NRJ buys half of Hitradio Z
The speculation about the future owners of Hitradio Z, which is up for sale, is over.
The guesswork surrounding the future owners of Hitradio Z, which is up for sale, is over: neither the management, nor Roger Schawinski, nor anyone else close to the company will be involved. No. The radio owner Goldbach Media is making a big splash: None other than the French radio giant NRJ is buying a 50 percent stake in Hitradio Z. Goldbach CEO Klaus Kappeler told WerbeWoche that it had been agreed not to disclose the purchase price of the stake. He added that the company had found its ideal partner in NRJ. Hitradio Z expects strong synergies from the joint venture. With NRJ, Goldbach Media has also gained a strong big brother in view of Tamedia's rapid advance in the radio market, said Kappeler, adding that personnel changes at Hitradio Z are initially only planned in the Board of Directors, where NRJ will take two of four seats. There will be no fundamental changes to the name or positioning of Hitradio Z.
However, an important argument that Kappeler had put forward a month ago as a reason for the sale of Hitradio Z - as a Swiss-wide radio marketer, you cannot also be the owner of a station - has not been redeemed with the sale of only half of the company. "That's true," says Kappeler, "but the gain in know-how outweighs this disadvantage."
With 300 radio stations in nine countries, NRJ is the largest player in Europe. In Switzerland, NRJ holds a 24 percent stake in Radio Edelweiss and broadcasts into French-speaking Switzerland with the NRJ and Nostalgie stations. There it also operates the marketing company Regie Networks Léman.
NRJ's participation still requires the approval of OFCOM and the Competition Commission (dse).
However, an important argument that Kappeler had put forward a month ago as a reason for the sale of Hitradio Z - as a Swiss-wide radio marketer, you cannot also be the owner of a station - has not been redeemed with the sale of only half of the company. "That's true," says Kappeler, "but the gain in know-how outweighs this disadvantage."
With 300 radio stations in nine countries, NRJ is the largest player in Europe. In Switzerland, NRJ holds a 24 percent stake in Radio Edelweiss and broadcasts into French-speaking Switzerland with the NRJ and Nostalgie stations. There it also operates the marketing company Regie Networks Léman.
NRJ's participation still requires the approval of OFCOM and the Competition Commission (dse).
