Owner of the Daily Mail strikes £500 million deal to buy The Telegraph
The owner of the Daily Mail has struck a £500 million deal to buy the Daily Telegraph, with the aim of securing the future of one of the world's most prestigious media brands.DMGT has signed an exclusivity agreement with RedBird IMI, which had stepped in to buy The Telegraph Media Group, to finalise the terms of the transaction and prepare the necessary regulatory submissions: if approved, the Daily Telegraph would join DMGT's diverse stable which also includes the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday, Metro, The i Paper and New Scientist.DMGT says that the proposed acquisition would give 'much-needed confidence' to Telegraph employees after years of uncertainty about the title's future and enable the group to 'benefit from DMGT's significant resources and experience in transforming media brands in a digital world and growing British brands into global news operations'.If the deal is approved, the Telegraph would maintain its editorial independence.The announcement comes a week after RedBird Capital, the US private equity group led by former Goldman Sachs banker Gerry Cardinale, halted its own attempt to buy the 170-year-old newspaper. The new merger will have to be approved by the UK's regulatory bodies. It would not involve foreign state investment or capital. The owner of the Daily Mail has struck a £500 million deal to buy The Daily Telegraph, with the aim of securing the future of one of the world's most prestigious media brandsIn a statement, DMGT said: 'For more than 100 years, DMGT has prided itself on being a responsible custodian of media assets, which it holds for the long term. The company plans to invest substantially in TMG with the aim of accelerating its international expansion. It will focus particularly on the USA, where the Daily Mail is already successful, with established editorial and commercial operations.'It added: 'DMGT places great emphasis on the editorial independence of its titles, and The Daily Telegraph would remain editorially independent from other titles in the group. The transaction would comply with the UK's Foreign State Influence regime as there will be no foreign state investment or capital in the funding structure. 'DMGT is confident any regulatory processes can be concluded swiftly and positively, as the case for approving the acquisition is compelling.'Today's media landscape is unrecognisable from a decade ago. News publishers have to compete against both vast global online platforms and myriad digital and social media news sources, some of them highly unreliable.'The role of trusted news media has never been more important, and requires news publishers with scale and experience to compete.'DMGT Chairman Lord Rothermere said: 'I have long admired the Daily Telegraph. My family and I have an enduring love of newspapers and for the journalists who make them. 'The Daily Telegraph is Britain's largest and best quality broadsheet newspaper, and I have grown up respecting it. It has a remarkable history and has played a vital role in shaping Britain's national debate over many decades.'Chris Evans is an excellent editor, and we intend to give him the resources to invest in the newsroom. Under our ownership, the Daily Telegraph will become a global brand, just as the Daily Mail has.'A spokesman for RedBird IMI said: 'DMGT and RedBird IMI have worked swiftly to reach the agreement announced today, which will shortly be submitted to the Secretary of State.'
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Owner of the Daily Mail strikes £500 million deal to buy The Daily Telegraph
