Edition number two is about to change hands. The French media giant Vivendi announced on Monday that it had obtained a promise to purchase from the holding company of Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky for all of its subsidiary Editis. So far the two groups were “in exclusive negotiations”. They announced this new step, subject to obtaining regulatory authorizations at European level, in separate press releases.
Vincent Bolloré, controlling shareholder of Vivendi, had resolved in March to sell 100% of the publishing group to Daniel Kretinsky in order to be able to seize his French rival Hachette, a subsidiary of Lagardère, much stronger internationally than ‘Editis. Kretinsky’s holding company, IMI, a 100% subsidiary of the Czech press group CMI, “undertook, by means of a unilateral promise to purchase, to acquire from Vivendi 100% of Editis, one of French publishing leaders,” she said in a press release.
“Continue to promote Editis”
Vivendi for its part announced the operation, concluded on Sunday, while revealing its turnover for the first quarter (up 3.3%, to 2.29 billion euros). Daniel Kretinsky will have “the means and the ambition to continue to promote Editis”, commented the chairman of the management board Arnaud de Puyfontaine during the general assembly of Vivendi, which was held Monday in Paris.
“The acquisition of Editis reinforces CMI’s development strategy in the content industry while respecting the dimension of cultural exception specific to these activities”, specifies IMI in its press release. The Czech billionaire is also the owner of several French media (Elle, France Dimanche, Ici Paris, Marianne…) and shareholder of Fnac. CMI France is the second magazine publisher in France in terms of circulation.