Kirch, Canal Plus Map Out European Pay-Tv Market

Kirch would agree to limit his activities to Germany if Canal Plus stayed of his way, the magazine said.

Kirch would reduce his 45 per cent stake in Italy's Telepiu, allowing Canal Plus to boost its 45 per cent stake to a majority. He would also abandon his search for a partner to enter the Spanish market, it said.

In exchange, Canal Plus would sell its stake in German pay-TV station Premiere to Kirch, boosting his stake from 25 per cent to 50 per cent, thereby matching the share held by Bertelsmann.

Marketing Premiere together with Kirch's DF1 would give new impetus to DF1, the magazine quoted Michel Thoulouze, head of foreign business for Canal-plus, as saying.