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overview
holdings
landmarks
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landmarks
This chronology is indicative only.
It covers -
Context is provided by the broader communications and
media timeline on this site.
antecedents
1863
Wilson & Horton founded in New Zealand
1904 Independent Newspapers founded in Dublin
1936
Tony O'Reilly born
1966 CEO of Irish Dairy Board
1966 Managing Director of Irish Sugar Company
1973 President and Chief Operating Officer of HJ Heinz
food group
beginnings
1973 buys 28% stake in Dublin-based Independent Newspapers,
later renamed Independent News & Media PLC (INM),
for £1m
1979 Chief Executive Officer of Heinz
1986 Independent launched in UK by Andreas Whittam-Smith,
Stephen Glover and Matthew Symonds
1987 O'Reilly becomes Chairman of Heinz
forms APN
1988 buys Provincial Newspapers from Murdoch's
Queensland Newspapers. Group is subsequently renamed Australian
Provincial Newspapers (APN)
1990 Independent on Sunday launched by Whittam-Smith
1991 makes unsuccessful bid for Fairfax
1992 sells 44% of APN
1994 takes stake in Portugal's Lusomundo
1994 buys 35% stake in South African Argus
newspaper group
1995 increases Argus stake to 57%
1995 takes controlling stake in Wilson
& Horton
into the UK
1995 increases stake in UK Independent Newspapers (INM)
1995 with Peter Goulandris and Leonard Reinhardt founds
Lockwood Financial
1997 South African subsidiary Independent Newspapers Holdings
(INHL) sells 42.5% stake in The Sowetan for R62m
1997 INM increases stake in INHL to 70.79%
1997 buys Kentish Times Newspapers
1997 INM acquires Tindle stake
in INM
1997 INM increases direct shareholding in APN from 23%
to 34%
1997 APN buys Australian Posters
1997 transfers 50% of the street furniture business of
Australian Posters to joint venture with More Group
1998 pays £30m for remaining 54% of Independent Newspapers
(the Independent and Independent On Sunday,
buying 7% from PRISA and 46% from
Mirror
1998 increases Argus stake to 75%
1998 increases Wilson & Horton stake to 100%
1998 INM buys UK The Independent and Independent
on Sunday
1999 INHL buys out minority Argus shareholders
1999 APN sells Daily Commercial News
to Informa for $10m
2000 INM buys Belfast Telegraph group for £300m from
Trinity Mirror
restructures W&H and APN
2001 APN buys Wilson & Horton for $1.29bn
2002 interest in Brisbane radio station 4BH sold to DMG
2002 sells 24% stake in Lockwood Financial
2002 INM announces sale of 45 Greater London local newspapers
to Gannett's Newsquest for £60m,
later quashed by UK competition agency
2003 INM sells 19% stake in Lusomundo Media to Cofina
Group for £17m
2003 Greater London local papers acquired by Archant
2005 INM sells its 37% stake in iTouch for €100m
2005 launches Daily Voice in South Africa
2006 Independent News & Media buys 20% of UK online
gaming company Cashcade
2006 Independent News & Media and Providence Equity
Partners make offer (later abandoned) to acquire remaining
60% of APN
2007 APN News & Media Ltd buys remaining 50% of Queensland
newspaper group Toowoomba Newspapers
2008 INM buys remaining 50% in Clear Channel Independent
(african outdoor advertising) from Clear
for £64.7m
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