Sport1 Medien

''Sport1 Medien AG'' (previously known as EM.TV & Merchandising AG, EM.Sport Media AG and Constantin Medien AG) is a media company based in Ismaning near Munich which operates internationally.

History

Beginnings and major acquisition success

* 1989 - EM.TV was founded by Thomas Haffa. The name "EM.TV" stands for "Entertainment, Merchandising, TV."
* 1996 - The company created Junior, a company and TV channel that held licenses to most of the animated TV shows in the library of the KirchGruppe, the Media Group of Leo Kirch, where Thomas Haffa started his career.
In 1997, EM.TV went public and started to expand in various businesses.

In October 1997, EM.TV & Merchandising announced a production partnership with Australian animation studio Yoram Gross-Village Roadshow the producer of ''Blinky Bill'' to co-produce 10 of the Australian animation studio's animated series with EM.TV handling distribution and merchandising the 10 animated projects outside of Australia. Their successful partnership with them lead to EM.TV acquiring a 50% stake in the Australian animation studio Yoram Gross-Village Roadshow from both Australian company Village Roadshow (when they exited the television production) two years later in March 1999 renaming it to Yoram Gross EM.TV as their own Australian animation studio with its founders Yoram and Sandra Gross retaining their 50% stake in the rebranded animation studio.

In August 1999, EM.TV & Merchandising announced that they've taken a 25% stake in German independent film production company Constantin Film including the latter's 51% stake in Olga Film, marking their entry into the feature film business and increasing their family entertainment business.

In September 1999, EM.TV & Merchandising entered a joint venture with Danish magazing publishing company Egmont to launch a publishing subsidiary that could bring EM.TV's productions under one roof named Junior.Publishing. One week later in that same month of the same year, EM.TV announced that they've acquired a 49% stake in German production and distribution company Tele München Gruppe (TMG) in order for the former to expand their children's entertainment library and its feature film activities.

* 1999 - Junior sets up a home video company called Planet Junior. The company then expands into Spain and Italy.
* 2000 - In February, EM.TV buys The Jim Henson Company for $680 million.
* 2000 - When EM.TV's market capitalization was about €10 billion, the company acquired the Jim Henson Company and 50% of SLEC Ltd., the holding company of the famous Formula One racing series. Because of an option to purchase another 25% of SLEC Ltd. from Bernie Ecclestone for 1 Billion EUR, EM.TV had problems funding the transaction via the capital markets.
* Between late 2000, when the company reported incorrect quarterly results, and 2002, EM.TV's stock fell from its price of €120 EUR to penny stock status.

In March 2000, EM.TV & Merchandising purchased a 50% stake in Speed Promotions LTD.

Financial losses and restructuring

When EM.TV & Merchandising suffered financial difficulties and its stock had been collapsed following their acquisitions, Bavaria-based German media company Kirch Group (who co-owns a joint venture programming catalog with EM.TV called Junior.TV) announced the acquisition of a majority stake in EM.TV & Merchandising saving EM.TV from bankruptcy and it gave KirchGroup a second media distribution group. In that same month EM.TV & Merchandising alongside its American entertainment company The Jim Henson Company sold their rights to the ''Sesame Street'' Muppets to American non-profit organisation Sesame Workshop giving them full control of the Sesame Street Muppets.

In March 2001 one year after EM.TV's acquisition of American entertainment company The Jim Henson Company and following Kirch Group's acquisition back in February of that same year, EM.TV & Merchandising was planning to sell their American entertainment company The Jim Henson Company following the sale of the rights to the ''Sesame Street'' Muppets to Sesame Workshop and EM.TV's major corporate restructure.

In April 2001 one year after EM.TV acquisition of 50% in Formula One holding company Speed Investments, EM.TV & Merchandising sold their 24.5% stake in Motorsports company and holding group of Formula One Speed Investments to the Kirch Group

In June 2001, EM.TV & Merchandising exited the internet operations and announced that they've shuttered down their website Junior-Web sold their internet activities division EM Interactive to German media fund Victory Media Group and had it renamed along with Junior-Web to InteractiveMedia with former banker Peter Kolb managing the renamed division as EM.TV will licence the Junior brand to them. A month later in late-July 2001, EM.TV and their American entertainment subsidiary The Jim Henson Company sold their 8% minority stake in Crown Media Holdings including their channel Odyssey Network to its investor Hallmark Entertainment and rebranded it to Hallmark Channel with EM.TV and their American entertainment subsidiary The Jim Henson Company striking a deal with Crown Media to license series from EM.TV's own library including their Henson library.

* 2001 - In September, Werner Klatten, the former CEO of Sat.1, became the new CEO of EM.TV. He restructured the company, announced that he would sell: SLEC holding (via Gerhard Gribkowsky); Jim Henson Company; and TMG; and directed the purchase of DSF, a German sports TV station. During the restructuring, the bondholders of a 1999-issued €400 million bond got nearly 60% in company stock in exchange for their bonds.

In November 2001 two years after EM.TV & Denmark-based Egmont jointly founded Junior.Publishing, EM.TV announced their exiting of the publishing business by selling its 50% of their joint venture children's publishing company Junior.Publishing to Egmont Group giving Egmont full control of Junior.Publishing renaming it to Egmont Publishing so that EM.TV would focus on their core entertainment business.

In May 2003, EM.TV announced that they've sold their American entertainment company The Jim Henson Company the then-owner behind ''The Muppets'' and ''Kermit the Frog'' back to the Henson family for $78 million bringing back ownership of The Jim Henson Company to the hands of Henson family once more.

On January 26 2004, EM.TV who had acquired a 50% in Kirch Group's children's programming library under the Junior brand five years ago in 1999 announced their planning to take full control of their joint venture programming library unit Junior.TV which they co-owned with KirchMedia with the former planning to acquire KirchMedia's remaining 50% of their joint venture programming catalogue unit Junior.TV. Seven months later in July of that year, EM.TV announced their completetion of their remaining 50% stake of their joint-venture programming catalogue unit Junior.TV from its co-owner KirchMedia whi had entered bankruptcy that year bringing an end to EM.TV's partnership with Kirch with Junior.TV's programming library being placed under EM.TV's entertainment division.

In January 2006 seven years after EM.TV & Merchandising's acquisition of 50% of Australian animation studio Yoram Gross EM.TV along with their successful partnership with Australian producer Yoram Gross through EM.'s division EM.Entertainment, EM.TV & Merchandising under their entertainment division EM.Entertainment announced their full acquisition of the remaining 50% stake of Australian entertainment and animation studio joint venture Yoram Gross EM.TV from its founders Yoram Gross and his wife Sandra Gross giving EM. Entertainment full control of the Australian animation and production group. In October 2006 following their acquisition of the remaining 50% stake ten months before, Yoram Gross-EM.TV announced a restructuring and re-branding of the company under its current name to Flying Bark Productions with the rebranded company planning to expand their portfolio into the adult-animated and children's genre alongside their distribution division Yoram Gross Distribution which was also renamed to Flying Bark Distribution like their renamed company under EM.Entertainment.

* 2007 - The company purchased a stake in the Swiss media company Highlight Communications AG, which in 2008 was increased gradually to 47.3%.

In May 2007, EM.TV announced that they're planning to exit the children's entertainment business and to sell their children's division EM.Entertainment GmbH including their Australian entertainment & animation production studio Flying Bark Productions, its distribution library including Yoram Gross' animated productions such as ''Blinky Bill'', the library of Japanese animation studio Zuiyo and its classic catalogue such as ''Maya the Bee'' and ''Vic the Viking'' and their German television channel Junior.

In late-June 2007, EM.TV & Merchandising

On February 26, 2008 one year after EM.TV & Merchandising changed its name to EM.Sport Media AG and three months before EM.Sport Media AG sold their entertainment division EM.Entertainment GmbH along with its library, EM.Sport Media AG under its entertainment production division EM.Entertainment established a distribution partnership with Belgian production company Studio 100 through the latter's Munich-based German international distribution division Studio 100 Media (now Studio 100 International) to distribute EM.Sport Media's entertainment portfolio including their classics such as ''Maya the Bee'' and ''Vic the Viking'' on TV, home entertainment and VOD platforms internationally excluding US, Germany, Australia, New Zealand.

In late-May 2008 following EM.Sport Media AG through their entertainment division EM.Entertainment GmbH's successful distribution partnership with Belgian production company Studio 100 under their German international distribution division Studio 100 Media three months before, EM.Sport Media AG annouched that they've exited the children's entertainment and animation business and had sold their children's entertainment division EM.Entertainment GmBH alongside their Australian entertainment & animation studio Flying Bark Productions, their German television channel Junior and their distribution library including Yoram Gross' animated productions such as ''Blinky Bill'', the library of Japanese animation studio Zuiyo and its classic catalogue such as ''Maya the Bee'' and ''Vic the Viking'' to Belgian children's production company Studio 100 for €41 million in order for EM.Sport Media to focus on their expanded sport activities with Studio 100 taking over EM.Entertainment's Australian entertainment & animation studio as their own Australian in-house animation studio outside of Belgium and had EM.Entertainment's library under the latter's own distribution arm Studio 100 Media with Studio 100 will launch new adaptations of the two classic shows.

In April 2009 following EM.Sport Media AG's merger with Swiss media giant Highlight Communications the parent company of German film distributor Constantin Film, EM.Sport Media AG announced their rebranding its name to Constantin Medien AG which was named after Constantin Film to reflect its expansion of the group's activities.

On February 13, 2018, a takeover by Highlight Communications AG was completed. On September 26, 2019, the company was delisted from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

At the Annual General Meeting 2019, the change of name to Sport1 Medien AG was resolved. The change was entered in the Commercial Register of the City of Munich (HRB 148 760) on January 2, 2020 and thus became effective. The change of name is also accompanied by a change in the Company's purpose, which was also resolved by the Annual General Meeting in July last year and is now more strongly aligned to the Company's activities in the digital sector.

On February 23, 2024, Acun Medya acquired 50% of subsidiary Sport1 GmbH.

Assets

Current assets

* Sport1 (50%; co-owned with Acun Medya)

Former assets

Sold

* EM Interactive - sold to Victory Media Group; renamed to InteractiveMedia in 2001.
* Flying Bark Productions - sold to Studio 100 in 2008.
* The Jim Henson Company - sold back to the Henson family in May 2003.
* Junior - sold to Studio 100 in 2008.
* Junior.Publishing - sold to Egmont Group in 2001; renamed to Egmont Publishing.

Shareholdings

The subsidiaries of Sport1 Medien AG include Sport1 GmbH, Magic Sports Media GmbH, Match IQ GmbH, PLAZAMEDIA GmbH and LEITMOTIF Creators GmbH. In December 2019, the Marketing Segment, which previously belonged to Sport1 Media GmbH, was also integrated under Sport1 GmbH.

Beyond the activities of Sport1, the Sport1 Medien AG corporate portfolio includes MAGIC SPORTS MEDIA as a marketing company in the betting, poker, casino and lottery sectors, Match IQ as the full-service sports event and consulting agency for associations, leagues and clubs for internationalization, match day management and the organization of friendly matches, tournaments, training camps and trips abroad, PLAZAMEDIA in the sports and entertainment area for media channels and LEITMOTIF as consulting unit for companies and brands. Within the scope of their business activities, these companies also continue to focus on third-party business.

References

{{Reflist

Mass media companies of Germany
Mass media in Munich
Companies based in Munich
Film production companies of Germany
Mass media companies established in 1989
1989 establishments in West Germany
German companies established in 1989