Independent News & Media Regulatory News (INM)

18 Jan 2008 07:01

Independent News & Media PLC18 January 2008 INM acquires Clear Channel's African Outdoor Interests for €86.6 million* Ticker: (Bloomberg) INM ID/ INM LN and (Reuters) INME.I/ INME.L Dublin/ London, 17th January 2008: Independent News & Media ('INM') todayannounced that it has agreed with Clear Channel Outdoor ('CCO') to acquire CCO's50% interest in Clear Channel Independent ('CCI') - Africa's largest outdooradvertising company, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. INM has owned CCI as ajoint venture with CCO since 2001, and this transaction simplifies and takesINM's ownership interest to 100%. The consideration for this acquisition will be satisfied by the issue of 39million ordinary shares in INM at the share price at completion. Based ontoday's closing price* this values the transaction at €86.6 million. Thetransaction is subject to customary South African Regulatory approval, and isexpected to complete shortly. CCI is the largest and fastest-growing outdoor advertising company in SouthAfrica - which will host the 2010 FIFA World Cup - and has major operations inAngola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland,Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. CCI has forecast 2008 EBITDA of c.SAR170m (c. €16.6m) - which represents a growth rate of well over 20% on 2007,with continued growth expected in the run up to 2010. The transaction isexpected to be earnings accretive for INM. Existing management within thebusinesses being acquired are expected to remain in place. Sir Anthony O'Reilly, INM Group Chief Executive said, "Our strong confidence in,and investment in, media in South Africa - which originally dates back to 1994 -has delivered annual compound growth in profits in excess of 19% and has createdenormous value for all of our shareholders. "This consolidation of our leading outdoor interests throughout Africa is timelyand represents a furtherance of your Group's clear and successful strategy. Thisis even more relevant with this acquisition, when one considers that outdooradvertising continues to be one of the fastest growing media sectors globallyand this acquisition further expands and strengthens your Group's interest inthis vibrant sector." * Based on INM's closing share price of €2.22 on 17th January 2008 Ends 17th January 2008 Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Some statements in this announcement are forward-looking. They represent ourexpectations for our business, and involve risks and uncertainties. We havebased these forward-looking statements on our current expectations andprojections about future events. We believe that our expectations andassumptions with respect to these forward-looking statements are reasonable.However, because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and otherfactors, which are in some cases beyond our control, our actual results orperformance, may differ materially from those expressed or implied by suchforward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as ofthe date of this document and no obligation is undertaken, save as required bylaw or by the Listing Rules of the Irish Stock Exchange and/or the UK ListingAuthority to reflect new information, future events or otherwise. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gavin O'Reilly Chief Operating Officer +353 1 466 3200Donal Buggy Chief Financial Officer +353 1 466 3200 MEDIAPat Walsh Rory Godson Paul KearyMurray Consultants (Dublin) Powerscourt Media (London) Financial Dynamics (New York)Tel: +353 1 498 0300 Tel: +44 207 250 1446 Tel: +1 212 850 5600 INVESTORS AND ANALYSTS Mark Kenny/ Jonathan NeilanK Capital Source (Dublin)Tel: +353 1 631 5500Email: INM@kcapitalsource.com CORPORATE PROFILE Independent News & Media PLC ('INM') is a leading international newspaper andcommunications group, with its main interests in Australia, India, Ireland, NewZealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom. Spanning four continents, 10 majormarkets and 21 individual countries, INM has market-leading newspaper positionsin Australia (regional), India, Ireland, New Zealand and South Africa. In theUnited Kingdom, it publishes the flagship national title, The Independent, aswell as being the largest newspaper group in Northern Ireland. Across these regions, the Group publishes over 180 newspaper and magazinetitles, delivering a combined weekly circulation of over 31 million copies witha weekly audience of over 100 million consumers and includes the world's largestread newspaper, Dainik Jagran, in India. The Group has established a strong andgrowing online presence, with over 100 editorial and classified sites. INM is the largest radio operator - over 130 stations and an audience of almostsix million people - and outdoor advertising operator in Africa and Australasiaand also has leading outdoor advertising positions in Hong Kong, Malaysia,India, Indonesia. The Group has grown consistently over the last 15 years by building ageographically unique and diverse portfolio of market leading brands, and todaymanages gross assets of €4.1 billion and revenues of €1.8 billion. Further information is available on the Group's website www.inmplc.com. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange