UTV Media to acquire Sport magazine
UTV Media is in pole position to acquire Sport Magazine after ShortList ruled itself out of taking on the title.
UTV executives are due to meet with representatives from Sport magazine’s France-based parent group, Sport Media & Strategie, for the second time in a week to try and come to a deal for the title, according to reports.
Sport Media & Strategie went into administration earlier this month, which prompted the suspension of the two-and-a-half-year-old free UK-based weekly title (see Sport magazine suspends publication).
UTV Media, owner of TalkSport and the Northern Ireland ITV franchise, is expected to offer a nominal fee for Sport, but will take on the magazine’s losses, which are thought to have run up to £500,000 in its last financial year.
If UTV manages to secure a deal with Sport Media & Strategie, reports suggest it would look to reduce these losses by potentially merging TalkSport’s 50-strong sales team with Sport’s smaller commercial operation.
Other cost saving measures are thought to include cross-promoting interviews across the two sports brands, which would also take in the TalkSport digital ezine that launched last summer.
However, sources believe UTV would keep hold of the well thought of Sport brand, rather than rebrand under the TalkSport umbrella.
UTV currently earns the bulk of its revenue through its UK radio division, UTV Radio GB, which includes TalkSport, ad sales house First Radio Sales and several local radio stations.
Greg Miall, managing director of Sport, said: “There are a number of interested parties in the magazine,” but failed to confirm UTV as a front runner.
Speaking at MediaTel’s ‘Future of Consumer Magazines’ seminar in March, Miall said: “It’s not the best market at the moment and profits have gone down during the recession but our vision is to make Sport better and cheaper,” (see Williams: “There is too much choice in the men’s magazine market”).
The latest ABC figures show that Sport has a circulation of more than 317,000 copies, a figure buoyed by a slight period on period rise of almost 1.5% (see ABC Results Jul-Dec 2008:Shortlist shows staying power in men’s lifestyle sector).