Home / Press / CMS advises Discovery on the agreement to take over...

CMS advises Discovery on the agreement to take over the TV channel TELE 5 and a long-term content agreement with LEONINE

07/07/2020

London/Munich/Cologne - The global media company Discovery has taken over the German fictional Free TV station TELE 5 from the previous owner LEONINE. In addition, a long-term program license agreement was concluded with the Munich-based previous owner. This gives Discovery access to LEONINE's extensive range of licenses. With the takeover, Discovery plans to further expand its position in the German free TV market as well as to develop new target groups and marketing potential. The transaction is still subject to regulatory approval. All parties involved have agreed not to disclose the details.

In close cooperation, an international CMS team led by Klaus Jäger (CMS Germany) and Client Relationship Partners Victoria Gaskell and Paul Guite (both CMS UK) provided comprehensive legal advice to Discovery on the transaction. CMS UK advised with a focus on the content deal while CMS Germany primarily advised on the acquisition of the entertainment channel TELE 5.

Discovery Germany hosts the free-TV channels DMAX, TLC, Eurosport 1 and HOME & GARDEN TV, as well as the pay-TV channels DISCOVERY CHANNEL, ANIMAL PLANET and Eurosport 2 and Eurosport2 HDXTRA. The channel network, which was founded in 1996, is based in Munich and, according to its own information, reaches a total of 45 million households, twelve million Pay TV subscribers and a further four million users in the digital sector. Discovery Germany is backed by Discovery, Inc., a worldwide leading non-fiction media company with a reach of three billion viewers in over 220 countries.

Leonine, headquartered in Munich, is an independent German media company that resulted from the merger of Tele München Gruppe, Universum Film, i&u TV, Wiedemann & Berg Film and W&B TV.

CMS Germany

Klaus Jäger, Lead Partner
Stephan Weling, Counsel
Philipp Kunick, Senior Associate
Ramon Weistroffer, Associate
Christoph Schröer, Associate, all Corporate/M&A
Michael Kamps, Partner
Thorsten Hemme, Counsel
Dr Patrick Ehinger, Senior Associate
Martin-Lukas Landmann, Senior Associate, all TMC 
Kai Neuhaus, Partner
Nadine Herda, Associate
Moritz Pottek, Associate, all Competition & EU 
Dr Angela Emmert, Partner
Lennard Martin Lürwer, Senior Associate, both Labor, Employment & Pensions
Dr Dirk Smielick, Counsel, Intellectual Property
Phillip Bubinger, Senior Associate
Philipp Rohdenburg, Senior Associate, both Commercial Law
Dr Martin Friedberg, Counsel, Tax law
Birgit Wagner, Senior Legal Consultant
Steven Washington, Legal Consultant, both Smart Operations

CMS UK

Paul Guite, Partner
Victoria Gaskell, Partner
Matthew Hanson 
Jennifer Lloyd

CMS Austria

Dr Dieter Zandler, Partner 
Vanessa Horaceck

Discovery Inhouse

Julian Pitcher, VP Legal M&A, London
Stephanie Struppler, VP Legal & Regulatory GSA Benelux, München
Tom Savage, Senior Director Legal& Business Affairs, London
Nadine Eickhorst, Legal Counsel, München
Sarah Neubauer, Legal Counsel, München

Press Contact
presse@cms-hs.com

Related people

Portrait ofKlaus Jäger
Klaus Jäger
Partner
Cologne
Portrait ofChristoph Schröer
Christoph Schröer
Senior Associate
Cologne
Portrait ofMichael Kamps
Michael Kamps
Partner
Cologne
Portrait ofThorsten Hemme
Thorsten Hemme
Principal Counsel
Cologne
Portrait ofPatrick Ehinger
Dr. Patrick Ehinger
Counsel
Cologne
Portrait of
Martin-Lukas Landmann
Senior Associate
Cologne
Portrait ofKai Neuhaus
Kai Neuhaus, LL.M.
Partner
Brussels - EU Law Office
Portrait ofMoritz Pottek
Moritz Pottek
Counsel
Brussels - EU Law Office
Portrait ofAngela Emmert
Dr. Angela Emmert
Partner
Cologne
Portrait ofLennard Martin Lürwer
Lennard Martin Lürwer
Counsel
Cologne
Portrait ofDirk Smielick
Dr. Dirk Smielick
Principal Counsel
Cologne
Portrait ofPhillip Bubinger
Phillip Bubinger, M.C.B.L. (Mannheim/Adelaide)
Counsel
Cologne
Portrait ofPhilipp Rohdenburg
Dr. Philipp Rohdenburg
Counsel
Cologne
Portrait ofMartin Friedberg
Dr. Martin Friedberg, LL.M.
Partner
Duesseldorf
Portrait ofBirgit Wagner
Birgit Wagner, M.B.L.
Legal Manager
Berlin
Portrait ofPaul Guite
Paul Guite
Partner
London
Portrait ofVictoria Gaskell
Victoria Gaskell
Partner
London
Portrait ofJennifer Lloyd
Jennifer Bass
Senior Associate
London
Portrait ofDieter Zandler
Dieter Zandler
Partner
Vienna
Portrait ofVanessa Horaceck
Vanessa Horaceck
Lawyer
Vienna
Stephan Weling
Philipp Kunick, LL.M.
Ramon Weistroffer
Nadine Herda
Steven Washington, LL.M.
Matthew Hanson
Show more Show less