To the point: Review
Before the summer break, here’s a brief, incomplete look back at the past first half of the year January: New owners. Radio Basel becomes Energy Basel. Radio Basel changes ownership—and with it, its name.
The previous sole owner of the Radio Basel Group, Karlheinz Kögel, has brought Ringier and NRJ Group Paris on board.
February: Advertiser of the Year. The 2012 Advertiser of the Year is Urs Schneider. The owner of the Mediaschneider media agency was able to accept the trophy named Egon, designed by Swiss artist Max Grüter, at Zurich's Lake Side. It was a clear victory: 31 percent of all votes went to Urs Schneider.
March: Strong result 1. AZ Medien set an astonishing pace for the industry last year. Financially, the company ended last year with a very good result. The profit of 14.9 million Swiss francs was more than quadrupled within one year. Sales increased by 4.4 million francs to 238.8 million.
April: Strong result 2. In 2011, the Tamedia media group generated the best annual result in the company's history. On balance, Tamedia earned CHF 178.8 million, 61.4 percent more than in the previous year. Weak result. The Ringier media company had a difficult year in 2011. The company closed with lower sales and less profit than in the previous year. At 1.147 billion Swiss francs, sales fell 9 percent short of the previous year's result.
May: Discontinued. As of the beginning of June, the Tages-Anzeiger no longer obtains local news from the regional newspapers Zürcher Oberländer, Zürcher Unterländer and Zürichsee-Zeitung. At the same time, it discontinued the four regional split editions. Decline. The Basler Zeitung Medien recorded a slight decline in sales last year. This still amounted to 203.8 million Swiss francs, 3 million Swiss francs less than in the previous year. The company reports a balanced operating result.
June: Young Aunt. A new era begins for the NZZ: In the future, all content will be available digitally and via all common end devices. The centerpiece is the redesigned website. In the coming weeks, users will be gradually introduced to the announced paywall.
Pierre C. Meier, Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]
