Tronc Inc. (NASDAQ:$TRNC), owner of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times newspapers, has solidified its position in the United States’ top media market by acquiring the New York Daily News from publishing mogul Mort Zuckerman.
The Details
- Tronc paid $1 in cash plus the assumption of liabilities for the near 100-year-old tabloid newspaper and state-of-the-art printing plant in Jersey City, New Jersey
- Tronc will assume the Daily News’ $26.5 million in pension obligations as well as about $35 million in insurance and workers’ compensation liabilities
- New York Daily News has been coined the “town’s newspaper”, aimed at the working class in the nation’s largest city
What sparked Tronc’s Interest?
Predominantly, Tronc was interested in the News due to its 25 million unique online visitors. Tronc is looking to increase its own digital and online presence, which saw a 55 million monthly unique visitor average in the second quarter.
The News saw a 200,000 daily circulation average and a Sunday circulation of 240,000.
The acquisition came at no surprise to many, as analysts have speculated that New York represented an obvious gap in Tronc’s footprint. What’s more troubling, though, is the newspaper industry’s gloomy outlook on future revenue. The total industry is expected to fall to $23.9 billion in 2021 from a $44.4 billion revenue in 2012 — that is a decline of 28% over a decade.
Future Plans
As of late Monday, Tronc indicated that the company will purchase a 49.9% interest in a joint venture with Zuckerman-related entities that will own the 25-acre parcel of land on which the Daily News’ printing facility in New Jersey is situated. Last week, Tronc also announced that digital media veteran Ross Levinsohn would take over as the company’s chief executive officer and publisher of the Los Angeles Times as part of the restructuring of senior management.
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