Monday 08 July 2019 3:34 pm

JPI Media in talks to sell i newspaper and regional titles

BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 21: Newsagent Suki Walker sorts out the orders before her team delivers copies of newspapers including the latest edition of the weekly Barnsley Chronicle to readers, on September 21, 2018 in Barnsley, England. In her family for 170 years, she is the fourth generation in her family to run "Walkers Newsagents". Surrounded by a number of smaller villages, the residents of Barnsley have been served by weekly newspaper "The Barnsley Chronicle" for over 160 years. The latest newspaper circulation figures, covering 2017, listed a readership of 19,855 copies per week. Launched in 1858, the Barnsley Chronicle is one of the last privately-owned weekly newspapers in the country, producing each copy in house with their own journalists, design team and full printing press. Owned and operated by the Hewitt family since 1923, it is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in Yorkshire, with profits boosted by off-shoot companies such as military history publishers Pen and Sword and go-kart company Tyke Racing, operating under the Acredula Group. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

The hedge fund owners of the i newspaper and hundreds of regional titles are reportedly in talks to break up the publishing group and sell its assets.

JPI Media, the company formed last year to buy out Johnston Press, has set a deadline of Monday for preliminary offers for papers including The Scotsman and The Yorkshire Post, Sky News reported.

It comes despite reassurances from JPI Media boss David King that the company has not opened a “formal sales process”.

The publishing group has sent information to prospective buyers that compares its titles to The New York Times and contains “optimistic” forecasts about the potential for a new owner to transform the business through a subscription-based model, Sky News reported, citing sources.

JPI Media confirmed it has appointed a financial adviser to “better assess the current and future prospects for the business and its titles”, but declined to comment on a potential sale.

“We believe that our industry is undergoing substantial change and we are not immune from the changing trends in news consumption and rise of digital news alongside the decline in print advertising and circulation,” a spokesperson said.

“Consolidation within the regional media industry is necessary, which is why we are actively exploring a number of options open to us.”

Belgian media group Mediahuis, which recently snapped up Irish newspaper group Independent News & Media, could be mulling an offer, while regional publishing rivals Archant and Newsquest are also potential bidders.

Daily Mail and General Trust, which previously tabled a bid for the i, is less interested in making a formal offer, according to the report.

It comes during a challenging time for publishers, with a steady decline in advertising revenue forcing companies to slash costs by cutting staff and even closing titles.

The consortium of hedge funds behind JPI Media, which includes Goldentree Asset Management and Fidelity, has already cut the firm’s debt by £135m to £85m.

They have also implemented a voluntary redundancy programme and an overhaul of the group’s property portfolio.

But the mooted auction may spark concerns about future jobs cuts and the security of employees’ pensions.

In March the pensions watchdog dropped an investigation into the collapse of Johnston Press after it found “no evidence” to suggest the insolvency was avoidable nor that the administration was planned to avoid a deficit repair contribution charge.

Main image credit: Getty