cassa depositi e prestiti SpA's president, Giovanni Gorno Tempini, called on the government to push through with a stalled plan to build a single broadband network, merging Telecom Italia SpA's network assets with those of Open Fiber SpA, Reuters reported, citing Il Sole 24 Ore.
* Türk Telekomünikasyon Anonim Şirketi's board moved to close the telco's strategy, planning and digital assistant general management unit, according to Telecompaper.
* Moldova-based telco S.A. Moldcell named Deputy General Manager and CFO Carolina Bugaian as its CEO, Telecompaper reported. Bugaian succeeds Barkin Secen.
* Borea AS and Nordstjernan Kredit AB joined GoldenTree Asset Management LP's claim against Norwegian telco Ice Group ASA's unit AINMT Holdings for the alleged breach of a loan agreement. Borea and Nordstjernan Kredit together hold about 18% of the outstanding debt.
FILM & TV
* The French Ministry of Culture announced that the guarantee against the risk of interruptions in film and television shoots due to COVID-19 has been extended until the end of March 2022. The guarantee was earlier extended until the end of 2021.
* Media Group Ukraine's Television and Radio Broadcasting Co. (TBRC) Ukraine inked a three-year deal to exclusively broadcast NBCUniversal Media LLC's content in Ukraine, Broadband TV News reported.
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Anne Freier, Sylvia Edwards Davis, Koen Pijnappels and Esben Svendsen contributed to this report.
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