Former Domain chief executive Antony Catalano and billionaire Alex Waislitz's Thorney Investment Group have bought 170 regional and country newspapers from Nine Entertainment Co for $115 million in cash.
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Nine announced the deal for its Australian Community Media publishing business and printing to the Australian Stock Exchange on Tuesday morning, with the sale to be completed by June 30.
Australian Community Media is the owner of this masthead.
![Former Domain CEO Antony Catalano. Photo: Jesse Marlow . Former Domain CEO Antony Catalano. Photo: Jesse Marlow .](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc6xf1jk885g61bfanhmic.jpg/r0_0_4134_2756_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The sale was for $115 million in cash, with $10 million of this sum to be paid in 12 months time. An additional $10 million in advertising for Nine across the news titles is included in the deal, over three years.
Some of the titles included in the deal are The Canberra Times, The Newcastle Herald, The Examiner, The Border Mail, The Courier and the Illawarra Mercury, and agricultural titles The Land, Queensland Country Life and Stock & Land.
ACM's advertising revenue fell 13 per cent to $121.2 million in the first half of the 2019 financial year, with circulation revenue falling 3 per cent to $35.9 million. This brought total revenue down 8 per cent to $194.1 million.
The deal includes an agreement for the printing of Nine's metropolitan titles to continue and a "short transitional period" of content sharing.
Nine chief executive Hugh Marks said in a statement that the sale of ACM was "aligned with our strategy to exit non-core businesses and to focus on Nine's portfolio of high-growth, digital assets".
"We will retain a commercial relationship with ACM and look forward to continuing to work with the business in areas where there are mutual benefits to both Nine and ACM," he said.
Last week, Mr Catalano said The Canberra Times should be producing its own political coverage and the titles needed someone who would "get in there and invest".
Nine is next expected to move quickly on plans to acquire the remaining shares it doesn't own in radio network Macquarie Media, home to Alan Jones and Ray Hadley on 2GB and Melbourne's 3AW.
- SMH/The Age