Jimmy Lai sells Next Media's Taiwan assets for US$600m
Next Media, controlled by Hong Kong mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, agreed to sell its Taiwan print and television businesses to two consortia for US$601 million.
Next Media, controlled by Hong Kong mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, agreed to sell its Taiwan print and television businesses to two consortia for NT$17.5 billion (US$601 million), spokesman Mark Simon said on Wednesday.
Next Media will sell its Taiwan print assets to four investors including Want Want Chinatimes Group President Tsai Shao-Chung, William Wong of the Formosa Plastics Group, Chinatrust Charity Foundation Chairman Jeffrey Koo Jr. and Lung Yen Life Service Corporation Chairman Lee Shih-tsung, Simon said.
Lai, known for criticizing the Chinese government, is exiting most of his Taiwan businesses after battling regulators for licenses and distribution rights.
The investment by Tsai, son of Want Want China Chairman Tsai Eng-meng, may raise regulatory concerns as Lai’s Apple Daily and Tsais’ China Times will have a combined newspaper market share exceeding 45 per cent, according to National Chung Cheng University’s Kuang Chung-Hsiang.
“The deal may have to obtain approval from the fair-trade commission,” Kuang, an assistant professor of communications, said before the annoucement. “The overhang is there.”
Lee Tai-hung, chairman of Taiwan Fire & Marine Insurance, replaces Tsai in the group buying the television assets, Simon said. The pacts were signed at around 11:50pm in Macau on Tuesday, Simon said.