Hearst-Marquard launches monthly; Agora's TKP sale
A glamorous affair: Janina Ochojska receives recognition as one of the 10 most influential women in Poland at the launch of MF monthly.
Hearst-Marquard Publishing Polska, which earlier this year cancelled plans to relaunch the Polish edition of Marie Claire, launched women's monthly Madame Figaro (MF) last week.
The Polish version of MF is published under the license of French publisher Societe du Figaro, which has run the magazine as a supplement to its Le Figaro daily since 1980. The magazine's first foreign edition was launched in Portugal in 1988. The Polish edition will be its ninth.
Urszula Dziewit, publishing director at Hearst-Marquard, said the switch from Marie Claire to MF was easy. "Since March this year, we (Hearst-Marquard) have been publishing its Hungarian edition, so we could easily find a way to negotiate with Societe du Figaro and the only problem was to prepare the first issue," she said.
Urszula Imieninska, MF's editor in chief and former editor of the women's fortnightly Viva, said market surveys showed demand for another women's magazine "for intelligent, self-satisfied, well-off women over 30. We address (MF) to women who want to read rather than just look at pictures."
The new title consists of interviews, features, fashion, lifestyle, travel and cuisine. "It must be elegant and interesting," Imieninska said.
The magazine's first issue has 148 pages, a circulation of 130,000 and costs zl. 7. "Its price is quite high, but prices did go up (on the market) and we can't afford to be looked at as a cheaper type of magazine," Dziewit said.
To coincide with the first issue of MF, Hearst-Marquard plans to spend zl. 1 million ($250,000) on a TV and outdoor ad campaign. "We plan to continue the campaign with the next few issues," Dziewit said. She is optimistic MF will find a niche on the market, despite tight competition. Its main competitors will include well-established female magazines such as Twoj Styl, Elle, Cosmopolitan and Gazeta Wyborcza's supplement Wysokie Obcasy.
Insiders said competition in the marketplace could be good news for advertisers. "With the launch of new magazines, readers of the female press will grow and the potential reach of ad campaigns run in such magazines will also expand," said Maciej Ziabrowski, media planner at MediaCom media house. He said new magazines also help to address new target groups, which aren't covered by existing women's magazines. "A slowdown on the ad market doesn't need to impact the women's press. It refers to mass products and mainly affects TV ad sales," Ziabrowski said.
There could also be more publications on the way in the women's press. According to unconfirmed reports, Marie Claire could still be relaunched in the country. The magazine was previously published by MC Press, but folded in December 1999 due to weak sales.
The second generation Marie Claire might be launched by Hachette Filipacchi Polska, publisher of Elle. Hachette Filipacchi earlier this year purchased a 40% stake in the French publisher of Marie Claire. "Having a stake like that, it will be up to (Hachette) to decide who will launch the Polish Marie Claire," Dziewit said. Last week, Hachette-Filipacchi Polska would not comment on the possibility of relaunching the title in Poland. Marie Claire has 24 editions worldwide and 15 million readers.
Media group Agora and its U.S. shareholder, Cox Enterprises, have sold their stakes in Telewizyjna Korporacja Partycypacyjna (TKP), the parent company of Canal+ Polska pay TV and Cyfra+ digital platform, to PolCom Invest.
Agora, a publicly listed company and publisher of the Gazeta Wyborcza daily, sold a 6.18% stake, while Cox sold 5.94%. Agora received E11.5 million for the sale of its shares.
The company's sale of its stake in TKP is consistent with its long-term business strategy, announced at the start of this year, the company said last week. "We're interested in controlling stakes in media companies or in minority positions provided they offer influence on the management and a clear path to a majority stake in the future," said Wanda Rapaczynski, president of Agora's management board. "A 6% stake in TKP doesn't meet that criteria."
Agora's share in TKP dropped from 12.12%, purchased in 1997, to 6.18%, after transferring a 5.94% stake in TKP to Cox on April 11. The shares were transferred to Cox under the Exchangeable Loan Agreement of 1997, described in Agora's prospectus.
As part of the agreement, Cox was granted a loan of more than $16 million for investments in TKP at 6.31% annual interest and has an option to agree to repay it and the accrued interests in the form of TKP's share transfer.
In 1998, the net book value of a 12.12% stake in TKP amounted to zl. 22.5 million ($5.63 million) and Agora made provisions against the investment at zl. 98.5 million ($24.63 million). As of March 2001, Agora had to repay zl. 83.5 million ($20.88 million) to Cox, the company said last week.
CDM Pekao analyst Anna Hess said the sale of TKP's stake was a positive move by Agora. "(Agora) pulled out from a risky business," she said. "While we don't have any insight into the company's financial records, it's possible that its equity might be negative, so the price Agora got was good. The question is whether (Agora) could get more from, for instance, Vivendi, considering the negotiations with United Pan-Europe Communications (about merging Poland's two digital TV platforms)."
France's Vivendi Universal, which controls Canal+ France, is a 33% shareholder in TKP and has recently been in talks with Netherlands-based United Pan-Europe Communications, owner of Wizja TV digital platform, about a possible merger of Wizja and Cyfra+. The move is a result of losses generated by both companies in Poland.
Last week, the Polish Press Agency quoted Vivendi's President Jean-Marie Messier as saying he favored merging the two platforms. Some 51% of PolCom Invest, which after buying stakes from Agora and Cox holds 35.12% in TKP, is held by Lew Rywin, former chief executive officer of Canal+ Polska and owner of Heritage Films, the movie production company. Heritage Films holds the remaining 31.88% of TKP.
"As soon as I heard Agora was interested in selling its stake, I expressed my interest in purchasing it," Rywin said last week. "This time a merger between the two platforms might actually happen, and negotiations between two shareholders is easier than with three or four."
