Metro, North and South sold to Germans as Bauer buys ACP

Wednesday 5th September 2012

Metro and North & South, the Auckland-based magazines started in the 1980s, are getting new German owners after Bauer Media Group agreed to buy ACP Magazines from Sydney-based Nine Entertainment for a reported A$500 million.

The sale is expected to close in the next four-to-eight weeks. Both parties agreed to keep the purchase price confidential though Reuters is reporting ACP sold for about A$500 million.

"The sale provides Nine Entertainment with an attractive all cash valuation and ACP with the benefits of being part of a global publisher organisation," Nine Entertainment chief executive David Gyngell said in a statement. "This sale will also allow us to focus on our core television and growing digital and events businesses."

Bauer will also take control of ACP other titles, which include Next, Women's Day, Australian Women's Weekly, Taste, Fashion Quarterly, Cleo and Air New Zealand's inflight magazine KiaOra.

The Germany media company publishes about 400 magazines and 100 online products in 15 countries. North & South and Metro will join a global stable that includes lads mag FHM, Zoo and Mother & Baby.

The impact of the sale on Nine and ACP operations is "expected to be minimal," and Nine will continue to work closely with ACP post-merger on marketing strategists under its cross platform unit, Powered, it said.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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