Trinity Mirror to focus on national titles
Newspaper group Trinity Mirror said today it planned to sell the Racing Post and regional titles in the British Midlands, London and the south east of England.
The move will enable the group to better focus on its remaining national newspaper titles, such as the Daily and Sunday Mirror, its digital operations and key regional titles in Scotland, northern England and Wales.
While conducting the strategic review, which began in the summer, the company said it rejected a takeover approach for its nationals business.
The review also found that the separation of the regional and national businesses would adversely impact shareholder value.
Following a similar review in 2003, Trinity Mirror decided to divest itself of its newspaper division in Northern Ireland and three titles in Donegal.
Now, it has opted to rationalise its portfolio of titles further and improve the performance of the remaining businesses through investment in technology.
Trinity Mirror pointed out that its titles covering northern England, Scotland and Wales held leading positions in their markets. The portfolio includes the Liverpool Echo, the Welsh Daily Post and the Newcastle Chronicle.
While valuable assets, Trinity said the group’s regionals businesses in the British midlands, London and the south east of England did not offer the same opportunities for the group and were likely to be more attractive to other owners.
The estate includes the South London Press and the Coventry Telegraph.
The review also concluded that the sports division, principally the Racing Post, had minimal overlap in terms of readership, advertising base or editorial content with the group’s other titles.
It said it would look to safeguard the Racing Post brand as part of any deal.
