Netflix officially abandons the fight to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. What does this mean for us? It looks like TVN will take over Paramount Skydance. This offer was favored by the Donald Trump administration. It is no secret that the Polish president is not entirely on good terms with the US president's environment. Can Warsaw agree to block the TVN takeover?
— The Polish government has instruments to block the merger or takeover of TVN — says in an interview with Business Insider Polska prof. Michał Romanowski, attorney and partner of the M. Romanowski i Wspólnicy law firm. Theoretically, the basis for this may be the Act of July 24, 2015 on the control of certain investments.
The rest of the article is below the video:
— TVN is on the list of entities subject to protection prepared by the Council of Ministers – emphasizes the expert. — The controlling body is the Minister of State Assets. The Minister of State Assets will therefore be obliged to examine whether the new shareholder of TVN, taking into account its actual owner (the so-called ultimate beneficial owner), does not pose a threat to state security – adds Michał Romanowski.
– The Minister of State Assets (who is currently Wojciech Balczun) will therefore be obliged to examine whether the new shareholder of TVN, taking into account its actual owner (the so-called ultimate beneficial owner), does not constitute a threat to state security – indicates prof. Michał Romanowski.
— The decision of the control body (i.e. in this case the Minister of State Assets) is very difficult to question due to its natural discretion and the state's secrecy in the protection of its national security – our interlocutor additionally points out.
Prof. Romanowski adds that similar solutions exist in Germany, France, Italy and Spain and concern state-owned and private companies that are strategic for state security.
See also: Will this be the new owner of TVN? Legendary films and friendship with Trump in the background
Will Warsaw block the takeover of TVN? “Services are crucial”
As the lawyer reminds, the Minister of Assets acts in the case of such decisions with the help of the Consultative Committee, which consists of over 20 different ministries and central administration bodies, including representatives of the heads of special services: the Internal Security Agency, the Intelligence Agency and the Military Counterintelligence Service.
– Secret services are crucial to determine who is the real beneficiary of an investor who intends to take over, for example, TVN, and therefore who is actually behind a given investor – he explains.
— This is particularly important when transactions involve financial vehicles or private equity funds managing the money entrusted to them. The fact of registering such entities, even in the European Union, does not determine whether the money comes from Russia or China. The powers of the government, in this case the Minister of State Assets, are particularly important in times of geopolitical tensions, as well as Poland as a frontline country, he adds.
— Therefore, the Government of the Republic of Poland has the instruments to conduct a very in-depth investigation, if necessary, even for years, in case of doubts as to whether a given transaction violates the interests of the state, and to block the transaction. Therefore, full cooperation and complete transparency are in the investor's interest, our interlocutor emphasizes.
Netflix is going backwards
The path to taking over Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance was opened by the decision of Netflix, which officially gave up the fight after the WBD management found Paramount Skydance's offer to be more advantageous.
In exchange for withdrawing from the previous agreement, Netflix will receive $2.8 billion. This decision opens the way for Paramount Skydance to take over WBD, including channels such as Polish TVN and CNN.
Look: Fight to buy Warner Bros. It is officially known what Netflix did
Authors: Jolanta Ojczyk, head of the Legal Department of Business Insider Polska, Mateusz Madejski, journalist of Business Insider Polska
