Next Digital walks back its notice about ceasing operations, as publisher of defunct Apple Daily says sorry for misleading staff

Next Digital, publisher of Apple Daily which printed its final edition last week, says it is still operating

The company had obtained HK$33 million in government grant last summer to help pay employee wages amid the Covid-19 pandemic

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Apple Daily staff prepare for the last issue of the newspaper at its headquarters in Tseung Kwan O, on June 23, 2021. Photo: Dickson Lee

Published: 8:28pm, 2 Jul 2021Updated: 8:46pm, 2 Jul 2021

Next Digital, which stopped publishing its flagship newspaper Apple Daily last week, has reversed its announcement to cease operations just two days after telling staff that it would shut down on July 1.

The troubled media company apologised to employees for the “wrong message” and said that it was still operating while it makes “personnel arrangements”, according to a Bloomberg report, which cited an internal memo.

“Regarding the email dated on June 30 mentioning that the group would cease operations, the department hereby clarified that the group is not ceasing operations, but making personnel arrangements,” the memo said.

Representatives from Next Digital were not immediately available for comment on Friday.

Workers wave outside the headquarters of the Apple Daily newspaper and its publisher Next Digital in Hong Kong, after publishing its last edition. Photo: Bloomberg

It was not immediately clear if Next Digital, founded by the now-jailed businessman and activist Jimmy Lai Chee-ying who is awaiting trial on charges relating to alleged collusion with a foreign country, owed outstanding wages to its employees.