The Express Newspaper group has been sold to Northern & Shell, the publishers of various soft porn titles and weekly celebrity magazine OK!. The deal signed is thought to value the group at £125m.
Chairman of Northern & Shell, Richard Desmond said today; “The Express newspaper titles represent a vital part of Britain’s press heritage and we are proud to have their stewardship into the 21st century. We bring a commitment to investment and a wide experience in the management of media. We also value existing assets in terms of people, experience, ideas and drive. Northern and Shell is committed to innovation and to investing whatever it takes. The move into newspapers, after our success in magazines and television, is a logical progression.”
Until the beginning of this week, billionaire businessmen the Hinduja brothers were seen as the front-runners to buy the titles, having joined the Daily Mail and General Trust in taking part in the bidding (see Hindujas And DMGT Go Head-To-Head For Express) some weeks ago. The Hollinger group, a consortium including TV celebrity Chris Evans, interested in the Star and Sunday Sport owner David Sullivan were also suggested as possibilities, but Desmond’s move appears to have taken rivals, especially the Hinduja brothers, by surprise.
Although a management team is expected to move in straight away, Desmond is not thought to want to interfere with the editorial running of the Express group titles, and as Northern & Shell does not currently own any newspapers, there will not be any problems from regulators. Recent ABC figures (see National Newspaper ABC Round-Up – October 2000) revealed that the two Express titles have not been doing well recently, but the Star has been bucking a downward trend amongst the tabloids by adding to its year on year circulation figure.
The new owner says it plans to increase efficiency by shortening lead times, streamlining distribution and rolling out a dynamic programme of marketing initiatives. Northern and Shell joint managing director, Stan Myerson, formerly deputy group advertisement director and assistant to the managing director of Express Newspapers, is to take on advertising sales.
Northern & Shell: 020 7308 5090
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