Search/Local.ch: Merger brings Tamedia profits
Joining forces with Swisscom in the acquisition of advertising marketer Publigroupe will bring high extra profits for media group Tamedia. The sale of Publigroupe shares to Swisscom alone will result in a book profit of CHF 20 million.
Even an extraordinary profit in the triple-digit millions will then result from the merger of Search.ch and Local.ch at the end of this year or the beginning of next year, as Tamedia CEO Christoph Tonini explained in a conference call on Friday. The extra profit has its origins in the revaluation of Search.ch.
This will take place before the directory service is brought into a joint venture with Swisscom. A joint venture to merge Search.ch and Local.ch has been agreed between the telecommunications giant and the Zurich-based media group, after both had sought to acquire Publigroupe.
Now, in a first step, Swisscom is buying Publigroupe and thus becoming the sole owner of the directory service Local.ch. With the intention of being able to counter Google's offerings, the directory services of the two companies will then be merged in a second step.
However, the joint venture with Swisscom, in which Tamedia is a junior partner, will also make a profit contribution to the media group in the future. Search.ch alone does not do this at present. (SDA)
