Italy's RCS rules out bidding for Berlusconis' MFE

MILAN (Reuters) - The chief executive of Italian publishing company RCS MediaGroup on Tuesday dismissed speculation about a takeover attempt of top commercial broadcaster MFE-MediaForEurope, controlled by the Berlusconi family.

"Something like that is the last thing that I would have thought of. It's something that is really out of the question," RCS CEO Urbano Cairo told a press conference.

The future of MFE has come into focus after the death of founder Silvio Berlusconi last month. Fininvest, the Berlusconi family holding, is the largest shareholder in MFE.

"I took over RCS because it was possible given that more than 60% of the company was on the market and it had become a target. Mediaset (MFE) isn't," added Cairo, speaking at a presentation of the schedule for his La7 TV channel.

Cairo took over RCS, publisher of daily Corriere della Sera and La Gazzetta dello Sport, in 2016.

He said Italian regulation would prevent MFE from acquiring the smaller RCS but that a reverse takeover attempt would theoretically be possible, adding "I have never thought about it even for a second."

MFE Chief Executive Pier Silvio Berlusconi, the son of the former prime minister, said last week that the family had never discussed selling out of MFE, formerly known as Mediaset, and the company remained committed to expanding its European television business.

(Reporting by Giancarlo Navach, writing by Federica Urso and Keith Weir; editing by Alvise Armellini)