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Media
News
release archive
2003
2003:
January
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| 03-03 |
29 January 2003 |
GANNETT/SMG
MERGER INQUIRY
Issues
Statement
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1. The Competition Commission has today sent Issues letters
to Gannett and SMG as part of its inquiry into the transfer of The
Herald, the Sunday Herald and the Evening Times from SMG to Gannett.
An issues letter is always sent to main parties before the Competition
Commission has reached any conclusions and is designed to highlight
those matters which have been identified by the investigating group
for further consideration and to ensure nothing has been missed.
This Statement of Issues is being made public to inform all interested
parties should there be any further points they wish to raise with
the Competition Commission about whether any matters operate or
may be expected to operate against the public interest.
2. The Competition Commission is required to report on whether
the proposed transfers may be expected to operate against the public
interest, taking into account all matters which appear in the circumstances
to be relevant, and in particular the need for accurate presentation
of news and free expression of opinion. If the Competition
Commission should find that the transfer might operate against the
public interest, it is required to consider whether any (and, if
so, what) conditions might be attached to any consent to the transfer
to prevent the transfer operating against the public interest.
The following is an outline of the issues relevant to our consideration
of whether the transfer may be expected to operate against the public
interest.
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Effect on competition
3. There are no main areas of overlap between Gannett and
SMG. We may, however, need to consider the extent of competition
to SMG with other UK titles (some with Scottish editions) as well
as Scottish titles within Scotland. We may also wish to consider
whether any extension of the concentration of the four main publishers
in the UK market as a whole from England and Wales into Scotland
gives rise to concern, and whether the transfers of the Herald group
papers to a large national newspaper group not currently in Scotland
could adversely affect competition with smaller newspapers in any
way. On the other hand, we may wish to consider any arguments
that the transfer could be pro-competitive that may be raised with
us.
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Effect of the acquisition on editorial content
4. In previous newspaper merger inquiries, the Competition
Commission has focussed on editorial independence as the key factor
in its assessment of the need for accurate presentation of news
and free expression of opinion. Among the issues we need to
consider are:
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Whether the transfer may affect
the relative influence of central/regional management and title editors
on matters such as:
• The balance between editorial content and advertising;
• Numbers of editorial staff;
• Decision on the type and range of local news stories;
• Decision on editorial stance on pursuing local campaign issues,
or on political issues; and
• The impact of commercial considerations, influence of local
advertisers or readers on such matters. |
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The effect of the transfer on the role and contractual
position of editors, provision for editorial freedom, procedures for
resolving disputes with editors, and hiring and firing of editors; |
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A related issue put to us concerns the effects arising
from the position after the merger that only one paid-for daily title
circulating in Scotland (the Courier) would be in the hands of a Scottish
company based in Scotland. |
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Financial and organisational issues
5. Issues we wish to consider include Gannett’s plans
for developing the titles post merger and their financial prospects,
and the organisational structure intended for the SMG Titles.
Anyone wishing to comment on any of the above points is requested
to so within the next few days, by writing to:
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The Inquiry Secretary (SMG/Gannett)
Competition Commission
New Court
48 Carey Street
London WC2A 2JT
gannsmg@competition-commission.gsi.gov.uk
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| Notes to editors
1. The reference concerning the proposed acquisition by Gannett
UK of the SMG newspapers was made under the Fair Trading Act 1973
(sections 57-62) on 10 December 2002 (see DTI press Notice P/2002/786).
2. Further information can be found on the Commission’s
website http://www.competition-commission.org.uk/inquiries/smg.htm.
3. Inquiries should be directed to: Francis Royle, Press
Officer, tel: 0207 271 0242.
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