BCCL acquires VPL; Chinnen Das appointed president

According to industry sources, the deal between the two groups has been struck for an amount believed to be between Rs 178 crore and Rs 200 crore

Rumours doing the rounds in the industry about BCCL (Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd, also known as the Times Group) acquiring the Bangalore based publishing house, Vijayanand Printer Ltd (VPL), which owns three brands – Kannada dailies ‘Vijay Karnataka’ and ‘Usha Kiran’ and English daily ‘Vijay Times’ – has got official confirmation now.

On June 15, the Times Group announced the appointment of Chinnen Das as president, VPL. Till date, Das was director, Times Response, South.

VPL has been looking for a buyer for a long time. Finally, BCCL managed to strike the deal, which industry gurus say is a win-win situation for both parties.

Although BCCL executives declined to reveal any financial details, industry sources say that BCCL has paid between Rs 178 crore and Rs 200 crore for its new acquisition.

In an exclusive interview with agencyfaqs!, Das says, “This is the first company that BCCL has acquired. This deal clearly indicates BCCL’s serious interest in vernacular publications.”

According to Das, if this strategic deal works in favour of the group, BCCL will look at more such tie-ups and acquisitions in other markets.

The deal is strategically important for the Times Group, keeping the developments in the Karnataka print market in mind. Recently, Mumbai based tabloid ‘Mid-Day’ announced its entry in Bangalore. It is learnt that another English daily, the ‘Deccan Chronicle’, is also planning to launch a Bangalore edition.

As per IRS 2006, ‘The Times of India’ (‘TOI’), with a readership of 7.17 lakhs, is the leading English daily in the state. ‘Vijay Times’ is at number three, with a readership of 4.49 lakhs. While the coming together of these two leading English dailies could be fatal for the number two player, ‘Deccan Herald’, which has a readership of 6.04 lakhs, it can also act as a deterrent for the new players trying to enter the market.

Das feels that this acquisition will seriously dampen the spirits of any adventurous competitor.

It is learnt from sources that ‘Mid-Day’, which was planning to launch its Bangalore edition mid-June, will now hit the stands only by the end of June 2006 or in early July.

Industry experts predict that ‘Deccan Chronicle’, which was supposedly planning a launch by the end of 2006, may now speed up the process.

Das also confirmed to agencyfaqs! that the recently acquired company, VPL, will operate as a separate independent company, but work closely with the parent group.

He says, “My first objective is to ensure smooth and effective integration of both the groups and finally come up with strategic offers for both the readers and advertisers.”

When asked whether Times Response, the division which handles space selling for all Times Group’s print properties, will also be responsible for the advertising sales for these three acquired brands, Das says, “It would be too premature to say anything on that, but as of now, VPL will run as a separate entity, but also work closely with Times Response.”

Regarding any editorial revamping of the three titles, Das says that if any such activity is initiated, it will be done gradually, in phases. “All these dailies have their own loyal readership and any editorial or content change has to be done in a very subtle way and in phases without hurting the sentiment of these loyal readers,” he adds.

Das started his career with the Times Group way back in 1977 as an ad assistant. In between, he did a short stint with advertising, which lasted for less than a year, when he moved to a Chennai based agency called Goldwire.

For the record, Vijayanand Printer Ltd is a part of the transport major Vijayanand Roadlines Ltd.

© 2006 agencyfaqs!