Emap has sold its French magazine division, to Arnoldo Mondadori
Editore S.p.A., controlled by former Italian prime minister Silvio
Berlusconi’s family for approximately €550 million (c. £380 million).
The
deal is worth considerably less than the £500 million some analysts had
predicted when the publisher announced its intention to sell its
struggling French division in March this year.
Emap will return
£285 million of the proceeds to shareholders, representing over £1 per
share in issue and approximately 75 per cent of the sale proceeds.
The
sale is Mondadori’s first major expansion beyond the Italian market as
it takes on French versions of Closer, FHM and a number of ailing TV
listings titles.
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