Spanish media company PRISA says it has accepted a 725 million-euro ($1 billion) bid by telecommunications company Telefonica for a controlling stake in leading pay-per-view TV operator Digital Plus.

PRISA, which owns daily El Pais and the Cadena SER radio network, said its board agreed to sell its 56 percent share following the offer from Telefonica SA this week.

Telefonica already owns 22 percent of Digital Plus, which has many of the rights for broadcasting Spanish and European soccer matches.

Promotora de Informaciones S.A., or PRISA, has a debt burden of some 3 billion euros and has been looking to offload several of its operations in recent months.

PRISA's shares dropped 2 percent to 0.4 euros in Madrid on Thursday while Telefonica's rose 0.6 percent to 11.9 euros.