TOP NEWS

* A consortium of undisclosed investors is offering €10 billion for a 51% stake in Telefónica SA's Latin American operations, excluding Brazil, Total Telecom reports, citing El Mundo. The Spain-based telco would reportedly retain a stake of up to 25% if the deal pushes through, with the remaining shares to be divided among minority shareholders.

* The Walt Disney Co. moved the European launch of its streaming service Disney+ forward a week to March 24. The new launch date applies to the U.K., Ireland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy and Spain. Disney+ will be rolled out next in Belgium, Portugal and the Nordic countries by the summer.

* TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC agreed to sell its fiber network, FibreNation, to CityFibre Infrastructure Holdings Ltd. for about £200 million. Part of the deal is a long-term wholesale agreement with TalkTalk for residential and business products in the locations where CityFibre builds networks.

* Vodafone Group PLC is stepping back from Facebook Inc.'s Libra Association, becoming the eighth member of the group to abandon the cryptocurrency project, CoinDesk reports, citing a statement from a Libra representative. The U.K.-based telecom operator will instead put the resources it had planned for Libra into its digital payment service M-Pesa.

PAN-EUROPEAN

* Alphabet Inc.'s YouTube LLC appointed Alex Okosi managing director of emerging markets for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Digital TV Europe reports. Okosi was previously executive vice president and managing director at ViacomCBS Inc. units ViacomCBS Networks Africa and BET International.

UK AND IRELAND

* Vodafone said it restructured its agreement with infrastructure provider CityFibre Infrastructure to facilitate its rollout of full-fiber broadband in the U.K. Under the new deal, the telecom company will offer its Vodafone Gigafast Broadband on a rolling, 12-month exclusive basis while the service is rolled out in 12 towns and cities covered in the deployment's first phase.

* The British government will push through with its plan to introduce digital tax amid warning of potential retaliation from the U.S., London's Financial Times reports, citing a spokesperson for U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The U.K. intends to design the taxation scheme "in a proportionate way," the spokesperson was quoted as saying.

* ViacomCBS-owned free-to-air TV network Channel 5 (UK) agreed to broadcast highlights of World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.'s weekly programs "Raw" and "SmackDown" in the U.K. on weekends, beginning Feb. 2. The partnership will also see Channel 5-programmed Paramount Network airing the show "NXT UK" on Wednesday midnights.

* Discovery Inc. rebranded its Home channel to HGTV in the U.K., Worldscreen reports. The move comes after the U.S. media company announced an upcoming launch of HGTV in 12 European countries.

* Channel 4 (UK) appointed Miketta Lane as 4Creative's head of production and operations. Lane, who will report to Chief Marketing Officer Zaid Al-Qassab, will be in charge of production and finance-related aspects of its on-air and off-air campaigns.

* U.K.-headquartered Synamedia inked an agreement with USSI Global to serve customers in the U.S. Under the deal, USSI will provide support, as well as fulfillment and deployment services for Synamedia video network customers.

GERMANY, SWITZERLAND AND AUSTRIA

* Chinese livestreaming platform HUYA Inc. canceled its acquisition of a minority stake in Turtle Entertainment GmbH, or ESL, the Germany-headquartered esports business of Sweden's Modern Times Group Mtg AB. The parties also agreed to terminate negotiations over an esports joint venture. According to MTG, differing views between the parties on the allocation of contractual risk and other key commercial terms are the primary reasons for the termination of the agreement.

* German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc is backing a stance requiring companies rolling out Germany's 5G network to be politically independent in their home country, Reuters reports, citing a senior conservative. The chancellor wants strict security requirements for the country's 5G network, but does not want to exclude individual companies.

* Digital security company Kudelski SA said it entered into a patent license agreement with digital content distributor fuboTV Inc. The deal's financial terms are undisclosed.

* The Cologne Administrative Court is consulting the European Court of Justice in relation to Deutsche Telekom AG's legal dispute on StreamOn tariffs. The European Union court is to decide whether a ban on video throttling will be compatible with EU law, reports German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung.

* German broadcaster Sat.1 headhunted Mark Land as head of entertainment, reports German media magazine DWDL. Previously, Land was head of producers at RTL Group Germany SA.

FRANCE

* France agreed to postpone collection of advance payments of its digital tax due in 2020, Le Monde reports. U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to suspend any further escalation in the dispute over France's digital tax during ongoing negotiations with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The talks are set to continue until the end of the year. According to French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, talks between France and the U.S. about digital tax "remained difficult," Reuters reports.

* Stéphane le Tavernier resigned as president of Sony Music Entertainment Inc.'s French unit with immediate effect, Les Echos reports. The company said in an internal memo that le Tavernier's replacement will be announced shortly.

* Vivendi SA's Canal Plus Group SA obtained the rights to broadcast Formula One in France until 2022, according to information obtained by L'Equipe. Canal Plus has broadcast all Grand Prix seasons since 2013.