Spanish TV production house Grupo Arbol has acquired a 50% stake in Capa Barcelone, the local subsidiary of French production outfit Capa, according to a report in financial paper Cinco Dias.

The two companies complement each other: Arbol is home to Spain's leading TV fiction producer, Globo Media, while Capa Barcelone specialises in documentaries and current events programming.

Alongside Globo Media, Arbol encompasses a range of companies dedicated to talent and events management, product placement and market surveys. Arbol also owns 25% of TV producer Promofilm Argentina. The company posted after-tax profits in 1999 of $9.6m (PTS1,680m).

Arbol is associated with Spanish broadcaster Telecinco through mutual shareholder Grupo Correo. In June, Arbol joined with Telecinco, Antena 3, Via Digital and Quiero TV to create thematic channel The Fiction Factory (FDF), which draws from the five partners' TV productions and acquisitions.