Two major UK media groups, Emap and Johnston Press, plan to expand further into the Irish market following the sale of Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH) yesterday for £391 million (€588 million).
The purchaser, Emap, which is one of Britain's largest media groups, has decided to retain the Irish radio interests of SRH but has sold off the newspapers to UK regional publisher Johnston Press for £155 million in cash.
Emap now takes ownership of national station Today FM, Dublin station FM 104 and Donegal station Highland Radio. The most significant of the three is Today FM, which represents the main rival to RTÉ in the radio market.
Emap has tried to enter the Irish market before but failed to win several competitions for new licences held by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland.
Among the beneficiaries of the SRH deal is John McColgan, one of the founders of Radio Ireland, the precursor to Today FM.
According to the Today FM accounts, he stands to make a gain of about £1.5 million. This is because he took some SRH shares when SRH bought out Today FM a few years ago.
Another beneficiary in this category is James Donnelly, a Dublin-based wine distributor, who stands to make in excess of £5 million. Today FM chief executive Willie O'Reilly is expected to make a gain of more than £100,000.
Speaking yesterday, Emap chief executive Tom Moloney indicated that the company would not only retain the Irish radio interests but was likely to expand them.
Speaking about the Irish market, he said if the existing SRH managers demonstrated that Ireland had got growth potential, "there is no reason why we shouldn't continue that strategy".
Meanwhile, Johnston Press, the fourth-largest publisher of local and regional newspapers in the UK, now takes over the Irish newspaper interests of SRH. These titles are part of a company called Score Press Ltd. In the financial year to September 30th, 2004, Score Press reported revenues and operating profit of £35.1 million and £11.2 million respectively.
Johnston chief executive Tim Bowdler said the Irish market was an "exciting place with a dynamic economy".
He said he was aware the Leinster Leader Group was up for sale and the company might be interested in making a bid. "It's a little premature at this point, but I wouldn't rule it out," he said.
He added that the company could easily absorb the costs associated with the SRH transaction. He said Johnston had previously done some takeovers worth more than £550 million.
He added that Emap would be able to fund further Irish acquisitions "very comfortably".
Bought & Sold: where the assets are going
To Emap -
Today FM: SRH acquired a 24 per cent stake in March 1997 for just €3.6 million. In 2001, it bought out the whole station for €60 million.
FM 104: In 2003, the station was bought out by SRH for €26 million, plus €4 million in debt. Among the beneficiaries of this sale were Ulick McEvaddy, concert promoter Jim Aitken and managing director at the time, Dermot Hanrahan.
Highland Radio: The only commercial service operating in Co Donegal. The station was bought a few weeks ago for €7 million, with several local business people benefiting.
In Northern Ireland, SRH also owns Downtown Radio/Cool FM in Belfast.
To Johnston Press:
The Kilkenny People: SRH purchased the paper in 2000 for more than €35 million. The main beneficiary was publisher John Kerry Keane.
The Longford Leader: This paper was bought out in February 2002 for €9.1 million. Among the beneficiaries was editor Eugene McGee.
The Leitrim Observer: This paper was acquired in 1998 for the now paltry figure of €1 million. The main beneficiaries were the local Ryan family.
In the Republic, the company also owns the Tipperary Star and the Nationalist and Munster Advertiser.
In Northern Ireland, it owns Morton Newspapers.
It purchased this company in 1995. The titles that make up Morton include: Antrim Times; Ballymena Times; Ballymoney and Moyle Times; Banbridge Leader; Carrick and East Antrim Times; Coleraine Times; Dromore Leader; Larne Times; Londonderry Sentinel; Lurgan Mail; Mid-Ulster Mail; Mid-Ulster Mail (South Derry Edition); Newtonabbey Times; Portadown Times; Roe Valley Sentinel; Tyrone Times; Farm Week; Craigavon Echo; East Antrim Advertiser; Lisburn Echo; Mid-Ulster Echo; North West Echo.
