SCMP Group

The SCMP Group (South China Morning Post) (SEHK: 0583) is a publishing group in Hong Kong.[1]

SCMP publishes the South China Morning Post, a daily English-language newspaper in Hong Kong, and Hong Kong editions of Cosmopolitan, Cosmogirl and Harper's Bazaar. It formerly operated a chain of convenience stores, Daily Stop, at MTR and KCR stations and in shopping malls before selling the stores to 7-Eleven.

History

Ownership

In 1903, SCMP Group Limited was founded.[2]

In November 1971, it was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It was privatised by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation in 1987, and relisted in 1990. In October 1993, Robert Kuok's Kerry Group acquired a 34.9% stake in the SCMP Group from Murdoch's News Corporation. His son, Kuok Khoon Ean, took over as chairman at the end of 1997. The Kerry Group bought a further 30% stake in the publisher for HK$1.1 billion ($142 million) in 2008.[3] In March 2009, in a refinancing exercise, the controlling shareholder sold a 14.4% stake in the publisher to a consortium of banks in exchange for put call options exercisable within 4 years.[4]

Since February 2013, the group's shares have been suspended as the "free float" – proportion in public hands – fell below the 25% threshold set by the HKSE.[3][5] When three banks exercised options requiring Kerry Media to re-acquire their 14% stake in the group upon expiry on 27 February, the free float dropped to 11 percent of the capital.[3][6]

It was announced on 11 December 2015, following weeks of speculation, that Alibaba would acquire the company and all its media assets, and said that editorial independence would be respected.[7]

Subsidiaries and titles

The group's flagship publication is the South China Morning Post. As of December 2011, its subsidiaries included Coastline International Limited, Lyton Investment Limited, Mai Xin Advertising Communications (Beijing) Co., Ltd., Recruitment Consulting Networks Limited, SCMP Magazines Publishing (HK).[8] In October 2013, the group's magazines were regrouped under a new subsidiary, Peak HK Publishing Ltd, with titles that include The Peak, ELLE, ELLE Men, Esquire.[9] Other periodicals published include Chinese versions of Cosmopolitan and Harper's Bazaar[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "583 Profile & Executives - SCMP Group Ltd - Bloomberg". bloomberg.com. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  2. ↑ "SCMP GROUP LTD (583:Hong Kong): Company Description –". Businessweek. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Chen, Lulu Yilun (19 February 2013). "SCMP Plunges as Acquisition Talks Dash Buyout Hopes". bloomberg
  4. ↑ Kerry Media Limited. "Announcement – Sale Of Shares Of SCMP Group Limited By Kerry Media Limited". Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing.
  5. ↑ Perez, Bien (22 August 2014). "SCMP profit buoyed by strong print and online ad sales". South China Morning Post
  6. ↑ Chen, Lulu Yilun (18 February 2013). "SCMP Halts as Publisher Jumps Most in 15 Years: Hong Kong Mover". bloomberg
  7. ↑ https://www.hongkongfp.com/2015/12/11/breaking-jack-mas-alibaba-buys-south-china-morning-post-paywall-to-be-scrapped/
  8. ↑ "SCMP Group Ltd (0583.HK) Company Profile". reuters.com. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  9. ↑ SCMP Group press release 24 Oct 2013. "Hong Kong: SCMP Group to take over publication of The Peak magazine". Publicitas

External links

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