The Independent publisher to buy stake in Dainik Jagran

IN Regional Media | 29/12/2004

The publisher of The Independent and the Belfast Telegraph is on the verge of buying a stake in Indiaøs leading Hindi daily Dainik Jagran.

Prasun Sonwalkar in London, Indo-Asian News Service

Dec. 21. The publisher of The Independent and the Belfast Telegraph is on the verge of buying a stake in India`s leading Hindi daily Dainik Jagran.

The publisher, Independent News & Media, is headed by Irish businessman Tony O`Reilly and a deal is expected this week.

O`Reilly has reportedly been in talks for some time with the Gupta family that owns Dainik Jagran and its website jagran.com.

After India liberalised the rules governing ownership of media assets, foreign companies are allowed to own up to 26 percent of an Indian media company.

O`Reilly is said to be keen to buy the maximum amount allowed. The Jagran group, which prints the Dainik Jagran from 25 Indian locations, plans to use funds from O`Reilly to finance further expansion of the daily.

Publisher Pearson, the owner of the Financial Times, has a 14 percent shareholding in India`s Business Standard newspaper.

Earlier this year, Dow Jones, owner of the Wall Street Journal, announced plans to link up with Bennett, Coleman & Co, publishers of The Times of India.

While newspaper readership is in decline in much of the Western world, circulation figures in India are soaring. Industry figures say that during the four years to 2002, sales in India were up 17 percent.

Indo-Asian News Service

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