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Amazon Fire TV expansion; Netflix-Canal Plus deal; Eurofiber sale chatter

The Daily Dose LIVE returns to the City of London on Tuesday, Oct.1. Join us for a timely panel discussion on the vulnerabilities facing corporate Europe in a period of deep political, policy and economic uncertainty. Register today to secure your place at this popular breakfast event.

TOP NEWS

* Amazon.com Inc. is considering expanding the footprint of its Fire TV service across Europe, Bloomberg News reports, citing sources. The e-commerce giant reportedly plans to launch Fire TV in several new markets, as well as attract more users in countries such as the U.K. and Germany.

* Vivendi SA unit Canal Plus SA is finalizing an agreement with Netflix Inc., Le Figaro reports, citing sources. The negotiations are reportedly at an advanced stage and could be concluded in the coming weeks.

* Private equity firm Antin Infrastructure Partners is weighing a sale of Dutch fiber-optic network operator Eurofiber BV, following initial contacts with possible buyers, including infrastructure funds, Bloomberg News reports, citing sources. A deal could reportedly value Eurofiber at more than €1.5 billion.

UK AND IRELAND

* News Corp. is exploring a sale of its video advertising platform Unruly Group Ltd., Sky News reports. The media giant reportedly hired bankers to oversee a sale of Unruly following a number of unsolicited approaches about a potential takeover.

* Uhuru Corp., a Japanese startup backed by SoftBank Group Corp., could raise at least ¥5 billion ahead of its listing on London's AIM junior market, Reuters reports, citing a source. The IPO could reportedly give Uhuru a valuation beyond the ¥30 billion it reached in its previous fundraising.

* Investment firm iCon Infrastructure is considering investing in TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC's fiber broadband venture FibreNation, London's The Daily Telegraph reports.

* A BBC Earth-branded block on Cignal Digital TV's One News channel in the Philippines is set to launch Sept. 7, Rapid TV News reports. The block, which airs three times a week, will premiere one hour of BBC Earth programming. BBC Earth is operated by the British Broadcasting Corp.

* Ireland-based video gaming developer Keywords Studios PLC is expanding its operations in Poland and Mexico, Dublin's The Irish Times reports. The expansion seeks to address the needs of company clients in Europe and North America.

* Liberty Global PLC unit Virgin Media launched its ultrafast broadband network in Wallasey, in Wirral borough, as part of its "Project Lightning" initiative. More than 600 premises in the area will receive fiber broadband services through the network.

GERMANY, SWITZERLAND AND AUSTRIA

* The power struggle between Scout24 AG's executive committee and its activist investors increased interest at the company's annual shareholder meeting, Reuters reports. Activist investors, led by Elliott Management Corp., are demanding the sale of Autoscout24 and a share buyback program.

* Swiss telecom group Sunrise Communications Group AG may be threatened with a shareholder revolt against the proposed acquisition of UPC Schweiz, Reuters reports. Shareholders of German internet service provider freenet AG voiced concerns that the deal should be reshaped.

* ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE unit 7Sports and the National Football League extended their cooperation for the 2019-20 football season. TV channels ProSieben MAXX (DE) and ProSieben (DE) will continue to air NFL games during the season.

* ProSiebenSat.1's head of acquisitions, Rüdiger Böss, joined production company Constantin Film AG as a producer. He is also expected to strengthen the company's management team.

* Vodafone Deutschland GmbH is waiving all 5G service surcharges for subscribers of its Red and Young tariffs, according to a statement.

FRANCE

* French competition regulator Autorité de la Concurrence approved Cellnex Telecom SA's acquisition of Iliad SA's mobile towers unit Iliad 7. Through the transaction, Iliad unit Free is selling its mobile towers in France and leasing them back from Cellnex.

* TF1 Group and CBS Corp. unit CBS Studios International announced an exclusive multiseries licensing agreement for an undisclosed amount, Rapid TV News reports. Among the new content included in the deal are "FBI: Most Wanted," "BH90210" and "A Million Little Things."

* Viacom Inc. launched a digital book subscription service in France, Le Figaro reports. Bookids, aimed at children ages 3 to 12, brings together Nickelodeon's iconic characters such as Dora the Explorer, Spongebob Squarepants and Ninja Turtles.

NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM and LUXEMBOURG

* Dutch media companies NPO, RTL Nederland, Talpa Holding NV, NOS and De Persgroep NV are working on a national video and audio platform to compete with Netflix and YouTube, Algemeen Dagblad reports. The pressure on the Dutch media landscape reportedly was the reason for the development of the joint platform. YouTube is owned by Alphabet Inc. unit Google LLC.

* Ericsson Chairman Ronnie Leten raised concerns about the slow development of 5G in Europe, saying the technology can help resolve issues such as climate change, De Tijd reports. Leten reportedly said Europe has the knowledge and the opportunity to take a lead on the next major technology wave.

* Belgian operator Proximus named Sandrine Desseille CEO of its low-cost brand Scarlet, Datanews reports. Desseille replaces Bruno Delhaise, who is moving to Cable & Wireless Communications Ltd.

NORDIC COUNTRIES

* Swedish streaming company Streamience has started bankruptcy proceedings, Di Digital reports. The company, which developed an easy-to-use streaming services platform popular, previously raised 30 million Swedish kronor in capital from investors.

* Nordic Entertainment Group AB commissioned new seasons of two of its children's series, "The Great Escape" and "Saga's Stories." The series will premiere on the group's streaming service Viaplay across the Nordics in December 2019 and the spring of 2020.

SOUTHERN EUROPE

* The Court of Milan ruled to allow Vivendi to attend and vote at Mediaset SpA's Sept. 4 meeting in relation to proposed merger of Mediaset and Mediaset España Comunicación SA into MFE-Media for Europe NV. In addition, Vivendi's trust, which holds a 19.2% stake in Mediaset, registered to vote on the Italian broadcaster's planned restructuring, Reuters reports, citing a source.

* Optima Italia SpA will have access to Enel Open Fiber SpA's fiber-to-the-home network in 7,635 digital divide localities in Italy under an agreement between the companies, Telecompaper reports, citing Corriere delle Comunicazioni. The agreement will allow Optima to offer 1 Gbps fiber connections. Enel SpA owns Enel Open Fiber.

* Telecom Italia Sparkle SpA and Etisalat UAE teamed up to allow 5G roaming between Italy and the United Arab Emirates. The partnership would allow both Telecom Italia and Etisalat mobile customers to use 5G while traveling abroad.

EASTERN EUROPE

* The U.S. and Poland may enter into a 5G network security agreement during U.S. Vice President Michael Pence's visit in Warsaw, Reuters reports, citing an unnamed senior White House official. Pence is expected to meet with Polish government officials to discuss ways to maintain cybersecurity when using 5G technology.

* Discovery Inc.'s Eurosport acquired a four-year rights deal to exclusively air the Women's Tennis Association tournament in Russia from January 2020. Eurosport 1 will provide up to 350 hours of live broadcast of WTA's top-tier events.

* PPF Group NV-owned O2 Czech Republic as bought 95,848 of its own shares at an average price of 213.20 Czech koruny, Reuters reports. The acquisition reportedly was O2's first purchase under a buyback program since December 2017.

* Russian operator Mobile TeleSystems PJSC launched the first pilot of its 5G network using the 28 GHz band in Moscow, Telecompaper reports.

* MegaFon teamed up with Qualcomm Inc. unit Qualcomm Technologies Inc. and Nokia Corp. to conduct tests of 5G infrastructure using the 30 GHz to 300 GHz bands, according to a Telecompaper report.

FEATURED NEWS

MarketWeek: Despite turmoil, solar market attracts investors, new players betting on growth: Slowing economic growth and the prospect of a prolonged trade fight between the U.S. and China have put global financial markets on edge, but money is likely to continue flowing to the renewable energy sector.

FEATURED RESEARCH

Global Multichannel: Global Markets Update — Finland: Kagan has recently updated the Global Multichannel and Broadband analyses for Western Europe market @Finland as well as analyses for related operators.

Broadcast Investor: Broadcast Investor: Table of contents for issue No. 648, published August 2019.

Anne Freier, Sylvia Edwards Davis, Marieke Pijnappels and Esben Svendsen contributed to this report.

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