Banijay Group and RedBird IMI have agreed to merge Banijay Entertainment and London-based All3Media in a 50:50 joint venture that will create one of the world’s largest independent content producers.
The combined company will operate under the Banijay name and, on a pro forma basis, would have generated more than €4.4bn (£3.82bn) in revenue and €690m in adjusted EBITDA in 2024.
Including other recent acquisitions, Paris-headquartered Banijay Group’s total 2024 pro forma revenues would reach €7.4bn with adjusted EBITDA of €1.5bn.
Banijay ventures across Europe – again
The business is Europe’s largest in entertainment and media production, and also owns iGaming firm Betclic, which it merged with Germany-based Tipico Sportwetten late last year.
The latest transaction, which again expands its umbrella of companies, is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close by autumn 2026.
Following completion, Marco Bassetti, currently Chief Executive Officer of Banijay Entertainment, will lead the combined entity in that role. All3Media Chief Executive Jane Turton will become Deputy Chief Executive Officer, while Jeff Zucker, Chief Executive Officer of RedBird IMI, will serve as Chairman.
François Riahi, Chief Executive Officer of Banijay Group, said: “This transaction represents a decisive step in Banijay Group’s strategy to reinforce its leading position in global entertainment.
“Banijay Entertainment and All3Media are highly complementary platforms with exceptional creative assets and global ambition.
“In all our businesses, we are leading consolidation, and this transaction is another demonstration of this in content production, just as the acquisition of Tipico announced recently in sports betting and online gaming.”
The combined group will encompass more than 170 creative labels across 25 countries, producing approximately 20,000 hours of content annually and holding a catalogue exceeding 260,000 hours.
The enlarged portfolio includes global formats and scripted hits such as The Traitors, Big Brother, Survivor, Peaky Blinders, Gogglebox, The Assassin and Oscar-nominated Hamnet, alongside major theatre productions including The Lehman Trilogy.
All3Media brings particular strength in English-language production, with roughly 80% of its revenues derived from English-language content and a strong presence in the UK and US. Banijay Entertainment, meanwhile, operates one of the industry’s most geographically diversified production networks and maintains extensive relationships with global streaming platforms.
The deal also combines All3Media’s digital business – Little Dot Studios – with Banijay’s distribution arm Banijay Rights and live events business Banijay Live.
Little Dot Studios operates more than 135 owned-and-operated channels and manages over 1,000 digital channels across major platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Meta and Roku, generating more than 11 billion organic views per month.
“All3Media has grown from a start-up in 2003 to a globally successful creative business,” added Turton.
“First and foremost, we are a group where creative and commercial excellence go hand in hand. We celebrate talent and believe in collaboration, ambition and innovation in creating and producing both stunning programmes and delivering impressive financial returns.
“I am looking forward to working with Marco as All3Media and Banijay embark on this next exciting phase.”
Further homegrown potential
For Banijay Group, the move comes after a hectic year in the French gaming space. The country introduced higher taxes in July on operators to fund the country’s social security budget.
As of July, lottery and Euromillions levies increased to 69%, retail sports betting from 41.1% to 42.1% and online sports betting jumped from 54.9% to 59.3%. Online poker is now taxed at 10% of GGR (up from 0.2% of stakes).
There has also been plenty of talk that the country may regulate online casino to bring in €1.5-€2bn of revenue – a move which C-suite figures at Banijay have previously stated they would welcome.
Not long after the firm agreed the Tipico deal, it sold its shares in Germany-based bet-at-home to focus on the merger. It is yet to be seen whether a similar strategy will be followed for this transaction.
The huge enlargement of the firm’s media portfolio this morning could help offset any difficulties encountered in the online betting space, with both France and Germany presenting challenges around taxation, regulation and competition.
Bassetti commented: “Since its inception, Banijay has been driven by entrepreneurialism, ambition, and creativity. In the next phase of our journey, this DNA remains integral to our commitment to building a media and entertainment company that can stand its own, and the test of time, on the global stage.
“One that can attract and retain the best talent, one that has the means to truly invest in ideation and building the franchises and live events of tomorrow, and one that can lead the way on adopting new technologies, new platforms and new routes to audiences – a truly diversified media and entertainment powerhouse.”