Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 27, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 27, 2026
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RTL Group is poised to propose remedies to EU antitrust regulators imminently to expedite approval for its acquisition of Sky Deutschland, combining major sports and entertainment assets to better compete with U.S. streaming giants.
By Foo Yun Chee and Klaus Lauer
BRUSSELS/BERLIN, March 27 (Reuters) - European broadcaster RTL is set to offer remedies in the coming days to address EU antitrust concerns over its acquisition of Sky Deutschland, in a move likely to help it secure early regulatory approval for the deal, three people with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The acquisition will combine two of Europe's strongest media offerings in sport and entertainment in a battle to catch up with U.S. heavyweights Netflix, Disney and Amazon Prime in Germany.
The purchase would give RTL, which is majority-owned by German media group Bertelsmann, local access to Sky's premium sports rights including Bundesliga and Premier League soccer, and Formula 1 motor racing, as well as Sky's WOW streaming service.
RTL could table remedies to the European Commission as early as Friday, two of the three sources said. They said a possible remedy is outsourcing advertising sales to third parties, an area on which antitrust regulators usually focus.
That would automatically extend the Commission's preliminary review deadline of April 8 by 10 working days. RTL will likely win EU approval at the end of this preliminary scrutiny, the people said.
The Commission, which acts as the EU competition enforcer, declined to comment.
RTL said it does not comment on ongoing proceedings.
"We are working constructively with the European Commission and are confident that the acquisition of Sky Deutschland (DACH) will be approved and closed in the first half of 2026," the group said in an email.
Comcast-owned Sky Deutschland operates in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee in Brussels and Klaus Lauer in Berlin; Editing by Louise Heavens and Susan Fenton)
RTL is offering remedies to address EU antitrust concerns to help secure early regulatory approval for its Sky Deutschland acquisition.
The merger will combine two strong European media offerings in sport and entertainment, aiming to compete with U.S. streaming giants in Germany.
They are looking to compete with Netflix, Disney, and Amazon Prime in the German market.
The approval process is focused within the European Union, with reporting from Brussels and Berlin.
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