European broadcasters are pursuing major mergers to gain the scale needed to compete with global streaming, social media and technology platforms such as Netflix, Amazon, YouTube and Disney. The deals reflect a growing squeeze on traditional television: audiences, especially younger viewers, are declining while advertising income is under pressure and production costs continue to rise.

Sky has agreed to buy ITV’s UK broadcast and streaming business for $2.1 billion, while RTL is combining its German free-to-air operation with Sky Deutschland and MediaForEurope has taken control of ProSiebenSat.1. Viewing of UK public-service broadcasters fell from 153 minutes a day in 2015 to 88 minutes in 2025, and from 95 to 21 minutes among 16–34-year-olds; meanwhile, high-end scripted TV budgets have risen by about two-thirds over a decade.