A gossip magazine owner and former employee of Silvio Berlusconi has become the owner of Italian national newspaper Corriere della Sera in the latest shake up of the country’s media market.
Urbano Cairo, a self made entrepreneur behind Cairo Communication and publisher of top-selling national gossip weeklies DiPiu and Diva, gained 48.8 per cent of shares tendered in a €1bn battle for RCS Mediagroup, Corriere della Sera’s loss making owner.
Mr Cairo has identified about €26m of merger cost savings and promised to drive up revenues at a group that also includes Gazzetta dello Sport and Spain’s El Mundo. Last year, the group made a €175m loss on sales of about €1bn. Equita advised on the deal.
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