Is Bauer Media eyeing off a Radio Group here?

The Bauer Media Group is already on our shores and have been since 2012.

They own a number of print titles in Australia, which they bought off Nine Entertainment Co for $525 million a few years back.

Bauer Media is Europe’s largest radio group. They have acquired a mass of stations over the years, most recently the SBS Broadcasting Group with stations in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland. In the UK, Bauer’s brands are well-known, think Absolute Radio with Kerang, Planet Rock, Clyde and Magic to name a few.

According to Fairfax Media today, the German group had made “several” approaches to Illyria investments, the parent company of Nova Entertainment. Fairfax reports that those discussions came to a close in 2014 after being knocked back.

With Bauer Media’s July network acquisitions in Europe, their Global Chief Yvonne Bauer has been quoted in media saying: “Together with print and online, radio is an important business field for the Bauer Media Group.”

With Mitch Fifield confirming the Federal Governments commitment to review media laws at the National Radio Conference, Bauer Media maybe a new player in the radio space here. It’s not first time a European Group has been an owner in Australia.

On the groups Australian ambitions? Fairfax quote local Bauer chief executive David Goodchild saying “the company did not comment on media speculation”.

Meantime the ACCC will announce its decision on October 22 as Foxtel plans to buy 15% stake of Network Ten Holdings. Ten is a company that Lachlan Murdoch also has an 8.5% share in. Lachlan is also co-chairman of Newscorp, which owns half of Foxtel.  ACMA is also examining the deal to see whether it breaches current cross-media laws.