freenet AG has acquired the remaining minority interests of about 25% in Exaring AG, the operator of IPTV service waipu.tv, for an initial price of about €76m, giving it full ownership.
Why freenet AG is buying Exaring AG (waipu.tv) – remaining c.25%
freenet said IPTV is a central component of its strategy alongside mobile communications, with the shift in the German TV market towards IPTV offering growth in customers and programmatic advertising revenue. waipu.tv has around 2 million customers and a 20–25% share of the German IPTV market.
Deal terms and financing
The initial purchase price of about €76m is based on a valuation of about €300m for Exaring. Further payments of up to €50m depend on performance targets. The acquisition is funded from cash reserves, and freenet reiterated plans to pay a dividend of at least €2.00 a share for each of 2026 to 2028.
Market context
CFO Ingo Arnold said an IPO previously sought by minority shareholders would no longer be pursued. freenet had named a listing of the platform as one of several strategic options in April. Its shares rose 1.2% to €22.36 on 14 October, according to dpa-AFX.
