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* Banijay and All3Media merge production units to counter streaming ​giants

* Banijay shares rise ⁠nearly 5% after merger announcement

* Talks started two years ago

LONDON/GDANSK, March 4 (Reuters) - France's Banijay Group, long hungry for even greater scale in a consolidating TV market, has finally landed its prize: Britain's All3Media, the maker of global hit "The ​Traitors".

The ‌deal caps years of stop-start talks and highlights fresh efforts by traditional producers to bulk up as streaming giants Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video tighten their grip on global entertainment. Banijay, producer of ⁠the "Big Brother" franchise, and All3Media announced on Tuesday that they had agreed to merge their entertainment ⁠production businesses to create one of the largest multimedia production groups ​in Europe. Reuters reported in January that the two were in talks.

The new venture, with a value including debt of $8 billion, will be jointly owned by Banijay and investment firm RedBird IMI, which bought All3Media for 1.15 billion pounds ($1.54 billion) in 2024. Their deal came just days after Netflix bowed out to Paramount Skydance in a bidding war for ​Warner Bros. Discovery.

"We're in an ‌interesting time of tremendous change in the media, in a time of consolidation, and I don't think that will end, and you'll see more in the months and years to come," RedBird IMI CEO Jeff Zucker told Reuters on Wednesday.

Zucker, a former president of CNN, said Stéphane Courbit, Banijay's founder and 45% shareholder, had first asked him about a tie-up in 2024, just eight weeks after RedBird IMI snapped up "Fleabag" maker All3Media.

Zucker said the group needed "a bit of time".

"Then about a year ago ​Stéphane reapproached me and we began to have further conversations with Banijay, and I would say they became serious and took off in earnest at the end of ‌last summer," Zucker said.

Banijay's shares rose nearly 5% on Wednesday after the deal was announced, their best day since October.

"There's a lot of benefit to scale," said Claire Enders, founder and chief executive of Enders Analysis. "They are combining two very ‌strong entities, that are well-placed in a number of different major European markets, including the UK." Between Courbit's approaches, All3Media discussed with Britain's ITV a potential combination of their studios businesses, Zucker said, confirming reporting by Reuters. Banijay attempted similar talks with ITV last year, Reuters reported. Both Banijay and ITV had weighed buying All3Media when its then joint owners, ​Liberty Global and Warner Bros. Discovery put it up for sale in 2023, Reuters reported.

SCALE MATTERS FOR GROWTH

Banijay CEO François Riahi told reporters on Tuesday the deal would strengthen the French company's leading ‌position in global content and keep it well positioned as the streaming market consolidates.

"Size matters enormously, and with the development of artificial intelligence, the ownership and exploitation of intellectual property are becoming an even more crucial factor," he said. "Scale is a very important factor for growth."

Riahi said Paramount's takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery was a good outcome for Banijay, ⁠because it would ⁠create a powerful competitor to Netflix.

Zucker said the combined group could be headquartered in Paris, where Banijay is based, ‌or London, home to All3Media.

On Tuesday, Riahi declined to comment on potential new investments but said the deal was driven by expectations of further consolidation in the sector.

"This deal gives us a partner with ​strong capabilities and deep pockets. It also gives us ​some firepower. So we are really always looking for more opportunities," he said. ITV, home to "Coronation Street" and "I'm a ‌Celebrity...", has held talks with Comcast-owned Sky to sell its broadcast channels and streaming platform, although those negotiations have slowed in recent weeks, Reuters reported last month. Other producers have also been looking for merger partners.

"Consolidation is the only way these companies are going to survive," Enders said of recent dealmaking in the sector.