Polish ministry opens 90-day review of Paramount Skydance's takeover of TVN
The Ministry of State Assets received the notice on the evening of 13 October and opened the procedure the next morning. The review runs for 90 days and could end with an order to sell TVN shares.
Notice filed on 13 October
The Ministry of State Assets (MAP) received a formal notice on the evening of Tuesday, 13 October 2026, that the US group Skydance has notified a takeover of control over TVN S.A. Przemysław Kuk, director of the ministry's communications department, confirmed the filing. The administrative procedure began on the morning of 14 October and runs for 90 days from receipt of the notice. The notice does not say which entity in the group sent it, because the ministry treats that information as a business secret.
Why the review comes after the US deal
The review is ex post because the transaction was already completed in the United States. Paramount Skydance finalized its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, TVN's previous owner, on Tuesday, 6 October, in a deal worth $110 billion. The combined company, named Skydance, now controls TVN and TVN24, as well as CNN and HBO Max. Minister Wojciech Balczun said in early October that no notice had yet arrived from Paramount Skydance and that the procedure would begin only after one did.
It will be an absolutely substantive, objective administrative procedure arising from a statutory obligation and nothing more.
- TVN and Polsat added to the strategic companies list under the 2015 law
- Paramount Skydance finalizes its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, valued at $110 billion
- Ministry of State Assets receives the notice of the takeover of TVN S.A. on the evening
- Ministry starts the administrative procedure in the morning, with 90 days to decide
The 2024 strategic list and the minister's powers
TVN and Polsat were placed on the list of protected strategic companies under the 2015 law on controlling certain investments, a step taken by the government of Donald Tusk at the end of 2024, with the rules in force from early 2025. Tusk said in December 2024 that once the list was extended, companies on it could not be taken over or bought without the Polish government's consent. The minister, acting as the control authority, must establish whether the transaction affects security or public order in Poland. A consultative committee made up of the prime minister, ministry and service representatives, and offices must issue a recommendation, which does not bind the ministry. The prime minister appoints 24 of its members, and each must hold a security clearance for information classified as secret.
Two possible outcomes
The ministry can end the procedure with a positive decision, or it can issue a negative one that blocks the exercise of shareholder rights. In the negative case, the minister would gain the power to order the sale of TVN S.A. shares within a set deadline. According to a legal opinion that Rzeczpospolita has described, such a decision would have an effect close to a veto. The law allows objections on grounds that include protecting independence, civil rights and the fulfilment of NATO obligations. The legal opinion lists four grounds, among them public order and the protection of citizens' health and life.
Press freedom warnings
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) warned that the Warner Bros. Discovery takeover could directly threaten the independence of TVN24. The organization asked the European Commission to make its approval conditional on guarantees for TVN24. The Commission approved the merger conditionally in July, and that approval did not include such guarantees. The ministry's procedure is framed around security and public order, and the articles do not say whether it will address media independence.