AMN / New Delhi
HT Media Ltd, the publisher of Hindustan Times and Mint newspapers, said its radio arm has acquired a 51% stake in Next Mediaworks Ltd. Next Mediaworks, through its subsidiary Next Radio Ltd, operates stations across major metros under the Radio One brand, including some in the English language.
HT Media said on 18 April that the acquisition of Radio One would make it the strongest radio company in the fast-growing metro markets. Alongside its current metro strength of eight stations, HT Media will not only add an additional station each to its top five metros but also the key metro market of Pune to its network.
“This acquisition aims to provide the widest array of content, music and advertising options for our listeners and advertisers. Needless to mention, the combined setup will provide growth opportunities for the talented employees on both sides. The company is now detailing out the synergies of operations both at the front and the back end,” said Harshad Jain, CEO (radio and entertainment) of HT Media, who will lead all three brands.
HT Media owns the popular Hindi radio channels Fever FM and Radio Nasha, with a dominant presence in the metros—two stations each in Delhi and Mumbai and one each in Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad. Next Radio operates seven stations of Radio One across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Pune and Ahmedabad.
Fever FM and Radio Nasha are leaders in the Hindi contemporary hit radio (CHR) and retro radio space, respectively. Radio One operates three stations in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru that play English music and four—in Kolkata, Chennai, Pune and Ahmedabad—that play Bollywood music.
With a strong focus on top cities including Pune, Jain said they were set to become a dominant metro-centric media company. “We are looking to have the lion’s share in listenership and revenues,” he added.
The deal will enable HT Media to have a much larger combined play in the top metro markets, apart from comprehensive coverage of the key markets of Uttar Pradesh.