RTL Group
Type: Radio
Country: Luxembourg
Address: 43, Bd Pierre Frieden – 1543 Luxembourg
Phone: +352 42 142 36 20
Website: http://www.rtlgroup.com/
Stakeholders: Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA
Status of the company: Independent
Type of company: Private
Number of employees: 10325
Contact details
CEO of the sales house/Head of Sales dpt
Name: Thomas Rabe
Title: CEO and Chairman of the Bertelsmann Management SE Executive Board & CEO of RTL Group
Contact person
Name: Stefan KRAMER
Reference person
Head of Marketing: Oliver Fahlbusch
Head of Communication / PR: Oliver Fahlbusch
Head of European Affairs / Head of Legal: Siska Ghesquiere
Head of Business Development, Strategy and M&A: Andreas Fischer
Market data
With interests in 68 television channels, eight streaming platforms, 30 radio stations, a global business for content production and distribution, and rapidly growing digital video businesses, RTL Group entertains, informs and engages audiences around the world.
The Luxembourg-based company owns stakes in TV channels and radio stations in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Hungary and Croatia. With Fremantle, it is one of the world’s leading producers of TV content: from talent and game shows to drama, daily soaps and telenovelas, including Idols, Got Talent, Family Feud, American Gods and Charité. Combining the streaming services of its broadcasters, the digital video networks BroadbandTV and Divimove and Fremantle’s more than 300 YouTube channels, RTL Group has become the leading European media company in online video. RTL Group also owns the ad-tech businesses Smartclip and SpotX. RTL AdConnect is RTL Group’s international advertising sales house.
The roots of the company date back to 1924, when Radio Luxembourg first went on air. Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Radiodiffusion (CLR) was founded in 1931. As a European pioneer, the company broadcast a unique programme in several languages using the same wavelength.
RTL Group itself was created in spring 2000, following the merger of Luxembourg-based CLT-UFA and the British content production company Pearson TV, owned by Pearson PLC. CLT-UFA was created in 1997 when the shareholders of UFA (Bertelsmann) and the historic Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Télédiffusion – CLT (Audiofina) merged their TV, radio and production businesses.
Bertelsmann has been the majority shareholder of RTL Group since July 2001. RTL Group’s shares (ISIN: LU0061462528) are publicly traded on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt and Luxembourg Stock Exchanges. Since September 2013, RTL Group has been listed in the MDAX stock index. RTL Group publishes its consolidated accounts in accordance with IFRS.
RTL Group’s business comprises the following six reporting segments: Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland (including RTL Radio Deutschland and Smartclip), Groupe M6 (including the French RTL family of radio stations), Fremantle, RTL Nederland, RTL Belgium and Others (which includes RTL Hungary, RTL Croatia, RTL Group’s Luxembourgish activities including the Group’s Corporate Centre, and the investment accounted for using the equity method, Atresmedia in Spain). The segment Others also includes the digital businesses SpotX, BroadbandTV and Divimove.
Groupe M6 and Atresmedia are themselves listed companies, with the shares being traded on the stock exchanges of Paris and Madrid respectively.