Jagran Prakashan to acquire Radio City

Radio City 91.1 FM, India’s first private FM station and one of the leading FM channels in the country, has been bought by Jagran Prakashan Limited.

by Abhinna Shreshtha
Published: Dec 17, 2014 7:09 PM | 2 min read

Radio City 91.1 FM, India’s first private FM station and one of the leading FM channels in the country, has been bought by Jagran Prakashan Limited (JPL), the group known for its publications Dainik Jagran and Mid-Day.

We had first reported rumors that India Value Fund Advisors (IVFA), the majority stakeholders in Radio City were looking to offload 51% stake in the channel back in October.

India Value Fund Advisors to sell 51% stake in Radio City?

In a filing with the BSE, JPL announced that it has acquired Music Broadcast Private Limited (MBPL), which is the owner of Radio City along with a fellow subsidiary that provides activations. The acquisition will primarily be funded from internal accruals and investments, said the filing and is subject to regulatory approvals from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). The total value of the deal has not been revealed.

Radio City is present in 20 stations across 7 states, with a presence in 14 out of 16 advertisement revenue generating markets with a focus on SEC AB audiences. MBPL’s FY14 revenues were Rs 161.8 crores with a growth of 28% in ad revenues and a current operating margin of approx 28%.

The Jagran Group also runs Radio Mantra 91.9 FM, which has presence across cities like Agra, Bareilly, Gorakhpur, Hissar, Jalandhar, Karnal, Ranchi and Varanasi.
“This deal will catapult JPL into a leadership position in the radio industry and enable the company to benefit from the rapid growth in radio advertising. The radio business will complement our print, OOH , activation and digital businesses and enable deeper inroads with advertisers at both national and local level,” said Mahendra Mohan Gupta, CMD of JPL.

JPL had earlier acquired English daily Mid-Day in 2010 and Naiduniya in 2012.

Talking about the announcement, Apurva Purohit, CEO of Radio City 91.1 FM said, “Jagran Prakashan has entered into an agreement to acquire Radio City 91.1 FM, subject to the approval of the ministry of information & broadcasting. This augurs well for all the stake holders. Both Jagran and Radio City have been pioneers and leaders in their respective space and this partnership will help augment the growth aspirations of the brand. We look forward to exciting times ahead.”