> http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/bcr3/bcr3_200308_452_1_eng.txt
IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 452, August 13, 2003
MACEDONIA: PRESS TAKEOVER CONCERNS
There's concern the WAZ media acquisitions will create a monopoly in
weak media market.
By Ana Petruseva in Skopje
Macedonian journalists have welcomed the takeover of three major
newspapers by the German media giant WAZ, saying it will give them
greater political independence - but some media analysts warn that the
move could lead to a monopoly.
On July 28, the Essen-based WAZ group bought controlling shares in
Dnevnik, Vest and Utrinski Vestnik, the three dailies with the highest
circulation - jointly estimated at 120,000.
The three titles will be managed and distributed by a new umbrella
company called Media Print Macedonia, as a way of reducing overheads.
The firm is to be headed by Srdjan Kerim, a former Macedonia foreign
minister who was special adviser to the ex-head of the European Union's
Balkans Stability Pact, Bodo Hombach, now a WAZ director.
Although details of the deal were not disclosed, IWPR has learned that
the Germans acquired an 81.9 per cent stake in Dnevnik and 51 per cent
in the other two papers.
WAZ has pledged not to interfere in editorial policy. Hombach recently
told Deutsche Welle radio, "We are the better alternative for
journalists who want to work free of manipulation and influences.... We
have strong partners in Macedonia, and we will leave the editors to do
their job."
Editors and shareholders see the takeover as a positive step that will
raise professional standards and strengthen the media's independence
from political pressure.
Dnevnik, centrist and nationalist in outlook, dominates the print
scene. It has maintained its role as a leading independent news outlet
since it was founded in 1996. At the time, it was the only opposition
to the state-owned media.
Its chief editor, Branko Geroski, says the WAZ deal is good for his
paper. "We were making a profit and we had a high circulation, but we
had to think about the big picture," he told IWPR. "We realised WAZ was
a serious strategic partner and we simply could not say no - we had to
think how we could develop further."
He thinks the profit motive will guarantee editorial freedom, "You have
to work profitably in order to maintain your independence because when
you are struggling for survival you are vulnerable to political
pressure."
Goran Mihajlovski, editor in chief of the tabloid Vest, said German
investment would bring higher quality and lower costs, making the
papers more competitive. "Now we can focus more on the content, we
don't have to worry about ads," he said.
Diplomats are cautiously optimistic that WAZ will help the media become
free of political interference.
"What the Macedonian press badly needs is independent and unbiased
media where journalists report objectively, instead of spreading
confusion and insecurity by reporting rumours," said a western diplomat
who asked not to be named. "Very often we see journalists here taking
up the role of politicians."
The Macedonian media are vulnerable to pressure from politicians, and
most outlets have historically had political affiliations. Successive
governments have been able to exert considerable influence by
pressuring commercial advertisers - the media's major source of income.
Journalists working on the three dailies were reluctant to comment on
the deal. So far no job cuts have been announced as a way of trimming
costs.
Others in the Macedonian media are worried that the German takeover
will skew the small market for newspapers, making it less rather than
more competitive. They fear that WAZ will simply squeeze out weaker
titles by attracting advertising with cheaper rates, and printing and
distributing editions for less money.
"It will no doubt increase both journalistic standards and the media's
professional abilities," said Ljupco Zikov, owner of the economic
weekly Kapital. "However, there is a problem with a monopoly situation
on the publishing market, given that WAZ will hold over 80 per cent of
it."
Aco Kabramov, editor in chief of A1 Television, fears that editorial
standards will ultimately suffer, "I think that this deal will have a
negative affect on the media scene as it will impose an monopoly. No
matter how independent the editorial policy seems, it will not
contribute to professionalism or pluralism... The three newspapers will
be under the same company and that will ultimately lead to a more or
less unified editorial policy."
This IWPR reporter approached WAZ lawyers in Skopje on several
occasions for comment on the aforementioned concerns, but was told that
company representatives were not available for interview.
The government's anti-monopoly committee has yet to issue a view on
whether WAZ's acquisitions are in line with ownership regulations.
Elsewhere in the Balkans, the effect of WAZ's massive investments, some
say, has distorted already weak commercial markets.
In Bulgaria and Croatia, the group has effectively gained control over
large swathes of the print media. Last year, it moved into Serbia,
taking a 50 per cent share in the dominant publishing house that owns
the leading daily Politika.
At present, there is no big player in Macedonia's media, since the
once-powerful publishing house Nova Makedonija - a state-owned monopoly
for nearly 60 years, with several dailies and many periodicals - has
lost much of its influence.
The country's leading dailies Nova Makedonija and Vecer are now
marginalised, with huge debts and circulation falling to below 1,000.
The country currently has a total of eight dailies, six in Macedonian
and two in Albanian.
Klime Babunski of the Institute for Sociological, Political and Legal
Research believes WAZ may go on to make further acquisitions. "This
will not be the end of it," he said. "I don't see why WAZ shouldn't
expand into the weekly market. They have the resources for it, and the
interest."
Ana Petruseva is IWPR's coordinating editor in Skopje.
(...) Balkan Crisis Report is supported by the Department for
International Development, the European Commission, the Swedish
International Development and Cooperation Agency, The Netherlands
Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and other funders. IWPR also acknowledges
general support from the Ford Foundation. For further details on this
project, other information services and media programmes, visit IWPR's
website: www.iwpr.net (...)
IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 452, August 13, 2003
MACEDONIA: PRESS TAKEOVER CONCERNS
There's concern the WAZ media acquisitions will create a monopoly in
weak media market.
By Ana Petruseva in Skopje
Macedonian journalists have welcomed the takeover of three major
newspapers by the German media giant WAZ, saying it will give them
greater political independence - but some media analysts warn that the
move could lead to a monopoly.
On July 28, the Essen-based WAZ group bought controlling shares in
Dnevnik, Vest and Utrinski Vestnik, the three dailies with the highest
circulation - jointly estimated at 120,000.
The three titles will be managed and distributed by a new umbrella
company called Media Print Macedonia, as a way of reducing overheads.
The firm is to be headed by Srdjan Kerim, a former Macedonia foreign
minister who was special adviser to the ex-head of the European Union's
Balkans Stability Pact, Bodo Hombach, now a WAZ director.
Although details of the deal were not disclosed, IWPR has learned that
the Germans acquired an 81.9 per cent stake in Dnevnik and 51 per cent
in the other two papers.
WAZ has pledged not to interfere in editorial policy. Hombach recently
told Deutsche Welle radio, "We are the better alternative for
journalists who want to work free of manipulation and influences.... We
have strong partners in Macedonia, and we will leave the editors to do
their job."
Editors and shareholders see the takeover as a positive step that will
raise professional standards and strengthen the media's independence
from political pressure.
Dnevnik, centrist and nationalist in outlook, dominates the print
scene. It has maintained its role as a leading independent news outlet
since it was founded in 1996. At the time, it was the only opposition
to the state-owned media.
Its chief editor, Branko Geroski, says the WAZ deal is good for his
paper. "We were making a profit and we had a high circulation, but we
had to think about the big picture," he told IWPR. "We realised WAZ was
a serious strategic partner and we simply could not say no - we had to
think how we could develop further."
He thinks the profit motive will guarantee editorial freedom, "You have
to work profitably in order to maintain your independence because when
you are struggling for survival you are vulnerable to political
pressure."
Goran Mihajlovski, editor in chief of the tabloid Vest, said German
investment would bring higher quality and lower costs, making the
papers more competitive. "Now we can focus more on the content, we
don't have to worry about ads," he said.
Diplomats are cautiously optimistic that WAZ will help the media become
free of political interference.
"What the Macedonian press badly needs is independent and unbiased
media where journalists report objectively, instead of spreading
confusion and insecurity by reporting rumours," said a western diplomat
who asked not to be named. "Very often we see journalists here taking
up the role of politicians."
The Macedonian media are vulnerable to pressure from politicians, and
most outlets have historically had political affiliations. Successive
governments have been able to exert considerable influence by
pressuring commercial advertisers - the media's major source of income.
Journalists working on the three dailies were reluctant to comment on
the deal. So far no job cuts have been announced as a way of trimming
costs.
Others in the Macedonian media are worried that the German takeover
will skew the small market for newspapers, making it less rather than
more competitive. They fear that WAZ will simply squeeze out weaker
titles by attracting advertising with cheaper rates, and printing and
distributing editions for less money.
"It will no doubt increase both journalistic standards and the media's
professional abilities," said Ljupco Zikov, owner of the economic
weekly Kapital. "However, there is a problem with a monopoly situation
on the publishing market, given that WAZ will hold over 80 per cent of
it."
Aco Kabramov, editor in chief of A1 Television, fears that editorial
standards will ultimately suffer, "I think that this deal will have a
negative affect on the media scene as it will impose an monopoly. No
matter how independent the editorial policy seems, it will not
contribute to professionalism or pluralism... The three newspapers will
be under the same company and that will ultimately lead to a more or
less unified editorial policy."
This IWPR reporter approached WAZ lawyers in Skopje on several
occasions for comment on the aforementioned concerns, but was told that
company representatives were not available for interview.
The government's anti-monopoly committee has yet to issue a view on
whether WAZ's acquisitions are in line with ownership regulations.
Elsewhere in the Balkans, the effect of WAZ's massive investments, some
say, has distorted already weak commercial markets.
In Bulgaria and Croatia, the group has effectively gained control over
large swathes of the print media. Last year, it moved into Serbia,
taking a 50 per cent share in the dominant publishing house that owns
the leading daily Politika.
At present, there is no big player in Macedonia's media, since the
once-powerful publishing house Nova Makedonija - a state-owned monopoly
for nearly 60 years, with several dailies and many periodicals - has
lost much of its influence.
The country's leading dailies Nova Makedonija and Vecer are now
marginalised, with huge debts and circulation falling to below 1,000.
The country currently has a total of eight dailies, six in Macedonian
and two in Albanian.
Klime Babunski of the Institute for Sociological, Political and Legal
Research believes WAZ may go on to make further acquisitions. "This
will not be the end of it," he said. "I don't see why WAZ shouldn't
expand into the weekly market. They have the resources for it, and the
interest."
Ana Petruseva is IWPR's coordinating editor in Skopje.
(...) Balkan Crisis Report is supported by the Department for
International Development, the European Commission, the Swedish
International Development and Cooperation Agency, The Netherlands
Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and other funders. IWPR also acknowledges
general support from the Ford Foundation. For further details on this
project, other information services and media programmes, visit IWPR's
website: www.iwpr.net (...)