International law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges has advised Poland’s leading private television broadcaster, TVN, in connection with an offering of €430m high yield notes to finance the redemption of outstanding high yield notes. Weil acted as US and Polish counsel to TVN.

The team was led by US high yield debt partner David Meredith and the UK/US team included Rob Beard, Meghan Stanton, James Crook and Georgina Wilson, and New York tax partner Larry Horton. Weil’s Warsaw team was led by partners Anna Frankowska and Artur Zawadowski and included counsel Zofia Frydrychowicz and associates Anna Blonska, Jacek Balicki, Piotr Grabarczyk, Marcin Plonka, and Jerzy Bombczynski. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP advised the initial purchasers with respect to US law and White & Case with respect to Polish law.

Weil has advised TVN previously on a number of significant corporate and finance transactions. In 2012 Weil advised ITI Media Group and TVN in connection with an agreement with French entertainment company Groupe Canal+ to combine their pay-TV operations in Poland, in a joint venture called "nC+". As part of the transaction, Groupe Canal+ also acquired a minority stake in TVN from ITI with the option to gain control commencing three years after the closing of the transaction. Prior to that, Weil advised TVN in connection with TVN’s 2010 offering of €175 million fixed rate senior notes due 2018.

David Meredith commented: "TVN took full advantage of its status as a seasoned high yield issuer to enhance its covenant package, which now more closely resembles a sponsor-backed covenant package providing especially important flexibility in light of the strategic stake taken by Groupe Canal+ with ITI Media Group. In a sense, the plumbing and wiring has already been installed for the next phase of the company’s development. The banks involved were very forward-thinking in this regard”.