Dutch television production company Endemol, producer of UK hit reality show 'Big Brother', is preparing to float on the London Stock Exchange later this year, according to weekend media reports.
Its owner, Spanish telecommunications operator Telefonica, hopes to raise around £2 billion sterling from the initial public offering.
Telefonica's CEO Cesar Aliera believed the group would gain more from a floatation than from a straightforward sale, and instructed Endemol chief executive Joaquin Agut to 'squeeze as much as possible' from the listing, the reports said.
The floatation of Endemol would be part of Telefonica's strategy of reducing its activities in the media sector, following the sale of its 4.88% stake in British media company Pearson last September for around €350m.
Telefonica bought Endemol for €5.2 billion in 2000 and 'won't sell out for offers so far away from its investment in the company', a source familiar with the plans said.
The IPO - reported to be handled by global investment bank Merrill Lynch - would trigger a series of windfall payments for senior managers, including the chairman of the British arm of Endemol, Peter Bazalgette.
