Brazil: Globo media group takes Newspaper from close associate/media rival

Grupo Globo SA, Latin America’s largest media conglomerate, has accepted an offer from its associate, Grupo Folha, to purchase 100% of the latter’s shares in ‘Valor Econômico’, one of Brazil’s top-selling financial newspapers. The move, with an as-yet unrevealed price-tag, has been considered a consequence of Brazil’s deepest recession for 8 decades, which has forced many businesses and publishers to shut their doors.

Grupo Globo has clarified that the move would still require approval from the country’s competition regulator, CADE. Both Grupo Globo and Grupo Folha held a 50% share in the specialty newspaper.

Folha, part of the Frías family empire and publishers of the country’s biggest newspaper has tried to bring down costs over the last year by reducing its distribution coverage. Only last week the symbolic Folha do Sao Paulo newspaper faced massive layoffs, adding to an ongoing yearly drop in newspaper circulation across brazil that has led many companies to turn to online content and paywall-protected subscription models.

Full Content: Reuters

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