Weil Gotshal’s Dubai Office Advises Showtime/Orbit on Pay-TV Mega-Merger

DUBAI, UAE - The Dubai office of Weil, Gotshal & Manges has advised KIPCO and Showtime Arabia in one of the largest cross-border mergers in the UAE region. The KIPCO Group is one of the largest diversified holding companies in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with consolidated assets of US$ 19 billion.

Satellite broadcast company, Showtime Arabia, and Orbit Group, a member of the Riyadh-based Mawarid Group, have merged to create the leading pay-TV platform in the MENA region. “When such a consolidation takes place, it is a kind of defining moment in terms of TV entertainment,” said Marc-Antoine d’Halluin, the chief executive of the new business.

Partner Mark Soundy, assisted by associate Natalie Gray, led the Weil Gotshal Dubai office team, with support from partner Peter King and associates Alicia Speake and Elizabeth Todd.

Mark Soundy said, “We are delighted to have been involved in one of this year’s landmark MENA transactions. This deal demonstrates the region’s growing appetite for ever more sophisticated M&A skills.”

Joe Tortorici, Managing Partner of the Dubai office and Middle East operations said, “Our Middle East initiative has got off to a very nice start this year, with a handful of major transactions in the region now under our belt and a few more in the pipeline”.

DLA Piper assisted KIPCO with local due diligence. Linklaters advised Mawarid Group. Credit Suisse acted as exclusive financial advisor on the merger.

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Weil, Gotshal & Manges is an international law firm of over 1,300 lawyers, including approximately 300 partners. Weil, Gotshal is headquartered in New York, with offices in Beijing, Boston, Budapest, Dallas, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Miami, Munich, Paris, Prague, Providence, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Warsaw, Washington, D.C. and Wilmington.

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For further information please contact: Mark Soundy Partner +44-20-79031377 Mark.Soundy@weil.com Joe Tortorici Managing Partner of Dubai and Middle East Operations, Dubai +971-4-4019650 Joe.Tortorici@weil.com Jessica Orrill Marketing Executive +44-20-7903-1386 Jessica.Orrill@weil.com

Source: Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP

For further information please contact: Mark Soundy, Partner, +44-20-79031377, Mark.Soundy at weil.com; Joe Tortorici, Managing Partner of Dubai and Middle East Operations, Dubai, +971-4-4019650, Joe.Tortorici at weil.com; Jessica Orrill, Marketing Executive, +44-20-7903-1386, Jessica.Orrill at weil.com