by jon » Wed Mar 25, 2015 7:55 am
Postmedia Network Canada Corp gets green light to buy 173 Sun Media publications
By Claire Brownell, Financial Post
March 25, 2015 8:40 AM
The Competition Bureau has decided not to challenge Postmedia Network Canada Corp.’s proposed acquisition of 173 English-language Sun Media publications, paving the way for the creation of Canada’s largest digital news and information source.
In a release Wednesday, the independent law enforcement agency said it concluded the sale is unlikely to substantially lessen competition. It’s a decision that shows how much the media has changed – despite the fact Postmedia and the Sun currently own competing daily newspapers in major Canadian cities like Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton, their fiercest competition for digital advertising dollars has become foreign-owned companies like Google Inc.
In a memo, Postmedia chief executive Paul Godfrey said he plans to complete the transaction in the next few weeks. “Postmedia will then be the strongest newspaper chain in Canada – a newsmedia organization with brands across four platforms ready to take on all-comers,” he said.
Postmedia announced plans to buy the Sun Media newspapers from Quebecor Inc. for $316 million in October. When the proposed acquisition was announced, there were 175 Sun Media brands involved, but one community newspaper has since closed and two publications in Fort McMurray consolidated, Mr. Godfrey said.