O'Reilly makes renewed bid for Australian group

Australian media conglomerate APN News & Media Ltd said today it had received a renewed takeover bid from a buyout consortium led by Irish billionaire Tony O’Reilly’s Independent News & Media.

The Australian media company, which publishes more than 100 daily and non-daily newspapers in Australia and New Zealand, confirmed to the Australian Stock Exchange that it had received a 6.05 Australian dollar (€3.75) a share offer from the consortium, which also includes private equity firms Providence Equity and Carlyle Group.

The proposal, the first in the sector for 2007, follows a multi-billion-dollar buyout spree late last year ahead of changes to Australia’s 20-year old media ownership laws.

“The proposal will now be considered by the committee, which will decide whether it is in the best interests of all shareholders, and make a recommendation as quickly as possible,” said Ted Harris, chairman of the independent subcommittee of the APN board.

Independent News and Providence walked away from a £2.47 (€3.73) a share offer for APN in November after failing to meet a self-imposed deadline.

O’Reilly, who owns The Independent newspaper, already owns around 42% of Sydney-based APN, which operates radio stations and outdoor advertising sites and publishes newspapers in Australia and New Zealand, including the New Zealand Herald.