Another Connection Between RTL and Orbán’s NER

Ez a cikk magyar nyelven is elérhető itt / This article is also available in Hungarian here

Background Deal Over RTL CEO Appointment?

As Media1 reported in detail last autumn, the outlet obtained a recording and transcript suggesting that RTL Hungary’s current CEO, Gabriella Vidus, may have been appointed as part of a concealed political deal between Fidesz and RTL. According to the report, the Orbán government agreed to reduce the advertising tax — which had heavily burdened RTL — while RTL in return accepted a management change more acceptable to János Lázár (then Minister leading the Prime Minister’s Office, today Minister for Construction and Transport).

Media1 holds both the audio file and a French-language notarized transcript, in which Guillaume de Posch, then co-CEO of RTL Group, is heard in 2015 telling Dirk Gerkens (Vidus’s predecessor as CEO of RTL Hungary), Andreas Rudas (regional head responsible for Hungary) and Romain Manelli (HR director) that Gerkens was being removed under government pressure, based on an agreement with Lázár. The conversation included the following exchange:

Gerkens: (…) I wonder how this will look in your “agreement,” when Lázár asks you to replace the management, and you comply. That’s pretty outrageous (laughter).
De Posch: You may call it an agreement, I think that’s not the right word. It’s just a question of how we interpret our relationship with the government. Don’t forget, we’re not replacing Kotroczó (the news director – editor’s note) or the others.
Gerkens: But you are replacing the CEO!
De Posch: Yes, the executive responsible for business operations changes.
Gerkens: At his (Lázár’s) request.
De Posch: Yes, it was his request that Hungarian leadership be installed. I won’t invent a story. I won’t claim we wanted this Hungarian management structure. Obviously, without the advertising tax, we would not be here now. (…)

A labor lawsuit against RTL is still ongoing in Luxembourg, as Gerkens maintains he was dismissed for political reasons. RTL has denied this to Media1 and has praised Vidus, who currently serves as CEO.

Fellegi Memo: Leadership Change as “Acceptable Compromise”

In another memorandum (which was notarized officially), Tamás Fellegi, former minister in the Orbán government and then paid advisor to RTL Hungary, advised Andreas Rudas (then regional head responsible in Hungary) on how to conduct himself with Lázár. Fellegi suggested showing strength, but explicitly wrote:

In exchange for a 20% reduction of the advertising tax, it could be an acceptable compromise to offer a change in management.

Fellegi never replied to Media1’s inquiries. Anyway, shortly after our article, he resigned from senior positions at the Fidesz-aligned 4iG and EuroAtlantic Consulting, citing a focus on his business in Dubai.

Emails Between Rogán’s Aide and RTL Leadership

Media1 also obtained emails to RTL executives sent by Ádám Nagy, the trusted confidant of Antal Rogán (Hungary’s minister in charge of propaganda). In one, Nagy forwarded RTL a draft bill on the advertising tax even before Fidesz submitted it to parliament. In another email, he sent CEO Vidus Gabriella — on first-name terms — an analysis of RTL Híradó (the channel’s main evening newscast) prepared by a government-linked firm.

RTL later acknowledged communication with the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Office, calling it normal practice for large companies.

NEGOS and Sensitive Company Data

In June 2025, Media1 revealed that after Vidus’s appointment, RTL Hungary hired NEGOS, led by former Századvég Gazdaságkutató CEO Balázs Zoltán Fürjes, to review RTL’s operations, including highly sensitive internal information. Former employees told Media1 they were uneasy providing such data to a Fidesz-aligned firm, especially as Vidus had long worked at RTL and already knew the company’s operations.

Leaked documents suggest the work began in September 2015 and continued for years. NEGOS also received significant state innovation grants worth around HUF 600 million.

RTL–4iG Strategic Partnership

A year ago, RTL Hungary entered a strategic partnership with 4iG. This partnership with the pro-government telecommunications giant was announced shortly after RTL shut down the newsroom of rtl.hu and repurposed the site. RTL denied any connection between the two developments.

Vidus told Media1 that 4iG “brought added value,” unlike Telekom, and claimed RTL is Luxembourgish, not German. Company registry data, however, show RTL Hungary’s direct owner is RTL Group in Cologne, majority-owned (76%) by German media giant Bertelsmann, which is controlled by the Mohn family through the Bertelsmann Foundation. Admittedly, RTL’s connections to Luxembourg are undeniable as well: for instance, the RTL+ streaming platform is officially operated by the Group’s Luxembourg-based unit, CLT-UFA S.A., which also runs some of RTL Hungary’s channels — a structure shaped by tax optimization and regulatory considerations.

Joint Projects With Indamedia

RTL also partnered with Indamedia, half-owned by Miklós Vaszily, CEO of TV2 Group and close associate of Lőrinc Mészáros. The cooperation includes joint program production. Vaszily is also chairman of MBH Bank’s supervisory board; MBH is part of Mészáros’s business empire, the oligarch who is a close friend of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

Deal With Szijjártó’s Relatives

RTL signed a sponsorship agreement with Motam Kft., owned by Sarolta Szijjártó (sister of Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó) and her husband Tamás Őry. RTL said the deal was based on the athlete’s performance, not politics.

NER-Linked Conference at RTL Liget

Media1 has now found that this autumn, Indamedia will host a two-day AI Summit Budapest conference, sponsored by MBH Bank which is owned by Lőrinc Mészáros. Part of the conference will take place over two days inside RTL Liget, RTL Hungary’s office building on Dózsa György Road. Ticket holders will be able to enter the premises and tour the building, including guided tours in English.

The pro-government, market-leading commercial broadcaster TV2 Group — which has ownership ties with Index and is also linked to Lőrinc Mészáros — is also among the partners of the event, as is ATV, which has been a strategic partner of Index for more than three years. Both TV2 and ATV’s ad sales are handled by Atmedia Kft., a sales house competing with RTL Sales House, but this did not prevent RTL’s headquarters from being included among the conference venues. ATV’s CEO, Szilárd Németh, moreover, co-owns a media company with Fidesz-linked businessman István Bessenyei, head of Valton Security — a firm with extensive government ties — and husband of media celebrity Kata Sarka.

Radio 1 is also a partner of the event. After the death of government film commissioner Andy Vajna, the station was taken over in 2020 by an associate of Lőrinc Mészáros, and its advertising revenues, just like those of TV2 and ATV, are managed by Mészáros’s Atmedia sales house.

Another sponsor of the two-day event — partly hosted in RTL’s headquarters — is Lounge Group, owned by Fidesz-linked billionaire Gyula Balásy, a favorite entrepreneur of propaganda minister Antal Rogán. Balásy’s companies have made tens of billions of forints from state advertising campaigns and blue propaganda billboards targeting George Soros and EU leaders, and one of his firms also supplies lighting for Hungary’s state media.

Other sponsors include Indamedia’s owner Miklós Vaszily (a close associate of Lőrinc Mészáros), MBH Bank, 4iG and One. The sponsorship of the conference links underscore RTL’s growing entanglement with NER-affiliated interests.

What Future for RTL Hungary? Sell or Keep?

RTL Hungary ended 2023 with losses of about HUF 300 million and 2024 with HUF 3.3 billion. Meanwhile, TV2 regained and has held the audience lead since 2022.

Industry insiders now speculate whether the NER might acquire RTL Hungary within 12–18 months. Oliver Fahlbusch, RTL Group’s communications director, told Media1 recently that RTL Hungary is not for sale and dismissed such information as mere rumors. Asked whether he would resign if a sale nonetheless took place, Fahlbusch did not respond, nor did he answer questions about profitability plans. It is worth noting that Fahlbusch had previously made a similar denial regarding RTL Netherlands, which was later sold nonetheless.

Thomas Rabe, CEO of RTL Group, also did not answer Media1’s inquiries. During a recent financial results call, when Media1 attempted to ask a question, the line was abruptly cut with the claim that no further questions were received — though a live microphone caught RTL staff whispering “it’s Daniel…” indicating they were aware of the journalist’s presence.

This article is also available in Hungarian here:

Újabb szál az RTL és a NER között

Relatives of Orbán Government Minister Become RTL’s New Partners – More Pro-Government Ties Emerging

„Lázár gátlástalan (…), demonstráld neki az RTL és a Bertelsmann Csoport erejét!” – Kínos dokumentumok szivárogtak ki az RTL háza tájáról (RTL Leaks, 2. rész)

RTL: Nincs összefüggés a 4iG stratégiai partnerség és az RTL.hu átalakítása között, Polyák Gábor állításai valótlanok

RTL Leaks – Interjú Dirk Gerkens, az RTL Magyarország leváltott vezérigazgatójának ügyvédjével egy titokban készült hangfelvételről, ami szerint a magyar kormány nyomására távolították el Gerkenst

Mészáros Lőrinc lett az Atmedia egyedüli tulajdonosa

Nem cáfolja a Miniszterelnöki Kabinetiroda az RTL-vezér és Rogán kabinetfőnöke közti találkozókat

Az RTL belső információi egy Fidesz-közeli cégnél landoltak – szenzitív adatokhoz is hozzáfértek

Az RTL nem lát abban kivetnivalót, hogy leszerződött Szijjártó rokonaival

Vidus Gabriella vezérigazgató 100 milliós privát bizniszeihez az RTL által fizetett ügyvédi iroda munkatársát vette igénybe

Amint megérkezett az RTL-esek magángépe, rendőri intézkedés alá vonták lapunk főszerkesztőjét a ferihegyi kisgépes terminál előtti parkolóban

Az „autoriter magyar kormánnyal kötött titkos RTL-es paktumról” írnak a külföldi lapok – több médium részleteket is közöl a sorra előkerülő bizonyítékokból