A brief interlude at the bend in the Rhine
Publishers: Since the end of March, Publipresse CEO Otto Meier has no longer served on the board of directors of Basler Zeitung Medien—due to a conflict of interest.
Publishers: Since the end of March, Publipresse CEO Otto Meier has no longer served on the board of directors of Basler Zeitung Medien—due to a conflict of interest.Otto Meier’s stint as a board member at National Zeitung and Basler Nachrichten AG—the official legal name of Basler Zeitung Medien (BZM)—lasted only from April 10, 2006, to March 23, 2007, or less than a year. «I resigned of my own accord because I was increasingly caught in a conflict of interest between my role as a board member of BZM on the one hand and my position as chief operating officer of Publipresse on the other,» explains Meier. And he adds: «It was clear from the start that this wouldn’t be a permanent position, because the dual role is too demanding. It might work when things are going well, but when times get tougher, it becomes difficult.»The atmosphere between BZM and PubliGroupe had indeed become more strained, even before Meier joined the BZM board. This was already evident during the protracted negotiations over the new management contract: they dragged on for a year and a half and were not concluded until February 2006. At least at that time, Meier’s role was still clear: he was negotiating as the head of Publipresse.
Newspaper Rivalry in the Basel Region But shortly after he joined the BZM, the first problem arose: The much-courted Basellandschaftliche Zeitung (bz) did not join the Basler Zeitung (BaZ) but instead joined the Mittelland Zeitung (MZ), allowing the latter to expand into the Basel area.
PubliGroupe CEO Hanspeter Rohner explains the implications for Publicitas as follows: «In the canton of Baselland, the bz decision has created a new market landscape that makes the BaZ and the MZ direct competitors in this market area. As the advertising agency partner for both publishers, Publicitas is tasked with resolving this delicate situation professionally and impartially, in collaboration with both publishers involved.» This required Otto Meier to walk a tightrope. He himself speaks of a «major balancing act that cannot be sustained in the long run,» which is why he ultimately decided to resign, he says.
Meier «absolutely refuses» to accept the notion that his resignation from the BZM could be interpreted as a decision in favor of the Mittelland Zeitung. «It’s more of a matter of principle—namely, that the head of Publipresse should not simultaneously serve on the board of directors of a publishing house under its control,» he says. Publipresse avoids such dual roles whenever possible. Meier explains that he ultimately accepted the dual role at BZM because of the sudden vacancy that arose last year following Fritz Schuhmacher’s unplanned resignation from the BZM board of directors.
The dispute is not over yet. Beat Meyer, CEO of BZM, confirms that Otto Meier resigned of his own accord. However, he hints that BZM did not take kindly to Meier’s «conflict of interest.» In fact, BaZ publisher Matthias Hagemann had already demanded «personnel and structural changes» from P last fall.
«Otto Meier's resignation is certainly related to this,» says Beat Meyer. However, he notes that the issue has not yet been resolved with Otto Meier's resignation, and the dialogue with the P continues. He does not specify which demands remain unresolved.
After all, P has already carried out some reorganizations. For example, the P branch in Liestal, which serves the bz, is no longer part of the P Basel region but now belongs to the P Aarau-Mittelland region (along with the branches in Aarau, Olten, Solothurn, and Grenchen). Furthermore, P Basel and P Aarau-Mittelland are no longer under the same regional management.
Rohner, Meier, and Meyer agree on two points. PubliGroupe’s 37 percent stake in BZM will remain unchanged. And the PubliGroupe CEO, who is also a member of the BZM board of directors, apparently does not face the same conflict of interest as Publipresse CEO Otto Meier. «Mr. Rohner operates at a different level and is not involved in Publicitas’s day-to-day operations,» says Beat Meyer.
The Six-Member Board of Directors of BZM: The Board of Directors of National Zeitung and Basler Nachrichten AG currently consists of the following individuals: Matthias Hagemann, Chairman of the Board of Directors; his cousin Ruth Ludwig-Hagemann; Peter Merian, former CEO of Sarasin Bank; attorney Oscar Battegay; PubliGroupe CEO Hanspeter Rohner; and Beat Meyer as the Board delegate. A successor to Otto Meier as the second PubliGroupe representative has yet to be named and must be elected at the annual general meeting this fall.
Markus Knöpfli
Newspaper Rivalry in the Basel Region But shortly after he joined the BZM, the first problem arose: The much-courted Basellandschaftliche Zeitung (bz) did not join the Basler Zeitung (BaZ) but instead joined the Mittelland Zeitung (MZ), allowing the latter to expand into the Basel area.
PubliGroupe CEO Hanspeter Rohner explains the implications for Publicitas as follows: «In the canton of Baselland, the bz decision has created a new market landscape that makes the BaZ and the MZ direct competitors in this market area. As the advertising agency partner for both publishers, Publicitas is tasked with resolving this delicate situation professionally and impartially, in collaboration with both publishers involved.» This required Otto Meier to walk a tightrope. He himself speaks of a «major balancing act that cannot be sustained in the long run,» which is why he ultimately decided to resign, he says.
Meier «absolutely refuses» to accept the notion that his resignation from the BZM could be interpreted as a decision in favor of the Mittelland Zeitung. «It’s more of a matter of principle—namely, that the head of Publipresse should not simultaneously serve on the board of directors of a publishing house under its control,» he says. Publipresse avoids such dual roles whenever possible. Meier explains that he ultimately accepted the dual role at BZM because of the sudden vacancy that arose last year following Fritz Schuhmacher’s unplanned resignation from the BZM board of directors.
The dispute is not over yet. Beat Meyer, CEO of BZM, confirms that Otto Meier resigned of his own accord. However, he hints that BZM did not take kindly to Meier’s «conflict of interest.» In fact, BaZ publisher Matthias Hagemann had already demanded «personnel and structural changes» from P last fall.
«Otto Meier's resignation is certainly related to this,» says Beat Meyer. However, he notes that the issue has not yet been resolved with Otto Meier's resignation, and the dialogue with the P continues. He does not specify which demands remain unresolved.
After all, P has already carried out some reorganizations. For example, the P branch in Liestal, which serves the bz, is no longer part of the P Basel region but now belongs to the P Aarau-Mittelland region (along with the branches in Aarau, Olten, Solothurn, and Grenchen). Furthermore, P Basel and P Aarau-Mittelland are no longer under the same regional management.
Rohner, Meier, and Meyer agree on two points. PubliGroupe’s 37 percent stake in BZM will remain unchanged. And the PubliGroupe CEO, who is also a member of the BZM board of directors, apparently does not face the same conflict of interest as Publipresse CEO Otto Meier. «Mr. Rohner operates at a different level and is not involved in Publicitas’s day-to-day operations,» says Beat Meyer.
The Six-Member Board of Directors of BZM: The Board of Directors of National Zeitung and Basler Nachrichten AG currently consists of the following individuals: Matthias Hagemann, Chairman of the Board of Directors; his cousin Ruth Ludwig-Hagemann; Peter Merian, former CEO of Sarasin Bank; attorney Oscar Battegay; PubliGroupe CEO Hanspeter Rohner; and Beat Meyer as the Board delegate. A successor to Otto Meier as the second PubliGroupe representative has yet to be named and must be elected at the annual general meeting this fall.
Markus Knöpfli
