VIVHY - Bertelsmann in 'pole position' for $1.5B-plus Simon & Schuster deal - FT

German's Bertelsmann is in "pole position" for a purchase of book publisher Simon & Schuster from ViacomCBS ([[VIAC]] -1.1%, [[VIACA]] -0.9%), the Financial Times says. That suggests that it's close to a deal as a reported Thanksgiving deadline for bids inches closer. And Bertelsmann's Penguin Random House is set to edge out rival suitor HarperCollins ([[NWS]] +1.8%, [[NWSA]] +1.6%) in the deal, as well as reported interest from Vivendi (VIVHY +0.5%). News Corp. has argued that a combination of Simon & Schuster with Penguin Random House (America's dominant book publisher) would have trouble gaining antitrust approval, since it would create a "book behemoth." Any deal is sure to top $1.5B in value. The NYT reported last week at least one of the offers had crested the $1.7B mark, far above a minimum price ViacomCBS had set.

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Bertelsmann in 'pole position' for $1.5B-plus Simon & Schuster deal - FT