SCA/Nine merger moves closer

Staff Writer

The ACCC Chairman Rod Sims has cleared the way for Southern Cross Austereo to merge with Channel Nine, should the '75% reach' laws be changed by Parliament.

Speaking to the Australian Financial Review Sims said that he anticipated a rush of merger activity in the media sector should the media ownership laws be relaxed.

He commented; “If the diversity rules change, that unleashes merger activity".

The reforms look to be tabled in federal parliament in the next week or so with it appearing increasingly likely the 'reach' rule will be removed. 

Southern Cross Austereo held a board meeting on Sunday to discuss the potential merger with Nine, and should the laws change, the deal appears all but certain to go ahead.

The other deal that is possible is Seven West Media acquiring Prime Media, which includes the Prime Radio network in Queensland.

Both SCA and Prime have had strong spikes in their shareprices over recent weeks with the market expecting the companies will change hands.

See both 3-monthly charts below;

 

 

 

Comment Form

Your email address will not be published.

Recent comments (0)
Post new comment

Jobs

See all