Independent News and Media calls for media debate

Independent News and Media — of which Denis O’Brien owns a significant stake — said it wants “urgently” to spark a debate over ownership and consolidation of newspapers and broadcasters in Ireland, claiming “unhelpful” regulatory conditions were placed this year on its now aborted bid to take over regional publisher Celtic Media.

INM said “final conditions” made by the Broadcast Authority of Ireland “were unhelpful in terms of the overall viability of the transaction”.

Its statement came as the Government made public a range of documents which detailed the regulatory oversight of INM’s bid for Celtic Media, publisher of The Anglo-Celt, Meath Chronicle, Connaught Telegraph, and other regional titles. The media firm had dropped its proposed purchase of Celtic Media after Minister Denis Naughten’s Department of Communications submitted the INM bid to a so-called phase 1 assessment. Subsequently, Mr Naughten put the bid to a phase 2 examination by the BAI.