The Portuguese arm of telecommunications company Vodafone has agreed a deal to acquire a stake in pay-television broadcaster Sport TV.
Following the agreement, Sport TV will have a new shareholder structure with Vodafone Portugal, rival telco Nos and the Olivedesportos agency holding equal stakes in the venture.
Sport TV launched in 1998 as the only dedicated sports channel in Portugal. It currently broadcasts five channels in Portugal, as well as two international channels for Africa. A new sports news channel, Sport TV+, will start broadcasting on August 5.
Along with the domestic Primeira Liga and Taça de Portugal competitions, Sport TV also provides exclusive coverage of European football leagues including the English Premier League, Spanish LaLiga, German Bundesliga and Italian Serie A.
“Vodafone’s entry into Sport TV reflects our commitment to pursue a strategy of strengthening our position as a full telecommunications operator,” Mario Vaz, chief executive of Vodafone Portugal, said.
The deal comes after the Portuguese Securities Market Commission last week confirmed the signing of an agreement between Nos Comunicações, Nos Lusomundo, Vodafone Portugal, pay-television operator Cabovisão, and telco Altice, which owns Portugal Telecom and pay-television platform Meo.
Nos and Vodafone agreed a Memorandum of Understanding in May, with Cabovisão joining the pact last month and Meo signing on last week. The agreement calls for sharing the broadcast and distribution of sports and club channels held by the signatory parties, along with the sharing of costs relating to this content.