Australia’s largest magazine publisher, German media titan Bauer Media Group, is set to close its Australian distribution business next year.
Australia’s largest magazine publisher, German media titan Bauer Media Group, is set to close its Australian distribution business next year.
Hamburg-based Bauer publishes more than 60 magazines in Australia, selling over 65 million copies each year, including the country’s biggest-selling monthly magazine, The Australian Women’s Weekly, Australia’s number one weekly magazine, Woman’s Day, as well as Dolly, TV Week, Cleo, Cosmopolitan, Australian Gourmet Traveller and Australian House & Garden.
A report in The Australian Financial Review said that Bauer was planning to close its distribution business Network Services Company in early 2016, with rival distributor, PMP’s Gordon & Gotch, to pick up the job.
Bauer Media has so far declined to comment.
Since acquiring ACP Magazines in 2012 for $525 million, Bauer has cut staff and closed several under-performing titles, including Women’s Fitness, Zoo Weekly, Top Gear Australia, Madison and Grazia.
Some Network Services Company staff may be offered jobs with Gordon & Gotch, according to the report, but it’s not yet known whether the move will affect Bauer's New Zealand distribution unit Netlink.
In October, Fairfax Media reported that Bauer was seeking an entry into Australia's $1 billion radio market and had made unsuccessful attempts to buy Lachlan Murdoch's Nova Entertainment. Bauer became Europe's largest radio broadcaster in July by acquiring SBS Discovery Radio.