Sky is closing in on a deal to acquire ITV’s broadcast and streaming unit which will see ITV Studios take on Love Productions, the producer of The Great British Bake Off and The Piano.
The Comcast-owned company is finalising the £1.6 billion offer with lawyers, according to sources close to the negotiations.
Love Productions could be valued at between £80-120m based on comparable deals, and an earn-out.
A deal could be announced imminently, with one source cautioning that the timing could still slip due to final legal complications.
Concluding the deal would end a saga that began last year, and became public in November when ITV said it was in talks to sell the unit, called Media & Entertainment, to Sky.
It has involved the complex task of separating ITV’s channels and streaming platform ITVX, which comprise the unit, from its production business ITV Studios, which will be a standalone company following completion.
ITV and Sky have declined to comment.
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