Bennett, Coleman to form JV with Rajasthan Patrika
To enter Rajasthan, Bennett, Coleman & Co is setting up a joint venture company with the Jaipur-based Rajasthan Patrika, the Kotharis-owned newspaper company that publishes the leading Hindi daily Rajasthan Patrika in the state.
Though the details of the joint venture are not available, media industry sources said the new company will print, market and distribute The Times of india in Rajasthan. Though newspaper readers in Rajasthan prefer to read Hindi dailies, The Times of india hopes to create a market for its English brand by riding piggyback on ‘Rajasthan Patrika’s’ distribution reach.
in turn, media experts said, ‘Rajasthan Patrika’ will gain from the combined advertising sales that Bennett, Coleman will do for both The Times of india and Rajasthan Patrika. Bennett, Coleman’s Executive Director Ravi Dhariwal, however, refused to comment on the deal with ‘Rajasthan Patrika’. “i do not want to comment on speculation. When there is something, we will announce it,” he said.
When it is announced officially, it will be Bennett, Coleman’s fourth such deal with a regional newspaper in the last six months. in July 2006, Bennett, Coleman & CO had acquired a 100 per cent stake in Vijayanand Printers that owned the Kannada daily ‘Vijay Karnataka’ and English newspaper ‘Vijay Times’. in November 2006, the company had announced picking up a 14 per cent stake in the Guajarati paper Sandesh. Under the Business Cooperation and Arrangement Agreement, the two papers collaborate on printing, distribution and advertising sales. Earlier this month, the company picked up a 6.65 per cent stake in Mumbai’s Mid Day Multimedia for a sum of Rs 21.11 crore. The company runs the popular afternoon daily Mid Day in Mumbai and Bangalore.
Though the details of the joint venture are not available, media industry sources said the new company will print, market and distribute The Times of india in Rajasthan. Though newspaper readers in Rajasthan prefer to read Hindi dailies, The Times of india hopes to create a market for its English brand by riding piggyback on ‘Rajasthan Patrika’s’ distribution reach.
in turn, media experts said, ‘Rajasthan Patrika’ will gain from the combined advertising sales that Bennett, Coleman will do for both The Times of india and Rajasthan Patrika. Bennett, Coleman’s Executive Director Ravi Dhariwal, however, refused to comment on the deal with ‘Rajasthan Patrika’. “i do not want to comment on speculation. When there is something, we will announce it,” he said.
When it is announced officially, it will be Bennett, Coleman’s fourth such deal with a regional newspaper in the last six months. in July 2006, Bennett, Coleman & CO had acquired a 100 per cent stake in Vijayanand Printers that owned the Kannada daily ‘Vijay Karnataka’ and English newspaper ‘Vijay Times’. in November 2006, the company had announced picking up a 14 per cent stake in the Guajarati paper Sandesh. Under the Business Cooperation and Arrangement Agreement, the two papers collaborate on printing, distribution and advertising sales. Earlier this month, the company picked up a 6.65 per cent stake in Mumbai’s Mid Day Multimedia for a sum of Rs 21.11 crore. The company runs the popular afternoon daily Mid Day in Mumbai and Bangalore.
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